Liberimery wrote:Kenmoria wrote:(OOC: A total ban on even voluntary circumcision would of course be antisemitic. However, this draft only bans involuntary circumcision and therefore cannot be reasonably argued to constitute a religiously-discriminatory piece of legislation. The focus here is not on prohibiting a religious practice but on upholding the right to bodily sovereignty.)
(The custom in the Jewish faith is symbolic of God’s pact with Abraham. While it is traditionally believed that Abraham was 99 years old when he was circumcised, the procedure occurs days after the birth of a male child and is a major celebration for the family. Of the child akin to baptism in some sex’s of Christianity (notably Catholicism which traditionally holds the sacrament about a month after the birth). In addition circumcision is also practiced in some sects of other Abrahamic religions but Judaism is notable as the practice occurs in all major secs.
Thus by not allowing the religious exception, a ban is anti-semetic by its vary nature, as the religion dictates it must be done early in a boy’s life.)
(OOC: My family are Jewish - I know what circumcision is. Although it is true that most sects of Judaism do mandate circumcision on the 8th day of the boy’s life, it is also true that the world has progressed quite a lot since the days in which Abraham is said to have made the Covenant with God. There is strong precedent for banning religious practices on the basis that said practices unreasonable encroach upon other’s freedoms, particularly when the individual has not chosen to be part of that religion yet.
The importance of the sacrament is not in the physical act, but rather the symbolism of being part of the Jewish community and as a sign of recognition of the Covenant. As long as the symbolism is allowed, I do not see it as being antisemitic to require that all circumcisions are strictly voluntary. For precedent of this, see the fact that circumcision was historically often sealed with an animal sacrifice. As modern sensibilities evolved, this practice became obsolete.
For these reasons, I fully support this proposal.)