Circumcision Follow Up (or why circumcision is not barbaric for Orthodox Jews)

rabbifink — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 17:39:35 +0000

The previous post about the proposed circumcision ban in San Francisco has attracted the attention of some of the “intactivists” who oppose circumcision. (See Is a Ban on Circumcision Constitutional? Probably Not.) Plus there was more on Twitter…

The previous post was about the legality of such a ban. That is an important question.

An important question has been volleyed back to those who want parents to have the choice to circumcise their sons without government interference.

How is it moral to perform elective surgery on a non-consenting child? If the child wants a circumcision later, then they can get it on their own. What right does a parent have to force a circumcision on their innocent child?

It’s a fair question. I have no gripes with the question.

But there is an answer. A return volley.

Orthodox Jews follow the commandments of the Torah (Old Testament) and the Oral Tradition of how to keep those commandments. The Torah commands us to circumcise our sons when they are 8 days old. Nearly every single child born to an Orthodox Jewish family will grow up to be an Orthodox Jew as well. The percentages are very high. Sure, some people venture off, but even those folks are likely to keep some basic traditions like circumcision.

So, the kid is going to grow up to be an Orthodox Jew. The kid is going to be obligated to have a circumcision and he is going to want fulfill that obligation. It almost guaranteed that the kid will want a circumcision.

Turns out, the parents are doing the kid a favor. The kid wants the circumcision. It is not something that the kid might or might not choose later on. It is a fait accompli.

Intactivists need to realize that the circumcision is not a “choice” like favorite sports team. A circumcision is something that the child is required to do and will accept that obligation as they grow older.

In other words, it is not an elective surgery foisted upon an unsuspecting youth who is likely to regret or will even possibly regret the procedure, thus rendering it barbaric. Under those circumstances, it is not barbaric.

(If you are someone who grew up as an Orthodox Jew and will not circumcise your kids or regret that you have been circumcised, please email me or comment below. I am interested for information gathering purposes.)

Too Many Questions

rabbifink — Thu, 28 May 2009 00:27:07 +0000

I read a really interesting column this week.

Whenever I find a convergence of ideas between the Legal field and Torah I get excited.

This time I found a divergence. Not quite as exciting, but very interesting.

The NY Times followed up on a study conducted a few years ago by a 2nd year Georgetown Law School Student.

The study was groundbreaking. It focused on the amount of questions from the Judges to lawyers and its effect on the outcome of cases.

It turns out that there is almost a direct correlation between the number of questions the lawyers are asked and the decision of the Supreme Court. Over a five year period , the party that was asked more questions lost 86% of the time.

That is a lot. Some of it can be attributed to the Justices attempting to find holes in the weaker arguments. Most cases at the Supreme Court level are very gray areas. The side that is weaker will be exposed by more questions, thus the Judges use the questions to poke holes in the less compelling argument.

On the other hand, getting the Judges to ask your opponent more questions will help you win as well.

One reason for this is that the Judges, by asking questions, are attempting to show their colleagues the flaws in the arguments.

In fact a new, more comprehensive study found:

“The more attention justices pay to a side,” said Timothy R. Johnson, who teaches law and political science at the University of Minnesota and is one of the new study’s authors, “the more likely that side is to lose.”

This week is the Jewish holiday of Shavuos. A day where Jews around the world celebrate the giving of the Torah to the world. To this very day , Torah is studied in depth. Its ideas are discussed and argued.

The greatest arena for this study is the Talmud. The Talmud is a collection of legal analysis of Jewish Law. It is also a lot more thant that, but the purpose of the book is to develop a high level understanding of Jewish Law.

I find it very interesting that the Talmud asks tons on questions. It is not a law book. It is a book of questions. Invariably the side of the law with more questions will help the Talmud get closer to the truth. Questions do not indicate weakness. Good questions provoke better answers and better understanding. The side that has better answers emerges as the true path.

This holds true for all of Judaism. We encourage questions. We provoke discussion. We want to get closer to truth. The path to the truth is paved with questions.

When in the Supreme Court, questions prove fatal. In Judaism they are a necessary component to finding the true path.

On this blog I have an “Ask the Rabbi” Section. I encourage questions. If you have any, just click. I will try to answer as quickly and effectively as possible.

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Circumcision Follow Up (or why circumcision is not barbaric for Orthodox Jews)

Too Many Questions