Ask Lemmygrad

There seems like a few misconceptions I will address here:

Islam doesn't mandate circumcision, it is only recommended as a continuation of Abrahamic lineage but it is not mandated in the Quran. It is quite common but not a religious requirement in the way other religions see it. The five pillars are the only requirements, everything else is up for interpretation and there have been endless variants of interpretation over the life of Islam. Even if there are dominant interpretations that have political and economic power to reinforce themselves in the world, it doesn't mean they are truly correct in the eyes of Allah and it doesn't mean one's own relationship with Allah needs to look like that. Such as the trend of circumcision, homophobia, transphobia, patriarchy, etc. these are cultural practices that got adopted into Islamic communities but are not inherently Islamic or in the Quran itself. Even the five pillars have caveats to some degree like fasting and praying accomodations for disabled, elderly, pregnant and youth. Islam has been very flexible over the years and it is quite astounding how different the dominant norms of Islam 800 years ago looked to the post capital and post colonial norms we have today.