Brit Milah, the covenant of circumcision, was commanded by G-d to Abraham over 3,700 years ago. It has been carried out faithfully, from generation to generation, even during times of religious and ethnic persecution when Jews were forced to practice their rituals in secret. In fact, the only time the Jewish people willingly desisted from this practice was during the 40 years of wandering in the Sinai wilderness. Before entering Canaan, every male was circumcised by Joshua.

The acceptance of this commandment, or mitzvah, established an eternal bond between G-d and the Children of Israel. Its observance today is testimony to the continuity and strength of that relationship which requires us to perform the mitzvah with adherence to the laws and customs prescribed in the Torah and interpreted by our sages.

G-d appeared to Abraham when he was 99 years old and commanded him to circumcise himself, his son, Ishmael, all the males of his household and all his slaves. It is said that Abraham accomplished this on the tenth day of the month of Tishri, later designated as Yom Kippur, when the sins of the Jewish people were forgiven. The following year, when Isaac was born, he was circumcised on the eighth day. In return for his faithfulness, G-d promised Abraham that his descendants would become a great nation and inherit the land of Canaan for eternity.

Circumcision dates to prehistoric times and is one of the oldest operations performed by mankind, but for the Jewish people, the rite supersedes the surgical component. The rabbis believed it so important they declared, "Were it not for the blood of the covenant, heaven and earth would not exist." (Shabbat 137b) Punishment for failure to obey this commandment was to be karet - cut off from one's kind, more specifically, excised from the community by Divine decree. Gradually, Brit Milah acquired a national identity, making its performance today as mandatory for the modern secularists of Israel as for the traditionally observant.