Ritual circumcision
Ritual circumcision refers to the practice by many Jewish parents of performing a circumcision on eight-day-old boys as mandated by the Abrahamic covenant found in Genesis 17. The circumcision is NOT a medical procedure. It is carried out by a religious official called a mohel. The circumcision is a religious ceremony called Brit Milah.
Several medical articles have reported urinary tract infection (UTI) in Israel after ritual circumcision.[1][2][3][4]
Prais et al. (2009) reported that a boy is 2.8 times more likely to get a UTI when circumcised by a mohel as compared to when circumcised by a physician.[3]
The urethra of girls is shorter than that of boys, so it is normal for girls to have more urinary tract infections than boys. Marild & Jodal (1998), working in Sweden, reported an incidence of UTI in girls of 6.6% in the first six years of life, while boys had an incidence of 1.8%.[5] However, in Israel, with respect to Jewish boys, the situation is reversed with more UTI in boys as compared with girls. Toker et al. (2010) reported an incidence of UTI in Jewish boys of 24.7% as compared to girls with 8.4%.[4]
Many Jewish parents are concerned about the health and well-being of their son under the pain, stress, and trauma of a cutting operation in the newborn period, so they substitute a Brit Shalom, which is a non-cutting naming ceremony.
Many Jews in Israel are secular Jews who do not practice circumcision.
Bruchim is an American Jewish organization that seeks to make non-cutting accepted in synagogues.
See also
Cohen HA, Drucker MM, Vainer S, Ashkenazi A, Amir J, Frydman M, Varsano L. Postcircumcision Urinary Tract Infection. Clin Pediatr (Phila). June 1992; 31(6): 322-4. PMID. DOI. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
Goldman M, Barr J, Bistritzer, T, Aladjem M. Urinary tract infection following ritual Jewish circumcision. Isr J Med Sci. November 1996; 32(11): 1098-102. PMID. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
Prais D, Shoov-Furman R, Amir J. Is ritual circumcision a risk factor for neonatal urinary tract infections?. Arch Dis Child. March 2009; 94(3): 191-4. PMID. DOI. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
Toker O, Schwartz S, Segal G, Godovitch N, Schlesinger Y, Raveh D. A costly covenant: ritual circumcision and urinary tract infection 
. Isr Med Assoc J. May 2010; 12(5): 262-5. PMID. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
Marild S, Jodal U. Incidence rate of first-time symptomatic urinary tract infection in children under 6 years of age. Acta Paediatr. May 1998; 87(5): 549-52. PMID. DOI. Retrieved 28 March 2024.