The Circumcision Decision for Torah-Keepers

Here's a question I'm asked a lot: how do you feel about circumcision?

Sometimes its hard to have a straight answer.

The facts about routine infant circumcision are spot on:

1. The foreskin is the protective covering of a man's penis that acts as a barrier between it and the world. Yahuah created it and it has a purpose and function.

2. The foreskin, just like a vagina, has creases and folds that need to be washed -- not cut off, to prevent disease and infection. 

3. In routine hospital circumcision, your baby boy will be strapped down to a cold, metal surface, without any comfort, and a metal instrument will be inserted under the foreskin to cut it off.

4. There is NO medical reason for routine infant circumcision. HIV/AIDS can NOT be prevented with circumcision. Only the use of a condom/safe sexual practices/sex within marriage can do that.

5. The foreskin creates natural lubrication that makes sex pleasurable. A lot of women with fully circumcised husbands have to use alternative methods of lubrication so that sex is not PAINFUL for them. Women with intact/loosely circumcised husbands do not have this problem.

With this in mind, what do those of us who have a heart for the Father's Law do?

I was not going to take my son in to just any doctor and have them strap my newborn to a cold metal table and remove the foreskin that Yah gave him.

But we still circumcised. 

We were able to look up a Messianic Surgeon who was willing to do a Scriptural Circumcision.

Back in Abraham's time, do you think that all the Israelite men lined up outside of a hospital to have their entire foreskin removed? NO. In fact (and this is NOT, NOT, NOT what we did) he used a sharp rock.

Historically, before the Pharisees got involved,  the foreskin was just pulled up, the very tip was tied off, allowed to drain of blood, and then the tiniest sliver of skin (think hangnail sized) was cut off. 

Done. No strapping the baby down, no surgical removal of the foreskin. 

A nurse and I held my son while the "procedure" was preformed.

Unfortunately -- we didn't know at the time that you didn't have to separate the foreskin too. And that was the part that truly hurt my son...I will never, ever do that again and my heart hurts when I think about that mistake. We later realized that we could have asked for him to leave the foreskin attached and that it would have separated by itself when he reached puberty, if not before. There is NO reason to separate the foreskin.

Circumcised this way, my son still has the protective covering of his foreskin. As he gets older, I will have to teach him how to clean it. That is my responsibility as a parent.

So...what if you aren't a Torah Keeper? Honestly, I can't tell you what to do. I certainly will not tell you to go to the hospital and have them routinely circumcise your child. I also can not tell you to have a Scriptural circ either because it means nothing to you. 

That's a choice you would have to make.

Paul has a lot to say on circumcision. Galatians 5:1 - 11 is often used to preach against circumcision. 

He says that even if you are circumcised, the Messiah is no profit to you.

And you know what -- he's right. Because circumcision does not 'save' you. Think of ALL of the people in the world that are circumcised -- are their hearts circumcised as well? Do they follow the Law of the Father? Do they have a heart for Yahushua the Messiah? Most likely not!

If a man does not have to be circumcised to love the Messiah. A man does not have to be circumcised to learn Torah. He DOES have to be circumcised to be in the Covenant. 

Galatians 6:11 - 16 Paul says  For 'neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.' And he is right! You can be circumcised all you want and that doesn't make you a Believer. That does not make you a new creation. 

On that note -- please, please, do not put your baby boys through ROUTINE infant hospital circumcision.

For Believers -- locate a surgeon who is willing to keep to Scripture and only remove what is necessary  Keep that foreskin!

Fox in the Hen House

The fox that has been tormenting my hens is finally dead. 

I didn't get the killing shot in, my husband did...but it's still an interesting story, especially considering that I've always wondered if I'd have the guts to fire a gun in defense of my poultry if the need had ever arisen.

I was walking by the bedroom window folding laundry on Preparation Day last week when I saw him -- this mangy, old, disgusting red fox, pinning down my favorite hen (the one I call "Mama Bird"), pulling out her feathers and eating her alive.

I was so mad...but so scared -- my husband wasn't around, my neighbors weren't at home, so I had to be the one to deal with the problem.

I set my 1 1/2 year old son down on the couch and turned on 'Peter Pan' while I went to go get my gun. Unfortunately, as I retrieved it I realized it was out of ammo, so I had to go to the only other one I was any good with, the pump action shotgun. 

The thing I don't like about this gun is that, unlike mine, it has a pretty heavy kickback. I always get a pretty bad headache after firing a couple of rounds. The thing I do like about it is that since it is a shotgun, its pretty much 'point and shoot'. Hard to miss, especially within a couple of feet.

It was already loaded so I grabbed my ear protection (in this respect, I am a total wimp) and sneaked out the side door.

The fox saw me just as I got to the chicken run. He tried to take a couple of more bites, which allowed me to get close -- the muzzle of the gun could have touched him if I got any closer.

I braced and fired -- BUT THE SAFETY WAS ON! No, no, a million times no! How could I forget to turn the safety off?

The fox took that chance to scurry over the side of the chicken wire and make a run for it. 

I still couldn't turn the safety off.

After finally figuring it out (its a small button on the side, a lot less conspicuous than the safety on my gun), located the fox (who was making a break for the trees).

Crouch. Aim. Fire. Instant remembering of how much I hate firing this gun...the kickback is murder on my shoulder. I hit ground near the tree, and not the fox. He got away.

My hen seemed okay for the moment -- maybe scared. There was no blood so I assumed she was fine.

I went inside, checked on my son. He was still right where I left him.

So, I sat by the window and waited. After about 45 minutes, he came back.

Outside, I managed to sneak up closer...crouch, aim...and off he ran. Sneaky little guy.

Scott pulled up just then, home early from work. He fired a shot into the treeline to scare the fox away. He notified me we had a Mary Kay party to go to that night. 

So, my husband sat by the window and kept watch while I got cleaned up to leave. I had a sinking feeling though that something bad would happen while I was gone. I knew we would be home late...

We left, had fun at the party, but on our way home we got a call from our neighbor's daughter, letting us know that the fox was in the chicken run. He was eating another chicken. 

Ooh, was I mad. That special kind of pregnant mad too.

When we got to the driveway (which is really long), I turned the headlights off and inched towards the house, parking in front of the front door and turned off the car. 

It was storming, pitch black except for the lightening. Scott got his flashlight from his truck, went inside for the shotgun, and sneaked up on the fox.

I covered my son's ears (we were still sitting in the car -- I had inched up to park in the carport so I could get a closer look). Shot one. Shot two. Scott ran inside to get another gun that was fully loaded. Shot three.

The fox was dead. But so was my chicken. After putting my son to bed, my husband and I put  on some gloves and took the bodies far into the woods to dispose of them.

Unfortunately, the next day, Mama Bird wasn't doing so good. Her air sacks were distended from her body and I knew she was about to die.

I cried a whole lot when my husband put her down and I disposed of the carcass. I still get sad thinking about it. I can slit a chicken's throat for food...but two chickens dead by fox attack...sheer waste. 

So, I am down to two chickens -- a buff orpington and a barred rocks. 

Soon, I will be buying some more laying hens (none of mine are laying anymore). I can't help but be proud of my husband for getting that fox (in the pouring rain)...but it is still upsetting to think that those poor birds died unnecessarily. 

I guess that's farm life.