1 Corinthians 11:6 6 For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head. Because you can't avoid wearing a veil, you should not find some other way to nullify it. That is, by going about neither covered nor bare. For some women do not veil their heads, but rather bind them up with turbans and woollen bands. It's true that they are protected in front. But where the head properly lies, they are bare. Others cover only the area of the brain with small linen coifs that do not even quite reach the ears. ... They should know that the entire head constitutes the woman. Its limits and boundaries reach as far as the place where the robe begins. The region of the veil is co-extensive with the space covered by the hair when it is unbound. In this way, the neck too is encircled. The pagan women of Arabia will be your judges. For they cover not only the head, but the face also. ... But how severe a chastisement will they likewise deserve, who remain uncovered even during the recital of the Psalms and at any mention of the name of God? For even when they are about to spend time in prayer itself, they only place a fringe, tuft [of cloth], or any thread whatever on the crown of their heads. And they think that they are covered![60] Tertullian
I love the veil. Thanks for sharing. Very healing to the feminine genius. I have a much greater respect and awe of the Holy Eucharist, since beginning this practice years ago.
I notice in the Traditional Church I attend more and more women wearing the veil. I think it is beautiful, it reminds me of Our Blessed Lady. If I heard of an appariton of her where she did not wear a veil I would be very suspicious. https://christianity.stackexchange....arly-churches-view-on-head-covering-for-women Clement of Alexandria, Bishop writing from Egypt around the year 190, counseled: “Let the woman observe this, further. Let her be entirely covered unless she happens to be at home. For that style of dress is grave, and protects from being gazed at. And she will never fall, who puts before her eyes modesty, and her shawl; nor will she invite another to fall into sin by uncovering her face. For this is the wish of the Word, since it is becoming for her to pray veiled.” [Clement, The Instructor 3.12] Hippolytus, a leader in the church at Rome around the year 200, compiled a record of the various customs and practices in that church from the generations that preceded him. His Apostolic Tradition contains this statement: And let all the women have their heads covered with an opaque cloth, not with a veil of thin linen, for this is not a true covering. [Hippolytus Apostolic Tradition]
Lovely. My mother always called it her "mantilla". When I was young, little girls wore hats and did not veil. By the time I was old enough to wear one the Church had abandoned head coverings, so I never had the opportunity to wear one of my mother's mantillas. I wish she had saved them.
Personally I like the wise words of Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat. The times change and we must change with them. Now this is within a very narrow interpretative lens. It's on what is not essential. We are not referring to the ideology of Islam. The covering of heads etc is completely alien to our culture. The context of the ancient world is no longer operative etc. The holy idea that inspires the custom is based on the idea that the beauty of a woman is through her hair as it were, and that the individual woman veils her beauty out of acknowledgement of the prior and transcendent Beauty of the Lord. There is so much in this that I will say no more. The so called rad trad Sunday best mentality would be a contemporary analogate.
In Brazil, there is a Protestant denomination with Pentecostal orientation called "Christian Congregation in Brazil" , which continues the practice of women wearing veils to the point of commonly being referred to as the "Church of the Veil." I had a neighbor who was a pastor of this church, and although he was my friend, I was never able to convert. He passed away in 2023 at the age of 77. Interestingly, many Protestants have even abolished the sign of the Cross and infant baptism, whereas at least this church I mentioned has maintained a custom from the early church, which is highly distinctive.
Presumably you were not able to convert because these changeable customs are just that and the Truth is more important. I don't think anyone should choose veils for women as any hill to die on. My goodness over 80 years ago CS Lewis went on radio to try and convince the English and the world that there was such a thing as right and wrong. Lets get real.
It’s never too late. It’s a personal devotion now. I attend a novo ordo and there are some picking up the practice again. It takes courage, but it’s catchy Beautiful veils on website veils by lily.
I always saw veils as a sign of humility for women and reverence for God, especially in the context of God's House. A reverent genuflection toward the Tabernacle for men upon entering a Church is important. In feudal times, such abeyance was given by a knight (protector of women, children, and the feeble) to the Lord of the manor when pledging an oath of loyalty.
Romans 12:2 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. I think here Saint Madeliene was talking about her vocation which was education rather than Church practice. So really she was talking about something else entirely. She was talking about secular practices. The Church should be essentially Conservative. It builds on the Traditions of all that is best in the past. The Tradition of the Church has always been that women should be veiled in Church. This only really ended in the 1960's which was I think an blip on the screen of our two thousand year old history. As to being alien in some ways to our pagan , post Christian culture, why would this be a bad thing? In fact if we stick to the ten commandments and the Teachings of the Church we are bound to be outsiders, how could we not be? We don't think abortion is right, we don't think euthanasia is right, we don;t think Sodomy is right, we don't think Transgender is right, we don't think materialism is right, we don't think atheism is right, you can't really get more Alien than that. In the light of this women wearing a veil in Church is just a speck in the ocean. One of the Great Signs of the Time is real Catholics feeling like a stranger in a strange land. Of just being pilgrims just travelling through. That is no bad thing. https://catholicgentleman.com/2019/...ird-again-on-consumerism-and-authentic-faith/ Make Catholicism Weird Again: On Consumerism and Authentic Faith Recently, a Pew Research survey cataloged the almost complete collapse of the faith in the United States. The facts are devastating. Only 26% of Catholics under forty in the U.S. believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the holy Eucharist. If the Eucharist is the source and summit of our faith, the fountain from which the life of the Church flows, then this report is utterly damning. The Eucharist is the beating heart of the faith—and yet 7 in 10 young Catholics in the pews do not believe in it. If this is true, then they really do not believe the Catholic faith in any meaningful sense. Many are horrified by this statistic, and rightly so. But, while the reasons for our present collapse of faith are manifold, I believe one of the chief reasons is not difficult to identify—the modern religion of consumeristic choice. The New Global Religion All culture flows from cultus, genuine worship. And all authentic worship, flows from a sense of the sacred mystery at the heart of life. This is symbolically represented by the churches at the center of medieval European villages, from which the whole village would radiate outward. Worship was the chief act of medieval European life. Without a credo embodied in an act of divine worship, without a holy sacrifice, nothing else made sense. Fast forward to our time, and there is a new center of the global village—and it is not a church but a shopping mall. For consumerism is the new global religion. The chief teaching of consumerism is that unlimited choice, unlimited freedom, brings happiness. From this cult of choice has flowed the dogma of radical autonomy, or complete self-determination. This dogma is articulated succinctly in the motto of the infamous satanist of a century ago, Aleister Crowley: “Do as thou wilt.” Reality, then, is subject to our will. Unlimited choice, unlimited freedom, unlimited self-determination—these are the fundamental tenets upon which our modern culture rests. Nothing can stand in the way of unlimited choice, our ability to re-make reality in our own image. We will even offer our own children as sacrifices to this insatiably demanding god. This modern credo of unlimited choice is heard in the angry chants of pro-abortion campaigners: “My body, my choice.” These campaigners call themselves by the entirely accurate name of “pro-choicers.” Even the Supreme Court of the United States proclaimed the dogma of self-determination boldly in its infamous decision, Planned Parenthood vs. Casey: These matters, involving the most intimate and personal choices a person may make in a lifetime, choices central to personal dignity and autonomy, are central to the liberty protected by the Fourteenth Amendment. At the heart of liberty is the right to define one’s own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life. Beliefs about these matters could not define the attributes of personhood were they formed under compulsion of the State.
Here is a good example of Catholics being counter cultural, of being, 'Weird'. I don't know much about young people but one thing about them is that they are kinda drawn to weird. It fascinates them.
Well it's like everything. We have the outward form and the inward reality. Let's not project any The weird today is kids taking timeout on their scratch posts and litter boxes
It points to the Eucharist and helps one transition psychologically from the outside world to the sacrifice. I have also found it’s like horse blinders Keeps your eyes off others and towards the sanctuary too.
Look, I won't totally disagree with you because São Paulo also speaks against men praying with their heads covered, which would create a certain problem for the Pope, the bishops, and some monastic orders. However, in the specific case of the use of the women's veil, tradition prevailed for centuries until the winds of change brought by Vatican II. Therefore, I don't feel entirely comfortable relegating this pious custom to a historical context. But of course, inner modesty and sincere contrition are above all of that.
I can believe this, Carmelite. Because times do change and things of the past are abandoned, there is absolutely nothing wrong with honoring a beautiful tradition. I admire your courage.
When 98% of women don't wear the veil, and you're the only woman wearing a veil, it draws others eyes towards you, which is the opposite of what you want to happen at Mass. A couple months ago a women who sat in front of me at Mass who looked to be in her mid-twenties. She was wearing a white lacy veil along with a yellow flowery sun dress. It was a feminine and pretty. But her arms, shoulders, back, and below collar bone were completely uncovered. I'm a straight women and even my eyes were momentarily distracted by it. I can imagine there where men out there who had to fight their natural inclinations to peek. Seems like the point of the veil was totally lost on her. I nearly forgot about the whole thing, but two weeks later I was visiting a sister. At her church, it was a a lady who was probably in her 50s wearing a flowery black sun dress. Although she wasn't physically attractive like the young lady was from couple of weeks ago, my eye was still drawn to her bare skin because it's so out of place during Mass. I was thinking, "C'mon on, lady. You should know better." Did she think covering her head with the veil while the rest of her body was on display somehow made her modest? It's hard not to make judgments when I see this scenario played out again and again. Are veil wearers being modest or is it a cry out for attention? Look how traditional and humble I am! I think dresses that show a lot of skin are inappropriate for Mass. Then to see the only women in church wearing veils to cover their hair, while they're exposing a lot of their skin elsewhere, it's absurd. Clearly they haven't really thought through the modesty part and the veil is simply a fashion statement or ploy to look extra holy. I've seen this play out many times, but it seems to be happening more and more. Some women wear the veil out of respectful submission and that's a beautiful thing, but that is not always the true motivation. Regardless, if you're going to cover yourself with a veil to imitate Our Lady, or to be modest, cover the rest of yourself too. Otherwise, I'm going to judge you to be a flake and I don't want my mind to go there especially during Mass.
I sympathize with your comments. I am appalled at what women wear to Mass young and old. But honestly I don't think they know better. So many of them have grown up in a culture and a church where modesty is never mentioned. Fashions truly must offend our Lord as Jacinta prophesied before her death. I struggle with wearing slacks all the time. I keep thinking I should start wearing dresses. In the summer I do but in the winter Brrrr.
There is a lady in my local parish Church at he moment, a young Indian woman who, like me says the Stations of the Cross after Mass in mornings. I notice he because I say the Stations of the Cross myself. Anyway at each Station of the Cross she totally prostrates. I mean by that she lies full flat on her face for the longest time in front of each station. Usually I would hate this as it draws attention . But in her case for some reason I have come to admire it and her for doing this. Perhaps it is an Indian Catholic tradition? But its lovely. Also sometimes the Indian ladies wear the full Sari at Mass. I just love this. It reminds me of Our Lady.
I think you could ask the question about women wearing veils in Church back to front. You could ask the question, 'Does it do any harm?' I can't think of any harm at all it might do. It's the same with kneeling and receiving communion on the tongue. What harm does it do?
