Understanding The Bris Milah Ceremony

By Author: mohellosangeles
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The Jewish people were commanded by God to circumcise the flesh of the foreskin of a male child on the eighth day after birth. Circumcision, which marks the completion of the body, is a human act that symbolizes the partnership between humanity and God. It teaches that our emotional, spiritual, ethical and moral perfection can not be completed without human effort.
During the course of a lifetime there are a number of partnerships that a person would enter into. Many of these partnerships will be broken either by natural circumstances or by the will of one of the parties. A Jewish male child's partnership with God begins with the Bris ceremony, during which the physical body is etched to mark the beginning of the covenant that will never be forgotten and will never end.
The Mohel
Generally, the father of the child is not qualified to perform this procedure and a Mohel is used to perform the Bris Milah. A Mohel is a Jewish man who is trained in the ritual of circumcision as per the instructions outlined in the rabbinical texts. In order to make the procedure highly safe, the Mohel also acquires medical training ...
... to perform the ritual of circumcision. Nowadays it is very common to find a Mohel in San Francisco who is also a practicing doctor. However, using just a medical surgeon to get your child circumcised is not halachically sound and the child will still require the proper rituals to be performed maybe by a Mohel in San Diego to authenticate the procedure as per the Scripture.
The Benefits
There are many health benefits of circumcision, the most important being protection against HIV/AIDS. As per research, it has been found that the transmission of HIV can be reduced by at least 60% by circumcision. In a world where many have succumbed to this disease, circumcision could easily save millions of lives by just reducing the risk. Countries like Kenya and Uganda have even started circumcision campaigns due to the health benefits.
As per the researchers at the Johns Hopkins University, the male foreskin were found to be more susceptible to sores and contained high concentration of certain immune cells which were easy gateways for HIV infection. There are many other health conditions that can be avoided through circumcision including syphilis, genital herpes, Chlamydia, cervical cancer and human papillomavirus. These health benefits are of course not only limited to male, but also to the female who is in contact with uncircumcised man. Visit at http://www.mohellosangeles.com/