commit new crimes. these criminologists also argue that police investigators treating castrated men as less likely to reoffend than non-castrated men may cause an investigation bias and self-fulfilling prophecy. torture and war crimes an italian soldier who was castrated during the second italo-ethiopian war. castration and other forms of male genital mutilation have been practiced against enemy soldiers and civilians from ancient times to the twenty-first century. sometimes it is practiced against living boys and men and other times against corpses. the castration of defeated enemies and the taking of body parts as trophies were traditional in ethiopia, and ethiopian forces practiced castration and emasculation during the second italo-ethiopian war (1935–1937). italian aviator tito minniti was allegedly one victim of this practice. during the mau mau uprising, there were instances of british security forces castrating kenyan detainees in internment camps. a video released during the 2022 russian invasion of ukraine appeared to show russian soldiers castrating a ukrainian captive with a box cutter. this led to a wave of international condemnation against the russian military for its use of torture in wartime. music in europe, when women were not permitted to sing in church or cathedral choirs in the roman catholic church, boys were castrated to develop a special high voice and to prevent their voices breaking at puberty. the first documents mentioning castrati are italian church records from the 1550s. in the baroque and classical music eras these singers were highly appreciated by opera composers as well. mozart's exultate jubilate, allegri's miserere and other pieces from this period now sung by sopranos and countertenors were written for castrati. some of the alto parts of handel's messiah were first sung by a castrato. castrati include farinelli, senesino, carestini, and caffarelli. the last true castrato was alessandro moreschi (1858–1922) who served in the sistine chapel choir. it was not until the late 19th century that the roman catholic church officially condemned the production of castrati. in modern times, the mexican javier medina is the only professional opera singer who can perform as a castrato, since he had an involuntary chemical castration, as a result of a cancer treatment that he had before he reached puberty. religion a number of religions have included castration as a central theme of their practice. these include: the cult of cybele, in which devotees castrated themselves in ecstatic emulation of attis: see gallus. skoptsy the valesians. hinduism in south asia, many hijras live in well-defined, organized, all-hijra communities, led by a guru. the power of the hijras as a sexually ambiguous category can only be understood in the religious context of hinduism. in some hindu beliefs, ritual, and art, the power of the combined man/woman, or androgyne, is a frequent and significant theme. bahuchara mata, the main object of hijra veneration, is specifically associated with transvestism and transgenderism. christianity in the gospel of matthew, jesus of nazareth mentions castration in a discussion about avoiding adultery and divorce that some are involuntarily castrated or born that way, while some others "make themselves eunuchs" willingly out of a desire to be chaste (matthew 19:1–12). given jesus' frequent use of metaphor and hyperbole, e.g. luke 9:62, the catholic church has broadly discouraged any understanding of this passage as recommending literal "self-castration". that is consistent with jesus' claims (as a rabbi) to uphold the law given to moses, e.g. matthew 5:17, a law which also discouraged literal castration deut 23:1. however, in his own comments jesus had no condemnation for any of the above. in acts 8:34–8:39, a eunuch is baptized by philip the evangelist, demonstrating acceptance of castrated individuals in his church. the first canon of the first council of nicaea in 325 ad forbade clergy members to voluntarily castrate themselves "when in perfect health", but freely accepted those who had been either castrated by others against their will, castrated due to a medical sickness or necessity, or those born as eunuchs. paul, arguing against self-righteousness regarding circumcision in galatians 5:12, says "as for those agitators, i wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!" (niv) well-known christian eunuchs (or alleged eunuchs) include: origen, who is reported by eusebius to have castrated himself based on his reading of the gospel of matthew 19:12 and other passages in matthew and mark that appear to endorse voluntary amputation to avoid sin, although there is some doubt concerning this story. schaff considers the account genuine but cites baur et al. in opposition. origen argues against such literal interpretations of the passages from matthew and mark in his first principles. bishop melito of sardis (d. ca 180), who was a eunuch, according to the church history of eusebius of caesarea, though, significantly the word "virgin" was substituted in rufinus' latin translation of eusebius. boston corbett, who was inspired by this same verse 19:12 to castrate himself (corbett was the 19th-century american soldier who is generally believed to have fired the shot that killed john wilkes booth). skoptsy, a branch of the russian spiritual christianity movement founded in the 1760s. judaism judaism strictly forbids the castration of either humans or animals. deuteronomy 23:1 expels castrated men from the assembly of israel; they are forbidden to marry or if married must divorce from their wives (though permitting the castrated to marry or remain married to female converts to judaism). the laws of castration also apply to cases of irreversible or un-reversed vasectomy and all other cases where the flow of sperm is known to have been placed into a permanent state of dysfunction with either no hope or no desire to take the steps to repair. isaiah 56:3–5 references in a positive welcoming manner eunuchs who follow after god's laws. "neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the lord, speak, saying, the lord hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, behold, i am a dry tree. for thus saith the lord unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant; even unto them will i give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: i will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off." according to rashi, kham (ham) castrated his father noah and was cursed as a result. in judaism, castrated animals are deemed unfit for sacrifice in the temple in jerusalem (lev 22:24). castrated members of the priestly caste are forbidden to enter certain parts of the temple, to approach the altar, or to make sacrifices, although they could eat their share of the offerings and receive the priestly and levite gifts (lev. 21:16–24). islam the muslim conquest of persia as well as later conquests in the byzantine empire and india brought them into contact with eunuchs. by the eighth century, the palaces of the caliphs were staffed with many eunuch slaves which sold at a premium. a regular trade in eunuchs developed with slaves being taken to locations in spain or africa to be castrated, as the practice of castration was forbidden for muslims. eunuchs were used as harem supervisors, as mediators or servile roles, but they could also rise to be trusted advisors or military commanders.: 75 in islam, castration is considered a sin and strictly forbidden, whether one performs it on oneself or on another. others heaven's gate dera sacha sauda medical consequences a subject of castration who is altered before the onset of puberty will retain a high voice, non-muscular build, and small genitals. he may be taller than average, as the production of sex hormones in puberty—more specifically, estrogen via aromatization of testosterone—stops long bone growth. the person may not develop pubic hair and will have a low sex drive or none at all. castrations after the onset of puberty will typically reduce the sex drive somewhat or even eliminate it altogether. castrated people are sterile, because the testes (for males) and ovaries (for females) produce sex cells needed for sexual reproduction. once removed, the subject is infertile. the voice does not change considerably. some castrated people report mood changes, such as depression or a more serene outlook on life, although this might not be due to chemical changes but instead emotional changes due to the implications of the procedure. body strength and muscle mass can decrease. bone structure becomes softer and more slender. body hair may sometimes decrease and is less coarse. castration stops the progression of male pattern baldness. however, hair regrowth – if it occurs at all – may be limited to hair that was lost shortly before castration. historically, many eunuchs who additionally underwent a penectomy reportedly had urinary incontinence associated with the removal of the penis. without hormone replacement therapy (hrt), typical symptoms (similar to those experienced by menopausal women) include hot flashes, gradual bone-density loss resulting in osteopenia or osteoporosis, and potential weight gain or redistribution of body fat to the hips and chest. replacement of testosterone in the form of gel, patches, or injections can largely reverse these effects, although breast enlargement has also been reported as a possible side effect of testosterone usage. a study of 81 historical eunuchs in korea's royal court found a 14- to 19-year increase in lifespan compared to intact men of similar socioeconomic background; these eunuchs had a centenarian rate of over 3%. psychoanalysis and literary theory the concept of castration plays an important role in psychoanalysis; see, for example, castration anxiety. castration (as a metaphor) also plays an important role in psychoanalytically influenced literary theory, for example harold bloom's the anxiety of influence. in the mexican thriller la casa del pelícano, castration is shown as being connected to the oedipus complex. chemical castration main article: chemical castration in the case of chemical castration, ongoing regular injections of anti-androgens are required. chemical castration does not actually remove the testicles or ovaries of the subject, nor is it a form of sterilization. with the advent of chemical castration, physical castration has been widely superseded, though some have undergone the procedure voluntarily. animals