(Latin: circumcisio, a cutting around, specifically the removal of the foreskin from the penis) Was once widely practised, whether as a rite of religious import, for physical well-being, or as a ceremony of varying significance. It was venerated by the Jews as of sacramental meaning due to its institution by God as a sign of the covenant between Himself and Abraham and to be practised on Abraham and his nation (Genesis 17). The Child Jesus was circumcised out of reverence for the Law (Luke 2)