Posted on 02/02/2005 8:14:33 PM PST by finnman69
City health officials are trying to stop a Rockland County rabbi from performing circumcisions, after a baby boy died from herpes he allegedly contracted from the rabbi during a circumcision.
The city Department of Health said Wednesday it is seeking a permanent injunction against Rabbi Yitzhok Fischer. The DOH says Fischer uses an ancient religious custom of using his mouth to suck the infant's blood after cutting the foreskin.
According to court papers filed in Manhattan, a 3-week-old boy died from herpes 10 days after he and his twin brother were circumcised by Fischer in October. The boy’s twin was also infected with the virus.
In addition, a Staten Island boy was also reportedly infected with herpes after a circumcision performed by Fischer in 2003.
DOH officials say Fischer did not comply with an order given in November to stop performing circumcisions and to have his blood tested.
“Infants, particularly under the age of six months, are highly susceptible to infections. They do not have a functioning immune system," said Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Frieden.
Fischer's attorney says his client is cooperating with the city in an effort to determine what he says it “the true source” of the infection.
Hey, Leeches are an approved therapy for some conditions where hematomas have formed and need to be removed.
Male circuncision is not barbaric.
It was a biblical ceremony depicting outwardly (in a sense) the inward change God wrought upon the heart. It was commanded by God.
FMG is barbaric.
Just more left-wing anti-Judeo/Christian propaganda, in my opinion.
True and so is bleeding as in hemochromatosis.
BTTT
I googled that and all that comes up is trash websites. Is there a book that documents this procedure's history?
Nor have I, and I have witnessed dozens of brises. Disgusting if true.
God does not order mutilation.
However outdated it may seem, God did not command it because of health reasons but because it was an important symbolism of the transformation He worked in the heart.
Jewish people who understand themselves under the Mosaic covenant still circumcise. So do most American Christians who have traditionally identified themselves with this OT practise.
I am circumcised---not mutilated (are your ears pierced?). If I had any sons, so would they be---but by a doctor.
There is evidence that this procedure has health benefits both for the man and his wife as well.
The anticircumcision lobby deny this fact, much as the pro-abortion lobby deny any corollation between abortion and later mental illness or abortion and breast cancer.
Total B.S. There is far less risk of innumerous genital diseases and hygenic issues among those circumsized, which is why it has been standard practice in New York's hospitals for many years.
There?
Ridiculous. There is no cutting out of sensory organs of pleasure such as with the clitoris. Speak when you know what you're talking about. This rabbi should be executed if this story is true. But don't make absurd statements about genital mutilation. I am circumsised and happy to be so. Nobody "mutilated" me.
But sorry to be so ornery with you.
We all mix it up on Free Republic and have geat fun 'cause the peple are great!
It is a strong personal preference of mine and I would certainly not have a problem with anyone who chose not to practice this procedure.
Sorry also for misspelling FGM.
I'm also a member of the DNA---National Dyslexic Association. :)
with all due respect, from my old bio days, there are nerve endings in the male foreskin. Dr. Dean Adel did a newspiece on the procedure years ago. He was opposed to non-religious circumcision.
Regardless, the only reason for anyone to have this done to babies is for strictly religious reasons. (ie Jewish Faith)
Though in all honest I have never heard of the blood sucking part. I suspect that part of the story must be exagerated.
I would venture that God does not design without purpose.
What Are the Foreskin's Functions?
The foreskin has numerous protective, sensory, and sexual functions.
* Protection: Just as the eyelids protect the eyes, the foreskin protects the glans and keeps its surface soft, moist, and sensitive. It also maintains optimal warmth, pH balance, and cleanliness. The glans itself contains no sebaceous glands--glands that produce the sebum, or oil, that moisturizes our skin.[11] The foreskin produces the sebum that maintains proper health of the surface of the glans.
* Immunological Defense: The mucous membranes that line all body orifices are the body's first line of immunological defense. Glands in the foreskin produce antibacterial and antiviral proteins such as lysozyme.[12] Lysozyme is also found in tears and mother's milk. Specialized epithelial Langerhans cells, an immune system component, abound in the foreskin's outer surface. Plasma cells in the foreskin's mucosal lining secrete immunoglobulins, antibodies that defend against infections.
* Erogenous Sensitivity: The foreskin is as sensitive as the fingertips or the lips of the mouth. It contains a richer variety and greater concentration of specialized nerve receptors than any other part of the penis.[15] These specialized nerve endings can discern motion, subtle changes in temperature, and fine gradations of texture.[16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23]
* Coverage during Erection: As it becomes erect, the penile shaft becomes thicker and longer. The double-layered foreskin provides the skin necessary to accommodate the expanded organ and to allow the penile skin to glide freely, smoothly, and pleasurably over the shaft and glans.
* Self-Stimulating Sexual Functions: The foreskin's double-layered sheath enables the penile shaft skin to glide back and forth over the penile shaft. The foreskin can normally be slipped all the way, or almost all the way, back to the base of the penis, and also slipped forward beyond the glans. This wide range of motion is the mechanism by which the penis and the orgasmic triggers in the foreskin, frenulum, and glans are stimulated.
* Sexual Functions in Intercourse: One of the foreskin's functions is to facilitate smooth, gentle movement between the mucosal surfaces of the two partners during intercourse. The foreskin enables the penis to slip in and out of the vagina nonabrasively inside its own slick sheath of self-lubricating, movable skin. The female is thus stimulated by moving pressure rather than by friction only, as when the male's foreskin is missing.
http://www.foreskin.org/fleiss.htm The foreskin fosters intimacy between the two partners by enveloping the glans and maintaining it as an internal organ. The sexual experience is enhanced when the foreskin slips back to allow the male's internal organ, the glans, to meet the female's internal organ, the cervix--a moment of supreme intimacy and beauty. The foreskin may have functions not yet recognized or understood. Scientists in Europe recently detected estrogen receptors in its basal epidermal cells.[24] Researchers at the University of Manchester found that the human foreskin has apocrine glands.[25] These specialized glands produce pheromones, nature's chemical messengers. Further studies are needed to fully understand these features of the foreskin and the role they play.
Source:
http://www.foreskin.org/fleiss.htm
It is a barbaric practice. My boys are not circumcised.
While on my Maternity rotation I saw a few circumcisions. NEVER would I put my sons through what I saw. Never.
The baby is strapped down, spread eagle, nude, the foreskin grabbed then is cut off, NO anesthesia is used, a neosporin ointment saturated 4 x4 piece of gauze is placed on the penis and a diaper put on the still screaming baby.
I'll say it's barbaric.
I am also circumcised and very glad that I am (and my wife tells me that she is also, that is, happy I am circumcised).
Jew bashing!!??
What are you talking about?
What are the advantages of circumcision?
* Improved cleanliness
* Less risk of cancer of the penis
* Less risk of phimosis (inability to retract the foreskin)
* Less risk of balanoposthitis (inflammation of penis and foreskin)
* Less risk urinary tract infections
* Possibly less risk of transmitting sexual transmitted diseases (including HIV and cervical cancer)
* Looks like father (if dad is circumcised)
* Religious requirements (e.g. Jews, Muslims)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.