Letter: Catholics should not be defending circumcision

Petrina Fadel from New York State Right to Life Committee, Inc writes:

Catholic Catechism teaching on "Respect for bodily integrity" #2297 states, "Except when performed for strictly therapeutic medical reasons, directly intended amputations, mutilations, and sterilizations performed on innocent persons are against the moral law." The American Heritage Dictionary defines amputate as "To cut off (a part of the body), esp. by surgery," and it defines therapeutic as "Having healing or curative powers." In 1999 the American Academy of Pediatrics described circumcision as "amputation of the foreskin," and the American Medical Association called elective circumcision "non-therapeutic" (Council on Scientific Affairs 1999). Elective circumcisions are directly intended, nontherapeutic amputations of healthy foreskins. As such, they do violate the moral law.

Jesus was circumcised, but not in the manner that is done today.

Catholics should not be defending the genital mutilation of boys or girls. To learn more about Catholic teaching on circumcision, see www.catholicsagainstcircumcision.org

This was in response to: ICN 15 March 2018 - Christians, Jews, Muslims concerned by proposal to ban circumcision in Iceland