by james n. hall
Self Teaching Publications
West Jordan, Utah
United States of America
copyright © 1997 by James Norman Hall all rights reserved
copyright © 2011 by James Norman Hall all rights reserved
THREADS OF CHANGE INTRODUCED INTO SOCIETY AT LARGE BY CONCISION
Destruction of the design of God is good and justified.
Sacrifice of the innocent is for the greater good.
Associate feelings of destruction at the onset of life.
Associate "taste" of blood at the onset of life.
Natural things should be civilized and cultivated.
Associate the "Pride of the Male" to damage.
The fear of death is marked upon the child in symbolic form.
Victim syndrome of the phyche of the child is started.
First shock
of pain given to the male of the species
to
put the trauma of pain into the psyche of the child.
First pain with anxiety to undermine a sense of security.
Male insensitivity is engendered as first pain is is avoided.
Body is not to be respected in it natural form.
Denial and avoidance is a pattern of behavior.
Infants rights are not clearly defined.
First breaths of life is associated with pain.
Violence at birth.
Unrightous Dominion.
Addendum: Found in the Coptic Gospel of Thomas taken from Eygpt of nearly two thousand years
His disciples said to Him, "Is circumcision beneficial or not? "He said to them, "If it were beneficial, their father would beget them already circumcised from their mother. Rather, the true circumcision in spirit has become completely profitable
GENESIS 1:27 So God created man in his [own] image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
GENESIS 2:25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
Imagine the condition of Adam and Eve before and after the fall. Do you imagine that Adam in paradisiacal glory is circumcised or complete? If you see him whole and complete then this paper will be easy for you to understand: if in your minds eye you can see Adam as a new born child before his God the subject of this paper will be easy to accept. But if you must see Adam in a "circumcised" or concised state as is typical of most men in the United States of America then this paper will be very troubling!
Man is counseled to seek perfection of both the body and the
spirit. Indeed the body is to be viewed as sacred in the eternal
perspective. Yet for most of us the example of a perfect body will
only be found with our first parents in the Garden of Eden. Our first
parents were whole and pure and were not ashamed to stand before God
naked. It would seem only appropriate that to stand before God naked
one would like to be as He was first created. "Circumcision"
or concision is alien to the creation and Man was complete and whole
in the beginning.
Perhaps the doubter will say "circumcision"
is needed in this fallen world. Yet has not all things become new in
Christ and this world is changed with the Good News of the Gospel.
Man becomes new creatures in Christ as our earth is to be changed to
a heaven. Therefore the Good News is that this world in the due time
of the Lord will be restored and refreshed as it was in the Garden of
Eden. The doubter will then say that "circumcision" or
concision will then be discontinued in the Newness of the Earth when
all things will be perfected where nothing is unclean.
Meanwhile in this "fallen world" six out of seven baby boys are NOT altered by some form of painful concision commonly referred to as "circumcision". The truly concerned will say perhaps we need to look at the subject of circumcision and concision again. Maybe something has been overlooked? How can the one in seven be prepared for the conditions to come?
Most concision is done on the infants. Most of these will be in the United States of America and in Israel. The African nations tend to perform "circumcision" upon children. If an adult male has been able to survive the forces to concise, it is most probable he will continue complete the rest of his life. If concision were to be performed forcibly on an adult male without his consent and permission, a violation of human rights and dignity would be claimed! Yet millions of infants must bear a very painful concision with complete helplessness with no consent. The body is sacred and this is so taught to the youth of the Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints; yet some sensitive young men discover later in life that their free agency was abridged and made void in this matter as their body was altered from the original design of God. These same young men have a great difficulty in thinking about this subject clearly due to the "bubble of denial" which attends "circumcision" or concision. The denial syndrome is a greater concern than the physical alteration as it prevents EFFECTIVE thinking and produces AFFECTED thinking!
Perhaps you say God commanded this! But where is your proof? In the Bible? IF so, what do the scriptures really say? Let us read a few scriptures and find out the truth! Let us stand naked before God and see if we will be not ashamed. Let us be prepared for the truth to enlighten our understanding of this dark and hidden subject.
The doctrine in the Book of Mormon forbids infant baptism and that book proclaims "he that supposeth that little children need baptism is in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity; for he hath neither faith, hope, nor charity; wherefore, should he be cut off while in the thought, he must go down to hell". Moroni 8:14. The doctrine in Book of Mormon also forbids the practice of infant circumcision for essentially the same reasons yet the Latter Day Saints silence on this matter is deafening! What is the source of this silence?
When the medical community was not supporting the Word of Wisdom, the Latter Day Saints defied their expert opinion and said that smoking is not good for the body. Then why do some Latter Day Saints not see the scriptures concerning infant concision with the same fervor. The scriptures testify that "the whole need no physician but they that are sick"? (Source to be quoted here after) Perfectly healthy babies undergo a painful alteration of the body. If we are to follow the intentions of the scriptures, then medical concision should be a remedy; not a routine surgical operation elected upon healthy and helpless infant boys? Let us search and research the scriptures for the answers.
What follows is a list of scriptures concerning circumcision and concision along with some hopefully helpful commentary on the less common passages and a discussion of the apparent omissions in the four standard works. Some allusion to historical reference is necessary to shed light on this hidden topic of the circumcision or concision of infants. Since there cannot be found any modern revelation or proclamations concerning infant "circumcision" other than what is in the Four Standard Works, by default the four standard works is accepted as the final judgment on the subject. Therefor let us look again into the BIBLE, BOOK OF MORMON, DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS, PEARL OF GREAT PRICE the Latter Day Saint accepted four standard works.
This paper will begin with the Book of Mormon Chapter Eight.
Moroni 8:8
8 Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them; and the law of circumcision is done away in me.
The whole need no physician. Little baby boys who are just born and are healthy are complete. At one time the American medical doctors were very forceful in advocating neonatal concision. Today the American medical associations do not support the necessity of "circumcision" except in special cases. It can be deduced from this retraction, Doctors did not know the full impact of their influence. If there is some medical benefit to concision then the appeal here to the mormon physician to do research into alternate medical procedures and techniques to enable the Latter Day Saint to fulfill this scripture that we leave the babies whole or that "the children might remain without circumcision" as stated in Section 74 of the Doctrine and Covenants. Let the Physicians enable the Latter Day Saints to keep their children complete and whole so that Moroni has not spoken in vain.
Now a powerful tradition is started that is claimed to be the parents prerogative. We shall see that the parents can be victims of this powerful tradition also. The medical community does not want to exert the same force to stop what they started for fear of the possible law suits that would insue. Albeit there are some very outspoken doctors and nurses now advocating against concision of infants. As will be discovered in the scriptures that follow, the spirit of circumcision will never die, so when the law of circumcision is done away it refers to the practice of "circumcision" or the tradition of concision being done away in Christ. Note here that the phrase 'done away' is not equal to 'fulfilled' but has the meaning that "circumcision" is a tradition of unspecified beginning. There is no revelation defining or explaining the details and purpose of this practice in the eternal perspective. The revelation to Abraham, if it exists is missing and therefore not relevant until known. Also God has not restored this information to us either. The law of Moses was fulfilled in Christ but the law of circumcision is DONE AWAY in Christ. Do you sense the difference?
But some will say that Christ himself was circumcised. Oh yes, this is true but what ignorance is expressed to defy the truth! Why would the Son of God need circumcision but to foretaste the pain that would come on the cross for his own experience and to do away with this tradition by THIS LAST TRUE CIRCUMCISION.
When Christ was circumcised at eight days old he suffered the pains of all the baby boys who ever were circumcised and who will be circumcised. He undoubtedly suffered also the loss of blood perhaps his first blood loss. Considering Who His Father is, perhaps more than blood was lost in this ritual. If Jesus did not need baptism, then he did not need to be circumcised either. Baptism predates Christ and was the true gate to salvation. Circumcision is not the gate to salvation as the contemporary Jew surmised and insisted.
Note:
THE LAW OF CIRCUMCISION IS DONE AWAY IN ME (CHRIST). See Colossians 2:11 and Luke 2: 21. The reason the gospel of Luke is the only direct information on the circumcision of Jesus is because of the extreme importance this knowledge is to the Gentile who needed to know that the baby Jesus was circumcised for all the children that ever were, or ever are, or ever will be. The Jews believe that to die without circumcision was and is damnation. Did not the Son of God suffer also with this ritual. This crucial event liberated all baby ever more. This should be grand news for the Gentiles and to six sevenths of the worlds males to receive this greater understanding through Christ. Perhaps some of the northern countries of Europe who never concise babies would rejoice to receive missionaries who can show them the scriptures to support their values in protecting their babies from the concision tradition.
May it be remembered that the Early Day Saints knew this doctrine well.
Luke 2:21
21 And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
These are the first of many drops of precious blood that Jesus shed in behalf of others! By this event was the circumcision made without hands for all children born to this earth forever. THE LAW OF CIRCUMCISION IS DONE AWAY IN ME. Be assured Christ did not need circumcision except to do away with this tradition of the "fathers". (Colossians 2: 8.) Remember His Father gave Him to have life in Himself.
Note also that Jesus was named BEFORE he was conceived. This tradition of circumcision forbade the naming of children before they were made clean by circumcision. Why give a name to the unclean. Children not circumcised were considered damned by the legalistic Jews.
Now for some contemporary revelation on this subject. It is January 1832 in Hiram, Ohio. Prior to 1870 less than 5.9% of male populace was circumcised. Joseph Smith was most probably not circumcised. Persons born in Rural situations in the early 1800 were most likely complete. But this fact is only to give perspective to the following explanation in what is now known as the 74th section of the Doctrine and Covenants. Apparently the Jews who held to their sacrificial customs considered the young infant unclean. But little children are used by Christ to exemplify our relationship toward God.
(Is it curious that we are left with very little supporting evidence concerning this subject? Meanwhile we languish in ignorance and misinformation which causes the little ones to take the injury as this scripture explains.)
Quoting Doctrine and Covenants Section 74
Doctrine and Covenants 74:1
1 For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband; else were your children unclean, but now are they holy.
DC 74:2-6
2 Now, in the days of the apostles the law of circumcision was had among all the Jews who believed not the gospel of Jesus Christ.
3 And it came to pass that there arose a great contention among the people concerning the law of circumcision, for the unbelieving husband was desirous that his children should be circumcised and become subject to the law of Moses, which law was fulfilled.
4 And it came to pass that the children, being brought up in
subjection to the law of Moses, gave heed to the traditions of their
fathers and believed not the gospel of Christ, wherein they became
unholy. 5 Wherefore, for this cause the apostle wrote unto the
church, giving unto them a commandment, not of the Lord, but of
himself, that a believer should not be united to an unbeliever;
except the law of Moses should be done away among them.
6 That
their children might remain without circumcision; and that the
tradition might be done away, which saith that little children are
unholy; for it was had among the Jews;
So the subject at hand is marrying outside the faith or to be unequally yoke together with unbelievers and the affect this has on children. The unbelieving husband is probably a traditional Jew requiring circumcision and all the tradition that goes along with its significance. See 1 Corinthians 7th Chapter.
Doctrine and Covenants 74:2
2 Now, in the days of the apostles the law of circumcision was had among all the Jews who believed not the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The above scripture states that those who believed in the gospel of Jesus Christ did not practice the letter of the law of circumcision even though they would believe in the spirit of circumcision. Does not that still apply today?
Doctrine and Covenants 74:3
3 And it came to pass that there arose a great contention among the people concerning the law of circumcision, for the unbelieving husband was desirous that his children should be circumcised and become subject to the law of Moses, which law was fulfilled.
What happened to that contention? Have we started keeping the scriptures concerning this subject. Refer to Moroni 8:8. Note the law of Moses is also fulfilled. Incidentally the rite of circumcision was not of Moses but was added due to tradition. Refer to John 7:22 " . . . (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers,) . . .". However it is commonly associated with the law of Moses. The law of Moses and the law of Circumcision are not from the same dispensation. The law of Circumcision seems to have been forced upon Moses IF the scriptures are translated correctly and have not been altered by wicked men for their own purposes. When we get the Brass Plates with a better transcription of the Books of Moses we will be able to detect the meddling of men who have changed the scriptures. See Exodus Chapter Four for the particulars. Note further that the early Christians were very familiar with the impact of Christ's Circumcision so the argument here is not concerning the spirit of circumcision but the practice of the ritual of circumcision. and the conflict between the customs of the Jews and the New Covenant of Christ. They celebrated a day called "Feast of Circumcision".
Doctrine and Covenants 74:4
4 And it came to pass that the children, being brought up in subjection to the law of Moses, gave heed to the traditions of their fathers and believed not the gospel of Christ, wherein they became unholy.
Could living fulfilled law today be as troublesome? Light and truth is lost by wicked traditions. as the following scriptures portray:
Doctrine and Covenants 22:1
1 Behold, I say unto you that all old covenants have I caused to be done away in this thing; and this is a new and an everlasting covenant, even that which was from the beginning.
Note the phrase 'done away' as used here. Now go back to the scripture in Moroni 8:8 and extract the meaning of done away in that verse.
Doctrine and Covenants 22:2
2 Wherefore, although a man should be baptized an hundred times it availeth him nothing, for you cannot enter in at the strait gate by the law of Moses, neither by your dead works.
Concision is dead work done away even though the spirit of circumcision is eternal like Christ is eternal.
Doctrine and Covenants 22:3
3 For it is because of your dead works that I have caused this last covenant and this church to be built up unto me, even as in days of old.
Then Paul's advice concerning circumcision is as valid today EVEN AS IN DAYS OF OLD. Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. Galatians 5:2
Doctrine and Covenants 22:4
4 Wherefore, enter ye in at the gate, as I have commanded, and seek not to counsel your God. Amen.
Doctrine and Covenants 93:39
39 And that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience, from the children of men, and because of the tradition of their fathers.
Could "circumcision" or concision of infants be one of these traditions?
Doctrine and Covenants 93:40
40 But I have commanded you to bring up your children in light and truth.
The truth is that by the circumcision of Christ the law is done away and we only need to teach our children to exercise faith. And the light is found in Colossians 2:11 concerning the LAST CIRCUMCISION inflicted upon Christ.
Colossians 2:11
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
Doctrine and Covenants 74:5
5 Wherefore, for this cause the apostle wrote unto the church, giving unto them a commandment, not of the Lord, but of himself, that a believer should not be united to an unbeliever; except the law of Moses should be done away among them.
See verse 1 of Section 74 for the policy 'not of the Lord' was that the uniting with unbelievers was to be controlled lest the children be brought up in confusion. This apostle was trying to solve a problem.
Doctrine and Covenants 74:6
6 That their children might remain without circumcision; and that the tradition might be done away, which saith that little children are unholy; for it was had among the Jews;
"Remain without circumcision" -- Is this advice good today or what has changed today to cause us to not even think or rethink these things through? Infant boys are born into a baptism of pain. The complete body is dishonored and a piece of that body is aborted before the child can find out the purpose of that body for himself. (What long term affect and effect does this have on the personality of the grown man?)
Circumcision cast a dark shadow on children by supposing before they even get started in life they are unclean until surgery. See the revision that Joseph Smith gave to Genesis 17:11.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Genesis 17:11
11 And I will establish a covenant of circumcision with thee, and it shall be my covenant between me and thee, and to thy seed after thee, in their generations; that thou mayest know forever that children are not accountable before me until they are eight years old.
Pay special attention to the phrase "to thy seed after thee". the word "to" in this phrase means that it connotes less direct involvement than the word "with", if it were to be used in Joseph Smiths translation. This suggest that the vicarious work of Christ would extend the circumcision without hands to the babies for them. It seem to be a suggestion of prophecy of the way God has done for us the things we cannot do for ourselves. At some future date all the peoples of the earth will become Abraham's seed as he is the father of the promises and the covenant of the eternal family. Are all the people of the earth destined to be circumcised under this token of the covenant and are the promises part of this token "to" the promised seed? When one thinks in the global and universal terms "circumcision" becomes a great concern. The restoration of the gospel in the latter days renewed all things. Will all the seed of Abraham be circumcised or will Christ be the circumcision that is the accepting token of the Abrahamic Promises and Covenants?
The original intent of circumcision appears to be to take the stigma off of children considered born unclean, and that babies should be received as pure and whole. Apparently circumcision was started to stop a tradition that evalued little children unclean or tainted. This rite should continue till Christ should finish his work or perhaps till children were evalued properly. Millions of infants have bought respect from their parents by suffering the pains of a dire circumcision themselves. But Christ has suffered for all and children are born pure free from taint or uncleanness -- by the atonements.
Doctrine and Covenants 74:7
7 But little children are holy, being sanctified through the atonement of Jesus Christ; and this is what the scriptures mean.
The last verse is an echo of Moroni 8:8 as set forth in the Book of Mormon.
As only one seventh of the worlds male children are "circumcised" or concised in one fashion or another, when we send our missionaries to the world what example do they give on keeping the commandments to the other six sevenths of the worlds children if they are not "whole" as per Moroni 8:8. Would leaving the babies whole hinder the work of the Lord or does concising the American Mormon missionary cause concern in countries where this form of surgery is seen as unnecessary and a violation of human rights.
Now how did circumcision get started in the first place? Also will circumcision ever stop? It will be shown in the scriptures that the spirit of circumcision will never end and it is an eternal principle pointing to the sacrifice of Christ. But what is important here to reconsider is the practice of circumcision not the principle of circumcision. Will Christ return to find that this tribal ritual is still going strong or will he find that the advice He has placed in the scriptures has ended concision? Do you think that He wants to see some of His followers concised and some complete? He Christ said "except ye are one ye are not mine". Which way will Christ choose to make all one? Will the six sevenths be concised? or Will the one seventh be left complete? What do you think fathers of Israel? Given this then, how this rite started is in itself not important. What really is important is how to stop the practice of this ritual. But to understand the beginnings will be the first steps to its control and cessation, before God stops it in the millennium. First recorded histories and evidence indicates it was first done to humiliate captives of war. The hair of their heads and body was shaved and the males were "circumcised" to indicate their vanquished state. It was a token of servitude and obeisance. Perhaps it was borrowed from these dubious beginnings to represent an obedient and compliant attitude toward duty and their Masters. Also scarifying the body and marking it with tattoos is an ancient practice of the primitive man to mark their tribal identity. So is concision a practice of the primitive man. It was thought also that it liberated the reproductive powers like pruning a tree to cause it to bear larger selected fruit. Actually it interferes with the natural pleasure dynamics of a natural sex act bringing a constant feeling of partially satisfied sex drive. This can cause a state of infidelity to the marriage. This less than natural sex causes an overcompensating drive that resulted in increased sex activity and more children. To Kings who wanted more soldiers this was important to number national defense. Perhaps this overcompensation to satisfy the attenuated sexual feelings is an upside because of the more numerous offspring that results; but, the downside is that there was a greater chance for men to leave the wife of their youth to seek after the younger woman. See Malachi 2:14 "Yet ye say wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant." Is that the covenant of circumcision referred to here? At least it was the token of that covenant as will be soon discovered.
In the United States of America the divorce rate is one of the highest in the world. Also in the United States of America is one of the highest concision rates in the world. Also the greatest amount of (STD) Sexually Transmitted Diseases coexist with universal concision in the United States of America. And why is there such a high abortion rate in American? Is something wrong here? Is there a connection? Has nature been unbalanced!
Starting at the beginning of the beginning of biblical history. A few preliminary and preparatory remarks would put the discussion in perspective. Adams body is in the image of God in very likeness. The human family of Adam is after the likeness of God in very form. Our spirit is in the likeness of our body. When a 'man child' is born into the world he is just like that in the spirit--only now he is in the infant state. Adam and spirits are not concised but are 'whole' or complete. In the millennium the children will not be concised as all the commandments of God are going to be kept and the body will be sacred. As soon as a male dies and goes to the spirit world they are naked with no damage, no scars, no defects, only perfection will exist with the spirit body. There are no concised or surgically altered spirits as spirits are eternal. For the same reason there are no concised resurrected beings. Concision can only existed here in mortality for a few born to this earth in a mortal frame. All this suggest that concision is a temporal condition that will ultimately be restored and remedied with the healing and resurrecting powers of Christ. If we are sent to this earth to be tested and to learn all about our body so we can progress in the worlds to come, why is a part of the body removed? Can we say we have been tested in all things? Can we say that we have learned to take care of our body in its 'whole' and complete state? In the heavens to come those who will be worthy will be fathers and mothers of spirit children; will they be concised in these heavens to come? If not, why do we then do this here when we deprive our descendence of a complete test of life and knowledge of their bodies? Why do we deprive them of their due inheritance? God made us complete. The question is why did He want us to scar the body in this fashion? Can we not learn to do His will without concision?
The preceding has very eternal perspectives far away and above from this life but imagine the following possibility between the originators of the ritual of circumcision of children. If the Jewish nation of Israel and the Arabic nations of the Moslem faith were to stop concision there could be peace between them. Perhaps then the principles of love taught by Christ could be received without the fetters of tradition.
Now without diminishing the rights of the parents, the rights of the infant must be defended in concert with the parents rights to achieve the overall best for both family and village and nation. With this in mind the investigation can begin into the scriptural beginnings and endings of this practice of circumcision which was termed concision by Paul after Christ finished his work and ended circumcision of the flesh.
OLD TESTAMENT SCRIPTURES
GENESIS 17:10
10 This [is] my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.
Notable here and hereafter is the absence of description and procedure as to the exact meaning of the word CIRCUMCISE. In Latin the word means literally "around/about cut". There is no other explanatory or elucidation on the exact form this surgical operation should proceed in the cut. How much should be cut and exactly where to cut other than the general vicinity of the foreskin is not specified in this scripture and later scriptures other than the specification of eight days for the infant. This eight days really signified eight years old for the temporal point of accountability for children.
(Modern Jews term circumcision as BRIS or מילה . ברית מילה means variously “name” “word” “circumcision” “ash” and other meanings. ברית means variously “alliance” “covenant” “pact” “treaty” “confederate” “testament” and other meanings. It has certainly changed through the centuries.) Perhaps it meant originally "open" or “loose” .
Below is the token of the covenant between Noah and the generations that followed. This token was the bow of the rainbow. Apparently circumcision was intended in someway to mimic this token as it was its precursor. Tokens were a means of fixing in memory a covenant and is given to the parties as a memorial of the contract it signifies. The covenant or token of the circumcision (if the scriptures are translated correctly in the bible) is to commemorate the greater covenant that Abraham received of becoming a Father of many nation both in this world and the world hereafter and that his seed would be as the sands of the seas and the stars of the heavens.
Genesis 9:12
12 And God said, This [is] the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that [is] with you, for perpetual generations:
Genesis 9:13
13 I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.
Genesis 9:17
17 And God said unto Noah, This [is] the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that [is] upon the earth.
Genesis 17:11
11 And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Genesis 17:11
11 And I will establish a covenant of circumcision with thee, and it shall be my covenant between me and thee, and to thy seed after thee, in their generations; that thou mayest know forever that children are not accountable before me until they are eight years old.
Revealed in the Joseph Smiths translation of the verse is the purpose of circumcision. It appears to be an atonement or points to an atonement for the purification of children before the Lord. Eight days is symbolic of Eight years as is seen in later quoted verse. Again note the word "to" rather than "with" in the phrase "and to thy seed after thee".
GENESIS 17:12
12 And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which [is] not of thy seed.
Now let us be concerned with the exceptions here. Nothing is specified in the Books of Moses here for dealing with the special situations that come in life such as some babies with birth defects or born without foreskins and also some children in some families are susceptible to bleeding and infection. In Jewish history the exception to circumcision is tolerated. That is if there has been two prior deaths of brothers caused from circumcision then the third son was exempted from this token. Nevertheless nothing in the available scriptures so specify such exception. If circumcision is fatal then the parents of baby boys so susceptible are given no scriptural relief.
The universal requirement of circumcision also prevented the curiosity concerning the uncircumcised to be minimized. The youthful boy circumcised might be alarmed at the difference and question the alteration to his body. If anything is to be learned from circumcision is that the circumcised feel need to circumcise others. The "complete" man would prove the loss.
Note how customary it has become to refer to the whole and complete male as uncircumcised rather than specifying him intact and complete. Let us repeat the last paragraph again with this change.
The universal requirement of circumcision also prevented the curiosity concerning the complete and whole to be minimized. The youthful boy circumcised might be alarmed at the difference and question the alteration to his body. If anything is to be learned from circumcision is that the circumcised feel need to circumcise others. The complete and whole man would prove the loss.
GENESIS 17:13
13 He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
Slaves and Hirelings must be circumcised also to maintain no exceptions. Did these also participate in the Promises? Probably not as Abraham later sent some of his own children away so that they would not interfere with the chosen Isaac's inheritance. Yet this bears up the custom that the ancients use to shave and circumcise the slaves and captives for obeisance.
What is meant here by the word 'everlasting' as the command in Moroni 8:8 seems to puts an end to an everlasting covenant. The circumcision of Christ makes this scripture true. The circumcision of Christ provides a fulfillment of this covenant token for all male children in every age by the description of Paul in Colossians 2:11.
Colossians 2:11
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
GENESIS 17:14
14 And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Genesis 17:15
15 And this shall be my covenant which ye shall keep between me and thee and thy seed after thee; every man-child among you shall be circumcised.
The ancient Jews took this passage to mean that damnation is the result of not being circumcised. Some historical records indicate that infants that died before circumcision were some times circumcised in death as a vicarious work that in some way would give hope to the parents that the infant would be saved. All of this is dependent upon the accuracy of the biblical translation of any passages relating to this rite. There was an obsession with this rite which continued long after the meaning of the covenant that Abraham made with God that this token was intended to memorialize. Note: baptism started with Adam and is the gate to salvation and circumcision is not that gate. Strict measures for the one refusing this rite or token. You would lose the association of your family and village. In Christ time to associate with a Gentile was a great sin and many of the contacts Jesus had with the Gentiles were criticize by the local Jewish leadership. Today if one is not sealed in the temple with a similar token of the Holy Spirit of Promise, a person will be cut off from his family in like manner. This meaning could be the spiritual significant of this passage only by a physical scar difficult to forget.
GENESIS 17:23
23 And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house; and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said unto him.
IF . . . God had said this to Abraham the full pattern of circumcision is not available to us and was either lost or never was? Perhaps in the future when all the lost scriptures have returned a complete rendition of this event and pattern will be understood by all. If it exists or did exist. In the meanwhile the scriptures will be taken at face value and evaluated accordingly.
GENESIS 17:24
24 And Abraham [was] ninety years old and nine, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
Ninety Nine years old may be really the only good time to be circumcised, if circumcision is necessary. At least Abraham lived a very full and healthy life for ninety nine years without this event. Ishmael was born from a father who was not circumcised. Suppose for example that one man in a thousand has problems which would necessitate surgery. Another way to look at this is nine hundred and ninety nine men would have no problem at all. How shall we make our decisions by exception or by the norm. Perhaps we should in an appropriate way "Go ye, therefore, and do the works of Abraham; enter into my law and ye shall be saved" Doctrine and Covenants 132:32.
Also here is the only clue in the scriptures as to the exact procedure and extent. The word "in" is the specification we have. According to history the circumcision that was performed by the ancient Hebrew was called MILAH and it was essentially cutting only the tip of the foreskin off leaving a great amount of the foreskin remaining in some ways in an arc to maybe symbolize the arc of the rainbow of Noah's covenant. Thus we see the phrase "circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin" has meaning. It does not specify circumcise OFF the flesh of his foreskin as it is mimicked today by some of the physicians who advocate concision for so called reasons which vary from year to year and is retracted from year to year. Today the medical profession wants to amputate the foreskin as was done sometime in the year 140 A.D. according to some historians and in one reference in the Bible here quoted.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Genesis 17:31
31 And Abraham was
ninety and nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his
foreskin.
Who circumcised Abraham? Did he do it to himself or was there a local practitioner of this art? Perhaps this did not start then with Abraham and the full story is not told. The Egyptian also circumcised before Abraham? This proves this rite predates the scriptural account of circumcision. Or Abraham circumcised himself.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Genesis 17:32
32 And Ishmael was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Genesis 17:33
33 In the selfsame day Abraham was circumcised, and Ishmael his son; and all the men of his house, which were born in his house, and bought with money of strangers, were also circumcised with him.
Who came to do all this surgery or cutting? Did they do it to themselves? Many questions arise when this subject is seriously researched.
If this is true then it is to be admired that Abraham was circumcised as some tribes of the past required the circumcision for those who were not of noble birth. Also there is an infinite variation to the kind and form of circumcision or scaring from total removal of the foreskin to cuts and mashing of the foreskin to just a decorative cut or a symbolic prick of a needle to symbolize a sacrifice with a drop of blood.
No one know the type of "circumcision" that was done in the original case. Some history shows that split wood was lashed together longitudinally to cause the skin to slough off and die away. Also some tribes cut longitudinally to prevent the fold of the skin. Anyway the forms can be infinite and inventive. One thing is for sure very few men or boys "circumcise" or concise themselves.
Joshua 5:2
2 At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time.
Here is proof positive that circumcision was not done for hygiene reasons as Joshua is here to remedy the lack of compliance with this tradition by introducing an extreme measure of this ritual. Here the true reason is revealed as the distinguishing mark of the "Soldier of God" or Israel.
This maximum form of circumcision was called PERIAH and is the deep second cut typical of the American physician's free hand method in the beginning of this century. This is an extreme measure and is not typical of the Hebrew circumcision but in this scripture it was a day of accounting and a numbering of Israel for war and a test given for loyalty in this reformation. Moses neglected to have the people circumcised! Since the minimal MILAH was the predominant style of circumcision hygiene is not the reason for ancient circumcision as a great deal of the organ of the prepuce was left. The word organ is used here as there is many thousands of nerve endings in the prepuce more than just mere skin. The minimal form of Circumcision of MILAH made it possible to circumcise babies easily as the foreskin in infants remains fused to the glans until 3 to 4 years old and in some case till puberty. This is natures way of protecting the infants delicate tissues from infections and other ailments such as rashes and burns from urine etc. MILAH may explains how Abraham survives circumcision at 99 years old.
Joshua 5:3
3 And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.
The typical Israelite with a MILAH circumcision had a great deal of foreskin remaining in order for the deep extensive cut of PERIAH to be done on some of the already circumcised men. The scriptures indicate that the Israelites remained "complete" for forty years before Josuah did this extreme measure which has the punitive tone necessary for discipline purposes. see Joshua 5:4-6. Had not Moses been rejected with the doctrine in the first tables brought down from the mountain?
GENESIS 17:25
25 And Ishmael his son [was] thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
The Muslim people still circumcise in some fashion at about 13 years old. This has caused some complications to these young men as to the rude methods and there are known fatalities as the results. But the advantages to the child of being circumcised later till the age of puberty is found in the benefits of the protective foreskin to prevents infections in little ones needing diapers. But when puberty is near so is this fearsome ritual to face. It is used to test bravery and dedication to their God as Joshua challenged the desert camp.
GENESIS 17:26
26 In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.
Later Ishmael is sent into the desert with his mother to nearly die after being rejected by his father for Sarah's sake. Why was Ishmael circumcised only to be sent away? We do not have enough scriptures to make a judgment!
Again too little is known concerning how and why all this cutting was done. We lack the exact pattern and can only surmise. We will assume that the Jewish tradition may have been the pattern. This original pattern is called MILAH.
Circumcising in the MILAH fashion SEEMS more acceptable than the extreme means done today and in the time of Josuah. The Jews in the cold country of Russia, where the foreskin helps prevent freezing of the penis, only prick the foreskin with a needle to draw a drop of blood to symbolically represent the token of the covenant. This practical approach seems to have taken a more spiritual interpretation of these scriptures. Also it fulfills in later scriptures the circumcision of the heart reference in Leviticus and Deuteronomy below quoted.
Leviticus 12:3
3 And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.
Deuteronomy 10:16
16 Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiff-necked.
Perhaps God test our hearts to see what we will do in the face of difficulties. Did not God first test Abraham with the dire commands but later provided the Ram in the thicket for the sacrifice. Perhaps the wicked Nephites tried to literally circumcise the heart as history of the Central American Indians demonstrate human sacrifice to their Gods by the removal of the beating heart as a tribute to God! The letter of the law killeth and the the spirit of the law giveth life. Why was this commandment found in Deuteronomy taken spiritually and the scripture in Genesis 17:11 taken literally?
Deuteronomy 30:6
6 And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.
Here is a hint of the true meaning of circumcision and a prophecy of the fulfillment of the law the circumcision of Christ. This points to the LAST TRUE CIRCUMCISION. Try substituting "open thine heart" above.
GENESIS 17:27
27 And all the men of his house, born in the house, and bought with money of the stranger, were circumcised with him.
No exceptions except women and the woman child is noted here. If the rite of circumcision was or was not intended for health or hygiene perhaps baby girls could have been included in some fashion. Were the strangers here taught the mysteries of the kingdom or were they just told that circumcision was necessary procedure for citizenship with the covenant people so they could be spectators in the promises to Abraham and Isaac? Modern studies on circumcision have proved one thing for sure. . . .
Circumcision produces a compulsion to Circumcise.
GENESIS 21:4
4 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Genesis 21:3
3 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac, he being eight days old, as God had commanded him.
Why infant circumcision? The Egyptians waited till puberty and this was the custom of many of the circumcising tribes. Perhaps the difficulties of trying to convince a teenager to endure circumcision caused this change. Or if left till adulthood the rebellion would be too great and many would forgo. The eight days really meant eight years anyway why not wait till eight years and not put infants to a hazardous cutting of the flesh. Maybe this was to foreshadow Christ experience and circumcision? Ishmael was thirteen years old when he was circumcised. Anyway this is another proof that circumcision was not done for hygiene as the foreskin is fused in the infant and there is no need to wash the infant till puberty's onset.
Abraham had parental rights in those days to offer his son in sacrifice as later verses portray. Also Isaac had infant rights to be protected from harm. Yet Abraham twice took the knife to his son. It would be wonderful to see the things that Abraham saw and if the exact form of the circumcision that was performed on Isaac were known today we would be greatly surprise as to exactly how Abraham circumcised Isaac. The historians say the total instrument of cutting was a flint stone that was flaked to a razor glass like edge. ( There are some references to using a flat piece of wood with a split for the skin ). If this was all the means that was used then MILAH form was all that was done and the end of the foreskin was nipped and the damage was minimal and symbolic. Without the pattern revealed to Abraham we can only surmise. Yet we today thinking we are some kind of Hebrew, try to mimic these early beginnings with surgery. Maybe we should stop infant circumcision and think all this over again. Remember that children are whole and pure. Leave this ancient practice to the ancients who knew what they were doing and had received the commandment and all the preparatory information and specifications. The verse in Moroni will be cited here again. Now that we know more it will mean more to us.
Moroni 8:8
8 Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them; and the law of circumcision is done away in me.
Again from the Doctrine and Covenants meant for our day.
Doctrine and Covenants 74:2
2 Now, in the days of the apostles the law of circumcision was had among all the Jews who believed not the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Mormon Doctors should be dedicated to "DO NO HARM" and help the Latter Day Saint to keep all the commandments and one of the commandments is to not circumcise anymore the whole! Find the research and honesty to present the truth to the new married families that need this information and get out of the denial syndrome. In sudden loss situations the stages of recovery are passed through in trauma resolution. First denial and defense. Second frustration and anger. Third damage control and salvaging. Forth truth and understanding. Fifth peace and prevention. Circumcision is a loss and most persons never get through the denial stage. That includes Doctors. Foreskins should not be removed or retracted in infants. Fear of the anger and frustration that is the second stage of loss resolution keeps the truth hidden as there is the possibility of legal action. But a truly informed person can assuage the anger and pass on to the fifth stage which will bring peace and prevention.
DOCTORS INVENT A MEANS OF KEEPING THE INFANTS WHOLE AND COMPLETE!
Or admit your mistakes. Is circumcision really necessary? Should
parent rights and child rights be considered before this tradition is
exposed as simply elective and damaging to society and the normal
pure helpless child who relies on those to whom they are in keeping
to protect them. Be men and face the mistakes of the past and stop
them with courage!
Was every Jew happy to circumcise his children? No! A case in point is Moses who would not circumcise a son. This brought a threat against the life of Moses who was quite knowledgeable of the gospel and tried to present the higher second commandments which the tribes of Israel rejected. So came the lesser law of the first preparatory commandments. But Moses knew great things beyond his day.
Doctrine and Covenants 84:23
23 Now this Moses plainly taught to the children of Israel in the wilderness, and sought diligently to sanctify his people that they might behold the face of God;
Doctrine and Covenants 84:24
24 But they hardened their hearts and could not endure his presence; therefore, the Lord in his wrath, for his anger was kindled against them, swore that they should not enter into his rest while in the wilderness, which rest is the fullness of his glory.
Doctrine and Covenants 84:25
25 Therefore, he took Moses out of their midst, and the Holy Priesthood also;
Doctrine and Covenants 84:26
26 And the lesser priesthood continued, which priesthood holdeth the key of the ministering of angels and the preparatory gospel;
Doctrine and Covenants 84:27
27 Which gospel is the gospel of repentance and of baptism, and the remission of sins, and the law of carnal commandments, which the Lord in his wrath caused to continue with the house of Aaron among the children of Israel until John, whom God raised up, being filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother's womb.
Moses was not the originator of circumcision. It appears the rite was added to the codex of the Law of Moses due to the rejection of the higher priesthood and the gospel with second commandments that the Nephites were to have. As below quoted.
Alma 12:37
37 And now, my brethren, seeing we know these things, and they are true, let us repent, and harden not our hearts, that we provoke not the Lord our God to pull down his wrath upon us in these his second commandments which he has given unto us; but let us enter into the rest of God, which is prepared according to his word.
(The Law of Moses did not have the power to enter into the rest of God. yet the Law of Moses was used to enforce the circumcision tradition.)
Why was enforcement of the law of circumcision added to this codex? It certainly was not Moses' desires? Also it did not bring the Israelites to a state of rest as Peter disclaimed "which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear" Acts 15:10.
Alma 13:1
1 And again, my brethren, I would cite your minds forward to the time when the Lord God gave these commandments unto his children; and I would that ye should remember that the Lord God ordained priests, after his holy order, which was after the order of his Son, to teach these things unto the people.
Here again quoted is the words of Jesus concerning Moses' involvement in the law of circumcision. Jesus was circumcised and never needed circumcision. Did not this scar foreshadow the other scars that he would receive at the end of His life.
John 7:22
22 Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the Sabbath day circumcise a man.
EXODUS 4:25
25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast [it] at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband [art] thou to me.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Exodus 4:25
25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone and circumcised her son, and cast the stone at his feet, and said, Surely thou art a bloody husband unto me.
What is puzzling here is the acceptance of the circumcision done by a woman, when if this is part of the covenant of God, the priesthood is the executor of this kind of commandment. But then with the absence of the original pattern and specification then maybe anything goes. But that is not the method of operation of God. He (God) is very precise in all His doings and always prepares man with plenty of instruction and descriptions with illustrations on crucial commandments that are soul saving. Is circumcision soul saving or is it something else? Yet circumcision is part of the scriptures?! We need to know more to make a final judgment. Perhaps Peter was right "neither our fathers nor we were able to bear" well. Anyway the original intent of circumcision as a means of preventing child abuse is not found in this episode but rather the maintaining of a tradition and satisfying social pressure.
What is more puzzling is the strange behavior of a mother trying to harm her son to save her husband when the whole camp of Israel did not circumcise the babies in the desert at this time see Joshua 5:5 next quoted.
Did Joseph Smith know circumcision by the Arabs is not cutting off the foreskin? He changed "cut off the foreskin" to "circumcise". Perhaps the longitudinal cut of the Arabs was done here as Zipporah was Arabic. Also who's tradition was she trying to protect? At least the Arabic custom was kind enough to wait till the young man was thirteen or so years old and the his permission could be obtained. This would be a greater respect for the free agency than the infant circumcision of the Israelites! Yet Zipporah seem to act to save her husband who was not complying with the Jewish custom here! Also it is evident the rest of Israel was not being circumcised at this time until Josuah mandated it later.
Joshua 5:5
5 Now all the people that came out were circumcised: but all the people [that were] born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, [them] they had not circumcised.
EXODUS 4:26
26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband [thou art], because of the circumcision.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Exodus 4:26
26 And the Lord spared Moses and let him go, because Zipporah, his wife, circumcised the child. And she said, Thou art a bloody husband. And Moses was ashamed, and hid his face from the Lord, and said, I have sinned before the Lord.
Was the shame for allowing the codex of the law to enforce this tradition?
Moses was under some kind of threat for his wife to take matters into her own hands to solve the problem. But rest assured Moses was forced into the circumcision of his son as the scripture is plain to express. What did Moses know that his contemporaries did not know? Did he see Paul's and Peter's days? Was Moses ahead of his time? Where is free agency in circumcision of the little ones. How is it this is never a consideration for the child?
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Exodus 6:12
12 And Moses spake before the Lord, saying, Behold, the children of Israel have not hearkened unto me; how then shall Pharaoh hear me, who is of uncircumcised lips?
The Egyptians were a circumcised nation unless like some of the kings who would have all their subject circumcised but leave the royal family complete as a sign of superiority. But this scripture more probably refers to the irreverence of the Pharaoh.
EXODUS 12:44
44 But every man's servant that is bought for money, when thou hast circumcised him, then shall he eat thereof.
Slaves were circumcised even though they receive not the full fellowship of the promises or covenants of Abraham? This suggest that circumcision was not used as a token of the covenant by this time but was put in the background to enforce societies rules. Unless slave had the same status as the priesthood class which seems impossible as slaves were property.
EXODUS 12:48
48 And when a stranger shall sojourn with thee, and will keep the Passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as one that is born in the land: for no uncircumcised person shall eat thereof.
Obviously the origin of the Jewish shunning of the Gentile could be traced to scriptures like these in Exodus just quoted. One wonders if a dinner invitation would be worth the meal? But it is obvious that it was necessary to be circumcised for citizenship or just to be a slave of the Israelites?
LEVITICUS 12:2
2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child: then she shall be unclean seven days; according to the days of the separation for her infirmity shall she be unclean.
Circumcision became so important that a mother of a male child is unclean just seven days instead of fourteen days as with the female child. See 12:5 below:
LEVITICUS 12:3
3 And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Leviticus 12:3
3 And in the eighth day, the man-child shall be circumcised.
Again to be noted here is the description of circumcision is missing only the term circumcise is used to carry the whole meaning. Also notable here is the missing statement of being circumcised IN the flesh of his foreskin as the Genesis account of chapter 17:25 but is more like the verse 11 which was a even more generic description. Note however, the particularity of what was expected with the rest of this scripture concerning the women and what she should touch. Obviously the rite of circumcision did not belong to the law of Moses but was included by other forces such as tradition or the driving force that the circumcised must circumcise.
Compare Joseph Smith Inspired Version translation for the subtle differences. Joseph Smith changed "flesh of his foreskin" as changed to the more generic "circumcised". Perhaps Joseph knew the difference!
LEVITICUS 12:4
4 And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying three and thirty days; she shall touch no hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying be fulfilled.
LEVITICUS 12:5
5 But if she bear a maid child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her separation: and she shall continue in the blood of her purifying threescore and six days.
LEVITICUS 12:6
6 And when the days of her purifying are fulfilled, for a son, or for a daughter, she shall bring a lamb of the first year for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon, or a turtledove, for a sin offering, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest:
LEVITICUS 12:7
7 Who shall offer it before the LORD, and make an atonement for her; and she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood. This [is] the law for her that hath born a male or a female.
LEVITICUS 12:8
8 And if she be not able to bring a lamb, then she shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons; the one for the burnt offering, and the other for a sin offering: and the priest shall make an atonement for her, and she shall be clean.
The Jews themselves shun those who were unclean among their own kind also. Note in the above verses the different treatment the baby girl gets from the baby boy and the mother respectively. If circumcision was for hygiene then why quarantine the female so long?
LEVITICUS 19:23
23 And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as uncircumcised: three years shall it be as uncircumcised unto you: it shall not be eaten of.
Note here how the forbidden is compared with uncircumcised. The word is used interchangeably. Forbidden fruit analogy is sensed here. Adam partook of the forbidden fruit to bring about the existence of man. Adam also was a complete man. Do we have to repeat the errors of the past or should we understand the workings of God in saving mankind with the fall of Adam. Man was saved from misery by being given a chance to take upon himself the body.
LEVITICUS 26:41
41 And [that] I also have walked contrary unto them, and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of their iniquity:
Now the description of a proud heart is compared with the uncircumcised. This is a reference perhaps of the practice of circumcising the captives of war as a means of forcing humility upon them. It appears that it was the custom in ancient days. Those who refused circumcision were killed thus eliminating the rebellious.
DEUTERONOMY 10:16
16 Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiff-necked.
This analogy is that the foreskin is seen as a restriction and confinement such as the yoke about the neck that some captives wore as they were brought with the spoils of war. When such yokes were worn for a long term the necks became stiff. Another reference to the enslavement analogy of circumcision only in this case by comparison. There is also the tone here that there was a belief that the removal of the foreskin also removed a restriction. Which is another evidence that the rite was not for hygiene.
DEUTERONOMY 30:6
6 And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.
Again the removal of the restriction of the heart to love compared to the foreskin. Thus the circumcision is used to train the recipient to obedience is the message here. Also this scripture suggest that the true circumcision is heart felt as both male and female can learn to love the Lord by stripping off the sins of this life and presenting to the Lord the offerings of a sincere heart. People with foreskin can love the Lord also. Actually the presence of foreskin gives greater flexibility to the skin with greater blood circulation.
JOSHUA 5:2
2 At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time.
Joshua graduates the MILAH form of circumcision here to the severe PERIAH to order the people with a severe discipline and to test the loyalty of the camp follower.
This is similar to the rebaptism that the Mormon pioneers did when they came into the Salt Lake Valley for a confirmation of allegiance as in this scripture citation. Also Joshua was about to marshall the people for war. An ancient conscription method of soldiers was circumcision. It tested their bravery for one thing and the ability to tolerate pain. Perhaps Joshua was seeing what kind of soldiers he had. Israel means "soldier of God".
JOSHUA 5:3
3 And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.
There is very little description again of the exact pattern and method of circumcision specified here other than this was a second cut. It proved the original lighter cut was less and more symbolic. We don't have the original revelation or tradition that these people were following if it was revelation. Apparently this rite was for them not us as Gentiles or it would be spelled out in detail.
JOSHUA 5:4
4 And this [is] the cause why Joshua did circumcise: All the people that came out of Egypt, [that were] males, [even] all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way, after they came out of Egypt.
If circumcision was done for hygiene or health reasons the rigors of the wilderness would have prompted the necessity of circumcision. But rather the extra protection the foreskin provides would have given the Israelite an advantage in primitive conditions. But now they were now entering the closed in condition of cities where perhaps the order and discipline was now mandated. Also Joshua was about to send the soldiers into battle.
JOSHUA 5:5
5 Now all the people that came out were circumcised: but all the people [that were] born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, [them] they had not circumcised.
Who knows this was not an influence of Moses who opposed the circumcision of his own son. But we will not know till we have the fullness of scriptures about these accounts.
JOSHUA 5:7
7 And their children, [whom] he raised up in their stead, them Joshua circumcised: for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them by the way.
Perhaps in the rough life they lived in the wilderness caused them to dispense with details they felt unnecessary for survival such as circumcision. Really in the rigors of trying to stay alive in the wilds of the middle eastern deserts circumcision could seem like a bother. So these men and their children were healthy without circumcision for forty years. Today there are billions of boys and men who are similarly healthy.
JOSHUA 5:8
8 And it came to pass, when they had done circumcising all the people, that they abode in their places in the camp, till they were whole.
No mention of the possible infections or fatalities were noted here for those who may not have become "whole" as they here term. This is not to be confused with the reference to "whole" that is mention in Moroni 8:8 where the Lord says little children are whole because of the atonement. The reference here must mean "healed" as something was removed making them not complete as they were born. Obviously they would now have a scar for the results.
JUDGES 14:3
3 Then his father and his mother said unto him, [Is there] never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.
Even the women of the uncircumcised complete were shunned by the Jews.
JUDGES 15:18
18 And he was sore athirst, and called on the LORD, and said, Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?
1 SAMUEL 14:6
6 And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the LORD will work for us: for [there is] no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few.
1 SAMUEL 17:26
26 And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who [is] this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?
1 SAMUEL 17:36
36 Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.
Here in the preceding scriptures the uncircumcised is used to reference the enemies of Israel.
1 SAMUEL 18:25
25 And Saul said, Thus shall ye say to David, The king desireth not any dowry, but an hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged of the king's enemies. But Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version 1 Samuel 18:25
25 And Saul said, Thus shall ye say to David, the king desireth not any dowry, but a hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged of the king's enemies. But Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines.
1 SAMUEL 18:27
27 Wherefore David arose and went, he and his men, and slew of the Philistines two hundred men; and David brought their foreskins, and they gave them in full tale to the king, that he might be the king's son in law. And Saul gave him Michal his daughter to wife.
2 SAMUEL 3:14
14 And David sent messengers to Ishbosheth Saul's son, saying, Deliver [me] my wife Michal, which I espoused to me for an hundred foreskins of the Philistines.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version 2 Samuel 3:14
14 And David sent messengers to Ishbosheth Saul's son, saying, Deliver me my wife Michal, which I espoused to me for a hundred foreskins of the Philistines.
In these scriptural excerpts Saul uses circumcision as a test and a plot to kill David. Of course David kills the Philistines before he gathers in the strange "dowry". Were the Philistines saved by this token of the covenant or is this a misuse of this tradition? Obviously David would now be hated by the Philistines when the word got around. Perhaps that was the plan of the King?
1 SAMUEL 31:4
4 Then said Saul unto his armourbearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and abuse me. But his armourbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword, and fell upon it.
1 CHRONICLES 10:4
4 Then said Saul to his armourbearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me. But his armourbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. So Saul took a sword, and fell upon it.
Saul describes the enemy as uncircumcised. This is consistent with previous uses of the term. Note also the lack of reference to the "uncircumcised" as whole and complete men of the world etc. This suggest that circumcision is the norm and to be complete is the abnormal.
2 SAMUEL 1:20
20 Tell [it] not in Gath, publish [it] not in the streets of Askelon; lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.
Again the uses of uncircumcision to describe the unpopular Philistines who were the perennial enemies of the Jews. Even today such animosity still exists.
ISAIAH 8:9-15
9 Associate* yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries: gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces.
10 Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought; speak the word***, and it shall not stand: FOR GOD [IS] WITH US(IMMANUEL).
11 For the LORD spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying,
12 Say ye not, A confederacy**, to all [them to] whom this people shall say, A confederacy**; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.
13 Sanctify the LORD of hosts HIMSELF; and [let] HIM [be] your fear, and [let] HIM [be] your dread.
14 And HE shall be for a sanctuary; but for a STONE OF STUMBLING*** and for a ROCK OF OFFENCE*** to both the houses of Israel,
for a GIN and for a SNARE to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
15 And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.
(Modern Jews term circumcision as BRIS or מילה . ברית מילה means variously “name” “word***” “circumcision” “ash” and other meanings. ברית means variously “alliance*” “covenant” “pact” “treaty” “confederate**” “testament” and other meanings. It has certainly changed through the centuries.) Perhaps it meant originally "open" or “loose” .
*** In Isaiah 8:3 and Isaiah 9:6 names are given. This is a place where the manner of the Jews, helps understand the full imagery and implications of the types presented in these bundles or balances. The manner of the Jews is that boys were not named before they were circumcised; but were named after the ceremony of circumcision or ברית מילה brit milah.
Luke 1:59-63 59 And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father. 60 And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John. 61 And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name. 62 And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called. 63 And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.
Luke 2:21 21 And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
Circumcision or in Hebrew מילה pronounced milah, is also the word for word. מילה means both word and circumcision. This maybe because *naming was done at this ritual tradition. In ancient times, it was done with a stone--probably flint or obsidian.
Exodus 4:25-26 25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me. 26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision.
Notice, the reference to stone* and rock* in Isaiah 8:14. This is not an accident, but the “manner of the Jew” would associate this to naming, names, stones, rocks.
The circumcision of Jesus was the beginning of the last circumcision on this Earth.
ISAIAH 52:1
1 Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.
This has reference to the last days and it appears that the TYPE of circumcision is necessary to enter in the holy city of Jerusalem at that future time. By Christ all babies born are circumcised with the circumcision made with out hands therefore this verse in Isaiah is fulfilled in Christ and we can still keep the commandment in Moroni 8:8 to do away with the law or practice of circumcision. All who believe in the gospel of Christ are in effect already circumcised before they are born and thus this scripture is fulfilled in Christ. Here is the centering reference again cited for reconsideration:
Colossians 2:11
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
Mark 14:58
58 We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands.
This is the Jerusalem spoken of by Isaiah the Jerusalem built without hands which is Zion. Zion is where the pure in heart dwell or where the "circumcised" of heart dwell.
JEREMIAH 4:4
4 Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench [it], because of the evil of your doings.
This a reference to the real meaning implied to the spiritual
acceptance of the covenants of God rather the mark in the flesh which
can be done to even the very evil of heart and really means nothing
in spiritual terms. Interestingly enough the book of Leviticus forbid
marking the flesh without excepting the mark or scar produced by
circumcision. See Leviticus below quoted:
Leviticus 19:28 28 Ye
shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any
marks upon you: I [am] the LORD.
With the tattoos now seen every
where in modern America one wonders what disrespect concision has had
upon the culture as it has altered the body with a print or scar that
defies the above scripture. Again no exception is here noted!
JEREMIAH 6:10
10 To whom shall I speak, and give warning, that they may hear? behold, their ear [is] uncircumcised, and they cannot hearken: behold, the word of the LORD is unto them a reproach; they have no delight in it.
Jeremiah reveals in this comparison of deafness to the insensitivity of the uncircumcised to stimuli. To expose the inner parts of the male organ and thereby increase the sensitivity to stimuli was perhaps the intent of circumcision. However it suggests that women are handicapped and will not be able to hearken to the LORD as they are not circumcised. Perhaps a better translation would be that those who do not accept the covenants of the LORD do not listen to the voice of the LORD.
JEREMIAH 9:25
25 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will punish all [them which are] circumcised with the uncircumcised;
This is the first prophesy that demonstrates that to be whole and complete; as some term it uncircumcised, does not matter. The Jews should have taken the hint here and been prepared for a day when the Lord will be even handed over all the peoples of the earth and show no respect of persons as Peter had declared. It is quoted below:
Acts 10:34
34 Then Peter opened [his] mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:
Acts 10:35
35 But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
JEREMIAH 9:26
26 Egypt, and Judah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, and Moab, and all [that are] in the utmost corners, that dwell in the wilderness: for all [these] nations [are] uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel [are] uncircumcised in the heart.
Note worthy here is that the Egyptians circumcised long before the Israelites did. Note Judah is included here as among the uncircumcised. Circumcision is expressed here as a condition of the heart and mind not a scar in the flesh. Uncircumcised is synonymous with unsaved and unnamed. Two condition the ancients avoided.
EZEKIEL 28:10
10 Thou shalt die the deaths of the uncircumcised by the hand of strangers: for I have spoken [it], saith the Lord GOD.
What the deaths of the uncircumcised refer to here is mysterious but it is to be considered in the evaluation of this subject. This may mean the uncivilized hoards or bands of robbers will come and destroy the nation of Tyrus who was the arrogant prince referred to in this verse. He will go down as just one of the soldiers who has not significant name or salvation due to not being in the covenant of the true and living God.
EZEKIEL 31:18
18 To whom art thou thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? yet shalt thou be brought down with the trees of Eden unto the nether parts of the earth: thou shalt lie in the midst of the uncircumcised with [them that be] slain by the sword. This [is] Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.
No circumcision was done in the garden of Eden so the referencing of the trees of Eden is puzzling. Again the reference to the uncircumcised as the roving hoards of robbers. This probably means outside the covenants of God.
The type here is that the original glory of man and the counsels in the Garden of Eden will be reduce to fallen man and be unnamed and unsaved because they have rebelled against God.
Below is various old testament references to circumcision or uncircumcision and the comparison of the pit or hell as the reward for uncircumcision. We have to use all the scriptures to gain a full understanding of the figures and types used in the scriptures to convey and intent or meaning . . . But they are included for completeness.
EZEKIEL 32:19
19 Whom dost thou pass in beauty? go down, and be thou laid with the uncircumcised.
EZEKIEL 32:21
21 The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of hell with them that help him: they are gone down, they lie uncircumcised, slain by the sword.
EZEKIEL 32:24
24 There [is] Elam and all her multitude round about her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which are gone down uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth, which caused their terror in the land of the living; yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit.
This reference to "gone down uncircumcised in to the nether parts" is a reference to the unsaved and unnamed state of the poor souls not under the covenant. However we will be judged according to the light given. Therefor this fate is not as dire as rejecting the covenants after once having received the covenants.
EZEKIEL 32:25
25 They have set her a bed in the midst of the slain with all her multitude: her graves [are] round about him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword: though their terror was caused in the land of the living, yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit: he is put in the midst of [them that be] slain.
EZEKIEL 32:26
26 There [is] Meshech, Tubal, and all her multitude: her graves [are] round about him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword, though they caused their terror in the land of the living.
Uncircumcised refers to the unsaved condition as Christ has been circumcised for all if we but believe in Him for both the future and past generations of man.
EZEKIEL 32:27
27 And they shall not lie with the mighty [that are] fallen of the uncircumcised, which are gone down to hell with their weapons of war: and they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities shall be upon their bones, though [they were] the terror of the mighty in the land of the living.
Fallen at the hands of the damned could be the reference here.
Ezekiel 32:28
28 Yea, thou shalt be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised, and shalt lie with [them that are] slain with the sword.
Death by anonymity is the implied message.
Ezekiel 32:29
29 There [is] Edom, her kings, and all her princes, which with their might are laid by [them that were] slain by the sword: they shall lie with the uncircumcised, and with them that go down to the pit.
Another reference to the uncircumcised being the damned souls. Those who reject the circumcision of Christ then reject Christ and qualify for this fate.
EZEKIEL 32:30
30 There [be] the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Zidonians, which are gone down with the slain; with their terror they are ashamed of their might; and they lie uncircumcised with [them that be] slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit.
Another reference to the uncircumcised being the damned souls.
EZEKIEL 32:32
32 For I have caused my terror in the land of the living: and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with [them that are] slain with the sword, [even] Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.
EZEKIEL 44:7
7 In that ye have brought [into my sanctuary] strangers, uncircumcised in heart, and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to pollute it, [even] my house, when ye offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant because of all your abominations.
EZEKIEL 44:9
9 Thus saith the Lord GOD; No stranger, uncircumcised in heart, nor uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary, of any stranger that [is] among the children of Israel.
HABAKKUK 2:16
16 Thou art filled with shame for glory: drink thou also, and let thy foreskin be uncovered: the cup of the LORD'S right hand shall be turned unto thee, and shameful spewing [shall be] on thy glory.
The Gentile converts who would read such descriptions could be greatly dishearten by the slander here. But the Early Day Saints who where converted knew that Christ had made them clean both in the heart and in the flesh through the third atonement when Christ was eight days old.
MALACHI 2:14
Yet ye say wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.
Circumcision obviously does not make a man faithful to his wife as the Jew habitually put away their wives when they tired of them for any excuse. Virtue does not come with circumcision. It can be shown that it can contribute to more liberal ideas concerning promiscuity.
One scripture purposely skipped was the slaughter of persons newly circumcised by some of the early patriarch to the tribes. This was left for the reader to make judgment upon. See Genesis chapter 34 see especially verses 24 through 26 as circumcision hurts and appears to make one so sore as to not be able to defend a threat to life. Infants feel pain also!
NEW TESTAMENT
To summarize the standard of judgment of the New Testament the following passage given prior to the years of controversy recorded in Paul's epistles concerning circumcision:
Matthew 5:17-20
17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
None of the controversy stemming from circumcision in the early days was due to any medical or hygiene concepts but rather was due to religious rites.
LUKE 1:59
59 And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.
As was the custom of the Jews the name of the child was given after the circumcision and this is an example of the custom of the Jews. This also confirms the exactness of keeping the laws of the time and the traditions of their fathers as they have been handed down to their descendants
LUKE 2:21
21 And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Luke 2:21
21 And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called Jesus; which was so named of the angel, before he was conceived.
This is the first drops of precious blood that Jesus shed in behalf of others! By this act was the circumcision made without hands for all children born to this earth. THE LAW OF CIRCUMCISION IS DONE AWAY IN ME. This is the LAST TRUE CIRCUMCISION.
What effect and affect the above event has upon all mankind will only be understood in the life hereafter; but, some of the meaning has been revealed in the scriptures concerning this small child and the impact He has had on the whole family of Adam and especially the infants. Paul and Moroni said it best with the following scriptural excerpts:
Colossians 2:11
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
Moroni 8:8
8 Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them; and the law of circumcision is done away in me.
THE LAW OF CIRCUMCISION IS DONE AWAY IN CHRIST! THE LAST CIRCUMCISION!
This is because all little children who were born, are born, will be born are circumcised with the circumcision that is made without hands that is a gift of the Christ Child in this traumatic and completely unnecessary event. Who needs to scar the body of the Son of God for whatever purposes or rituals?!
Colossians 2:12
12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with [him] through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
Colossians 2:13-16
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the
uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him,
having forgiven you all trespasses; 14 Blotting out the handwriting
of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took
it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; 15 [And] having spoiled
principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing
over them in it.
16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holiday, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath [days]:
Let no man judge you of the uncircumcision either is the sum of the message as every male child is now spiritually circumcised with this LAST CIRCUMCISION. Anyway you look at it the circumcision of Christ was a type for his later and greater work in the garden and on the cross! A shadow of things to come.
Colossians 2:17-20
17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body [is] of Christ. 18 Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
19 And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.
20 Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,
Yes why do men still circumcise their infants when IT HAS ENDED IN THE CIRCUMCISION OF CHRIST per verse eleven in Colossians second chapter above quoted? Also Let us review again the verse in the Book of MORMON concerning this same subject.
Moroni 8:8
8 Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them; and the law of circumcision is done away in me.
Now to honor the event and to disabuse the mind from any confusion between the circumcision made without hands and the elective surgery that has been referred to as "circumcision". A borrowing from the scriptures for a new name for this marking or scaring of the body is needed. To do this the term Paul the apostle uses will be coined and referenced for the cutting of the flesh that violates the spirit of the "Circumcision of Christ" and work wrought in ending this law.
Philippians 3:2
2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision(concision means cut ones or beware of the cut ones).
Philippians 3:3
3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
Every where except where it is quoted in the scriptures the name for the surgery should be called CONCISION in place of more referenced CIRCUMCISION.
Also as was the custom of name giving and renaming the person receiving the token of the covenant. Jesus was not renamed and he received the same name that the angel pronounce before his conception. This means that Jesus' Father gave him a name before the day of circumcision. The Jews waited till after the circumcision to formally name the child for then he was pronounced clean. But Jesus who received his name prior to this event then was clean before this ritual was performed. See Section 74 of the Doctrine and covenants to review the attitude of the Jews concerning children being unclean until circumcision. Since the circumcision of Jesus, this attitude was doomed as the infants are to be considered complete and the whole hath no need of physician. Are we to believe that even the medical profession should take the advice and counsel of the Lord and remember their oath is to 'DO NO HARM". The summary conclusion to be learned here is that with the circumcision of the Christ Child all the infants born are born WHOLE and PURE and COMPLETE before the LORD.
JOHN 7:22
22 Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the Sabbath day circumcise a man.
Remember Moses tried to introduce the higher laws to the Israelites but they rejected the greater things and was task mastered with the law of Moses to bring them to Christ with this preparatory law of carnal performances that were not to give rest to the soul.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Exodus 34:1
1 And the Lord said unto Moses, Hew thee two other tables of stone, like unto the first, and I will write upon them also, the words of the law, according as they were written at the first on the tables which thou brakest; but it shall not be according to the first, for I will take away the priesthood out of their midst; therefore my holy order, and the ordinances thereof, shall not go before them; for my presence shall not go up in their midst, lest I destroy them.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Exodus 34:2
2 But I will give unto them the law as at the first, but it shall be after the law of the carnal commandment; for I have sworn in my wrath, that they shall not enter into my presence, into my rest, in the days of their pilgrimage. Therefore do as I have commanded thee, and be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning unto mount Sinai, and present thyself there to me, in the top of the mount.
Also remember that while the tribes of Israel were wandering the dessert they did not circumcise the infants. And remember that Moses would not circumcise his son and Zipporah his wife did the circumcision of their son as she was of Arabic descent who held strong traditional ties to the rituals of the Hebrew concerning the tradition of circumcision. But remember the Arabs did not circumcise at birth or eight day after but were patient enough to wait for the boy to come of age wherein he could give consent. No evidence is here where the young one is begging for circumcision.
Jesus knew all this and more as this law was difficult to bear as testified by Peter when the concision interfered with the growth of the church by Jewish members and non-members insisting that new Gentile members were to be subject to the law of Moses through the "ritual of circumcision" which was done away in Christ.
So the Jews settled on the lesser law and continued their customs; circumcision is center of their customs in actual practice but should only have been the reminder of the promises to Abraham and the fathers .
Acts 15:10
10 Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?
JOHN 7:23
23 If a man on the Sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the Sabbath day?
Jesus knew that circumcision was added to the law of Mosses for the perpetuation of a tradition and He used this fact to teach the hardness of the Jews that if they had an exception to the law of Moses for the tradition of circumcision then they should allow one more exception to permit Jesus to heal a man completely and in actuality on the Sabbath.
ACTS 7:8
8 And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so [Abraham] begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac [begat] Jacob; and Jacob [begat] the twelve patriarchs.
New Testament restatement of the origin of the covenant of circumcision which is done for all infants by the circumcision of Christ.
ACTS 7:51
51 Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers [did], so [do] ye.
The Jews have been a poor example in many of the greater things of the law and became highly selective in which commandments and laws they kept. They were obsessed with circumcision and sought to interfere with the growth of the church by disturbing the new members with the same controversy they themselves were struggling to keep.
ACTS 10:45
45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Now the Gentiles were circumcised with the circumcision made without hands as we learn so this astonishment is due more from the force of their traditions rather than the prompting of the Spirit. Some times it takes many generations to finally see the complete works of God in dealing with the children of Men.
ACTS 11:2
2 And when Peter was come up to Jerusalem, they that were of the circumcision contended with him,
Note worthy in this scripture is the identification of non members
of the church who believe not in the gospel of Jesus Christ as the
circumcision. Paul later termed them as the concision rather than the
circumcision of the unbelievers.
ACTS 11:3
3 Saying, Thou wentest in to men uncircumcised, and didst eat with them.
Peter broke the custom of the Jews that they were not to eat with the Gentiles of the region. Peter knew that the law was fulfilled and that all men are in Christ circumcised and the concision did not believe this liberty of Christ.
ACTS 15:1
1 And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, [and said], Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.
This controversy was introduce not in the interest of saving souls but rather to complicate and hinder the progress of the gospel among the Gentiles as the Jew saw this a definite threat to their security. Also they felt that Peter was dispensing the sacred truths of their heritage to the unclean.
To circumcise after the manner of Moses seems strange terminology as Moses did not have zeal to circumcise as did Joshua so the exact meaning here is not clear.
ACTS 15:5
5 But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command [them] to keep the law of Moses.
The law of Moses was fulfilled every whit, jot and title in the work and mission of Christ. This sect of believers in the messiahship of Jesus Christ were only partly converted as they were not aware that the believers were already circumcised by the mission of Christ and his circumcision. Perhaps they were not matured in the implications of the Gospel on their former traditions or they were in a state of denial concerning circumcision realizing that it was not necessary in the flesh and that the circumcision without hands or the spiritual circumcision left them to realize that the surgery performed on them was now only a concision of no profit and is now really an alteration of the body which the gospel now teaches that the body is the temple of God and is sacred. They now want every one else in the Church to be the same as they are to prevent their children and themselves from feeling the difference now. Many people concise their children only for the sake of being the same as their other children or having their children match them as concised also. This is a terribly emotional decision and it is really spawned from ignorance, jealousy and denial. Such may have been the real motives of these "believers in the gospel of Christ". Perhaps later when their children were left whole and not concised they could see the tradition end with less emotional difficulties for denial and regret that they were once circumcised in a sacrificial manner as it was then done. Below is the only modern view into this concern of the early church on this subject. The entire 74th Section of the Doctrine and Covenants is concerning this sensitive matter.
Doctrine and Covenants 74:2
2 Now, in the days of the apostles the law of circumcision was had among all the Jews who believed not the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Is it right to concise infants just to make them the same? Do two wrongs make a right?
ACTS 15:24
24 Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, [Ye must] be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no [such] commandment:
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Acts 15:24
24 Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain men which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law; to whom we gave no such commandment:
Apostates who were once among the saints were subverting the work of the saints by saying that the apostles of the day demanded circumcision. Here is the affirmation that circumcision is not required from the brethren and could not be required due to the liberty of Christ which freed us from the performances of the lesser law by fulfilling it every whit, jot and title.
ACTS 16:3
3 Him would Paul have to go forth with him; and took and circumcised him because of the Jews which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a Greek.
Sometimes social pressure from relatives and previous associations force concision upon a person. Here is a concision performed for the purpose of being able to associate with the Jews. Later Paul leaves this ministry to go to the Gentiles. But it is evident that Paul concised a man after the mission of Christ. Everyone makes mistakes?!
ACTS 28:27
27 For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with [their] eyes, and hear with [their] ears, and understand with [their] heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.
ACTS 28:28
28 Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and [that] they will hear it.
ACTS 21:21
21 And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise [their] children, neither to walk after the customs.
See Section 74 in the Doctrine and Covenants for the full revelation concerning the matter of eliminating the custom of concision and understanding that the circumcision of Christ brings upon all that believe the circumcision without hands and fulfills the law in every way.
ROMANS 2:25
25 For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law: but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision.
Paul at this point was not teaching the same doctrine that he latter taught in Colossians 2:11 and it is seen here the beginnings of the full understanding. That circumcision is really an attitude and a state of heart and mind not a scar in the flesh.
ROMANS 2:26
26 Therefore if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision?
ROMANS 2:27
27 And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfil the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the law?
Here Paul indicates that the uncircumcised keep the letter of the law and the circumcised Jew who deny Christ break the whole law. This the spirit of the law rather than the performances of the flesh.
ROMANS 2:28
28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither [is that] circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
ROMANS 2:29
29 But he [is] a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision [is that] of the heart, in the spirit, [and] not in the letter; whose praise [is] not of men, but of God.
Here is the real doctrine that the heart and spirit are the real power and that this supersedes all outward tokens of marking the flesh with concision.
ROMANS 3:1
1 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit [is there] of circumcision?
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Romans 3:1
1 What advantage then hath the Jew over the Gentile? or what profit of circumcision, who is not a Jew from the heart?
Yes what profit is there in circumcision if it is not heartfelt?
Who really thinks concision is right to do?
Circumcision was intended to represent the seal of the covenant of Abraham that his seed would continue through out eternity. Abraham's family would have no end and his children would not be lost at death but they would continue in the worlds to come. Now the mission of Christ is the seal of that covenant making the possibility of eternal families for the true Later Day Saint through the covenants of God. The circumcision of Christ makes these promises available to all the honest in heart and the pure in heart and gives us the hope in the resurrection of the body and the restoration of all that was lost in the concision. The Jews were the instrument of the covenants fulfillment and they received the oracles of God.
ROMANS 3:30
30 Seeing [it is] one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith.
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Romans 3:30
30 Seeing that God will justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith.
Faith is the ability to trust God to live his judgements in the face of the tests in this world. God has advised that little children need no circumcision.
ROMANS 3:31
31 Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.
The gospel of Jesus Christ makes the law permanent and purposeful. It was the very reason Christ came. But the law is lived with the spirit not the flesh. Anything done in the flesh dies with the flesh. In the resurrection the body is renewed to its state of perfection and will live forever. We are also resurrected male and female in the image of God and all surgical alterations including concision will be obliterated with a perfect body in every part, limb and joint. We will be complete in the resurrection through its restoration.
ROMANS 4:9
9 [Cometh] this blessedness then upon the circumcision [only], or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.
Being true and faithful to the commandments and directions of our
Lord and Director is the meriting life that should be lived and not
the marks in the flesh which were done in the ancient past for
reasons not disclosed to us today. Circumcision is not revealed to us
today as we do not have the pattern or the details or the how and
exceptions of this rite. The curse of the law of Moses has been
lifted and the law of circumcision is done away in Christ's work. All
this is possible through faith.
ROMANS 4:10
10 How was it then reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision.
Abraham live ninety nine years without circumcision and earned the promises made to the fathers through faith as a complete man. Only after as a token and for reasons only known to God this tradition of circumcision was made part of the customs of those children and associates of Abraham. Some time or eternity will present to us the full story behind the scenes that prompted this tradition with the Hebrew. Remember circumcision existed before Abraham.
ROMANS 4:11
11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which [he had yet] being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also:
Note Circumcision is a sign or seal of the covenant and not the covenant itself. The covenant itself retains all the power for the elect of God not the physical evidence of it.
ROMANS 4:12
12 And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which [he had] being [yet] uncircumcised.
ROMANS 4:13
13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
Again faith is the real power that was earned during the ninety nine years that Abraham live as a complete man.
ROMANS 15:8
8 Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises [made] unto the fathers:
All male infants are born with circumcision already done for then by the circumcision of Christ. This circumcision is the circumcision done without hands and wrought in the sufferings of Christ in his circumcision which was not necessary in that He is the Son of God. Therefore Jesus becomes the ultimate and final minister of circumcision as He fulfilled the carnal commandments by a spiritual atonement. No one else is authorized to minister circumcision except the Lord and He has already ministered circumcision by an infinite atonement. Whoever now pretends to circumcise is in reality only scaring the body and frustrating the true meaning of the circumcision done without hands for all infants born and yet born. These are serious matters. Infants are really helpless and depend solely on their parents to defend them from unnecessary violation of their free agency and the sanctity of their body. The body is the temple of God and any man who defiles that temple him shall God destroy.
1 CORINTHIANS 3:16
16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and [that] the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1 CORINTHIANS 3:17
17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which [temple] ye are.
1 CORINTHIANS 7:18
18 Is any man called being circumcised? let him not become uncircumcised. Is any called in uncircumcision? let him not be circumcised.
Three things should be noted before a commentary on this scripture is understandable.
First, note in the first rhetorical question the phrase 'called being' vs the second rhetorical question 'called in', it does not say the same thing. IN is not the same as BEING. Perhaps the reference is due to the fact that 'being circumcised' is an actual physical effect and 'in uncircumcision' is a non damaged or not marked with a scar.
Second, to the Greek exposing the glans of the penis was very rude and disgraceful. The Jew were considered uncivilized because of their circumcision. The Greek translation of this scripture should probably mean do not hide the fact of circumcision or 'let him not hide his circumcision due to shame.' Instead of 'let him not become uncircumcised'. The fact that there has been severe punishment for circumcision by the Greeks and Romans portray their feeling on this matter. Certain historical references indicate that there was a method used to simulate a foreskin in ancient days also and some of the Saints may have had sufficient emotional stress over this condition to attempt reversal of circumcision.
Third this chapter of Corinthians prompted the modern revelation in the Doctrine and Covenants Section 74. From verse 2 of that section it is learned that the children of this contest of traditions were not circumcised but followed the Greek tradition of leaving the children complete only for the reasons outline by Paul that the children are subject to the liberties of Christ.
Since Christ has provided all believers with circumcision made without hands which is pure and holy, this reference is to the called not to retrench to old ways but to be faithful in Christ Jesus. With the mild circumcision that the Jews originally performed it was possible for the circumcision to be reversed either by surgery or skin expansion that is used today to restore a reconstructed foreskin without surgery. As long as there has been circumcision or concision there has been efforts made to restore to the normal what was damaged either in war or through ritual. There are organizations in the United States of America dedicated to the restoration of the foreskin for men offended by concision or 'circumcision' done without their permission. Some of this work is done for those men who feel wounded both physically and emotionally by this surgery on an otherwise normal body part. Before an infant is circumcised routinely for no reason other than the preferences of the parent or doctor, realized that sometimes the recipient of concision surgery may break through the denials that perpetuate this tradition and will resent the concision later in life. Also some older men who were impotent have been restored by using some of the techniques of becoming 'unconcisied' or 'uncircumcised' through skin expansion as it is done both in ancient times and in modern times. It could be that Paul knew of the possibilities of foreskin restoration and tried to give a refocus of attention away from this powerful controversy and develop the spiritual part of life by faith in the true principles of God.
1 CORINTHIANS 7:19
19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.
The concision is nothing and being complete is nothing if a person rebels against God. Since Jesus has provided the spiritual circumcision this reference is to the concision and not the spiritual meanings of circumcision of being sealed to the covenants and promises of God through faith, hope and charity. However being complete is something though as this scripture applies to the adults not the children to come as the Jew who believed in the Gospel of Jesus Christ left their children whole and complete. See Doctrine and Covenants 74:2.
GALATIANS 2:3
3 But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised:
Why should this be such a claim that Titus was not circumcised by force when infants were concised by force through no concern for their volition in the matter? Why is the rights of an adult man honored and the rights of the child not even considered in concision or surgery to alter the natural and complete state of his body. This is a mystery that needs to be discovered and revealed to all who are in charge of the precious spirits sent to all parents. Parents consider child abuse as forcing spiritual and physical harm to children.
Doctrine and Covenants 29:46
46 But behold, I say unto you, that little children are redeemed from the foundation of the world through mine Only Begotten;
Doctrine and Covenants 29:47
47 Wherefore, they cannot sin, for power is not given unto Satan to tempt little children, until they begin to become accountable before me;
Doctrine and Covenants 29:48
48 For it is given unto them even as I will, according to mine own pleasure, that great things may be required at the hand of their fathers.
Great things such as perhaps why they concised their children!
Doctrine and Covenants 29:49
49 And, again, I say unto you, that whoso having knowledge, have I not commanded to repent?
Now is the time to reconsider the concision of babies and to seek to obey the commandments and hearken to the councils of God!
Doctrine and Covenants 29:50
50 And he that hath no understanding, it remaineth in me to do according as it is written. And now I declare no more unto you at this time. Amen.
Who has no understanding of circumcisions long term affects and effects? He that hath ears to hear let him hear!
GALATIANS 2:7
7 But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as [the gospel] of the circumcision [was] unto Peter;
GALATIANS 2:8
8 (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:)
What counts here is that the Spirit works with all the faithful no mater what traditions they used to follow. God accepts all true believers through Jesus Christ who fulfilled the law and gave us the liberty of truth.
GALATIANS 2:9
9 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we [should go] unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.
Old attitudes die hard and so do old traditions. Concision will keep going on till the coming of the Lord and then it will stop and it will truly be done away. But wo unto the rebellious.
GALATIANS 2:12
12 For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision.
Ibid.
GALATIANS 5:2
2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
Because Christ suffered this also and the first of the blood spilt in our behalf was when Christ was as an infant only eight days in this world. Did not this set the tone of this world for the rest of His life that others are willing to lift him up to the cross. This scripture will forever forbid the circumcision as a religious rite. Should Christ profit you more if you leave your children whole and complete for a tribute to his work.
GALATIANS 5:3
3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
Shall we retreat to the old sacrificial rituals and deny the Christ? It is so clear that we should find no necessity scripturally to concise infants who are whole and pure because of Christ.
GALATIANS 5:6
6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
If a parent has the courage to depart from the traditions of family and decides to leave their child complete and whole they are truly brave and wise in order to go against the forces of relatives and associates who feel threatened if a child is left whole and complete. Have faith in the commandments and the message of Moroni in the Book of Mormon and love your baby boy by giving him the freedom of his heritage a healthy complete body. Understanding will solve all concerns that may arise in the fight for truth and light.
Love will heal all wounds eventually but the resurrection may be necessary to be completely whole with no scar. In the meantime the babies should be given the advantages of our new understanding gained through the experiences of this life.
GALATIANS 5:10
10 I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgement, whosoever he be.
God knows the beginning from the end. He knows how many babies have been aborted and how many have been unnecessarily concised.
GALATIANS 5:11
11 And I, brethren, if I yet preach
circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offense of
the cross ceased.
GALATIANS 6:12
12 As many as desire to make a fair shew in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised; only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ.
Jews who no longer circumcise their children were persecuted as Christians and this persecution was the prompting of this scripture.
Pride is the reason many men concise their sons so then can match them and not feel jealous that their sons have a whole and complete body. It is sad but true many infants go through this ordeal to satiate the pain a parent who would be envious of his children if they were left alone and remained complete. There the "fair shew in the flesh" is that "my sons are just like me".
The Jew persecuted the new Gentiles so that they might subvert the liberty of Christ and their motives were subtle. Using circumcision as a wedge to destroy the growth of the Church.
GALATIANS 6:13
13 For neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law; but desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh.
How many infants will be concised with elective surgery so that others can glory in their flesh. Judge this if it is right. If God is right and the law of circumcision is ended and infants are in reality circumcised without hands spiritually. Let those glory in the complete infant because of Christ. This is the glory of godly parents of a new baby boy. A new creature delivered to our protection and keeping.
GALATIANS 6:15
15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.
Protect the infants please the truly NEW CREATURES. If an adult wants to be concised then more power to him let him circumcise himself with full consent but leave the child alone.
EPHESIANS 2:11
11 Wherefore remember, that ye [being] in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;
Joseph Smith Inspired Version Ephesians 2:11
11 Wherefore remember, that ye were in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;
Note Paul affirms the difference between the circumcision made by hands and the spiritual circumcision made without hands that blesses the Gentile convert.
EPHESIANS 2:15
15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, [even] the law of commandments [contained] in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, [so] making peace;
EPHESIANS 2:16-20
16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:
17 And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.
18 For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner [stone];
Note Paul affirms the difference between the circumcision made by hands and the spiritual circumcision made without hands that blesses the Gentile convert.
PHILIPPIANS 3:2
2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.
Paul cites here the difference between the SPIRITUAL CIRCUMCISION and the CONCISION that scars or marks the body which is the temple of God.
PHILIPPIANS 3:3
3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
We as Latter Day Saints are sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise and not through any fleshly ordinances. The seal of our covenant belongs in the heart and not in the curse of the law given to a people who rejected the higher principles that Moses tried to introduce to the people. But they preferred their traditions instead and so Christ was to come to a hard hearted people who would not listen to his message anymore than to the message of Moses' first tablets.
PHILIPPIANS 3:5
5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, [of] the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrew; as touching the law, a Pharisee;
Paul's pedigree and prior subjection to the law and all it entails. But later in verse 8 of this same chapter Paul says I " . . . and do count them as dung, that I may win Christ".
COLOSSIANS 2:11
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
ALL MANKIND IS BORN CIRCUMCISED THROUGH CHRIST AND THIS SURGERY IS NOT NECESSARY. Physician--the whole hath no need of a Physician! Please keep the babies complete and find research, knowledge, and counsel to help the Latter Day Saint to leave their pure infants whole as God directs NOW!!!! Leaders of the Church find something wrong with the spirit in this paper or help the Latter Day Saints to keep this message as God's advice and protect the infants from this harm.
COLOSSIANS 2:13
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
Christ is no respecter of persons but every nation is accepted of him. Billions upon billions of babies who were left complete live normal lives. Parents who leave their children whole are not alone. And their children will be complete!
COLOSSIANS 3:11
11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond [nor] free: but Christ [is] all, and in all.
Have faith that God prepares us to keep all His commandments and if it is a commandment to leave the children whole. Then leave them WHOLE and COMPLETE do not concise them.
Philippians 3:10
10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.
COLOSSIANS 4:11
11 And Jesus, which is called Justus, who are of the circumcision. These only [are my] fellow workers unto the kingdom of God, which have been a comfort unto me.
Paul uses the term circumcision to refer to those who were raised in the customs of the Jews. This is a statement of origin not of persuasion.
Titus 1:10
10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:
We are not Jews but we are Christians of the House of Israel. The Jew have been a bad example to their own teachings which teachings are wonderful. Let us no longer continue their example but let us keep all the commandments.
BOOK OF MORMON
To summarize the standard of judgement of the Book of Mormon the following passage, given prior to the two hundred years of peace recorded in Forth Nephi, is quoted to preface the scriptures in this volume:
3 Nephi 12:17-20
17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets. I am not come to destroy but to fulfil.
18 For verily I say unto you, one jot nor one tittle hath not passed away from the law, but in me it hath all been fulfilled.
19 And behold, I have given you the law and the commandments of my Father, that ye shall believe in me, and that ye shall repent of your sins, and come unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Behold, ye have the commandments before you, and the law is fulfilled.
20 Therefore come unto me and be ye saved; for verily I say unto you, that except ye shall keep my commandments, which I have commanded you at this time, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Moroni 8:8 is based largely from the above quotation in which the "law of circumcision is done away in me". Jesus brings a new earth to new creatures.
2 NEPHI 8:24
24 Awake, awake, put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city; for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.
We are clean by the blood of Christ and circumcised by the blood of Christ's circumcision. Therefore this prophesy can be fulfilled in the due time of the Lord as a Zion Society without concision and the law of performances that made the ancient clean. Through the work of Christ we can truly awaken to strength and knowledge of truth of the LAST CIRCUMCISION.
2 NEPHI 9:33
33 Wo unto the uncircumcised of heart, for a knowledge of their iniquities shall smite them at the last day.
By concising the infant the gall of bitterness is revealed in the heart. Protect the child now and the last days will be looked forward to with new hope. The Book of Mormon speaks very little of circumcision. This is of great import to the scriptorian. It must be explained to confirm that the people of the Book of Mormon as Hebraic descent. If they are truly a tribe of Israel then why was not circumcision mentioned. First they kept the law of Moses, But circumcision is added to the law by tradition and is not a part of Moses' mission. Perhaps they did not circumcise their infants! This is possible because of two scriptures cited below.
2 NEPHI 25:5
5 Yea, and my soul delighteth in the words of Isaiah, for I came out from Jerusalem, and mine eyes hath beheld the things of the Jews, and I know that the Jews do understand the things of the prophets, and there is none other people that understand the things which were spoken unto the Jews like unto them, save it be that they are taught after the manner of the things of the Jews.
2 NEPHI 25:6
6 But behold, I, Nephi, have not taught my children after the manner of the Jews; but behold, I, of myself, have dwelt at Jerusalem, wherefore I know concerning the regions round about; and I have made mention unto my children concerning the judgments of God, which hath come to pass among the Jews, unto my children, according to all that which Isaiah hath spoken, and I do not write them.
Galatians 5:3
3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
Nephi would then end the customs of the Jews by not circumcising his infants that they may be free of the customs and manners of the things of the Jews.
If Nephi knew that circumcision was a tradition that was not part of the law of Moses then perhaps he did not continue this tradition by circumcising his children as Nephi did not follow the manner of the Jews. Also having children in the wilderness conditions it is not safe to circumcise the infants in the harsh surroundings. See Joshua 5:5 for reference and precedence. The absences of Book of Mormon references to circumcision suggest powerfully that the Nephites and Lamanites did not circumcise to keep the law of Moses. The circumcision rite belonged to a prior dispensation. Circumcision was added to the law of Moses by tradition but was not enforceable as part of the law of Moses or Jesus in John 7:22 is not a correct translation or interpretation.
1 Nephi 19:6-7
6 Nevertheless, I do not write anything upon plates save it be that I think it be sacred. And now, if I do err, even did they err of old; not that I would excuse myself because of other men, but because of the weakness which is in me, according to the flesh, I would excuse myself.
7 For the things which some men esteem to be of great worth, both to the body and soul, others set at naught and trample under their feet . . .
THERE IS NOT ONE MENTION OF A CIRCUMCISION IN THE BOOK OF MORMON! He that has ears to hear let him hear.
HELAMAN 9:21
21 But Nephi said unto them: O ye fools, ye uncircumcised of heart, ye blind, and ye stiffnecked people, do ye know how long the Lord your God will suffer you that ye shall go on in this your way of sin?
The people of Nephi did know of the word "circumcise" as they had the scriptures but not one mention in the Book of Mormon of one person being circumcise or given a name in circumcision. The above citation indicates their knowledge of the concept however.
3 NEPHI 20:36
36 And then shall be brought to pass that which is written: Awake, awake again, and put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city, for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.
Fulfilled in circumcision without hands per Colossians 2:11.
3 NEPHI 20:37-38
37 Shake thyself from the dust; arise, sit down, O Jerusalem; loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion.
38 For thus saith the Lord: Ye have sold yourselves for naught, and ye shall be redeemed without money.
If this refers to the future how can we be captive and sold into slavery. Consider the subject of this paper and how it is ignored by the Latter Day Saints. Could there be other things in the Book of Mormon that we have overlook and dismissed as not pertinent. Consider yourselves!
MORONI 8:8
8 Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them; and the law of circumcision is done away in me.
Two points should be marked here. Infants are not sinful and they are not sick. Infant concision damages the protective skin that prevents infection. The foreskin is fused to the other tissue for this reason. The removal of this protection is a violation of nature's ways and Gods design. If concision is preferred then wait till you can ask the young man to have that part of his body removed. Six seventh of the worlds population do not think it is necessary!
KEEP THE CHILDREN WHOLE! The whole have no need of the Physician. MORMON doctors please help the Latter Day Saint keep all the Commandments! Is it possible with the cessation of concision in the infant that greater respect for the infants body may in some way help to prevent millions of abortions in the United States of America due from the disrespect for the sanctity of the infants body and rights. Do we have to wait till judgement day for the remedy.
THE DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS
Section 74
Doctrine and Covenants 74:1
1 For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband; else were your children unclean, but now are they holy.
Doctrine and Covenants 74:2
2 Now, in the days of the apostles the law of circumcision was had among all the Jews who believed not the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Doctrine and Covenants 74:3
3 And it came to pass that there arose a great contention among the people concerning the law of circumcision, for the unbelieving husband was desirous that his children should be circumcised and become subject to the law of Moses, which law was fulfilled.
Doctrine and Covenants 74:4
4 And it came to pass that the children, being brought up in subjection to the law of Moses, gave heed to the traditions of their fathers and believed not the gospel of Christ, wherein they became unholy.
Doctrine and Covenants 74:5
5 Wherefore, for this cause the apostle wrote unto the church, giving unto them a commandment, not of the Lord, but of himself, that a believer should not be united to an unbeliever; except the law of Moses should be done away among them,
Doctrine and Covenants 74:6
6 That their children might remain without circumcision; and that the tradition might be done away, which saith that little children are unholy; for it was had among the Jews;
Doctrine and Covenants 74:7
7 But little children are holy, being sanctified through the atonement of Jesus Christ; and this is what the scriptures mean.
Here was a perfect chance for the Lord to specify the exact nature and requirement of children being circumcised but He left it as a tradition that was to be done away!. The 74th section could have been the place to say that the circumcision should be resumed but God did not so avail himself. If fact the opposite message is given. That it is an old tradition that the believing Jew did not follow as in verse 2. At the time of the revelation infant circumcision was not done routinely and perhaps was not even thought to be a concern of the early Later Day Saints. Some time in the Twentieth Century Doctors with a little knowledge became dangerous. The ignorant Latter Day Saints have more faith in the American Medical Association than the Book of Mormon and the lessons of history found in the New Testament .
Please note verse two and now compare it with all the scriptures that say circumcision is nothing or availeth nothing or has no meaning and it does not matter. If the believing early saints did not circumcise their children then it does matter and the scriptures such as:
1 Corinthians 7:19
19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.
only applies to the adults who are troubled over the damage done to themselves or from the social pressures that may be bearing down on them such as was typical in the days of the Early Day Saints. Note, is circumcision a commandment to keep? Why put upon the children the frustrations of the adults concerning this matter? Paul commanded the Early Day Saints to cease from circumcision so it is something to the infants? Circumcision or concision can be very painful so it is something that is both emotionally and physically disturbing. Paul knew very well this was a great controversy and preoccupied his teachings for years. He is saying do not let this subject keep you from the greater purpose of keeping the commandments of God. One of those commandments is that the law of circumcision is done away.
Colossians 2:11
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
Once again the power of God is revealed to all who would but believe. Circumcision was meant to be a memorial or token to the greater promises and covenants. To mark the flesh with a scar for a memory aid is not foolproof as many "circumcised" or concised men are unfaithful and unbelieving.
Colossians 2:12
12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with [him] through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
Colossians 2:13
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
Christ has provided a passing through of the sins and the fleshly problems by forgiveness and his vicarious work. Jesus did not need circumcision as he was pure from before the foundations of this earth which He help to form. He of all born did not need to suffer anything at all. Yet he did for us. Shall we now not let him suffer any more due to our sins and ignorance of what he did for us.
PEARL OF GREAT PRICE
ABRAHAM 2:8-11
8 My name is Jehovah, and I know the end from the beginning; therefore my hand shall be over thee.
9 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee above measure, and make thy name great among all nations, and thou shalt be a blessing unto thy seed after thee, that in their hands they shall bear this ministry and Priesthood unto all nations;
10 And I will bless them through thy name; for as many as receive this Gospel shall be called after thy name, and shall be accounted thy seed, and shall rise up and bless thee, as their father;
11 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee; and in thee (that is, in thy Priesthood) and in thy seed (that is, thy Priesthood), for I give unto thee a promise that this right shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee (that is to say, the literal seed, or the seed of the body) shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal.
The Gospel is the common thread that runs through the ages and should be the only tradition we hand down to our children. The Pearl of Great Price makes no mention whatsoever of CONCISION or CIRCUMCISION. Let us be the children of Abraham in the true sense and not by marring our bodies in a futile attempt to mimic the traditions of bygone era. Bless our children with the truth and with wisdom that supersedes any ego or denial of the truth. The truth is that Jesus was circumcised for all infants! It has ended. It is finished.
MOSES 5:9
9 And in that day the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam, which beareth record of the Father and the Son, saying: I am the Only Begotten of the Father from the beginning, henceforth and forever, that as thou hast fallen thou mayest be redeemed, and all mankind, even as many as will.
MOSES 5:10
10 And in that day Adam blessed God and was filled, and began to prophesy concerning all the families of the earth, saying: Blessed be the name of God, for because of my transgression my eyes are opened, and in this life I shall have joy, and again in the flesh I shall see God.
MOSES 5:11
11 And Eve, his wife, heard all these things and was glad, saying: Were it not for our transgression we never should have had seed, and never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption, and the eternal life which God giveth unto all the obedient.
MOSES 5:12
12 And Adam and Eve blessed the name of God, and they made all things known unto their sons and their daughters.
Having made mistakes one can learn from the mistakes and like Eve declare that were it not for these transgressions we never should have known good and evil. Being concised at birth and mistakenly concising my sons through lack of an informed consent has given me an understanding that would never been possible if none of these things happened. I have broken the bubble of denial. Now, I am informed and can detect the error and workings of the devil in the laying the foundation of body alterations that will come in the future through the desires of wickedness to capture the mind of mankind through alterations of the body. To stop concision of infants will in one small way prevent the misuse of the body to control the mind in the future.
REPENTANCE BY TRIAGE
Now we are informed! How can we repent and defend the little ones and not let this heritage of pain continue? First of all the living and already damaged should not be a factor in learning to live this commandment from our Lord. Mistakes have been made and there is difficult measures to reverse any of it. All the author's relatives and father were not concised and as a child with an inquisitive nature the author questioned the difference at a very early age. No adequate answer was ever given except "don't think about it!". After having served an LDS mission and having to deal with people outside the United States of America and seeing through heightened scripture study of the New Testament where the subject of circumcision is a dominate theme it came back to haunt. After the fulfillment of a Mission in 1964 the author called upon several doctors to see if there was a remedy to concision(circumcision). After the Doctors humiliated the author by saying no one has ever been concerned with this desire to be complete "uncircumcised" before. The only thing then left to do I felt was to wait for the resurrection and be restored by this great power. The subject was then forced deep into the subconscious. Family life began and children came and the author circumcised his children after great anguish and the **insistence of the medical professionals and also there may have been a pride* that I had so conquered this ache to be complete like my father and his brothers that I felt brave enough to let my sons be circumcised. All of these concerns went into a state of deep denial until by following the advice of the LDS church leaders to continue my studies of the Book of Mormon it became alive with the scripture in Moroni 8:8. All of this caused the author to rethink all his prior conclusions concerning this subject of circumcision. With the perfected knowledge in this paper, I have felt both guilty and filled with sorrow ever since. The sum of it all is that now there is great sorrow and great anguish that he missed the chance to have his sons free from this thing. I am a very poor example to follow but I can not be silent anymore as I care for the grand children that are yet to come. If one of these are left whole and complete according to the commandment then I will feel hope for the future and be more ready for the millennial reign of Christ.
* (Pride the universal sin. Pride is a denial of the realities of self for the preference of someone you are not. Reacting to the disappointments of life with ritual formation can cause the reliving of events over and over. Pride prevents the direct dealing with the originating event because of the denial of reality. Therefore the reaction formation of trauma cause the reliving of the event over and over even in your child. Resolving the problem with knowledge and wisdom require the truth. Not being able to see the other persons point of view is the fuel of pride. The child's life should have been the consideration and not the parents concerns.)
** The consent that was given for the circumcision or concision is, as I can see now from the present medical knowledge I have gained on this subject was not an informed consent but was a mere permission that was signed. I was never instructed in the pros and cons of circumcision or concision and there was not any counsels, warnings or consequences of both pro or con given. The entire advice was "circumcision must be done". No mention of health benefits or other expert advice was offered. The total reason for the consent signing was that I did not know as much as the Doctors and that their expert authority caused me to disallowed my own opinion. With the present knowledge and study that I have gained, there would have been no chance for me to allow the concision of my sons. I do now know better and accuse the Doctors of not correctly instructing or informing me of the consequences of their preference upon my children as I never wanted to concise my sons. From this experience it is easy for me to believe that many boys are damaged through ignorance in misinformation.
Therefore because there is so little from the modern Authorities of the Church on this matter and through my family heritage and the great sorrow at having broken what the author considers a commandment I have undertaken the difficult task of writing this paper. The silence of the Church is deceiving to many. If nothing is said about a subject, ignorance prevails; error reigns. Therefore this paper.
How do we repent? How do we gain peace? Things are now out of control as there is no thought given as infants are concised. Even the Nurses and Doctors call this operation in abbreviated term 'CIRC'. To change all this trend and tradition will require uncomfortable measures and disaster management methods such as triage. Change can only be done through triage and a mother like care for the small infants total well being .
STEPS FOR TRIAGE METHOD OF STOPPING THE TRADITION OF THE CONCISION OF INFANTS.
1. If the father is concised, the children can be left complete by choice. The great and good father can be proud to have braved the new doctrine of Christ concerning circumcision. If the father is whole without concision no guilt from the survivor syndrome need compel the father to choose the alteration of the child's future because he is different. Just be grateful that you were spared and likewise spare your own child. You who are whole and complete are in the best position to father the whole child with the secrets of the ages. Adam was not concised. Be like our first parents whole and pure.
2. If some of the children are already circumcised and more children are to come, there is no reason to continue the error or the tradition just because its too late for the children already concised. This the greatest trick of Satan that sin is a good excuse to continue sin. Don't let despair be the reason to continue the concision tradition. Billions of babies have been left whole with no problems.
3. If the parents are divided over the decision to keep the child whole, Think and honor the rights of the child and leave him whole to keep the commandment. Ask him later when his voice can be heard. Honor the free agency of the child.
4. If relatives pressure the parents then fight for the rights of your child and be a man and do not give in as sorrow for not doing what you as a new parents really want will be worse. Good in-laws or grand parents will love the child anyway. Think of the blessings in store for those who strive to keep the commandments of the Lord.
5. Grand parents who have already made the mistake and want their children to change the direction of this tradition should express to their sons they have concised that they are sorry for the invasion to their body. Then ask forgiveness and ask their children to please not continue the errors of the past onto the children of the future.
6. Doctors can help you keep your child whole and complete therefor it is best to shop for a doctor who will not try to undermine your resolve. Seek out the Doctors who will support your desire to keep your child intact. Arrange early long before the birth of the child to agree with the terms of the child's being left whole and complete to prevent last minute pressures.
7. Fight through the emotional scars that the male ego has concerning their own concision and start new by protecting the baby boys that need your experience. Consider the concision scar as a wound received in the battle of life. But as a returning warrior teach the young how to fight for freedom and the true liberty of life. Teach them to "remain without circumcision".
8. REALIZE THAT THE MECHANISM of DENIAL will perpetuate the concision tradition even if there is really no medical reason to do so. To stop this thoughtless tradition one must face ones inner fears and losses with courage. TRIAGE REPENTANCE is the only way to repent.
9. Find and study books that reveal the facts concerning leaving children complete. Don't let a doctor retract the foreskin of an infant as this is proof positive that the Doctor does not know what to do with the whole child. It could be that a "complete" Doctor is qualified to give advice from experience concerning leaving children whole. However there are Doctors who are concised that proclaim loudly that concision is damaging to infants!
10. Concision is a medical procedure to correct a problem or to treat a disease. Realize the concision should not be used as a preventive of disease or a prophylaxis or the scriptures say the whole need no physician but they that are sick. New born babies that are not sick should be left complete and whole. If something is wrong then maybe a decision should be made; that is, "if thy right eye offend thee cut it out". What then on a baby offends is the question?
11. Women have a difficult time understanding all of this circumcision or concision requirements and changes to the baby boys body. Some of the United States most vocal opponents to infant concision are women. Nevertheless women cannot understand the trauma to the male ego due to the female identification. If cancer of the breast effects 10% of the female population then 10% of the women can really understand the alteration of body parts that are involved in feminine identity. Perhaps removing the little glands in the infants breast would save many women the concern of breast cancer. But how many mothers would permit such surgery on their daughters even if it would save them from cancer? Then why would a mother allow the surgery on the penis of their son? Women, Mothers learn the truth and protect your baby boys. Defend your new new born baby boy. Be free so your children are free.
12. The male ego prevents the real understanding that concision damages the penis. How many men will admit their penis is damaged? Don't let this pride cause the concision of helpless infant boys. Fathers admit the damage and don't continue the tradition. Let your sons have the freedom and privilege of being the way God made them. Don't do any more harm because you imagine there is nothing missing with yourself.
13. If the father is whole and complete and desires the infant to be concised then let the father be concised first. If the father after having been the leader in this matter still agrees with the concision of his own self there is precedence and experience rather than superstition about concising the helpless infant is for the child's own good. Also put the cost of concision in the bank and by the time the need for concision might arrive in the life of the boy or man then the money would have grown to the expense of the operation and can be easily paid for with the interest on the money in the bank. Sometimes the extra maintenance required in being complete is exaggerated to the concised sons of complete men to sooth the conscience of the father who has sons different from himself. These fathers will complain about not being concised but never mention the benefits of being whole and complete so as to prevent the sons from wanting to be like their father. The absents of mentioning the benefits is a syndrome of a regret. Yes there is true benefits to being the way God has made you. The father who never mentions the good part of being whole and complete has to see a counselor or get concised himself to see for real. Most men who are concised in later life do regret this surgery. Unless there is actual medical reasons for concision concision should be avoided. If for no other reason but to live the advice in the scriptures.
14. When a young man or young boy discovers the fact he has been concised let him express his true feelings freely. Do not suppress this realization but let it fully develop as forcing these discoveries out of mind will cause the cycle to perpetuate. If there were no medical concerns or religious concerns but a boy is forced not to think about the damage to his body due to elective surgery he will have these ideas driven into the subconsciousness where they will return in the form of desiring to concise his children as his parents did to him as this is the cycle that perpetuates tradition. Tradition is where thinking has been done by our ancestors. But sometimes we need to reevaluate the thoughts of our parents so we can come to an understanding for ourselves. Let the men and boys cry if they discover the loss. This will help then resolve the loss and not be driven to overcompensation in their sex life.
15. BE VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE OF THIS SUBJECT OF CIRCUMCISION/CONCISION THAT YOU BE NOT DECEIVED. Remember that denial and ego will prevent the truth in this very emotional and controversial subject. Emotions will distorts and exaggerates all aspects both pro and con. Find all the benefits of being complete. Understand all the theories and forces behind the ritual and medical claims. Then make up your own mind as we don't circumcise ourselves "they" will always be a force and a factor in the continuation of concision.
16. CONCISION SHOULD BE FOR THE SICK NOT THE WHOLE. Concision is a remedy for a very serious condition not for whims.
17. The most dangerous part of concision tradition is the bubble of denial that is started. Those who have been concised are advised to "DON'T THINK ABOUT IT"! Those who have concised others and regret it are advised to "DON'T THINK ABOUT IT"! This tradition of denial or 'not thinking about it' is of greater concern than the actual concision damage as it builds the foundation of greater denials. Nevertheless when the newborn infant boy is before the knife DON'T THINK ABOUT IT. That is the time for DENIAL! Respect the child's choice!
Denial with ignorance of the truth and denial with the truth drove this tradition onward. But some early Christians and Jews were able to overcome the power of this tradition and set their children free! The purpose of this paper is not just to investigate the truth but this paper is to look closely at the direction that denial has taken in these matters. What is future that the U. S. male is being prepared to deny? As once denial has a foundation it will increase if not checked. When God gives advice there are consequences for ignoring His scriptures. We have ignored His words concerning circumcision. What greater denials shall come?
There are some who say that to concise infants for hygiene will dodge any judgements for concising(circumcising) for religious motives or so called scriptural reasons. If hygiene is more important that body parts then maybe we should cut off our hands and feet so we do not need to wash them, it would be more hygienic. The infants foreskin is fused to the glans and remains so for three to four years or more in some individuals. This covering is nature hygiene measure for the soiling that diapers and other toilet training may cause. If the baby boy is left whole he is protected from infections far more that any concision provides. In fact concision(circumcision) exposes the boy to greater risk of infections. When the boy is older soap and water will be enough to be clean. And as puberties onset begins the only protection now days with HIV's and worse is self restraint and chastity. Keeping the commandments is the only sure method that works to prevent STD (S)exually (T)ransmitted (D)isease. Therefore for hygienic reasons do not retract or remove the foreskin in infants. If you must concise the males in your family do it later with their permission and knowledge. This is just a courtesy to the free agency of the young man.
IF the boy lives a clean chaste life the Lord will protect the young man from the plagues of the Last Days. One of the reasons the concision rate in the United States has dropped more than 25% is due to the futility of concision with modern infections which are only preventible by living the Gospel of Jesus Christ in its Fullness.
Yes there is risk in coming to earth as some may fail. Yes there is risk in "remaining without circumcision" (as there are risks in "circumcision" but there is joy to compensate for the freedom. Security is a prison. Being complete will provide its rewards. Do not fear, the babies will survive if they "remain without circumcision". Pray and see if this is not true and right.
SUMMARY
The exact reason and source of circumcision or concision is not specified in the scriptures. Only indirect scriptures support it. Moses did not originate the practice and apparently tried to stop it. There is no scriptural evidence that the Nephites or Lamanites practiced circumcision. There is not one example in the Book of Mormon of a circumcision! The words in the Book of Mormon do away with it in Christ. The first use of it was to prevent child abuse as there was a custom and a belief that children were born unclean as fallen beings from the Garden of Eden. As a token it was to be like a seal to a greater covenant that is far less revealed in the scriptures than this memorial to the promises to Abraham. It was reduced to an obsession to circumcise all about them who were to associate with the tribes of Israel. Peter disclaimed it in his day and refused to burden the new converts with its practice as it frustrated the growth of the Church and was a difficulty to the Israelites all through their history. Rather than becoming a seal and a reminder of the greater promises made to Abraham it eclipsed the promises made to Abraham with a heritage of pain and damage to infants and those who would have been converts to the teachings of God. Although the beginnings of circumcision are cloudy --- its stoppage is clear and bright as the noon day sun. It is done away in the New Covenant of Christ.
POSTSCRIPT
England in 1948 was instrumental in establishing the State of Israel. At the same time the Doctors in England were beginning to cease from concising the infants of their nation. By 1950 concision in England essentially stopped. The Jews of Israel will continue to circumcise their infants till Christ appears to them. Also Christians in the United States of America will continue to "circ" their infants till Christ appears to all. Then Paul words will speak to their souls like rain from Heaven.
"Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing." Galatians 5:2
THE GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN LIFE MUST BE DONE ALONE.
THREADS OF CHANGE INTRODUCED INTO SOCIETY AT LARGE BY CONCISION
Destruction of the design of God is good and justified.
Sacrafice of the innocent is for the greater good.
Associate feelings of destruction at the onset of life.
Associate "taste" of blood at the onset of life.
Natural things should be civilized and cultivated.
Associate the "Pride of the Male" to damage.
The fear of death is marked upon the child in symbolic form.
Victim syndrome of the phyche of the child is started.
First shock
of pain given to the male of the species
to
put the trauma of pain into the psyche of the child.
First pain with anxiety to undermine a sense of security.
Male insensitivity is engendered as first pain is is avoided.
Body is not to be respected in it natural form.
Denial and avoidance is a pattern of behavior.
Infants rights are not clearly defined.
First breaths of life is associated with pain.
Violence at birth.
Unrightous Dominion.
Addendum: Found in the Coptic Gospel of Thomas taken from
Eygpt of nearly two thousand years
His disciples said to Him, "Is circumcision beneficial or not?"
He said to them, "If it were beneficial, their father would beget them already circumcised from their mother. Rather, the true circumcision in spirit has become completely profitable
copyright © 1997 by James Norman Hall all rights are reserved
copyright © 2011 by James Norman Hall all rights are reserved
(beginning has this same copyright notice)
Self Teaching Publications
West Jordan, Utah 84084, United States of America
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