Open letter from Jewish intactivist to Chief Rabbi of Denmark

Letter here. Excerpt:

'It is important to understand that for many Jews this pact, this covenant of blood, is so strongly rooted in their minds that it is perceived as being the central pillar of Judaism. For some, circumcision is practically equal to being human and certain interpretations of scripture actually state that a boy is a real human being only after circumcision has taken place, because boys are born imperfect and with uncontrollable sexual impulses. Thus, circumcision is considered a correction commanded by the Lord himself, a fleshly and symbolic ”opening toward God” undertaken with surgical instruments. In some Jewish circles the ritual is considered of such importance that dead men with intact foreskin are circumcised before burial. I’ll allow this to speak for itself.

...To speak as I do here: straight and directly into Judaic assumptions, immediately prompts the inner Jewish gatekeeper to exclaim: ”Nothing is wrong with Judaism, how dare you!”. One could take this at face value and just walk away. However, there are people (myself for instance) who disagree with this claim. Now the question is: can we have a conversation during which objections to circumcision may be seriously considered without any of the fierce attacks usually triggered by the mere sound of the word on the person presenting them? Is it possible together to explore whether some aspects of Judaism could possibly be flawed? To an open, interested, exploring and truth seeking person there can hardly be any harm in that.
...
The case is this: if you are able to listen, dare listen, and you are willing to listen to what is clear and obvious: of course you do not need to cut your newborns to win Gods acceptance, a horrifying question emerges from the mists: does this mean that something is wrong in Judaism? The answer is, yes. Of course it is wrong to maintain a practice which involves that one – unnecessarily – cuts parts from small children’s small bodies. Imagine if our neighbors – for religious reasons – had the habit of cutting their earlobes, the outer joint of their little finger or the nipples of their babies. Just like that, off with them. We would never allow that to happen. Nevertheless we accept something even worse: the cutting into and cutting off parts of children’s private and intimate sexual organs.

The consequences are many and ramified but they may be difficult to see until the horror dawns on you. The foreskin tissue contains an enormous amount of receptors which makes it the most highly sensitive area of the entire male body. Several studies show how infants are highly sensitive, they feel pain, and research is constantly extended with more knowledge about how important the first months and years are for a baby’s healthy development. Reports from circumcisions relate of children lapsing into traumatic shock during the procedure – being unable to make a sound. By some this is interpreted to mean that the mutilation does not inflict pain – in reality the opposite is true. Jewish mothers and fathers who have regretted the procedure tell how the special intimacy and (until then) unbreakable bond between child and parents is ripped even more violently apart than the way in which the foreskin is torn from the glans before it is cut off. The child loses the most important part in its relation with its parents: the trust that mother and father will always act in its best interest and defend it – also against religious practice.'