Calling King Solomon

The judge in this case will need his wisdom.

CHICAGO - Groups opposed to circumcision are watching the case of an 8-year-old suburban Chicago boy whose divorced parents are fighting in court over whether he should have the procedure.

The child's mother wants him circumcised to prevent recurring, painful inflammation she says he's experienced during the past year. But the father says the boy is healthy and circumcision, which removes the foreskin of the penis, is an unnecessary medical procedure that could cause him long-term physical and psychological harm.

"The child is absolutely healthy," the father said during a break in a court hearing on the matter Wednesday. "I do not want any doctor to butcher my son."

The mother testified that her son has had five bouts of painful inflammation and has begged her to help him. Her son cannot wear underwear or jeans during the bouts and is comfortable only in loose-fitting pajamas, she said.

"My child was in the bathroom crying. He asked me to come in because his penis did not look normal," she said, describing one of the episodes.

The couple's 2003 divorce decree gave the father the right to offer input on medical decisions. Earlier this year, he sued to block the surgery and Cook County Judge Jordan Kaplan ordered the mother not to have the boy circumcised until he could hear from both parents and the opinions of doctors who've examined the boy.

Most U.S. newborn boys are circumcised before they leave the hospital. But a growing number of parents are opting against the surgery. The percentage of male babies circumcised has fallen from an estimated 90 percent in 1970 to about 60 percent today.

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Saquet criticized the parents for letting their dispute escalate.

"They're using the kid as a weapon against each other," he said. "It's really sad. My heart goes out to that kid."

Tracy Rizzo, the mother's attorney, said religion, not medicine, is the father's concern. Rizzo said the father disagrees with circumcision because he resents the fact that his ex-wife has remarried a Jewish man. The mother lives with her new husband, her son and her husband's son from a previous relationship in Northbrook.

The father, an Arlington Heights resident, denies he's concerned about the religion of his ex-wife's husband.

The mother testified Wednesday that she wanted the boy circumcised when he was a newborn, but her then-husband refused. She quoted him as saying at the time: "There is no way my son is going to be circumcised. He is not a Jew."

But the judge would not allow Alan Toback, an attorney for the father, to ask the new husband, who also testified Wednesday, if he is circumcised.

"We're not going there," the judge said.

To circumcise or not to circumise. That is the question! Oi Vei.......

First of all, all the parties espousing their causes, butt out. This is not about a cause but what is right for the child.

Second, I like that judge. LOL, I'm glad he didn't make the step father 'testify'.

Third, most Jewish men are circumcised. Polish born Catholics usually aren't. Don't ask me where I know that from.....LOL. A Polish priest friend had a conversation about this subject with me and dear wife when we visited Poland in 2000.

Forth, someone preferably the judge needs to knock the biological parents heads together. This is a ridiculous court case that's seen far too often. Squabling divorced or separated parents fighting with their child or children stuck in the middle.

The judge should have a court appointed doctor make the determination if the boy needs to be circumcised or not. See I can be King Solomon if I want.

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