Is foreskin restoration against Holy Bible of Christianity?

[Yunus]

Hey,I got this question in somewhere.

I read a the Holy Bible's verse.

Originally Posted by 1 Corinthians 7:18 Contemporary English Version

If you are already circumcised, don't try to change it. If you are not circumcised, don't get circumcised.

Who could explain this to me?

[ctrclckws]

I personally believe that this was said in the context of the traditional Jewish circumcision. The writer of the epistle to the Corinthians was trying to enhance the number of people to convert to Christianity.

If you were cut, it doesn't prevent you from becoming a Christian.
If you were not cut, you don't have to get cut to become a Christian. Or, you don't have to become Jewish first.

After the death of Christ for our sins, the need for the covenant of circumcision was removed.

My circumcision was of the medical variety, so I have no qualms about restoring what I was given at birth, before the doctors used the scalpel and the GOMCO clamp.

[Aspie]

What the bible is talking about Yunus is the fact that there was a conflict between the Christians there were those who said that all men needed to be circumcised which was wrong and then there were those who said no men's penises should be left alone which was correct.

[gdom]

It is against technically... but who cares, even if you are christian?

The bible also says you will be put to death if you do work on sunday. If you're going to pick and choose what to not to believe from the "good" book, then choose this as well.

[DPX1]

The translation you posted is a little misleading to me. Here's the whole passage from the "English Standard Version"

Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches. 18 Was anyone at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision.

I take this to have two meanings:

1.) Circumcision doesn't matter in the eyes of God. You will be accepted by the Lord the way you are, so you don't have to make any changes to yourself to appease him.

This is in the next line

For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the commandments of God.

Pretty straightforward. You don't need to change your circ status to appease God.

However the whole passage is also about how your life is according to God's plan, therefore you don't need to change it. If you wanted to be more cynical you could say that it's a message to the masses not to question authority.

I take it more to mean something like, free or slave, rich or poor, injured or whole, God accepts everyone. Therefore you shouldn't throw your life into turmoil and unhappiness trying to change what might not matter, and instead focus on the inner peace that comes with knowing that you are just as good as anyone before God.

I don't think it means you're forbidden to change, or restore your foreskin, or whatever. I think it just means "don't make yourself unhappy trying to change what is already done because it's all really an illusion compared to the truth that you will have once you're with God".

If I'm a slave, I'm damn sure gonna free myself if I can. On the other hand, if I'm fat and happy with it, I shouldn't try to convince myself that I'm living wrong because God accepts me the way I am. Or, maybe more abstractly, I shouldn't live to earn more money because society says I should be ashamed of the kind of car I drive, because I'm just as good as anybody in the eyes of God so I shouldn't let it bother me.

In short, I think this is the message: Don't worry about any of it, God loves you regardless.

[Jupiter]

Originally Posted by Yunus

Hey,I got this question in somewhere.

I read a the Holy Bible's verse.


Who could explain this to me?

The simplest explanation is that the Bible is not the product of a benevolent divine entity.

[slickskin]

I guess it all depends how you interpret it. The way I see it, forced genital mutilation is an insult to God's creations, and against the bible. The catholic church actually outlawed this for a while. In that case Christianity should be for restoration.

[Dasher]

Christian theologians disagree about whether Jesus restored his foreskin. Some say he couldn't possibly have done it, but then, if you can walk on water, restoring your foreskin should be a snap. Also, Jesus probably received the abbreviated circumcision of the day, and had a half-covering foreskin anyway.

If you are in the Catholic Church and restore your foreskin, you may be entitled to salvation after all by applying to the Bishop of your archdiocese.
It would have to be approved in Rome, but if you're a faithful Catholic, it would be worth it.

[L0v3]

I think that DPX1 is on the right track, but perhaps I can add a bit more clarity.

First let's put things in context. At that time there were a groups of people going around and teaching that to be saved, there were a bunch of rules that you had to follow. Different groups had different sets of rules. This fact can be seen from the greater context of the passage you quote. Some were saying you should not get married, others were saying you should not be married to a non believing spouse. One group claimed that you had to follow all of the traditions that Jews had been following for centuries. A biggie for this group was that you had to become circumcised.

Let's stop here and examine that idea. Possibly with out realizing it what they were really saying is that Jesus's sacrifice was not enough. You sacrificing your foreskin (or whatever) is more important. Yikes! If you look at it from God's perspective, how insulting would that be? It's like trying to compare the United States 14 trillion dollar national debt (Jesus's sacrifice) to the pocket change you can find in your couch (anything you could do to earn salvation).

So if you think about the verse from that perspective, I think that what Paul is saying is "Your life as a Christian is not about if you are circumcised or not. It has nothing to do with it. If you want to live life as a Christian obey God's commands". To avoid further confusion on that point, from the mouth of Jesus, obeying God's commands can be summed up with seven words. "Love God. Love the people around you."

So setting that verse aside I'd like to make a comment about the real question. "Am I sinning by restoring?" With all the wisdom I can muster, let me answer by saying "I don't know." That's like asking the question "Is drinking alcohol a sin?" For most people probably not. For some people drinking alcohol is outside of God's will for their lives. For me, I'm restoring, and I don't believe I'm outside of God's will in doing so. I do think it is a healthy thing for you to be examining your motives for restoring, but have a little faith, you're worth a lot more to God than the presence or absence of some skin on the end of your penis.

[Colorado]

I feel if God wanted me to have a foreskin, an appendix, tonsils and wisdom teeth...He would have created me in His image and I would be born with them.

Oh wait......I was....all have been removed.......my foreskin I can grow back and do something about....so I am.

Colorado