The Chief Rabbi of Rome, Ricacrdo Di Segni, gives a statement following a German court ruling classing circumcision as an offence.
Circumcision is a fundamental element of Jewish identity. The Jewish community also reacted strongly because the country in question is Germany. Solidarity among other religions is also fundamental and Christian communities and Christian communities were right to side with the Jews.
This is how the Chief Rabbi of Rome, Riccardo Di Segni, described the reaction to the recent decision of a German court, ruling that circumcision is an offence. In a statement to Vatican Radio, Di Segni said: “I would like the firmness of the communiqué to be understood. It is a fundamental rule of Jewish identity. We obey a particular religious precept. If this rule can be respected, it means that there is a fictitious and incomplete freedom; so this is the reason for the tough reaction, especially when we are speaking about a country like Germany which used the means we are all familiar with to make the presence of Jews impossible. What is important is solidarity between religions on this point. Because when we talk about religious freedom, there is necessarily a prevailing religion, so it is significant that Christian churches understood how delicate this matter is and that they took they sided in favour of the Jewish faith.”
According to the Rabbi of Rome, the German government’s willingness to intervene on this issue is “the only necessary response to this problem. The ruling highlighted that there is a conflict of rights: the right to the free practice of religion and the right of minors to the protection of their physical integrity. There is a legislation gap concerning this. It is important that the German government realises the gravity of the situation and takes the necessary legislative steps to resolve this intricate question. All Jewish communities throughout the world currently feel under threat, partly because there is always a risk that certain attitudes will become widespread and that the problem will become more complicated.”