Religious circumcision is generally performed shortly after birth, during childhood, or around puberty as part of a rite of passage. Circumcision for religious reasons is most frequently practiced in Judaism and Islam. In some African and Eastern Christian denominations male circumcision is an established practice, and require that their male members undergo circumcision.

Rastafari beliefs on circumcision are often rooted in the Old testament ideas of one's body as a temple. Unnecessarily removing part of your body is seen damaging and in conflict with living naturally.

The brit milah (Hebrew: בְּרִית מִילָה‎, Modern Israeli: [bʁit miˈla], Ashkenazi: [bʁis ˈmilə]; "covenant of circumcision"), or bris (Yiddish: ברית‎, Yiddish: [bʁɪs]), is the ceremony of circumcision in Judaism and Samaritanism during which a newborn male's foreskin is surgically removed. According to the Book of Genesis, God commanded the biblical patriarch Abraham to be circumcised: an act to be followed by his descendants on the eighth day of life symbolizing the covenant between God and the Jewish people. Today, it is generally performed by a mohel on the eighth day after the infant's birth and is followed by a celebratory meal known as a seudat mitzvah.

Brit milah is considered among the most important and central commandments in Judaism, and the rite has played a central role in Jewish history and civilization. The Talmud, when discussing the importance of brit milah, considers it equal to all other mitzvot (commandments). Abraham's descendants who voluntarily fail to undergo brit milah, barring extraordinary circumstances, are believed to suffer Kareth, which, in Jewish theology, the extinction of the soul and denial of a share in the World to Come. The brit is understood by Jews to signify acceptance into the ongoing covenant between God and the Jewish people, which is why gerim undergo a form of brit to finalize conversion.

Brit shalom (Hebrew: ברית שלום; "Covenant of Peace") is an alternative naming ceremony that does not involve circumcision.

The circumcision controversy in early Christianity played an important role in Christian theology.

The circumcision of Jesus is celebrated as a feast day in the liturgical calendar of many Christian denominations, while the teachings of the Apostle Paul asserted that physical circumcision was unnecessary for the salvation of Gentiles and their membership in the New Covenant. The first Council of Jerusalem (c. 50) declared that circumcision was not necessary for new Gentile converts (as recorded in Acts 15); Pauline Christianity was instrumental in the split of early Christianity and Judaism and eventually became Christians' predominant position. Covenant theology largely views the Christian sacrament of baptism as fulfilling the Jewish practice of circumcision, as both serve as signs and seals of the covenant of grace.

Circumcision is considered a customary practice among Oriental Christian denominations such as the Coptic, Ethiopian, and Eritrean Orthodox churches. The practice is near-universal in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Some Christian churches in South Africa oppose circumcision, viewing it as a pagan ritual, while others, including the Nomiya church in Kenya, require circumcision. It is common in Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Ghana, Liberia, and Nigeria.