Rabbi Shlomo: Welcome. I'll be with you in a moment...what's on your mind?

Steven:  hi rabbi I am here with my friend and we were wondering about spiritual signifigance of circumcision

Steven: we found the Torah origination for this in the askmoses archive, but he thought the procedure was arbitrary and we were discussing the religous significance

Rabbi Shlomo: ok

Steven: the ritual of the circumcision just doesn't strike him as demonstrative of a covenant between a group of people and their God.

Rabbi Shlomo: What's if their G-d asked for it?

Steven: is it possible that the circumcision displaced another ritual?

Rabbi Shlomo: The Torah says clearly that G-d commands every Jewish male to be circumcised

Steven: okay...

Steven: i guess what my friend is looking for is what may not be obvious to a secularist and a Gentile.

Rabbi Shlomo: and what may that be?

Steven: I don't mean to be impetuous but I would like to understand "why circumcision"?

Rabbi Shlomo: there are numerous reasons for this - but the first and fudemental reason can be explained like this:

Rabbi Shlomo: if your wife is feeling down, could you cheer her up with a six pack, buffalo wings, and watching the football game?

Steven: If my wife was from Oklahoma, probably.

Steven: But no, I guess.

Rabbi Shlomo: lol

Rabbi Shlomo: so what will make her happy?

Steven: My friends are insisting i say "money".

Rabbi Shlomo: if your wife was feeling down and you surprised her with a buoqet of flowers that would most likely make her happy

Steven: Sure

Rabbi Shlomo: would flowers make you happy?

Steven: Ranunculas. I love ranunculas.

Steven: But generally no. Flowers would not cheer me up.

Rabbi Shlomo: that's what I thought :-)

Rabbi Shlomo: But for some strange reason (and don't ask me why, because I have no clue) girls love flowers and it cheers them up

Rabbi Shlomo: so would you get it for your wife even though it doesn't work for you?

Steven: ...Yes.

Steven: So circumcised reproductive organs make God happy?

Steven: It doesn't make sense but He asked for it so we are to do it?

Rabbi Shlomo: so in a relationship, a real relationship, you do things for your beloved because they make your beloved happy, not because they make you happy

Rabbi Shlomo: so the first and foremost reason for any commandment in Judaism is because it makes G-d happy

Steven: So I am not to understand circumcision

Steven: and that is alright because it makes G-d happy?

Rabbi Shlomo: yes and no

Rabbi Shlomo: A Jew is to do circumcision whether he understands it or not, because that is what it means to be in love, and ith this case we are in love with G-d

Rabbi Shlomo: however, A Jew can understand circumcision

Rabbi Shlomo: if you want to be intellectually open and honest you can understand it - at least to some extent

Steven: Then what am I missing?

Rabbi Shlomo: a littel information :-)

Steven: Okay. 

Rabbi Shlomo: so here is reason 2)

Rabbi Shlomo: The act of circumcision is to teach a Jew from a very early age what we just discussed - that in life we are to do things that make G-d happy - it doesn't really matter if we understand it or not. In that way, we can transcend human abilities and have a relationship with G-d on a divine, rather than human, level

Rabbi Shlomo: reason 3)

Rabbi Shlomo: There are two primary reasons why G-d commanded us to place the symbol of our covenant on the male sexual organ: 1. G-d wanted this sign to be in the very part of the body which symbolizes pleasure. This is supposed to be a constant reminder to us that we should be focused on our special relationship with G-d and not get lost in life's pleasures and vices. Basically, we should always keep in mind that which is important and that which is quite trivial. 2. We place our sign on our reproductive member for we pass on our covenant with G-d to our children.

Steven: Wow.

Steven: Honestly Rabbi, thank you.

Steven: Thank you so much. Your answers were illuminating, truly.

Steven: And I am intellectually satisfied.

Rabbi Shlomo: I knew you can do it :-)

Rabbi Shlomo: my pleasure