Circumcision as a rite of dedication to the Deity existed among many peoples, including the Egyptians. In the Jewish understanding, blood is sacred, since "blood is the soul," the blood flowing from the organ that gives life, means dedication to God of life, accepted as a gift. Among the Israelites, this rite began to mark the entry into the covenant of Abraham and the chosen people with God and was supposed to remind the people of the obligations arising from this.
The Orthodox Church celebrates the feast of the Lord's Circumcision on January 14. Festive divine services will be held in all churches on this day.
The Gospel tradition says that on the eighth day after the Birth of Jesus Christ, according to the Old Testament law, he was circumcised. The ceremony was established for all male infants as a sign of God's covenant with the forefather Abraham and his descendants.
During this ceremony, the Divine Infant was given the name Jesus (Savior) (Matthew 1:21), pronounced by the archangel Gabriel on the day of the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary.
According to the interpretation of the Church fathers, God the Son accepted circumcision in order to show people an example of strict observance of Divine ordinances, and so that no one could later doubt that He was a true Man, and not a bearer of ghostly flesh, as some heretics taught.
In the New Testament, the rite of circumcision gave way to the sacrament of Baptism, of which it was the prototype.
Evidence of the celebration of the Circumcision of the Lord in the Eastern Church dates back to the fourth century.
The feast of the Circumcision of the Lord lasts for one day and is combined with the celebration of the memory of St. Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea of Cappadocia, which is why it is popularly known as St. Basil's Day.