Rabbi Mark Washofsky argues, "Brit milah is our classic ceremonial acknowledgment that we, descendants of Abraham, consider ourselves a community set apart from all others and set aside in covenant with God. That is the story we have always told, and continue to tell, about ourselves. To assert our sense of particular Jewish identity as Jews is therefore in and of itself a mitzvah of the first rank. And of all the ritual practices by which we have historically made that declaration, none is more physical, more visceral, or more tangible than brit milah. In an era when the forces of cultural assimilation pose such a daunting challenge to our continued existence as a distinct people, this admittedly ancient tribal custom bears a message that we do well to hear."

Historian Nahum Sarna writes, "God's promises demand an active response from their recipients. Circumcision is both a token of God's covenant and a symbol of the Jew's consecration and commitment to a life lived in the consciousness of that covenant. The law of circumcision is the first mitzvah in the Torah that is specifically directed to Abraham and his descendants."

Lastly, it is written in the Zohar, "As long as Israel observes the practice of circumcision, heaven and earth will go on their appointed courses, but if Israel neglects the covenant, heaven and earth are disturbed."

*Prepared with materials found in Torah Sparks

The following questions can be used as a basis for a discussion, feel free to find your own answers and explore each question in greater detail.

1. Rabbi Ismar Schorsch calls upon us to spend our lives "moving from fate to faith" -infusing religious forms with meaning and belief, transcending the accident of birth by which we become Jews. Of the various "meanings" proffered for the practice of circumcision, which should be emphasized as a tenet of faith?
2. The sources provided above represent a wide spectrum of the Jewish community: Reform (Washofsky), Orthodox (Steinmetz), and Conservative (Schorsch). On what points do these diverse religious authorities seem to agree? What unique insight does each offer?
3. How are we to understand the Zohar's assertion that fidelity to the practice of circumcision has cosmic implications? What consequences hang in the balance in regard to this mitzvah?