I've been reorganizing the blog and checking on links, while keeping up with the news about headcoverings and headscarves (see the links to news in the right column). I came across this explanation and summary of headcovering in
The Catholic Knight. This is what I think:
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| photo from Catholic Knight |
The
authentic Catholic reason for wearing the chapel veil is the Biblical
reason. It's just something that all Christian women (regardless of
denomination) are supposed to do, not because they have to, but because
they're supposed to want to. The Catholic Church has decided to no
longer enforce this Biblical custom through Canon Law, and in doing so,
the Church is saying it does not want to be our nanny. The chapel veil
is a custom for women to do voluntarily, because they want to, not
because they are being forced to. The idea is that women are to read
what the Scriptures have to say, and be convicted according to what is
contained therein. In order for a chapel veil to be an authentic sign
of humility and holiness, it must be voluntary. Indeed, Christian women
are supposed to wear one, but it is never to be forced.
What do you think? Does this reasoning apply to all women who wish to cover, regardless of denomination or religion?
4 comments:
Certainly.
However, education is also a factor. For Catholics, there's this perpetual myth that we were told that headcovering was not/is not necessary. That we were let off the hook because it is an old custom meant to keep women who bedecked themselves from standing out with poorer women (or something like that).
Problem is that until 1983, it was written in the Code he speaks about. But people stopped covering decades before. Since I was born when it was no longer customary, I had no idea that Catholics even used to cover. I thought it was a cultural thing or something only Muslim women did for the sake of piety. It wasn't until much later in life that I saw that it was tradition, was written in the Code, and in the Bible that I even considered it.
I think the problem with this lack of knowledge is because to wear a headcovering is to declare a level of piety that society is not comfortable with. So people don't inform others even in their own religious upbringing. And there's this pressure to be more secular.
As he pointed out, it should be voluntary. A sign of piety. If you force a person to cover, it looses it's meaning much like wearing a cross has lost its meaning because so many people declare themselves as Christians yet don't reflect Christianity.
Deltaflute, you are absolutely correct. In any choice, it should be an educated decision, and not one merely made by tradition or what's-happening-now. Thank you for your input!
Well the veil has lost it´s meaning of piety in peoples minds because they have heard that so many girls are forced to wear it -because of culture. So they think it was only a cultural/worldy thing when all christian women wore it aswell and not something that had to do with faith. And yes, the wearing of the cross has lost it´s meaning since many non-belivers has worn it just because of fashion. It´s also a spititual symbol that turned into just a cultural symbol in peoples minds. Now people think that it´s not important to wear symbols of faith because others can mistake them for symbols of culture anyway. (Not that we are to dress for the people of this world to understand us, though.)
I´ve experienced that when I started wearing a cross with a veil I got people to get why I was wearing them both. This, I think, is mainly because the combination is so unusual (it´s only seen on nuns in my country). Now that I wear regular (modest) clothes in different colours people can see that I´m non a nun, but they still realise that I actually have made the choises myself out of piety and threat my accordingly. I´ve never experienced this when I wore the cross without the veil or the veil without the cross. Because the veil is simply not understood as a choise of modesty and the cross is not understood as a statement of faith. But the combination is so strong it becomes clear that it´s my own choise and faith!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and your experiences with us, Anonymous. I agree that much of the confusion about headcovering and modesty in our society comes from a lack of understanding of what the headcovering or modesty is all about. Again, as the previous commenter mentioned, this has to do with a lack of education. I do hope that you - and others as well - are asked why they cover, or dress modestly, or wear a cross, so that they can be taught why we have made such a choice. Maybe they will tell two friends who will tell two friends, and so on. Education is out there! :)
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