Why do women wear a head covering in Mass?

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sarahraegraham said:
The problem with that explanation is that if you read the full text of 1 Cor. 11, Paul never once mentions anything about the city or culture of his readers; he makes blanket statements about men and women.
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No but you must remember chatholics use other sources besides scripture …we do not use sola scriptora…we look at historical documents and tradition

Fr Pacwa was standing right in Corinth tell about this, and how the men thought if they had sex with a temple hooker they were having sex with the Godess Venus, or Aphrodite

Corinth was a seaport town and really filled with vice

The posititues had the words follow me cut right into their sandals so the men would see it and follow them to the temple …these women were brazen adn went right down to the docks in search of customers
 
redrosetea said:
No but you must remember chatholics use other sources besides scripture …we do not use sola scriptora…we look at historical documents and tradition

Fr Pacwa was standing right in Corinth tell about this, and how the men thought if they had sex with a temple hooker they were having sex with the Godess Venus, or Aphrodite

Corinth was a seaport town and really filled with vice

The posititues had the words follow me cut right into their sandals so the men would see it and follow them to the temple …these women were brazen adn went right down to the docks in search of customers
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So I suppose Corinth was the only town in which those things happened, right? Wrong.

It was previously required under Church law under penalty, so obviously the Church did not believe it was simply cultural as you are implying.

Again, I refuse to hijack the thread. If you wish to argue whether or not it’s still a requirement and why, start a new thread. The OP asked *why *women do it today, not where it began, I gave the reasons known to me. If you have nothing to add to the discussion of why women today wear them, then that’s the end of it.

Honestly, threads on the topic should be closed and referred back to prior ones, given the reason that there are literally dozens of threads within the last month on the topic! I mean, I cover my head at Mass, I have no qualms talking about it, but for crying out loud! Do a search!
 
I just recently started wearing one to Mass. The only time, so far, that I don’t wear it is when I serve as EMHC at Mass. The ones that I have get in the way, and they don’t stay on very well, so I am going to buy one from a website:

headcoverings-by-devorah.com/

The reason I started wearing one was because St. Paul talks an awful lot about covering a woman’s head in humility. Plus, one thing startled me when it was pointed out. When the Tabernacle is opened in a Church, there is a lacy veil. I thought, if Jesus has one, there is no reason for me not to have one. I need to be more humble than Him. 🙂 Maybe you could use that when people ask you why you are wearing one. I pray that the veil comes back in to use more than the present times. One young lady inspired me to wear one because she seemed so devoted to Christ, and that is the way I desired to be. 😃 Maybe if more women wear them, others will too!
 
sarahraegraham said:
Because it is true to state that the Catholic Church at this time does not require women to veil at Mass. I’m not interested in hijacking the thread by arguing on whether or not it was abrogated. That’s not an appropriate topic here in this thread. You could begin a new one if you’d like, I would not object to that.
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“Why do you suspect it is no longer a requirement?” <----- That is what I asked and it’s a most appropriate question for a topic titled: “Why do women wear a head covering in Mass?”

If the Bible intends for women to cover their heads in church, why would the Catholic Church lift the requirement? I find that to be an interesting and germane question.
 
sarahraegraham said:
So I suppose Corinth was the only town in which those things happened, right? Wrong.

It was previously required under Church law under penalty, so obviously the Church did not believe it was simply cultural as you are implying.

Again, I refuse to hijack the thread. If you wish to argue whether or not it’s still a requirement and why, start a new thread. The OP asked *why *women do it today, not where it began, I gave the reasons known to me. If you have nothing to add to the discussion of why women today wear them, then that’s the end of it.

Honestly, threads on the topic should be closed and referred back to prior ones, given the reason that there are literally dozens of threads within the last month on the topic! I mean, I cover my head at Mass, I have no qualms talking about it, but for crying out loud! Do a search!
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Pardon me I thought this was a discussion…I will bow out now
 
Charioteer said:
“Why do you suspect it is no longer a requirement?” <----- That is what I asked and it’s a most appropriate question for a topic titled: “Why do women wear a head covering in Mass?”

If the Bible intends for women to cover their heads in church, why would the Catholic Church lift the requirement? I find that to be an interesting and germane question.
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I apologize if you felt that I was being overly harsh. The phrasing of the question led me to infer that it was meant to bait us into an argument over whether or not it’s still in force under Church law. This has happened on numerous prior occasions here, and I was simply trying to avoid that.

Again, my apologies; I did not mean at all to offend you.

I have always wondered that myself. I am more apt to believe if it was a law before, it should still be law today, as our Church’s teachings should remain timeless. No one has the answer to that question. Many of us wish the Vatican would just come out and say it one way or the other.

I will be removing my subscription to this thread. Feel free to proceed as you want. I give up.
 
redrosetea said:
From what I understand according to 2 different priests I have read, this practice came about because St Paul wanted the Christian women in Corinth to be identified as such

There was a papgan temple filled with prostitutes in this city and it was a very sinful city…The prostitutes had sex right in their temple

Christiian women were told to veil so they would be known to be chaste on sight, and not like a temple hooker
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I honestly don’t know if that’s correct or incorrect but I do think you shed light on something very important. There’s more to this matter than is explained by a quick glance at Scripture.

The reason I say that is that if Sacred Scripture (as taught by the Church) did intend for women to cover their heads in church then the Church would never have lifted the requirement.

These sorts of non-issues cause problems. One Catholic will interpret the Bible to say it’s a good (or even required) practice for a woman to cover her head in church antagonizing some. How could that be if the Church not only dropped the requirement but also makes no mention of it being praiseworthy? It seems like a very neutral practice to me – neither good nor bad.
 
sarahraegraham said:
I apologize if you felt that I was being overly harsh. The phrasing of the question led me to infer that it was meant to bait us into an argument over whether or not it’s still in force under Church law. This has happened on numerous prior occasions here, and I was simply trying to avoid that.

Again, my apologies; I did not mean at all to offend you.

I have always wondered that myself. I am more apt to believe if it was a law before, it should still be law today, as our Church’s teachings should remain timeless. No one has the answer to that question. Many of us wish the Vatican would just come out and say it one way or the other.

I will be removing my subscription to this thread. Feel free to proceed as you want. I give up.
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No baiting, just wanting to think a bit deeper on the matter.

First, I don’t think it’s wrong for a woman to cover her head in church given its history in the Church and secular custom.

Second I think any benefit of covering one’s head in church is internal to the “coverer” or another human viewer. The benefit may be very real albeit intangible to said people.

I don’t however think it’s accurate to say one should (or does) cover their heads because the Bible says to. If it was truly the case, I honestly cannot see the Church dropping the requirement. Ponder that for a moment – if the Bible actually required or even suggested the practice, why would the Church drop an existing requirement?
 
I want to say thank you for all your comments, many were very helpful. I also wanted to apologize for repeating the question that was already asked many times. I could not figure out how to search for other posts like this.

My sister and some of the other ladies from the bible study all went to the Catholic store the other day to buy veils. She bought one for me also and we are all planning to wear them this Sunday.

I feel this is right for me and now I will be able to put into words why I have decided to wear one.

Now my only concern is, will it stay on, as a mother of 6 children the youngest being
2 months things can get pretty active in our pew.
Thank You all and God Bless,
Jaci
 
jaci said:
I want to say thank you for all your comments, many were very helpful. I also wanted to apologize for repeating the question that was already asked many times. I could not figure out how to search for other posts like this.

My sister and some of the other ladies from the bible study all went to the Catholic store the other day to buy veils. She bought one for me also and we are all planning to wear them this Sunday.

I feel this is right for me and now I will be able to put into words why I have decided to wear one.

Now my only concern is, will it stay on, as a mother of 6 children the youngest being
2 months things can get pretty active in our pew.
Thank You all and God Bless,
Jaci
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You could pin it on your head. I’ve seen this strips that have a comb that you can attach to your hair, and then bobby-pin the veil on it. It stays on very well.

Or, you could just sew a hair comb on the underside (buy from drugstore). There are good ways to keep it on.
 
Now my only concern is, will it stay on, as a mother of 6 children the youngest being
2 months things can get pretty active in our pew.
Thank You all and God Bless,
Jaci
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I’ve been wearing a veil to Mass for several years now. Two bobby pins on the top of my head keep the veil on perfectly. When I take the veil off, I leave the bobby pins attached and they are always ready. My veil is black and my bobby pins don’t show at all.
 
You can just tie a bandana or scarf around your head. You know, put the scarf in a triangle shape and put it over your head and tie two ends underneath your hair in the back.

That won’t fall off.🙂
 
Traditionally, in slavic Byzantine churches (both Catholic and Orthodox), a scarf is worn by women. In summer, it’s often light and gauzy, silk or thin cloth; in winter, often woolen.
 
My daughter, grand daughter and I wear them because we feel God called us to do so. That is not to say that we are special and the only ones moved to do so nor do I mean any offence to those who do not feel this is something God requires of them.
It is part of our particular relationship with Christ. And we do our best to wear them with humility not hubris in the wearing of them.🙂

PS My 19 month old grand son delighted in trying to remove them. However, he is learning quickly to ignore them as I am sure Mary’s toddler did for her.
 
Lisa44, I grew up in Pennsylvania Dutch country (Lehigh Co.) and many a time I wore what you described, and we called it a “babuska” which means “grandmother” in either Polish or Russian, I don’t know which. Back in the day, it was what the mantilla is today.:rolleyes:
 
Most women in my diocese (Philadelphia) don’t cover their heads. I very, very rarely see it at Mass but do see it sometimes at Eucharistic adoration.
 
Here are other reasons I wear a mantilla, adapted from this insightful post by “leonie.”

It’s a mortification of pride and vanity.

It is a reminder of the proper sense of reverence and piety that should occupy our minds during Mass.

It is a physical expression of submission both to Christ and to a Biblical tradition: 1 Corinthinas 11: 3-16.

It is an expression of admiration for the Virgin Mary who is seldom pictured unveiled.

It is an expression of obedience to a discerned spiritual prompting of the Holy Spirit.

It is a unity with a traditional practice of Catholic women throughout several centuries.
 
luminoushope said:
I am not a “wiser one”, in fact I’m not even a Catholic yet. That said, 1 Corinthians 11 has a lot to say about women’s head coverings. You should read it and try to find good Catholic commentary on it.

I cover my head at Mass because it seems to contribute to my reverence and love for God and His Church. However, I am careful that this doesn’t become a matter of drawing attention to myself, since only a few ladies in our church cover their heads. When I was in the Easter choir I didn’t cover my head because the other ladies in the choir don’t and I didn’t want to stick out or be thought what the Protestants would call “legalistic”.

Father has been teaching me weekly, and I mentioned it to him once. He seems to feel it’s optional and we can do as we like. If he asked me to cover my head I’d burn some rubber on the way to buying a suitable head covering.

Peace be with you.

Luminous Hope (this expresses how I feel about becoming a Catholic)
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