Chapel Veil and Cantoring

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Margaret_Ann said:
A white veil is for single young ladies, I.e. never married; black is for widows.
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While that may have been the custom in some places, that was never the universal rule. If you google, there are lots of pictures of Jackie Kennedy wearing white veils as well as black. Some people will say that only married women wore black; others will say that only widows wore black; still others will say that women wore white or light veils in the spring and summer, and black or dark veils in the fall and winter. (That last one would make sense with the rules my mom and grandma passed on to me about wearing white dress shoes from Easter until Labor Day, and black dress shoes from Labor Day up until Easter. I don’t think anyone follows that guideline much anymore, but that apparently was what women did in the '60s, at least according to my mom and grandma. 🙂 )

So even “back then,” there was no one rule as to colors; and nowadays there definitely isn’t. I see women of all marital statuses wearing all kinds of colors.
 
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This is not some sort of doctrine. One may wear any color of veil one wishes.
 
I would ,and I do, helps keeps me focused, and who knows you wearing one and if some ask tell them why, it just might get them to thinking of veiling during Mass and prayer time at home 🙂
 
There’s a little booklet called The Chapel Veil which is published by Requiem Press. It’s written by 2 young ladies and is a delight to read. You could find it on the internet.
 
These are perfect, and exactly what I’ve been thinking of as a good in-between, so as not to stand out too much, but still being able to be reverent. Just ordered some side headbands. Thank you!
 
StRaphaelPray4Us said:
One fashion etiquette rule that really needs to be followed, even these days, would be to not wear a white veil or even ivory, to someone else’s wedding. I believe if you are a very young girl, you could pass with it, but an adult woman should not wear a white veil to a wedding, regardless if she’s single or not.
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I definitely agree with you there. I also wouldn’t wear a black one to a wedding because to people unfamiliar with the custom, it looks like mourning.
 
Oh, good, I am glad they were helpful! That’s the kind of thing I like to wear regularly, especially if I am in a parish or situation (like cantoring or lectoring) where it is less likely that others will be wearing veils or headcoverings.
 
A small parish I used to go to had a cantor who wore a mantilla–she didn’t seem to catch any flak (and the priest was not someone who liked the old traditional days to say the least)–it probably helped that she had an amazing voice with incredible credentials and training in sacred music who provided her services for free because the parish couldn’t afford a music person–and she was therefore beloved by all.
 
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Great link! 😊 Re veil colors: I try to go with liturgical colors.
 
To be clear, where you are in church, whether front row or loft, is immaterial. It is whether the Blessed Sacrament is present or not. We sometimes have Mass in the school gym and the women wear veils, even though it is not in church.
 
Before our church was built, we had services in the church hall. Everyone dressed as though they were in a cathedral. My father dressed up in a suit & tie (he & 3 other gentlemen took turns reading the Epistle), Mom, my sister & I always wore dresses or modest blouses & skirts and we always had our heads covered. My brother always wore a shirt & nice slacks.

Now the only time most people dress up is for Pascha, Christmas or when the bishop visits, yet God Himself is on the altar at every liturgy. It’s nice to dress up on special occasions but if receiving God Himself in Holy Communion isn’t special, then I don’t know what is. 😖
 
It helps to cut back on the distractions around you- mostly the veils and scarves which physically block your view, not the other types. But also, you feel it on the entire time so it reminds you of your humility before the Lord, as He is present during every mass.
 
I don’t know where nor when the color of the veil indicated whether a woman was single or married. There are numerous pictures of Jackie Kennedy in the late fifties and into the sixties wearing a white veil to mass AND some of her shoulders were showing. No problem! None at all then! But now! It’s right up there with cats and dogs living together.

Seriously, this is just as crazy as the “no women over ___ should ever wear jeans”! Hahahaaaaa!

And before anyone gets any ideas I love idea of veiling. I pray for the day that I’m living somewhere else so that wearing a veiling to mass is not going to turn into argument.
 
I don’t understand why it is such a controversial subject and I don’t understand
why some are against it or why it bothers them so much. I have a friend in her 80’s who became Catholic 60 years ago when she married her husband. She thinks women look
stupid when they wear a veil and she says she was so happy when she didn’t have to wear one anymore.
If a woman chooses to veil, I do not have a problem. I think it shows reverence.
 
7_Sorrows said:
I don’t understand why it is such a controversial subject and I don’t understand
why some are against it or why it bothers them so much.
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It’s not controversial, and frankly I see women in head coverings at every OF Mass I go to and nobody cares. I don’t think anybody even notices.

To be honest I think most of the hooha is coming from the women involved who have some idea that everybody’s eyes are on them if they walk into an OF Mass with a head covering on. Like I said…nobody cares.
 
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