long hair

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Pete said:
Can anyone explain to me St Paul’s message when he was taking about long hair. He says “for it is shamefull for a man to have long hair”
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There were no scissors back then. Men had ‘short’ - shoulder-length hair, and women had ‘long’ - waist-length hair. Jesus did have ‘short’ hair, but so does the OP!
 
ora_pro_nobis said:
Long hair is fine on men, but please never wear it in a pony tail!😃
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Perhaps it is a cultural thing, but I prefer a man with long hair to wear it neatly pulled back in a pony tail, I think most American women would agree. To see it flowing about is a bit, um, icky to me. :o

~Liza
 
GandalfTheWhite said:
Hey! I have a ponytail! :tsktsk:

😃
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I kept mine in a pony tail/braid, until last Good Friday* when I cut it off for a change – Also because when it starts getting caught in your belt, it is time to start over. 😃

Then I let the cancer kids keep it.

But now…I just don’t feel the same when I put on my Troy Polamalu jersey…

(* What? Didn’t your gramma ever tell you it is lucky to get your hair cut on Good Friday?)

tee
 
John89 said:
hi, i have hair down to my shoulders and was wondering what the church had to say about a guy with long hair, is it bad ??
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Just for the record, shoulder-length hair is relatively long today, but that’s only relative, given the common barber-style for men, but shoulder-length hair is not “long” per se.

St. Paul writes against men with long hair, but “Long” in the ancient culture was as women wore them, that is, waist-length. Jesus may have worn hair that was probably shoulder length thereabouts, but that was considered “short” then.

Even today, a man with waist-length hair would be an eye-turner.
 
John89 said:
hi, i have hair down to my shoulders and was wondering what the church had to say about a guy with long hair, is it bad ??
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Well, I don’t know about you, dear, but I certainly can’t picture Jesus with a crewcut. 😃

I’d say you’re okay!
 
Must confess, Deb…as an aside to the point in question…I find it very hard to imagine Jesus with a crew cut - but then I stumble disbelievingly over the artworks and movies that depict Him as a very western type young man with long hair and a beard.😃

Blessings and Peace…Barb:)
 
somebody said: However common long hair has become, it’s certainly not worn on the majority of men, it’s certainly a distraction (in that it’s different often for the sake of being different), and with the baggage it carries (people’s assumptions), it suggests a certain vanity to persist in spite of that. I guess I’m saying you seem really attached to your hair or you wouldn’t be asking such questions. Consider your attachment, and be honest with yourself:
  • Is it separating you from God, or your fellow man?
  • Could you be using this energy fighting immorality or abortion or something instead of people’s assumptions about you?
    Just food for thought brother, not trying to tell you what to do.
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revised…

However common the teachings of Jesus have become, it’s certainly not believed on the majority of men, it’s certainly a distraction (in that it’s different often for the sake of being different), and with the baggage it carries (people’s assumptions), it suggests a certain cultish value to persist in spite of that. I guess I’m saying you seem really attached to your Jesus teachings or you wouldn’t be asking such questions. Consider your attachment, and be honest with yourself:
  • Is it separating you from God, or your fellow man?
  • Could you be using this energy fighting immorality or abortion or something instead of people’s assumptions about you?
    Just food for thought brother, not trying to tell you what to do.
Just changing a few words…
 
Thing is, back in the day, both in the Roman Empire and throughout western history, short hair was for soldiers! Indeed, the military crewcut still reflects that. It was and is practical in such a profession, and among Romans, the aristocracy was expected to be, at least nominally (and usually outright) military. In medieval and Renaissance Europe, same thing, and courtiers and scholars grew their hair long partly to show that they were not members of the martial class.

I wouldn’t think hairstyle has anything to do with one’s faith, unless one takes a tonsure as a religious (Christian, Buddhist, etc) or keeps the long sidelocks if one is an Orthodox Jew, and so on. Even worrying about ‘calling attention to one’s self’ by having a colorful mohawk or dreads and suchlike need not be an issue - some of us would stand out among our friends if we did NOT have such a do, although that’s no reason to wear your hair that way, or ANY way either.

I don’t think Jesus would give a rip about your hair. All over the world, people wear their hair all kinds of amazingly nifty ways - it’s something we can have fun with and express ourselves! Enjoy that shining glory! One of my few regrets in life is that I didn’t do more crazy and fun stuff with my hair when I was young, and I did have a 'hawk for a while. 😉 I may very well dye my hair violet this winter, just because I like the idea. Okay, maybe not dignified for an old prematurely-greyhead like myself, but it’d make me feel comfortable somehow. 😃
 
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