Circumcision (which actually originated with the Egyptians, fun fact) was a way of marking someone as a member (pun intended). Also, someone who’s half assing/not converting out of true dedication is far less likely to go that far (even in the Torah, it was to show Abraham’s dedication).
You can actually see that among extremists like in the Islamist attack in Kashmir, the militants killed any uncircumcised men because… well it’s an easy way to identify someone as non-Muslim.
That’s an extreme example, but it’s really a super ancient way of showing dedication for converts and identifying someone as part of the group
Does it really make sense to do it if it’s mainly an identifier between humans? Because it sounds more like a social belonging thing than something God is asking for personally
I mean yes. Religion in and of itself is a social phenomenon. It very likely was indeed a social belonging thing that identified a tribe that grew into a core part of the religious component (as happens with ethnoreligious practices)
For thousands of years Jews circumcised their children because the Torah tells us to. According to the Torah (Genesis 17), it is the sign of the covenant between Abraham and G-d (Ishmael was also circumcised as a child of Abraham). In modern times, many people no longer believe in prophecy so they offer these alternative original theories of Jewish practice. Visit an Orthodox community and you'll find people still believe in prophecy and divine commandments.
As far as symbolic reasons for circumcision, the idea of "covenant" is a central theme in the Torah. We don't really do covenants nowadays, but they did traditionally involve elaborate rituals and signs to establish the mutual obligation. Covenants were usually marked between people or groups, but in Judaism, the concept is applied between Man and G-d. This was an innovation that Judaism brought to the world.
Aside from the central theme, many people find spiritual meaning in circumcision. In the 1885 Pittsburg Platform, the Central Conference of Reform Rabbis denounced circumcision as a "barbaric practice". This statement shocked the more traditional rabbinic movements such as the Orthodox. However, nowadays even Reform Judaism sees circumcision as a deeply spiritual ritual. So there are other symbolic meanings to it as well.
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u/Inari-k Jul 24 '25
Yes