The Jewish practice of circumcision is the believer’s first act of commitment to God and the Jewish traditions, performed during the Bris Milah. This most sacred of ceremonies is filled with social and religious gravity—the newborn child is welcomed into an age-long culture through the nurturing of their family and a mohel, an expert in the circumcision field, who performs the sacred ritual. Every Bris Milah ceremony is a moment of joy, a blessing bestowed upon the Jewish community and the baby’s family.
However, the benefits of such a joyous ceremony transcended the boundaries of the Jewish year. For the past few years, mohels across the country have noticed a significant uptick in non-Jewish circumcisions, especially for newborn babies. However, what hides behind this trend? The connection between the mohel and the baby’s family or medical reasons? These are the questions that will find themselves an answer in today’s blog.
Why Do More Non-Jewish Families Choose Mohels to Circumcise Their Babies?
Rabbi Rappaport, a renowned mohel who performs Bris Milah ceremonies across the country, has noticed himself the growing number of circumcisions on non-Jewish babies. In his expert opinion, the non-Jewish families who avoid circumcisions on the babies at the hospital motivate their decisions through these four reasons: the Bris Milah’s religious significance, concerns over hospital-bred infections, the risk of cosmetically uneven circumcisions, and the probable impossibility of witnessing the procedure.
#1: The Religious Significance Behind Circumcision Ceremonies
For families that lead their lives according to God’s tenants, circumcisions are not merely about the surgical procedure. On the contrary, such families want to see their newborn babies welcomed into the world in such a manner that befits their religious beliefs. Therefore, although hospital physicians might be qualified to perform the procedure, they cannot welcome the baby into the eyes of God accordingly.
More often than not, hospital circumcisions are performed under the constraints of time, which do not allow for the complete circumcision ritual to occur. Such hindrances deter future families from the hospital experience and encourage them to research more spiritual alternatives, such as mohels.
Additionally, if the person performing the hospital procedure is not of Jewish background or if it’s done prior to the 8th day it would not be a Kosher Bris according to the Jewish Torah Law.
#2: Concerns Over Hospital-Bred Infections
Nothing concerns new parents more than their babies’ safety. Unfortunately, a concerning number of hospital patients contract healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) every year, with newborn babies at a higher risk of infection. Considering that concerns over hospital-bred infections are on the rise, more and more non-Jewish parents choose mohels to circumcise their babies at home in an effort to keep them from unwanted germs and diseases.
#3: The Risk of Cosmetically Uneven Circumcisions
As we mentioned earlier, hospital circumcisions are frequently performed by physicians working under time constraints. Such a hastened approach can jeopardize the final results and cause cosmetically uneven circumcisions and, therefore, the need for an additional circumcision procedure.
In fact, many procedures performed in the hospital are not performed by doctors but rather by residents and nurses. Even the doctors that do perform circumcisions do not specialize in that field but are rather specialists in pediatrics or obstetrics and gynecology, which is a different specialty altogether.
As well, the general orientation of the medical field is a very conservative one, and sadly, the major majority of procedures in the hospitals end up leaving a lot of redundant foreskin, of which many need to be corrected within the first few weeks or months!
Instead, choosing a certified mohel greatly reduces the risk of cosmetically uneven circumcisions. Performing the ceremony in a peaceful environment allows the mohel to devote all the necessary time to a perfect Bris Milah experience, both physically and spiritually.
#4: Parents May Not Be Present at the Ceremony
For religious parents, circumcision represents the act of introducing their babies into an age-long tradition, into a community that shares the same morals, values, and principles. Therefore, they will surely not miss such a symbolic event for anything in the world.
Unfortunately, physicians do sometimes perform circumcisions on newborn babies in the absence of parents, thus prohibiting them from attending at the babies’ first covenant. For that reason, parents are right to entrust their children’s circumcisions in the hands of mohels, whose understanding of the ceremony’s symbolism is in harmony with the parents’ spiritual needs.
Now that we understand the main reasons behind the increase in non-Jewish circumcisions, let us help you find the perfect mohel for the perfect circumcision experience!
Choosing Rabbi Rappaport for a Perfect Circumcision Experience
Over 5,000 babies are ready to give their stamp of approval to Rabbi Rappaport, a renowned mohel specializing in the Bris Milah ceremony! Over the course of decades, Rabbi Rappaport has helped thousands of families understand the physical and spiritual benefits behind circumcision ceremonies, both Jewish and non-Jewish. His wholesome understanding of the human anatomy, as well as the belief in his God-given skills, endow Rabbi Rappaport with a certain mastery and confidence that only a handful of mohels can boast.
After spending several years of apprenticeship with his father Rabbi Moshe Rappaport of Baltimore and the Chief Mohel of Israel, Rabbi Moshe Weisberg, Rabbi Rappaport developed a simple circumcision technique that allows him to finish the procedure in a matter of seconds, a feat unrivaled by hospital physicians and most Mohels. Entrusting your baby’s circumcision in the hands of Rabbi Rappaport will allow you to truly enjoy the meaning, joy, and happiness behind this most sacred of ceremonies! All you have to do is contact Rabbi Rappaport and he will walk you through the perfect circumcision experience!
If you plan to organize a circumcision for your child, let Rabbi Rappaport do the job. Contact him anytime on his cell at: 443-790-6541. You can also send him an email at rabbi@mdmohel.com or visit his website. He will be happy to support you in making sure your son has a perfect experience! We also invite you to read or write a review of your experience with Rabbi Rappaport!
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