Why Do Orthodox Christian Women Cover Their Heads?

[WoodArch4033]

Here's a great article on this topic, I learned new things from it: https://theuncreatedlight.substack.com/p/veiling-a-biblical-mystery
To those looking into Orthodoxy, this tradition sticks out, as we are the few in the world that still practice this. The latins have mostly forgotten this, save for very few most likely older women who attend latin mass. Within the west, both in the latin church and in the protestant churches we have women "ministers" who don't even care to dignify their "ministry" by covering their heads, but they do dress either immodestly, casually or in fake clerical robes.

Within The Orthodox Church are many who will never forget this practice. Faithful who will not accept the silence in the world about any of the truths of The Faith, no matter how "small" people would like to see it as. In the 60s, among the things feminists saw necessary to promote was the de-veiling of women. Those who de-veiled Christian women in ancient times were Romans, pagans, murderers of Christians. Now in American society, the antichrist has gone so far as to try to de-veil all women within the walls of our own Churches. This historical context should convince many young women who are aware of things in the world about the necessity of veiling in worship, and I know young women in person and many at my Church who maintain this as an important tradition.

In old world in Eastern Christendom doesn't have this problem. All Russian, Romanian, Georgian, Serbain, Greek, Turkic, Arabic, Egyptian, ect. faithful women cover their heads, because they respect God.
Will we meekly, humbly, and lovingly preserve and teach this tradition? To share it with those who we love, and the children who come after us? We have to be ready to give a defense for the truths of our Faith.

 

[Get2choppaaa]

1) because it's discussed by in the Bible (I believe Paul)
2) it's done to prevent women from distracting others in church and to prevent themselves from being more concerned with hair vs humility.

 

[WoodArch4033]

Rhetorical question thread for anyone to ask and discuss or share good resources on the topic. I agree @Get2choppaaa

 

[Lawrence87]

Its one of those things in the Bible Protestants tend to ignore these days, which strikes me as odd given their insistence on Scripture as the source of all doctrine.

Having said that, even my parent's generation women would cover their heads in church, although this would usually be women wearing hats of some kind.

It's a sign of how far things have degraded in the West in a single generation. For instance it is tradition that if you see a hearse you take off your hat as a mark of respect to the deceased (and because men are supposed to have their heads uncovered when they pray) previous generations would keep to these things even if they have no idea its supposed to be about prayer, but the youth of our day don't even know you're supposed to do this. Women not covering their hair (even in the form of dainty hats or whatnot) men not uncovering their head as a mark of respect for the dead and so forth are all signs of the major rot in society.

 

[WoodArch4033]

Yes that's precisely the point. Part of the Feminist movement was de-veiling women specifically.

 

[Edelweiss]

I have been to Greek and Antiochian Churches and almost no women covered their heads, except some old ladies.
Pews were also everywhere.

In Russian Churches however, no pews and all women had their hair covered.

 

[analyst_green]

Here's an interesting passage from Fr. Spyridon's book, Small Steps into the Kingdom, regarding this matter. He is a ROCOR priest in England and his books and videos have always seemed very based and helpful to me.

In some parishes it is the custom for women to wear head scarves and many women may find themselves questioning whether they should wear one. In my own parish it is not the custom to do this and my own wife does not do so. I point this out to affirm the right for women to make their own choice in this matter so that what follows cannot be misinterpreted as an attempt at implying anything prescriptive.

The first thing we should note is that covering the head did not begin amongst Christians but was a Jewish practice: in Chapter 5 of the Book of Numbers reference is made to uncovering a woman’s head for a ceremony demonstrating that covering was the norm. We also find reference to head covering in Genesis Chapter 24 and Daniel Chapter 13, and many traditional Jews continue the practice today. Since the first Christians were Jews and continued to worship in the Temple in Jerusalem it is not surprising that this would be one of the practices they continued with.

Saint Paul identified covering the head as bestowing honour on a woman and in his first letter to the Corinthians in Chapter Eleven he states explicitly that during prayer men must remove any covering of their heads while women must ensure that their heads are covered. It is a point he repeats a number of times in his letter to the young church in Corinth and he goes on to explain that women must do so in prayer because of the angels. At first this may raise all kinds of questions for modern readers but it is a point confirmed many times by different Church Fathers. When we pray we are in the presence of the angels, and Saint Cyril tells us that the angels find it extremely hard to bear if this law is disregarded (in his commentary on 1 Corinthians). The reason for this attitude is found in the Book of Enoch where we discover that fallen angels were filled with lust for women and that the covering of the head is to prevent this.

One further perspective on this is found in the Church’s iconography. Almost without exception women saints are portrayed wearing head coverings (Saint Mary of Egypt is shown bare headed because she lived alone in the desert). If we look to the saints for examples in all things then can there be one any higher to follow than the Mother of God? In all icons of her she is shown with her head covered which sets the most blessed example of all for women to follow.

Covering of the head has been seen as a sign of humility in Church tradition, a declaration that a woman is in church to pray and not to glorify herself. Certainly for young men a woman with her head covered is clearly declaring her devotion to God and attempting to act modestly which sets the tone for their relationships. Of course if it is not the custom for women to wear head coverings in a local church then to do so can have the opposite effect: a scarf may draw attention to the individual wearing it and could leave others feeling uncomfortable (perhaps a sense that they are being judged). As mentioned earlier, this kind of showiness can be both a cause and consequence of pride and must be avoided.

 

[WoodArch4033]

I like Fr. Spyridon's videos on Christian life, but reading this it strikes me as strange to explain the spiritual reality for men and women in regards to this and how St. Paul says it must be done. (I'm quite pleased he didn't make the strange argument I've seen: that covering in Church is only for married women) And yet then each Church is just allowed to decide to not follow it. Not sure how that has anything to do with what the Apostles would have wanted Churches to do.

To say that it is automatically showiness to veil if few others are as well seems like strange logic, can anybody help me figure this out? If someone believes they are obeying God, what people think shouldn't influence them to not obey God. It would be strange to force the opinion that it's just an aside tradition that doesn't have much to do with godliness to those who do love to veil. So therefore it is not automatically prideful to obey God when others may be not knowledgeable or even opposed to the tradition because of modern times. Maybe the solution is to just return to having every Church prescribe this, after all, it's only for while in prayer at Church, and if it wasn't obvious, it wasn't until modern times when some parishes have stopped supporting this practice. That's not hard to follow, unless someone really wants to show their hair.

The point about it being a practice of Jerusalem Christians seems irrelevant, because it is and was the practice of all Christians (and Corinth as Fr. himself mentioned), not just Jerusalem, and The Church originates from Jerusalem. Not sure if the point is that it would be forcing old law onto those in the new law to veil in prayer, but that makes no sense because St. James and Jerusalem ruled in the council of Jerusalem that we are under the new law. That would include veiling as part of the new law, not a judaizing thing.

 

[WoodArch4033]

I have been to Greek and Antiochian Churches and almost no women covered their heads, except some old ladies.
Pews were also everywhere.

In Russian Churches however, no pews and all women had their hair covered.

What I gather from this is that in every case it is confirmed that veiling is the ancient tradition. All the old cradle ladies at my parish veil as well. It's not because they're finally ok to cover their head now that they've lost their youthfulness, but because they and all ladies before them were veiling, as is clearly shown in history and the writings of the saints. (Off the top of my head I can't think of any saint who would say that it is not the tradition to veil when in prayer or even any saint that said it's simply a local thing, a no matter. Though I know the saints did not condemn those around them who didn't or be prideful because of it)

 

[GoodShepherd]

Here's a great article on this topic, I learned new things from it: https://theuncreatedlight.substack.com/p/veiling-a-biblical-mystery
To those looking into Orthodoxy, this tradition sticks out, as we are the few in the world that still practice this. The latins have mostly forgotten this, save for very few most likely older women who attend latin mass. Within the west, both in the latin church and in the protestant churches we have women "ministers" who don't even care to dignify their "ministry" by covering their heads, but they do dress either immodestly, casually or in fake clerical robes.

Within The Orthodox Church are many who will never forget this practice. Faithful who will not accept the silence in the world about any of the truths of The Faith, no matter how "small" people would like to see it as. In the 60s, among the things feminists saw necessary to promote was the de-veiling of women. Those who de-veiled Christian women in ancient times were Romans, pagans, murderers of Christians. Now in American society, the antichrist has gone so far as to try to de-veil all women within the walls of our own Churches. This historical context should convince many young women who are aware of things in the world about the necessity of veiling in worship, and I know young women in person and many at my Church who maintain this as an important tradition.

In old world in Eastern Christendom doesn't have this problem. All Russian, Romanian, Georgian, Serbain, Greek, Turkic, Arabic, Egyptian, ect. faithful women cover their heads, because they respect God.
Will we meekly, humbly, and lovingly preserve and teach this tradition? To share it with those who we love, and the children who come after us? We have to be ready to give a defense for the truths of our Faith.

At the Greek Orthodox church I go to none of the woman cover their head, Iv see one or two wear a hat though

 

[analyst_green]

To say that it is automatically showiness to veil if few others are as well seems like strange logic, can anybody help me figure this out? If someone believes they are obeying God, what people think shouldn't influence them to not obey God. It would be strange to force the opinion that it's just an aside tradition that doesn't have much to do with godliness to those who do love to veil. So therefore it is not automatically prideful to obey God when others may be not knowledgeable or even opposed to the tradition because of modern times.

That is not how I read it. The language used (can, may, could) suggests that it is only prideful in some cases, not that it automatically is always so. He is calling women to in mostly non-veiling parishes to ask themselves why they are choosing to veil. Is it to obey God, or is it to think of themselves as better than the unveiled women?

 

[Edelweiss]

At the Greek Orthodox church I go to none of the woman cover their head, Iv see one or two wear a hat though

This is my experience too, as I wrote in my earlier reply. But in my Russian (ROCOR) parish, all women are veiled and they are not all Russian (there are also Ukrainians, Serbs, Romanians, Germans…)

 

[OrthoSerb]

At the Greek Orthodox church I go to none of the woman cover their head, Iv see one or two wear a hat though

The veiling of women varies between parishes and local churches. My own experience is that the Russians tend to observe the veiling more strictly compared to say Greeks. Within Serbian parishes its mixed but I would say those that are veiled are usually in the minority. Monasteries are again different and many will not allow women to enter the monastery grounds unless they're both veiled and are wearing floor length dresses (they will have veils and dresses on hand at entrances for anyone turning up unprepared). Ultimately this was not really a topic anyone had to think about 100+ years ago because as a female, at least in Serbia, being veiled in public was the societal norm. It wasn't something someone decided whether they wanted to opt into when they set foot in a church. I've seen photographs from that time period and it was like a different world. I'm pretty sure it was the same in Greece and Russia. It's a shame how little people are aware of this. It means we can't fully appreciate the magnitude of the changes that industrialisaton, urbanisation, secularisation etc brought about. We don't even know the full extent of what we've lost.

 

[Острог]

Helland had a good rundown of this. Headcovering for women is mandatory as for men lack of. Even if it's super cold inside during winter, as a man I do not cover my head. This is church, not a playground and women should be educated correctly. Lack of headcovering is lack of respect, simply put.

 

[WoodArch4033]

That is not how I read it. The language used (can, may, could) suggests that it is only prideful in some cases, not that it automatically is always so. He is calling women to in mostly non-veiling parishes to ask themselves why they are choosing to veil. Is it to obey God, or is it to think of themselves as better than the unveiled women?

a scarf may draw attention to the individual wearing it and could leave others feeling uncomfortable (perhaps a sense that they are being judged). As mentioned earlier, this kind of showiness

I can see how you'd prefer read it that way, however I cannot read it any other way when I read these sentences. Others being uncomfortable or "feeling judged" should have no bearing on those who believe they are obeying God. Then a sentence later Fr. simply starts by saying "this kind of showiness." What kind of showiness? Veiling when others may be uncomfortable?

 

[TCOCBR18]

From my experience in Russian churches, they will even have a reserve supply for women who forgot to veil, and will give them an extra veil.

 

[Samseau]

Veils are nice to have. Definitely not something worth making an obstacle over. 99% of American Christians have no idea about the veil thing. If you tell a woman she cannot step inside without putting on a veil it could be an obstacle to her salvation, and therefore not worth it.

Antiochian Churches tend to be the most convert heavy, so that's why you'll see fewer veils there. Russians and Greeks do not have as many converts, and the women who attend know the customs well and enjoy them.

 

[GoodShepherd]

The veiling of women varies between parishes and local churches. My own experience is that the Russians tend to observe the veiling more strictly compared to say Greeks. Within Serbian parishes its mixed but I would say those that are veiled are usually in the minority. Monasteries are again different and many will not allow women to enter the monastery grounds unless they're both veiled and are wearing floor length dresses (they will have veils and dresses on hand at entrances for anyone turning up unprepared). Ultimately this was not really a topic anyone had to think about 100+ years ago because as a female, at least in Serbia, being veiled in public was the societal norm. It wasn't something someone decided whether they wanted to opt into when they set foot in a church. I've seen photographs from that time period and it was like a different world. I'm pretty sure it was the same in Greece and Russia. It's a shame how little people are aware of this. It means we can't fully appreciate the magnitude of the changes that industrialisaton, urbanisation, secularisation etc brought about. We don't even know the full extent of what we've lost.

It is sad to see this culture and tradition fading away in some churches, Im not saying the woman must dress like nuns but it actually even looks nice there are some smart looking lace scarfs they actually look fashionable, I think some day Im gonna ask at my church just to see the reaction, what puts me off at church is to see people feeling comfortable wearing a face mask but not a head covering, it looks so ugly and un fashionable to wear an ugly blue medical mask as part of your outfit, I think I should start making memes about this to encourage the head scarf

 

[Lawrence87]

A simple solution to women not veiling would be to have a stock of veils in the church and just hand them out to people who aren't wearing them.

Another issue relating to women in church is leaving lipstick marks on icons...

 

[OrthoSerb]

It is sad to see this culture and tradition fading away in some churches, Im not saying the woman must dress like nuns but it actually even looks nice there are some smart looking lace scarfs they actually look fashionable, I think some day Im gonna ask at my church just to see the reaction, what puts me off at church is to see people feeling comfortable wearing a face mask but not a head covering, it looks so ugly and un fashionable to wear an ugly blue medical mask as part of your outfit, I think I should start making memes about this to encourage the head scarf

I think its one of those things which requires a lot of discerment. I obviously would prefer for headscarfs/veils to be the norm but you can actually end up scandalising people with the wrong approach. It's a bit like having a family member that doesn't want to go to church, doesn't understand the importance of prayer or doesn't want to fast. The worst thing one can do is to lecture them on it or demand they follow your edicts. You have to work with what you have, lead by example (a bit difficult in this case), show patience and focus on the most important things whilst being careful not to judge them.