She's a Keepah

EDIT 29/09/08:
Another article, more politically based, about Vanity Kippah, with more pictures:

Some Jewish Voters Wear Their Hearts on Their Heads
By SARAH E. NEEDLEMAN, Wall Street Journal Online, SEPTEMBER 29, 2008

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I've reported on this phenomenon before. Male (and sometimes female) Jewish headgear being used for the multiple functions of showing reverence, announcing your faith as well as your personality. Thing is, many of us women who cover do the same thing - wear a head covering for spiritual reasons, but "personalize" the style, depending on traditions and personality. The point is, you are what you wear. A Jewish man has written:

There is no biblical command for anyone except the kohen (priest) to cover the head. And in the Talmud, though married women were required to cover their head in public (exposing their hair was considered to be an indecency), the practice of covering the head by men (other than those who were fasting, in mourning, under the ban, or afflicted with leprosy) appears to have been limited to scholars and other dignitaries, and to have been a voluntary act of special piety and humility. Indeed, for an "ordinary" man to cover his head was considered in some circles to be presumptuous.

So, even if it may be considered a devoutly spiritual act, to wear the kippah, by many Jewish men, it is more an identification of Jewishness for others. One may say that: "wearing a kippah makes us all like the high priest and turns us into a "holy nation."" But the size, the times, and the reasons become personal choices. And so, accordingly, the headcovering itself becomes personal.

Hence, the Vanity Kippah, one of the places which cater to individual Jewish headcovering personalities, when it comes to covering the head - pictures posted at the beginning of this article (notice notice the new headcoverings for the political ladies who wear kippah, rather than a traditional hair covering). The next 3 kippah are actually not from Vanity Kippah, but from Mazel Skull Cap, who also offer more traditional kippot as well as these I've posted.


(Quotes above from "COVERING MY JEWISH HEAD", by Rabbi Hershel Johah Matt, in: Matt, Daniel C., ed.,WALKING HUMBLY WITH GOD: The life and writings of Rabbi Hershel Johan Matt, Hoboken, NJ: KTAV, 1993;

and

the Jewish Virtual Library's article concerning kippah)

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Also, see a personal experience from a woman who "kippah's" at "Half-Jew in Granite".

"Catholic UN soldier wears an Islamic headscarf"

Catholic UN soldier wears an Islamic headscarf during Ramadan
Saturday, 13 September, 2008 @ 5:51 PM in Beirut

Beirut - Sylvia Monika Wyszomirska is a Catholic from Poland, but in an effort to integrate better into south Lebanon's conservative society she has traded her UN peacekeeper's beret for a headscarf during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.


"Out of respect for the environment I work in, I feel I need to try to integrate myself" during Ramadan, said 37-year-old Wyszomirska who has been stationed in the country for four months.

"And since my contingent is deployed in a Muslim area, I have decided to wear the hijab," the Muslim veil, over military fatigues, the mother of a little girl said

Wyszomirska chose a veil in the same light shade of blue used for the berets worn by members of the 13,000-strong United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which keeps the peace along the tense Lebanon-Israel border.

A native of Krakow, Wyszomirska works as a translator for the 200-member Polish contingent of UNIFIL, and her job brings her into direct contact with the people who live in Shiite-majority villages across the Marjayoun region.

Her deployment to southern Lebanon is not Wyszomirska's first encounter with Muslim tradition. She has also been to Kuwait and Iraq and worked in Syria as well to perfect her Arabic.

"When I was studying Middle Eastern languages at Jagiellonski university back home we also learned about the customs, traditions, history and geography of the countries we might end up working in -- places like Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Kuwait," she said.

Wyszomirska's decision to wear the veil during Ramadan has helped to break the ice with local villagers, both for her personally and for her colleagues in the Polish contingent.

"At first relations were lukewarm, especially since we don't come from a rich country with things to offer the people," she said. "All we can offer them is respect and a smile

"But since I started wearing the veil, people have been more welcoming with me and also with my colleagues. This has opened more doors and opportunities to strike up friendships.

"They began inviting us into their homes for coffee or sweets. And when we pass by the children smile and wave at us," she said.

"Today I feel almost as if I have a second family in Debbine, Blat and Arid," she added of the mostly Shiite villages in the area.

Wyszomirska said that wearing the veil was "a gesture from the heart -- it was not imposed on me."

Her superior welcomed the idea that she don the veil during the holy month.

"He also suggested to me that I explain Ramadan customs to the other soldiers so they can respect the traditions and refrain from eating and drinking in public during fasting" between dawn and dusk, she said.

Another woman peacekeeper in the Polish contingent, a 36-year-old, said she thought "wearing the veil was a smart move, because it brought us closer to the residents," but also added that she would not do the same herself.

"It would change my look completely, and that's not something I want."

Some of the villagers were slightly taken aback by the sight of the fatigues-clad Wyszomirska wearing a veil.

"I was surprised to see Sylvia wearing the headscarf, because I know she's not a Muslim," said Zahraa Hijazi, a veiled student from the village of Debbine.

"But in any case nuns wear veils even though they are Christian," she added.

Debbine mayor Mohammed Sherif Ibrahim agreed that many of his constituents were surprised by Wyszomirska's decision to wear the veil "because it is out of the ordinary".

"But it is also a nice gesture that breaks down barriers between UNIFIL and the local people," he said.

Photo : Catholic UNIFIL Polish soldier Sylvia Monika Wyszomirska ( R) , waves during a patrol of the southern Lebanese town of Dibbin. In an effort to integrate better into south Lebanon's conservative society she has traded her UN peacekeeper's beret for a headscarf during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan

Comparative Headcoverings Photo

I found this photo in a forum discussion at ChristianForums.com - the posters in the thread are discussing various styles of covering, and how it can be difficult to begin to cover, or to be the only one who chooses to in your group.



A woman who is new to covering can be intimidated by these fully modest covering styles of head covering. But there is a great variety of headbands, hats and smaller scarves to choose from, so that no one has to appear for worship "wearing antlers". Read the full discussion at the link for that illustration (it's on page 2). ;)

Free Head Scarf Pattern - knit in Chinchilla™

www.berroco.com/180/180_headscarf.html

See also the list of patterns for other head gear at Berroco.com



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I also came across this interesting knitted head scarf idea, sold as a kit from MorehouseFarm.com

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Also see the "Those Headcoverings Illustrated" page for links to sites with patterns and how-to's.

Check for Similarities

I know that I offend/make angry/uncomfortable with this blog. When I first began it - when I first began studying the idea of head covering as a spiritual or religious matter - I knew that many people considered that certain things really did fall into a "true" or "untrue" category, and anyone who is not for one particular understanding of Truth, must be, by necessity, against that Truth.

But still, the similarities I find are astounding. The very fact that Christians of all kinds of backgrounds, Jews of various backgrounds, Muslims of a wide variety of backgrounds, and even many Sikhs and Hindus (are there more that I have missed here?) find it important to either cover their head, cover the head of women, realize that the writings that they consider holy do at least make a point for the symbolism or broader understanding of the concept of covering the head, for religious and spiritual reasons - is amazing. Look through this blog's labels, and consider that I've missed several: you'll find head covering women and men everywhere from North and South America, to Europe and Africa, and all over Asia. (I'm sure they cover their heads in Antarctica too, to finish off the listing of continents, if only for the sake of their health.)

I won't take the time to write out a long essay myself. But I'll pass along a few links to some articles that I think make my point. Read an article about a follower of Islam and their understanding of the fear of God, and try substituting terminology from the Bible or Torah. I do it quite often. And, offensive to you or not, I often find that I could simply switch out a few of those words and reprint the article for a different believer, and the Truth of the matter could still be found.

Am I saying that I think that all faiths are equal? No. They are not. I am saying that the similarities are amazing enough to make me consider even on my most doubtful of days, that there is a Truth out there.

Try these articles:

What I Learned and Heard From Two Days Among American Muslims
Robert Parham, in EthicsDaily.com, 09-05-08
The headcovering quote from this article: Only one or two women wore the burqa. Most had headscarves. A number lacked any head coverings.

Taqwa
[often translated as "the fear of God"]
Wesley Ja'far Porter, in the blog: One Nation Under Allah, September 6, 2008
Excerpt of this article mentioning head coverings:

People who have taqwa first and foremost, obey what Allah (swt) orders of them, and they avoid whatever Allah forbids them. The lack taqwa in today’s world is very evident. There are so many issues that Muslims today try to question. Many Muslims today spend a lot of time trying to find loop holes in Allah’s commands in the Qur’an, and to try and find ways to make some of the evil influences of the secular world, permissible in Islam.
One example of this is the issue of the hijab [covering]. Allah (swt) is very clear in the Qur’an, “walyudhribna khumurihinna ‘alaa juyubihinna”, or as it means in English, “draw their headcoverings over their upper torso”. This verse is very clear and explicit as to what Allah (swt) orders of the Muslim women, yet today there are countless people who try to pick apart every little detail and nuance of the verses of the Qur’an to try to find a way that it can be interpreted differently in order to fit modern and secular ideas of women’s dress. We should remember the extent of the taqwa of the sahabah [Companions of Prophet Mohammed], where in this particular case, Aisha (ra) said in an authentic hadith [oral traditions relating to the words and deeds of the Islamic prophet] that when these verses were revealed, that the sahaba women tore pieces off their garments to cover their head, neck, and upper torso. In fact many of them, in their sense of taqwa, covered themselves completely. They obeyed the words of Allah immediately, and without question. This is true taqwa.

Women as Leaders Anywhere a Challenge to Partiarchy Everywhere
Pamela K. Taylor, in On Faith, from the WashingtonPost.com, September 4, 2008
[from the "other" side of where I come from, but still, compare this to articles criticizing the complementarian view of men and women anywhere]


Tear Down the Pulpit and Women Teaching Becomes A Different Discussion
by lionelwoods7, in the blog A Better Covenant, September 6, 2008
[short article and many comments made; a similar idea to the above article, considering the equality versus (?) the complementary nature of men and women)


Head Coverings
Posted by Kathy, in the blog Jackson Family News, September 5, 2008
[A post from an American in a foreign land; I was not able to discern the exact location, so I won't assume based merely on the wording here.]

Head coverings here can mean any number of things. Obviously, women from devout Muslim families keep their heads covered. There are several different looks, depending on which branch the woman adheres to. The Sunni women usually have very beautiful, colorful scarves arranged very elaborately. On occasion we see women wearing head-to-toe coverings, usually foreigners from neighboring countries. Then there's the babushka look, usually sported by very large, elderly ladies: dark brown, black or dark blue kerchiefs. Some ethnic groups have their own distinct style of head coverings. My Pentecostal friend is often mistaken for ethnic Chechnyan because of the way she arranges her scarf. The downside to that is that she's invariably subjected to a police search whenever she rides the subway. There's a general suspicion that Chechnyan women might have explosives hidden under their head covering. And then, there's one of the more common head coverings. Three or four days without water means a bad hair day. The young women here are generally very beautiful, and quite vain. A nice scarf looks a lot better than dirty hair!

That Veil Thing
By Sumbul Ali-Karamali, in TheAmericanMuslim.org, Sep 5, 2008
Discussing the questions: "But what’s Islamic dress? And is a head-covering required? Both Muslims and non-Muslims in recent years assume that it’s a clear edict."

Christian Headcovering

The View from the Veil: My Journey into Full-Time Headcovering

You just should read this whole article, is all.

September Is Alopecia Awareness Month

SARASOTA, FL -- 09/04/08 -- Alopecia is a poorly understood and under reported autoimmune condition which causes hair loss. It occurs in men and women of all ages but onset usually occurs during childhood, affecting 2% of the population. This condition begins as Alopecia Areata with small, round, bald patches on the scalp. The disease may progress to Alopecia Totalis (bald head) or Alopecia Universalis (total body hair loss). The cause is unknown and there is no cure. Alopecia is highly unpredictable, as hair loss and growth can occur at any time.

Susan Beausang, President of 4women.com and fashion head scarf designer, has lived with AU (Alopecia Universalis) for the last seven years. She comes from three generations of breast cancer survivors, and carries the BRCA2 breast cancer gene. After having a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy (pre-vivor), she developed AU and lost her hair. Frustrated by the lack of fashionable and feminine options available to women and girls who are experiencing medical hair loss, Susan began designing a scarf known as 'The beaubeau(TM) -- Beautiful Scarves for Beautiful Heads.'

The beaubeau scarf is a fashionable alternative to wearing a wig. Susan believes that a beautiful outfit deserves an equally beautiful scarf, which is her reasoning for producing scarves in colors, prints, solids and designer fabrics. It is her mission to unite the world of fashion to medical head wear. Her scarf creatively combines fashion and function. The beaubeau is offered in a variety of fabrics including rayon, gorgeous silks, workout fabric and even fabrics for cooler temps such as a luscious combination of cashmere and cotton. Susan fondly names all of her scarves in her collection. All scarves come with a matching scrunchie, which allows a variety of styling options.

Please read the whole article from The Earth Times, for more information on Susan, on alopecia, and to view an embedded video. Also see more information from the National Alopecia Areata Foundation (NAAF), including materials for Alopecia Awareness Month. For more information about Susan Beausang, 4women.com and photos of the lovely beaubeau(TM), including a listing of boutiques which carry the beaubeau, please visit: http://www.4women.com. Susan posted a similar personal blog post here: Blogher.com

See also: alopeciaworld.com for US events for awareness month.

Also, in honor of September being Alopecia Awareness Month, for the whole month of September "Jus Shar Designs" (knitting and crochet blog) is going to give 15% off all hat orders and purchases. You can buy them here, or here.

Snoods and Other Sweet Coverings

Garlands of Grace has updated their catalog of headbands, head scarves, and other coverings, and now includes some lovely snood styles. Please visit for some ideas...

Head Covering Discussions

Read up on all kinds of "Head Covering Discussions" at YahSpace.

The purpose of the "Headcovering Group," is stated is as follows:

"This group was created for women to come and discuss the subject of head covering together. Come and share with other women and let’s explore together what scripture has to say."

The statement above, to

"come and discuss the subject.......explore together what scripture has to say"

means to investigate, to find scriptural support for our position, whether pro or con.

If the statement was, "we wish to investiage how we are going to cover our heads" it would have definately limited this group to those who were only in favor of the headcoverings.

To be as Bereans, I hope you all agree, we must "search the scriptures" and let them speak to us, let them provide our doctrines, and that we not abide by or teach any commandments, doctrines of traditions of men (as though they were of YHWH).

Traditions are ok, as long as we understand that they are traditions and why we keep them, and that others are under no compulsion to follow us in our practices.

We are also told in 1Th 5:21 to:
" Prove all things; hold fast that which is good."

We are also told in 2 Ti 3:16
"All scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness"

We should never get too old or too complacent or too content with our current state of knowledge, to refuse to prove or disprove/revisit our cherished traditions.

We also should always be ready to give an answer regarding any part of our faith to those who ask, especially those newly coming into the faith.