I count Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as one of my dearest friends. We have shared countless moments of candor, intimacy, and mutual support. Bobby honored me by asking me to be the person who introduced him in Philadelphia two days after October 7, 2023 when he declared himself to leave the Democratic Party and becoming an Independent. Clearly, it was a day of terrible mourning and tragedy for the Jewish people and I’ll never forget that Bobby afforded me the opportunity to speak to thousands of his supporters about Israel and his incredible love for the Jewish people. Bobby is a hero and the deepest friend to the Jewish community, just as his illustrious and unforgettable father was.
Bobby is not simply a public figure I admire but someone nearly as close to me as a brother. We have stood shoulder to shoulder on issues of morality, justice, truth, and peace.
That is why it pains me to hear the media advancing in his name - which has yet to be fully corroborated by him as to his actual intention and meaning - a claim I know to be false and dangerous: that circumcision causes, or is in any way linked, to autism.
I do not write these words to attack my dearest friend Bobby, but to protect him-and the wider Jewish community-from spreading misinformation that can harm families and undermine one of Judaism’s oldest and holiest rituals.
The Covenant Under Fire
Circumcision is not a cultural quirk or an elective choice. It is the oldest continuously practiced religious ritual in the world. For Jews, it is the divine covenant given by God to Abraham: “This shall be My covenant in your flesh for all generations.” it is practiced by roughly 98% of all American Jews, regardless of level of observance.
“For over 3,000 years, Jews have circumcised their sons through exile, pogrom, and persecution. It is the unbroken chain that has bound us to God and to each other.”
Throughout history, from the ancient Greeks to the Romans to the Nazis, our enemies have tried to outlaw circumcision precisely because they knew it safeguarded Jewish continuity. Linking it now to autism is not simply bad science; it echoes an old campaign to delegitimize Jewish existence itself.
The Autism Claim: A Flawed Study
The idea that circumcision causes autism traces almost entirely to a 2015 Danish study that suggested a modest association. But the problems with that paper are glaring:
• It was observational, not causal.
• It suffered from detection bias (circumcised boys had more contact with doctors, skewing diagnosis rates).
• It lumped together diverse populations with different health practices.
• Its results were weak and inconsistent, significant only in small subgroups.
• The supposed mechanism-early pain disrupting brain development-is highly speculative and unsupported.
In the decade since that study, not a single credible researcher has replicated its claims. Autism science has moved forward. Circumcision has vanished from serious discussion of autism’s causes.
Genetics dominate autism risk, alongside prenatal factors like maternal health, infections, or environmental exposures. Hundreds of genes are implicated. But circumcision? Not once, in any rigorous study.
In fact, a 2024 study in European Urology Open Science found that circumcised autistic boys showed improvements in behavioral symptoms compared to controls. The exact opposite of the claim.
The Real Science: Medical Benefits of Circumcision
What circumcision does provide, confirmed by decades of evidence, is substantial health protection:
• HIV/AIDS prevention: Randomized trials in Africa showed male circumcision reduces heterosexual HIV transmission by ~60%. The WHO and UNAIDS endorse it as prevention.
• Reduced risk of STDs: Circumcision lowers the risk of herpes, syphilis, chancroid, and HPV infection.
• Urinary tract infections: Uncircumcised boys have a 10-12 times higher risk of UTIs in infancy, which can cause kidney damage.
• Cancer prevention: Circumcision virtually eliminates penile cancer risk and reduces cervical cancer risk for female partners by up to 28%.
• Better hygiene and fewer complications: Conditions like balanitis, phimosis, and foreskin infections are drastically reduced.
• Large scale studies have shown no negative impact on sexual relations.
Science confirms what faith has always taught: brit milah brings life, blessing, and health.
Autism: What We Really Know
Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental condition. The facts are clear:
• Heritability is high, with genetic factors accounting arguably for the vast majority of cases.
• Prenatal factors like maternal infections or medications play roles.
• Brain development differences begin before birth, long before circumcision takes place.
• No evidence supports postnatal rituals-whether vaccines or circumcision-as causes.
To link autism to circumcision is to ignore decades of genetics and neuroscience and to mislead desperate parents searching for answers.
A Familiar European Assault
What troubles me most is how this claim mirrors Europe’s ongoing efforts to outlaw circumcision.
• In Finland, Muslim and Jewish parents have been fined for circumcising their sons.
• In Sweden, strict laws criminalize traditional brit milah without medical supervision.
• In Cologne, a 2012 court briefly outlawed circumcision until the Bundestag reversed it. Just imagine that, Germans teaching Jews how to take care of their sons. I think I’ll pass.
• In San Francisco, activists tried to put circumcision bans on the ballot.
“Every time, the justification is the same: circumcision is harmful, barbaric, traumatic. The autism claim is simply the latest mask on an ancient hostility.”
This is not science. It is secular hostility toward religion, dressed in medical language.
My Appeal to My Friend
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is not my opponent. Quite the reverse. When he was falsely maligned as being antisemitic numerous times during his presidential campaign - for example, when he compared the COVID-19 vaccine to what Anne Frank experienced in the Holocaust, or when a video went viral that seemed to suggest that Bobby was saying that Ashkenazi Jews are at far lower risk for Covid - I came to his defense time and again, on TV, on the Internet, in countless opeds, and in one and on one interviews that I conducted with Bobby before audiences of thousands.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has gone to bat for Israel innumerable times when it cost him politically in a tremendous way. He is my brother and I admire his courage in challenging entrenched power and especially in his incredible efforts to make America healthy again. But on circumcision he is wrong and it would be wise for my dear friend Bobby to clarify his words before they are misinterpreted.
Bobby, I know your heart. I know you want to protect children. But circumcision does not cause autism. To say so frightens parents, stigmatizes Jews, and aids those who want to criminalize our most sacred rite.
We can debate vaccines. We can debate pharma. But let us draw a red line around brit milah. This is life itself.
Covenant and Clarity
Brit milah is older than science, but it does not fear science. Honest science affirms its benefits and exposes the autism link as a mirage.
For Jews, circumcision is not optional. It is survival, covenant, and identity. To attack it with false claims is to repeat the old mistakes of history.
I love my friend Robert F. Kennedy Jr., but love demands truth. And the truth is this:
Circumcision is not a cause of autism. It is a cause of Jewish survival. And it will endure, as it always has.
Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, widely known as “America’s Rabbi”, is one of the world’s most recognized and influential Jewish voices. A bestselling author, award-winning columnist, global human rights advocate, and dynamic public speaker, he has dedicated his life to spreading Jewish values, defending the Jewish people, and championing universal human dignity. The international bestselling author of 36 books that have been translated into multiple languages and sold millions of copies worldwide, his works blend timeless Jewish wisdom with modern relevance and are known for their boldness, accessibility, and unapologetic defense of morality in the modern age. In 2000, Rabbi Shmuley became the only rabbi to win The Times of London’s prestigious “Preacher of the Year” competition, and remains the record-holder to this day. He has also been honored with the American Jewish Press Association’s highest award for excellence in commentary, cementing his reputation asone of the foremost Jewish communicators in the world. Follow him on Instagram and X @RabbiShmuley.