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Baby seriously injured in circumcision
Meital Yasur-Beit Or
Published: 04.02.07, 23:54
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1. How often does this happen?
Isaac Cohen   (02.05.07)
I don't know to which frequency this type of things happen, but they should be avoided at all cost. I understand the religious importance of this ritual, but such mistakes can significantly impair one's quality of life later. I hope there won't be serious damage.
2. Circumcision, is it not against the will of the creator?
(02.05.07)
3. circumcision
Tim c. Mitchum ,   USA   (02.05.07)
This is a primitive and unnecessary procedure. Let every boy decide for himself if he wants the procedure when he is of age. The parents have no right to mutilate their sons.
4. A baby with hepatitis should never have a brit mila!
Nannette ,   London, UK   (02.05.07)
The parents are guilty of ruining their son's life, because they wanted to have the brit on time and not wait until he recovered from hepatitis. They couldn't find a respectable mohel to perform the operation, so instead found a butcher. They should be ashamed for the crime they committed against their baby!
5. Mama
Danny ,   California + Nahal O   (02.05.07)
Like I have that much to start with !!!!!
6. Against Male Circumcision
Michelle ,   Norfolk, UK   (02.05.07)
I am not with this. No male child of mine will have this done to him. It is for an adult to decide, and then, under no threat of being seen by other men as 'less than jewish' for not having it done. Being a 'bleeder' - it's common, but when a mistake occurs it is a tragedy for the child, and a terrible feeling for the parents to live with. At least the chlid is young enough not to realise that his penis isn't quite 'normal' untl he becomes a man :( When my friend took her little boy back home to the states from UK, they were actually very shocked, because they'd never seen an uncircumcised penis before, but me and all my female friends don't approve - we believe you can be Jewish, and uncircumcised.
7. michelle norfolk UK
marya ,   sacramento, USA   (02.05.07)
"we believe you can be Jewish, and uncircumcised. " If you as a Jewish mother do not have your son circumcised at 8 days you are doing a great injustice to your son. It is the COVENANT bertween Hashem and the Jewish males. Without it - there is no covenant! This type of incident is so rare. There are millions and millions of boys Jewish and not, who have unremarkable (healthy) circumcisions. Beside, all that aside there is the health issue... read about it: http://aolsearch.aol.com/aol/search?encquery=dfbd310f7c2bb1514f1dcb28da1d14cde67d37d1e047730b&invocationType=keyword_rollover&ie=UTF-8
8. Awful story! Poor little guy!
(02.05.07)
9. Circumcision
kareem ,   Cairo, Egypt   (02.05.07)
Muslims also must be circumsized. It's obviously for health reasons, and considered to be purification.
10. All those against circumcision #2 #3 #4 #6 etc...
Insight   (02.05.07)
Go join Hadrian in hell. To women like poster #6 take your progressive Hellenism and stuff it up your $#@%$. This rite is not dangerous and this specific case was an example of ignorant parents not waiting for their baby to recover from his hepatitis. The parents were further stupid for hiring a garbage mohel. What's worse is hellenized Jews like yourself (assuming Michelle you are Jewish) support the position of the flagrant anti-Jew hadrian. Are you a doctor Michelle?? Stop being disgraceful and talking as if you have a medical authority. The Nazi's were masters of pseduo-science to progress whatever anti-Jewish positions they had, and I certainly hope you erred out of ignorance because this kind of pseduo-science was used to justify the butchery of millions. Michelle you and your friends can go enjoy as much-uncircumcised package as you want but don’t be pompous and demand other Jews behave as you do. Your no better than missionaries be they Jewish, Christian or Islamic. I never tell others they should keep kosher or circumcise. I have my beliefs and follow them with the highest confidence. If I were an insecure dog then I’d feel the need to proselytize my beliefs on others like you do. You’re even worse because not only do you proselytize but you also attempt to say why Jews are wrong about their beliefs. Live your own life instead of trying to live ours (people who are too busy telling others how to live are often extremely insecure). The best of this all is that if you respond you’ll act so surprised as to why you got such a strong response (trying to make yourself like the self righteous victim) just like the Romans crying when the Jews fought back against their tyranny (we didn’t win physically against the Romans but because we never bowed down to them we still survive today where they don’t). #2 I never knew you had a direct line with g-d... #3 you’re a Christian no doubt? You really must explain to me what a Christian, a practitioner of a monotheistic faith is doing holding the position of a pagan emperor named Hadrian? Was Jesus circumcised? Certainly he was. If I was a Christian I would be furious that you'd dare defile Jesus (but I'm Jewish so I don't particularly care that your profaning your own beliefs, I just wanted to point out the stupidity of the Christian position against circumcision) #4 I agree the parents are to blame but ease up on the hatred. The parents did not do this maliciously. Stop kicking someone who is on the ground. They'll have the rest of their lives to deal with this. Why does circumcision bother non-Jews so much? I’m circumcised and I don’t complain. The lucky women who get to enjoy me never complain. Only the haters seeing us enjoy life to the fullest hate because they themselves have unfulfilling lives and are miserable and as they say “misery enjoys company”.
11. circumcision
Stephen Jerome ,   Fort Lauderdale, USA   (02.05.07)
Unfortunately, this practice has some very bad effects that we are only now beginning to learn about. We now know that the foreskin contains thousands of sensitive nerves. By circumcising a male, you are permanently depriving him of pleasurable sensations. Will sex be good after circumcisions? Of course. But how much better is it when you still have all of these extra sensations. If a man wishes to get circumcised when he is old enough to make an informed decision, that is fine. But it is horribly unfair to mutilate the penis of a child just for a religious belief which ninety-five percent of Jews do not even believe in.
12. Refuah shlema !
gabriela ben ari ,   jerusalem   (02.05.07)
13. MICHELLE IS NOT A JEW OR A WATERED DOWN DEFORM NOT A JEW
THESE ARE PROOFS ,   DEFORM/CONSERVITISM   (02.05.07)
14. Poor little bugger, That goes for the
Joe ,   Ohio, USA   (02.05.07)
little boy too!
15. to No 11
Abe ,   manchester   (02.05.07)
I hate to break it to you, but i would say the 99% of Jews do believe in circumcision, even if they don't keep anything else, but Bris is the most kept. And out of all the Millions of Brissim done around the world, less than 0.1% have complications.
16. first case i've heard
me ,   israel   (02.05.07)
problems after circumcising a baby are VERY rare. in fact this is the first case i ever heard. and in this case the poor baby was suffering from hepatitis and on top of that the parents hired an amateur to do it. i can only hope the staff at the hospital are extremely good and that this baby wouldn't suffer any permanent damage.
17. To #11
Irv ,   Los Angeles, USA   (02.05.07)
First I doubt if its 95% unless you have concrete evidence that more then 4 million of the US pop of Jews have naysayed the practice, and 2, what do you know what us "a cut above the rest" guys feel or dont? Never stopped to think about it nor was I turned down because of it
18. penis
david ,   jerusalem   (02.05.07)
Shai the paramedic needs to learn about circumcision. there is no such thing as "too much of his penis"...none of the penis is ever cut, only the foreskin refuah shiahmoh baby
19. opinions #11
david ,   jerusalem   (02.05.07)
your knowledge of percentages (95%) is as inacurate as the rest of your message
20. Michelle , Norfolk, UK
harry ,   London & Jerusalem   (02.05.07)
I doubt Michelle that your children will grow up feeling jewish at all, especially with their parents beliefs. A flat mate of mine, a hospital doctor, one day went going back to learn. He is now a Rabbi, he still works as an ER doctor and is one of the most qualified and experienced Mohels - a few years back he was on TV, but you can contact him via Aish London
21. STOP IT !!!!!!!!!!!
adrianus ,   beerotaim   (02.05.07)
for what this awfull barbaric circumcision's ? no one gets better from it ! so for f.ck sake, stop this child abuse !!!!!!!!!!!! for ever.
22. Baby suffers because of parents mistake
tma   (02.05.07)
I agree with no. 4. All mohels visit the baby days prior to the brit, and inquires regarding the baby's health, weight, and checks the baby's coloring. If in doubt that the baby is not totally healthy, including jaundice-free, or if the baby is underweight, mohels will not perform circumcisions. They will periodically visit the family and inquire/check the baby until he is certain that the baby is in perfect health, to ensure a successful circumcision and full, speedy recovery. No mitsva ever takes precedence over the well being of a human being, certainly not a newborn baby. No part of the penis should be cut off, only the foreskin is removed. This is either an unfortunate freak accident or the mohel was inexperienced. I feel that since other mohels refused to perform the circumcision, this mohel is guilty of a crime for having performed it in spite of the baby's health condition, as are the parents. Charges should be pressed against all three parties to the crime. What should have been a joyous occasion, turned into disaster. My prayers for the baby and his family and I hope the doctors will be able to repair the damage done to the baby so he will have a normal life. You need to shop around when looking for a mohel. Get references from happy parents (and boys!!!). Over-zealous parents need to reflect on why it is they feel the need to do to things "meever" what needs to be done. Unless the baby is completely healthy, the brit has to be postponed according to halacha. Parents, stop trying to do "better" by insisting things be done on time. I hope that baby recovers and has a normal, pain free life. There are also people who insist on fasting on yom kippur and other fasts, when according to halacha, they are forbidden to fast, due to health reasons. These people are not the better because of their stubbornness, only stupid.
23. A Bris should be handled only by a qualified Mohel
Esther ,   Ofarim, Israel   (02.05.07)
Both my sons were circumcised properly, by a qualified DOCTOR, at a clinic. I would not entrust my children to a non-professional for any kind of surgical procedure. I hope this poor little boy will be okay. His parents should be charged with negligence and child abuse for using an incompetent Mohel, AND for having the procedure done on a sick baby. This is fanaticism and it needs to be stamped out.
24. Circumcision
Eliesha Elyk ,   Webster, Tx, US   (02.05.07)
To you who rejects others' views as efforts to change you: Other people feel and believe for a lot of reasons - knowledge, empathy, tradition and personal nature. Why do you feel so hostile and defensive when people have other takes on life than you do? They aren't trying to change you, they don't even know you. And Jewish people aren't the only ones that circumcise...back off of people...everyone will be better off.
25. Mohel leaving too soon - rushing off to the next brit?
Bruno   (02.05.07)
When one gives blood, or takes certain medical tests, one should not leave the clinic too soon, just in case one is no feeling well. A mohel should not leave the ceremony for 20 minutes after the Brit to ensure that all's well.
26. Use Your Brains, People.
Terry ,   Eilat, Israel   (02.05.07)
When reading stories like this in the media, use a bit of common sense. How many mistakes do doctors make every day? How many people a day have a bad reaction to a medication? Do we stop seeing doctors? Do we stop taking medication? Of course not. How many circumcisions are there world-wide? I imagine, quite a few. How many go wrong? Almost none. This is only an anecdote with little or no significance so calm down.
27. Duhbadee duh doo deeh dee baa dee.
Aunt Clara ,   Westport, Conn, USA   (02.05.07)
The truth is Uncle Arthur and I were hired to do the circumscision and I forgot the words to the spell again!
28. #1 -from time to time
Dorothy Friend ,   Tel Aviv   (02.05.07)
But even once is too much. But, before you all ask, all of the boys in my family have been circumcised.
29. Brit
Michael ,   Ra'anana, israel   (02.05.07)
The question here is only marginally one of religion, but of the slavish "obedience" of two parents to custom without putting their brains in gear. Judaism specifically grants exemption or postponement for health reasons... you would not circumcise a hemopheliac baby, would you? He would bleed to death... No respectable doctor or mohel should perform circumcision on a baby with hepatitis, so the conclusion is obvious: either the parents hid it from the mohel, or the mohel was unethical. For the rest: there are as many studies "proving" that sex is better after circumcision as there are "proving" it's better uncircumcised... the only people who can possibly know for sure are those who have tried it both ways, so I doubt the accuracy of any of the studies, no matter what their result. What IS important, though, is the recent discovery that circumcision may reduce the chance of contracting HIV... some studies say it reduces the chances by more than 50%... Lastly, for those who insist on allowing "the boy to decide when he comes of age"... adult circumcision is a hudred times worse than having it done as an infant... the first day or two, every erection reopens the wound, increasing the chance for infection and causing excruciating pain... THAT, to my mind, is more inhumane than circumcising an infant.
30.  To #27. Duhbadee duh doo deeh dee baa dee.
Terry Mathis ,   Goulburn Australia   (02.05.07)
You take up way too much precious oxygen on this planet. If you have a point or issue, by all means post it. If not, don't bother. I am not Jewish and yet have been circumcised. There are legitimate sanitary and other medical concerns. Serious ones. Terry Mathis Goulburn NSW Australia
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