P-178: Female Genital Mutilation: The Jewish, Christian and Islamic Views

Background: Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a practice involving the removal of all or parts of the female external genitalia.It has been documented in 28 African countries and in some countries in Asia and the Middle East,but due to increasing immigration from these countries to the western world,FGM has become a worldwide human rights and health issue. Materials and Methods: This paper is written with an overview of related articles in Sciencedirect,and WHO fact sheets about FGM. Results: While,according to the Bible,circumcision is required for all male Jewish children in observance of God’s commandment to Abraham,female circumcision was never allowed in Judaism. Literature dealing with the Christian view on FGM is very scarce,however,Christian authorities unanimously agree that FGM has no foundation in the religious texts of Christianity.One of the highest values of Islamic law is the Prophetic command to neither inflict nor accept harm.This imperative will be familiar to non-Muslims as the golden rule.Islam is a religion of knowledge,learning and research. While FGM was previously practised as a social custom,the state of today’s knowledge makes clear the serious negative effects of such practices on women.As such,it becomes a religious obligation to say unequivocally that the practice of FGM is today forbidden in Islam.As described above,FGM cannot be justified by any of the three monotheistic religions.The reasons for FGM are various and are clearly a mixture of cultural,social and religious factors.In societies,where FGM is practiced,the social pressure on the families is very high and the necessity to conform to what is considered right may be reason enough to continue the practice. Conclusion: Contrary to the belief that it is a practice carried out only by Muslims,it is also practiced by Christians and a minority group of Ethiopian Jews. However, FGM is neither mentioned in the Torah,nor in the Gospels, and - like in Islam - bodily mutilation is condemned by both religions.