Why do some women wear a veil or scarf on their head in Church?

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AprilViolets said:
I’m strongly considering wearing a veil to Mass. The idea of covering my head to honor God has always appealed to me, but I dislike the idea of accidentally drawing attention to myself. Still, veiling is something I truly want to do in the presence of the Holy Eucharist. I’ve been researching and looking at shops. Too many options to consider for an indecisive person such as myself lol.
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Take your time. And, if you don’t mind the opinion of another woman (an older one at that), if you don’t want to be flamed to a crackly crunch around here, don’t use the term ‘veil’ (I know, it’s a perfectly good term, but it has loaded connotations to many, many people who will go off on tangents about how the term is new, about how it really never existed in Catholicism, women in the US never wore veils unless they were Hispanic, yadda yadda way to derail a thread). . . and before you go for the veils (I like Veils by Lily myself, but again, remember ‘saying veiling’ around here is like saying "thick juicy steak’ in a roomful of vegans), try a nice scarf/floral bandana./headband look or a pretty straw hat, and move on to knit or crochet caps and cowls or hoods in the fall/winter if you live in the tundra like me, and see how that goes. Those headcoverings will not ‘stand out’, you’ll see how you feel ‘covered’, and you won’t annoy the “I Hate Veils” crowd who will lambaste you for your phony piety and Quisling traitordom to the sisterhood for both bowing to ‘patriarchy’ as well as, the horror, "rad-tradism’.
 
Agree, a lot are rather hostile to traditionalists here. If women want to wear a veil, let them. No need to criticize them. :rolleyes: The ones who are being holier than thou are those who criticize veiled women.

I don’t wear a veil, but I think it’s beautiful.
Tantum_ergo said:
Those headcoverings will not ‘stand out’, you’ll see how you feel ‘covered’, and you won’t annoy the “I Hate Veils” crowd who will lambaste you for your phony piety and Quisling traitordom to the sisterhood for both bowing to ‘patriarchy’ as well as, the horror, "rad-tradism’.
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Tantum_ergo said:
Take your time. And, if you don’t mind the opinion of another woman (an older one at that), if you don’t want to be flamed to a crackly crunch around here, don’t use the term ‘veil’ (I know, it’s a perfectly good term, but it has loaded connotations to many, many people who will go off on tangents about how the term is new, about how it really never existed in Catholicism, women in the US never wore veils unless they were Hispanic, yadda yadda way to derail a thread). . . and before you go for the veils (I like Veils by Lily myself, but again, remember ‘saying veiling’ around here is like saying "thick juicy steak’ in a roomful of vegans), try a nice scarf/floral bandana./headband look or a pretty straw hat, and move on to knit or crochet caps and cowls or hoods in the fall/winter if you live in the tundra like me, and see how that goes. Those headcoverings will not ‘stand out’, you’ll see how you feel ‘covered’, and you won’t annoy the “I Hate Veils” crowd who will lambaste you for your phony piety and Quisling traitordom to the sisterhood for both bowing to ‘patriarchy’ as well as, the horror, "rad-tradism’.
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What a nasty commentary you have going here. I have yet to read a post from someone not fond of veiling that is anywhere near as filled with vitriol as your rant is. Honey, you need Confession and some chocolate.
 
Vico said:
Men are not supposed to dress like women and are naturally more likely to be bald when mature. Women wear and additional veil to avoid a display of fashion and vanity.
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The way how men and women dress are honestly constructed by us (think about women and pants) and will change as years go by. The fact that men bald faster doesn’t show that men having long hair is a disgrace.

The reason why veils are not required is because people realized it was more of a cultural thing.

When I read about Jewish women and veils, one thing that kept popping up is modesty, which makes sense if we consider the standards and dressing at that time.
 
Lea101 said:
The way how men and women dress are honestly constructed by us (think about women and pants) and will change as years go by. The fact that men bald faster doesn’t show that men having long hair is a disgrace.

The reason why veils are not required is because people realized it was more of a cultural thing.

When I read about Jewish women and veils, one thing that kept popping up is modesty, which makes sense if we consider the standards and dressing at that time.
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Yes, constructed by us, but the way men dress is different than the way women dress, even though women copy men. For men to copy women’s styles, even derived from men’s, is considered effeminate.

Ezekiel 44:20 shows that a priest cannot have long hair and must keep it well-trimmed. Exception for men when taking a Nazirite vow (e.g., Samson) and only until the vow is fulfilled. And the Israelite standard was arm length (finger tip to elbow) for women and hand width for men.

St. Paul gave more on modesty in 1 Timothy 2:9-10:
In like manner women also in decent apparel: adorning themselves with modesty and sobriety, not with plaited hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly attire, But as it becometh women professing godliness, with good works.
 
I began to wear a manilla at Mass because I felt that it honors the holiness of God. I am not out to convert anyone to wearing a manilla at Mass. I just know that it is right for me. I have 2 manillas that were my mother’s and two small circular mantillas that are often referred to as “chapel caps”, one being my mother’s and the other one that I made.

I cantor at Mass and when I do so, I choose one of the small manillas for comfort.

I think the decision to wear a manilla is a personal one.
 
You could be describing my Irish mom there. She always wore a hat or a scarf on her head to church up till the 60s when it became the custom for women to not wear hats or scarfs to church in our area and hats in general for women went from a required wardrobe item to something worn rarely or not at all. Had nothing to do with submission and everything to do with a head covering being the expected social norm for women going to church in those days.

Mom used to tell stories about seeing women in the late 50s or early 60s going to church when they hadn’t expected to go or were in a hurry, and these women would put a paper napkin grabbed from some coffee shop on their head, held with a bobby pin, because a woman was supposed to have something on her head to go into the church. Mom always thought that looked stupid and less reverent than if they’d just gone in with nothing on their head.

The doily held on the head with bobby pins was also popular in some circles.
 
Tantum_ergo said:
Take your time. And, if you don’t mind the opinion of another woman (an older one at that), if you don’t want to be flamed to a crackly crunch around here, don’t use the term ‘veil’ (I know, it’s a perfectly good term, but it has loaded connotations to many, many people who will go off on tangents about how the term is new, about how it really never existed in Catholicism, women in the US never wore veils unless they were Hispanic, yadda yadda way to derail a thread). . . and before you go for the veils (I like Veils by Lily myself, but again, remember ‘saying veiling’ around here is like saying "thick juicy steak’ in a roomful of vegans), try a nice scarf/floral bandana./headband look or a pretty straw hat, and move on to knit or crochet caps and cowls or hoods in the fall/winter if you live in the tundra like me, and see how that goes. Those headcoverings will not ‘stand out’, you’ll see how you feel ‘covered’, and you won’t annoy the “I Hate Veils” crowd who will lambaste you for your phony piety and Quisling traitordom to the sisterhood for both bowing to ‘patriarchy’ as well as, the horror, "rad-tradism’.
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Thanks so much for taking the time to respond to my post. I was starting to feel like I was blending into the curtains or something. I like the scarf headband idea. Frankly, I’ve always liked those. I’ll definitely take your advice. Thank you, again.
 
There are many women who cover their heads for religious reasons. It’s usually a sign of respect, modesty, submission, and custom.

 
Fiasco said:
i’ve forgotten how to provide links, but if you type in:

you should be able to access a 23 minute sermon on YouTube

The veil signifies the dignity and beauty of Woman.
All sacred “things” are veiled, and a woman is a sacred vessel because life can be conceived and nurtured within her. She’s God’s way of propagating life.

If that sounds flowery, watch that video. Regardless, you should watch it.
There are other videos on the same subject, as well.

The link below MAY work:

youtube.com/watch?v=xnh4DchxfEw
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Is it bibical to say girls who wear it are being more modest?
 
Liturgy_Geek said:
I began to wear a manilla at Mass because I felt that it honors the holiness of God. I am not out to convert anyone to wearing a manilla at Mass. I just know that it is right for me. I have 2 manillas that were my mother’s and two small circular mantillas that are often referred to as “chapel caps”, one being my mother’s and the other one that I made.

I cantor at Mass and when I do so, I choose one of the small manillas for comfort.

I think the decision to wear a manilla is a personal one.
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What you are wearing is a mantilla - manil(l)a is a type of envelope…
 
We weren’t given a choice,if you turned up without,you were given a selection of manky,cast offs.The idea that men would go into pyroxyisms of ecstacy at a glimpse of your hair,pathetic
 
Elena321 said:
I’ve read that this isn’t a requirement for women and I’m assuming that’s the case as most of the women I see don’t wear one but why do some wear it?
Ie:what is the purpose and significance?
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These last 2 weeks the first reading has been from Exodus.

There is a passage when God talks to Moses. Moses’ face becomes so illuminated “transfigured” That he has to wear a scarf or covering in public and he can only revel his face before God.
Our priest told us during the Homily that the wearing of head and face coverings during Mass stem from here, for modesty purposes.
 
AnnArbor said:
No.
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Why?
Now Susanna was exceeding delicate, and beautiful to behold. But those wicked men commanded that her face should be uncovered, (for she was covered,) that so at least they might be satisfied with her beauty. Therefore her friends and all her acquaintance wept. (The Story of Susanna / Daniel 13:31-33)
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In this passage of Scripture, virtuous people approve of women’s headcoverings and veils, while ungodly men seek their removal.
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theorthodoxlife.wordpress.com/2014/02/04/womens-headcoverings/
 
Sky_River said:
girldefined.com/wear-strapless-wedding-dress
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Even a cursory reading of this young lady’s blog will tell you much about her modest demeanor. That would be the way she expresses herself with her careful and considerate choice of words, her concern for own dignity and the dignity of others, and a moving away from the fixation on outer beauty to a turning towards inner beauty. That’s her modest demeanor. You could take someone like her and put her in what some on here might consider a revealing costume and she would still be more modest than some loudmouth, shrewish woman who was covered from head to toe. I realize from looking over your past comments on other threads that you might struggle with the need to see things in black and white, such as “headcovered = modest” and “bareheaded = immodest”, but that is not the case. You cannot take things such as this at face value and you must look deeper.
 
LightBound said:
Even a cursory reading of this young lady’s blog will tell you much about her modest demeanor. That would be the way she expresses herself with her careful and considerate choice of words, her concern for own dignity and the dignity of others, and a moving away from the fixation on outer beauty to a turning towards inner beauty. That’s her modest demeanor. You could take someone like her and put her in what some on here might consider a revealing costume and she would still be more modest than some loudmouth, shrewish woman who was covered from head to toe. I realize from looking over your past comments on other threads that you might struggle with the need to see things in black and white, such as “headcovered = modest” and “bareheaded = immodest”, but that is not the case. You cannot take things such as this at face value and you must look deeper.
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ssnet.org/blog/modesty-not-sex-holy-spirit/
 
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