I am told that muslims have their sons fore skin removed and if very strict, their daughters clitoris removed?

Question

I am intrigued and very interested in different religious ways and would like to understand the resons for doing so. What the belief in changing the pre formed human body is?

Answer 1

Most of the practises in the Torah/Bible/Koran were performed by desert tribes for practical reasons.

Circumcision is practised by Muslims, Jews, and often, many Americans just out of habit. The desert conditions which would lead to infection of the smeg, the oil - cheese - under the skin, does not happen if good hygiene is used. However in the middle east, with very dry summers, it was a real problem for desert tribes to keep clean. Thus to protect against infection in the pre-medical era, they removed it at a young age.

Clitorectomy...the removal of the clitoris...is not done by Jews or Muslims. However it was practised in Central African tribes. Their Creation story involved a god who made man by having sex with the earth, buy had to remove the 'termite' mound first to gain entry.

female circumcision, is widely practiced out in the open by African Muslims and Ethiopians and Eritreans of all faiths, it is practiced in secrecy in some parts of the Middle East. The practice occurs particularly in northern Saudi Arabia, southern Jordan, and Iraq, and there is also circumstantial evidence to suggest it is present in Syria, western Iran and southern Turkey.

Originally female circumcision may have been performed because of cleanliness - as it removes secreting parts of the gentitalia. However, it provides a proof of virginity, a guarantee against premarital sex, which is a necessary condition for marriage in many backward societies.

These practises were adopted by the religions to initially help the general population, however as the world changes, they become locked anarchic traditions which have no benefit or relevance to modern life styles.

Answer 2

Someone mentioned The Covenant of Circumcision, which was The Covenant between Abraham and God , "every male among you shall be circumcised".
I have found this interesting because this was made after Abraham left Egypt. Egypt at that time had a God of Circumcision, Which was coincidently also a sign of fertility.

I believe Moses had trouble circumcising his son, so his wife. Zipporah did it. Could this be because he also associated it with an Egyptian God.

I am just theorizing, but it seems a coincidence that these two characters in the bible, both came out of Egypt with new religious revelations and even Jesus spent time in Egypt before becoming the Messiah.
Does that mean that the Bible is really based on Egyptian Religious beliefs.
It just makes me wonder?

I am not Religious, I am not Atheist, I am just me.

Answer 3

Bismillahi Rahmani Rahim - In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

Hello. Male circumcision is a tradition in Islam. Female circumcision is a practice that predates Islam and there is very little in Islamic literature to support it. There is one hadith where the Prophet Muhammad, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, tells that it can be done but not to "take too much". A correct female circumcision would only make a small cut in the hood over the clitoris, and would not cut the clitoris at all. The female genital mutilation that is commonly practiced in many African countries and in Indonesia is actually unIslamic and is considered a brutal act against girls. There is nothing in Islam that allows cutting off of the clitoris or sewing shut a girl's vagina, or cutting the labia. These practices are purely cultural and are also practiced among Christians and pagans in Africa, including North African countries such as Egypt. It is vital that we wipe out these insane practices that cause so much physical and mental harm.

Fi Aman Allah,

Nancy Umm Abdel Hamid

Answer 4

In Islam, the foreskin is required to be removed for all boys.

Female genital mutilation is different from female circumcision.

There is a difference of opinion on female circumcision. Some scholars believe the hadiths that speak of female circumcision are weak. Here is an article speaking about this:
http://www.islamtoday.com/showme2.cfm?cat_id=2&sub_cat_id=822

Other scholars who believe the hadiths are authentic, however, go by this hadith to show what female circumcision is:

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is reported to have passed by a woman performing circumcision on a young girl. He instructed the woman by saying: “Trim, but do not cut into it, for this is brighter for the face (of the girl) and more favorable with the husband.”

so, according to the hadith, female circumcision is only supposed to be a tiny tiny piece trimmed off of the clitorus. However, still, this is STRICTLY voluntary!! It is still not a requirement.

Anything more like removal of the clitorus is Female Genital Mutilation(FGM) and is haram in Islam. FGM was practiced in the African continent mainly, long before Islam. If you read that article I posted there is more on that.

It is sad that there are still some Muslims who have taken their cultural practice over Islam's ruling and are injuring all of these young girls by forcing them to undergo FGM. It is even more disgusting to think that there are men who will not desire a wife who hasn't undergone it.

However, it is not only Muslims who are performing FGM on females. It happens in cultures where there are even Christians.

Here is more on that:
http://www.meforum.org/article/1629

Answer 5

I dont know about female clitoris removal, sounds totally barbaric! But it has been discovered quite recently, that circumcision takes away the chances of spreading HIV, by 50%!

Answer 6

What tribe is this woman from the clit cutter?
This hadith has no citations of how this practice got adopted in Islam.
The narrators didn't list why the mutilator practiced it in her tribe before she met the prophet.
FGM and female circumcision is the same thing. It doesn't matter what style it is.

Answer 7

Male circumcision is a must for every infant male child and is a must for every male revert to Islam. It is because ALLAH(SWT) ordered prophet Ibrahim(PBUH*) and his descendants to remove the foreskin from their sons because in Islam Muslims pray 5 times a day and need to be clean. If you are not circumcised then it is very hard to clean your penis and it can make it very dirty thus making your Wudu and Salat not valid. Plus it helps prevent infections and HIV and AIDS if your penis is circumcised. In Islam female circumcision is not allowed and is against Islam. There is no reason to remove the girl's labia and clitoris.

Answer 8

Circumcision is practiced by Muslims, Jews, and often, many Americans just out of habit.
Clitorectomy...the removal of the clitoris...is not done by Muslims. That is an odd urban legend...don't know where you got that.
I know it has been said of Chinese, in old times, that they would do that to their daughters.

Answer 9

I am a Muslim and never heard of Muslims removing their daughters clitoris. I dont think this is a correct piece of info. as for male circumcision yes this is practised in Muslims Christians, Jews and alot of people in America.
Also Jesus was circumcised

Answer 10

All males get circumcision when they are born, but not the females.

Female circumcision is allowed in Islam, however people are doing it wrong and many females have died. So, many Muslims don't do it now, only the un-educated ones who do it wrongly.