Strollerderby : bris

Is Circumcision Wrong?

KeriF — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 00:57:00 GMT

Over at Momversation, the discussion got heated when the topic of snipping came up. One mother went so far as to compare circumcision to female genital mutilation.

When it came time to decide if our son was going to be circumcised, my husband and I definitely went through a lot of soul searching and Googling. We were ripe for argument on this issue--he's from Ireland, and uncircumcised (sorry, honey, TMI!), and I'm Jewish (uncircumcised too, for the record).

I was actually the one who didn't feel very strongly about it and instead was leaning toward the "like father, like son" approach, but it was my husband who insisted on the trim. He recalled the speech the moehl (a.k.a. the snipper) gave at my nephew's bris (a.k.a. the snipping): No matter how religious you are, no matter how secular you may be, all Jewish males are circumcised. We had already decided we were going to raise our kids Jewish, so the bris was in.

I do think it's important for everyone to do their research, though the studies can be contradictory: some say that uncircumcised men are more likely to get certain infections, while other studies say this is B.S. I do know that in most countries, baby boys are not circumcised, and their penises go on to lead very happy lives.

According to the National Hospital Discharge Survey, the rate of circumcision in this country has declined over the past 10 years, from 60.2 percent in 1996 to 56.1 percent in 2006. That means the rationale to circumcise so your son looks like everyone else doesn't hold much water either.

But whether you choose to circumcise or not is a very private matter, and frankly, I think Momversation bully Daphne Brogdon is way out of line.

What do you think?

Photo: Kim Rosen for Time Out New York

Christian Parents Opt for Religious Circumcision . . . Even if It's Jewish

JeanneSager — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 17:27:00 GMT

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but I always thought participating in a religious ceremony was supposed to have something to do with your religion. I know, call me crazy.

Christian parents who have started calling on Jewish mohels to perform their sons' circumcisions apparently don't care that they're not, well, Jewish. They don't even care that it costs a little extra.

Traditionally, Christian parents who have opted to circumcise their little boys have it done in a hospital setting - where it's often covered by a parent's health insurance. Many Jewish parents, however, follow the traditional method of a bris - a ceremonial circumcision performed after the baby has been released from the hospital, in the presence of friends and family. A mohel - a specially trained Jewish circumciser - traditionally does the honors, not only cutting the foreskin but leading the onlookers in a small religious ceremony. The whole thing can cost upwards of $300 to $800 - and that's not including the party the parents' usually throw for their guests.

So why would Christian parents call on a mohel? Philip Sherman, a mohel in the New York City area, told the Houston Chronicle parents would rather have the process done in the comfort of their own homes; they like to make it spiritual. Plus, he claims, the process is much quicker for the baby - he says it's a few seconds for a mohel, half an hour in a hospital (The American Academy of Pediatrics actually calls for anesthetic cream to be applied sixty to ninety minutes before the procedure in a hospital or the use of some other, faster-acting anesthetic. The AAP also suggests a clamp be left on the area for several minutes to stop bleeding).

The mother of a daughter, I never had to make the "to circumcise" or "not to circumcise" decision. I don't have a feeling either way. But where I can accept a Jewish parent's decision to call in a mohel to practice their faith, I find the concept of a Christian parent doing the same slightly bizarre. Even odder? That mohels are adjusting their usual ceremony to make them less Jewish. In the case cited in the Chronicle, he actually handed out a prayer booklet that was appropriate for the largely Presbyterian crowd. Instead of religious, they call it "holistic" circumcision.

Isn't this a bit like calling on a rabbi to perform your Catholic wedding? Maybe I'm just not well-versed enough in the Bible. Is there really any religious meaning to a bris outside of the Jewish faith?

Image: Houston Chronicle

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Brett Singer — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 01:14:00 GMT

This might be more of a Famecrawler thing but I couldn't resist: Christina Aguilera made an appearance on ELLEN, discussing her new son Max and showing off her ample bosoms. The video is worth watching, but here are some highlights:

1. Degeneres makes a comment on how nice the new mom is looking:

Ellen: You look great, one question are you nursing?

Christina: I guess it’s a little obvious.

Ellen: It’s going to be healthy baby boy.

Some bloggers found this to be a weird comment; I thought it was the most interesting thing Ellen said during the entire interview. Yes, Ellen was talking about her chest. And your point is…?

2. Christina's son Max had a bris, which was decorated with penis balloons. Large-size penis balloons, which were…

3. …intended to show that Mr. Aguilera (aka Jordan Bratman) is well-hung (at least I think that's what Christina meant when she said "For our family, we got big ones! There you go baby.")

4. Dang. And you thought Pam Anderson's kids would be popular with the neighborhood boys. Can you say "Stacy's Mom Syndrome"?

5. The Aguilera-Bratmans get big points for naming the kid something normal. Perhaps the days of "Rumer" (Bruce Willis and Demi Moore) and "Seven" (Erykah Badu and Andre "3000" Benjamin) are behind us?

Also: for the gentiles in our audience, penis balloons are not generally part of the bris experience. But hey, different strokes and all that.

Here's the video. Enjoy: