BY DEACON JOSEPH GLEASON
For two thousand years in the Orthodox
Church, the tradition has been for women and girls to veil their heads during
worship, whether at Church for the Divine Liturgy, or at home for family prayer
time. What is the Scriptural and
Patristic evidence for this tradition, and why is it important? In this article, we will take a look at head
coverings in the Old Testament, head coverings in the New Testament, head
coverings according to the early Church, head coverings in icons, and head
coverings today.
Head coverings in the Old Testament
Centuries before the birth of Christ,
women’s head coverings were an accepted practice for God’s people. It was not merely an option for those who
wished to be holy. Rather, it was a
matter-of-fact expectation that all women would cover their heads. When the Holy Spirit inspired Moses to pen
the first five books of Scripture, women’s head coverings were simply assumed
to be the normal practice. In the Book of Numbers, when a unique ceremony is
performed that requires an uncovered head, Scripture makes a point to say that
the woman’s head covering needs to be removed: “the priest shall stand the woman before the Lord, uncover the woman’s
head, and put the offering for remembering in her hands.” (Numbers 5:18) Of
course, such a requirement would make little sense, if women did not normally
keep their head covered. Even earlier
than this, in the Book of Genesis, we read about Rebecca, on a journey to meet
her future husband Isaac: “Then Rebecca
lifted her eyes, and when she saw Isaac she dismounted from her camel; for she
had said to their servant, ‘who is this man walking in the field to meet us?’
The servant, ‘it is my master.’ So she took a veil and covered herself.”
(Genesis 24:64-65).
Her godly discretion is a model for
women today. She did not flaunt her
physical beauty. Rather, she veiled herself, increasing her allure through an
outward display of modesty. Women’s head
coverings can also be found in the story of Susanna. It is the captivating story of a beautiful,
virtuous woman who was falsely accused, and later vindicated by the wisdom of
young Daniel. Susanna wore a veil that
covered not only her head, but her face as well. Scripture looks disapprovingly upon the
removal of her veil. “Now Susanna was
exceedingly 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 acquaintances wept. (The story of Susanna/Daniel 13:31-33). In this passage of Scripture, virtuous
people approve of women head coverings and veils, while ungodly men seek their
removal.
Head coverings in the New Testament
Women’s head coverings are one of the
many points of similarity between Israel and the Church. Godly women had covered
their head for thousands of years prior to the advent of Christ. And when the New Testament Church was
born, godly women continued the practice.
In St. Paul’s first epistle to the Church in Corinth, he instructs
everyone to follow the holy traditions which have been received: “Now, I praise you, brethren, that you
remember me in all things and keep the traditions just as I delivered them to
you.” (1 Cor. 11:2). Women’s head
coverings are one of the holy traditions which the Church had received, and St.
Paul spends the next several paragraphs discussing them. He says that head coverings manifest honor,
in the context of worship:
1.
Every man
praying or prophesying, having his head
covered, dishonors his head. (1 Cor. 11:4).
2.
Every
woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head. (1
Cor. 11:5).
The
message is pretty clear: It is honorable
for a woman to wear head coverings during worship, but it is dishonorable for
men to wear them. This is why men remove
their hats for prayer, even to this day.
Not content to make his point only once, St. Paul reiterates himself a
few verses later. Women are to cover
their heads, and men are not to do so:
1.
A man
indeed ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of god; but
woman is the glory of man.
(1 Cor.
11:7).
2.
The woman
ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. (1 Cor.
11:10).
The Old
Testament reveals that this holy tradition is ancient, but it only begins to
hint at the reasons.
Here in the New Testament, we are
given some reasons for the practice.
According to 1 Corinthians 11, head coverings manifest woman’s
honor. They also are important because
of the angels. Angels are present with
us when we pray, and when we worship.
While we may not fully understand why head coverings are important to
the angels, it is sufficient for us to know that this reason is given in
Scripture. If Scripture says that
women’s head coverings are important to the angels, then it is something we
should take seriously.
Head coverings according to the Early Church
Father
St. John Chrysostom (407 A.D), in a
sermon at the Feast of the Ascension, spoke both of angels and the veiling of
women: “The angels are present here.
Open the eyes of faith and look upon this sight. For if the very air is filled with angels,
how much more so in the Church! Hear the
Apostle teaching this, when he bids the women to cover their heads with a veil
because of the presence of the angels.”
Origen, another prominent teacher of the early Church
said: “There are angels in the midst of
our assembly. We have here a twofold
Church, one of men, the other of angels.
And since there are angels present, women, when they pray, are ordered to
have a covering upon their head because of those angels. They assist the saints and rejoice in the
Church.” The Apostolic Tradition was
written in the second century, and the author is believed to be St. Hippo of
Rome. This book has instructions for
catechumens, including this: “And let all women have their heads covered
with an opaque cloth.”
And St. Cyril of Alexandria, commenting on First
Corinthians says: “The angels find it
extremely hard to bear if this law that women cover their heads is
disregarded.”
Head coverings in the Icons
Icons in the Orthodox Church are a visual guide to the
Faith, a short picture book of Christianity. Icons teach us about the life,
death, and resurrection of Christ, and about the lives of many Christians who
have gone before us. Icons also teach us
about head coverings. Virtually every
icon of an Orthodox woman displays her wearing a head covering. As far as I
know, the only exception is St. Mary of Egypt, and she was a solitary saint who
lived alone in the desert, far away from any people. Among the female saints
who participated in society, all of them wore head coverings, and their head
coverings are shown in the icons. Even
Mary the Mother of God, the most blessed woman in the entire universe is shown
in icons wearing a head covering. Can
you think of a better role-model for women?
Head covering Today
In our Church, all women and girls are asked to wear
head coverings, in obedience to God’s command in Scripture, and out of respect
for the holy traditions of the Orthodox Church.
Just inside the front door of the Church, we keep a basket of head
coverings, just in case a woman forgets hers at home and needs to borrow one
for the day. Head coverings are also
worn at home during family prayer time.
While honoring God’s direction is a reward unto itself, there are many
other benefits as well. For example: Head coverings manifest a woman’s
honor. As St. Paul points out in
Scripture, a woman brings honor to herself by covering her head during prayer.
Head
coverings encourage humility.
Godly women come to church to focus on worship, not to
draw attention to themselves. A girl may
be tempted to show off an attractive hairdo. When a woman wears a head
covering, this temptation is removed.
She can focus on prayer, instead of on hair.
Head
coverings save time. In
today’s culture, it can
be tempting to spend a lot of time and energy on hairstyles. But head
coverings are quick and easy. It takes a lot less time to put on a head
covering that it does to prepare a hairdo for display.
Head
coverings help us show love and consideration for our brothers. Godly men come to Church to focus on worship. But the flowing locks of beautiful women can
be distracting. By veiling her hair, a
woman can display her modesty, and remove an unnecessary distraction. A mainstream theological journal recently
published an article about women’s’ head coverings. Soon after, the author of the article became
a member of the Orthodox Church in the article; she beautifully illustrates the
iconic purpose of head coverings:
“My
wearing a head covering is not only a symbol or sign that I am in agreement
with His order, but that I visibly, willingly submit to it. With
submission comes blessing.” Christa Conrad.
In an issue of The
Handmaiden, a lady name Elizabeth gives her testimony about wearing head
coverings: “For twelve years I have worn
a scarf at all times. I now perceive
that it has been and continues to be essential for the pilgrim journey and
salvation of my soul. The bottom line for me and a growing number of my sisters
remains obedience. And with it comes a
sense of being in our rightful place in God’s ordered universe, rejoicing with
the angels. Now I gratefully say, I am
in the presence of the great I AM, at prayer and in Church, surrounded by the
angelic host, worshipping our Lord and King.
To God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be the glory, now and ever and unto
ages of ages. Amen.
Fr.
Thomas Moore, Holy Apostles Orthodox Church, Columbia, SC.
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