Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Why Ladies Should Not Wear Head-Coverings

(a guest post by my husband)
 

1Cor 11:3 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.
1Cor 11:4 Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head.
1Cor 11:5 But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven.
1Cor 11:6 For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered.

1Cor 11:7 For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man.
1Cor 11:8 For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man.
1Cor 11:9 Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man.
1Cor 11:10 For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels.
1Cor 11:11 Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord.
1Cor 11:12 For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God.

1Cor 11:13 Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered?

1Cor 11:14 Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?

1Cor 11:15 But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering.

1Cor 11:16 But if any man seem to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.

Some people have misinterpreted 1 Corinthians 11 and believe that it is commanding women to wear hats or "head-coverings" of some kind. In this chapter, God is dealing with gender roles and the authority that a man has over his wife. In verse 3, the authority that a man has over his wife is likened unto the authority that God has over a man. God is the "head" (authority figure) of the man, and the man is the "head" (authority figure) of the woman. This matches perfectly with what the Bible says in Ephesians 5:

Eph 5:23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.
Eph 5:24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.

As we continue in 1 Corinthians 11, verses 4-6 state:

1Cor 11:4 Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. 1Cor 11:5 But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven.
1Cor 11:6 For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered.

According to these verses women should have their heads "covered," and men should not. In fact, if a woman's head is not covered, that is just as bad as if she were "shorn" or "shaven." Notice that the Bible says that it is a "shame" for a woman to be shorn or shaven. We all know what "shaven" means, but what does the word "shorn" mean? The Bible uses the word "shorn" one other time in the New Testament:

Acts 18:18 And Paul after this tarried there yet a good while, and then took his leave of the brethren, and sailed thence into Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aquila; having shorn his head in Cenchrea: for he had a vow.

The vow that the Bible is referring to here is a Nazarite vow from the Old Testament. Notice what the Bible commands about the Nazarite vow in Numbers 6:

Num 6:5 All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.

Num 6:18 And the Nazarite shall shave the head of his separation at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall take the hair of the head of his separation, and put it in the fire which is under the sacrifice of the peace offerings.

Once again, the Bible is its own dictionary. Being "shorn" is another word for being "shaven." Paul having his head shaved with a razor is referred to as him being "shorn." Therefore God is saying that a woman being "uncovered" is just as shameful as her shaving her head completely bald as Paul did in Acts 18.

So, what is this "covering"?

1Cor 11:13 Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered?
1Cor 11:14 Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?
1Cor 11:15 But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering.

According to verses 13-15, a woman is "uncovered" if she does not have "long hair." A woman is therefore commanded to have long hair, and a man is commanded not to have long hair.

Those who believe in women wearing external "head-coverings" or bonnets on their heads will argue that even though long hair is a covering (indefinite article), women still need to wear an additional covering or bonnet on their heads. This is easily disproved with the Bible. The same passage that tells women to be covered tells men not to be covered. Therefore, if this were talking about something other than long hair (i.e. a "head-covering" or bonnet), it would be a sin for a man to wear it while praying or prophesying. This is directly in contradiction with many Old Testament passages that command the Old Testament priests to wear bonnets and mitres while ministering in the priests office:
Exo 28:40 And for Aaron's sons thou shalt make coats, and thou shalt make for them girdles, and bonnets shalt thou make for them, for glory and for beauty.
Exo 28:41 And thou shalt put them upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office.

Exo 29:9 And thou shalt gird them with girdles, Aaron and his sons, and put the bonnets on them: and the priest's office shall be theirs for a perpetual statute: and thou shalt consecrate Aaron and his sons.

Exo 39:27 And they made coats of fine linen of woven work for Aaron, and for his sons,
Exo 39:28 And a mitre of fine linen, and goodly bonnets of fine linen, and linen breeches of fine twined linen,
Lev 8:13 And Moses brought Aaron's sons, and put coats upon them, and girded them with girdles, and put bonnets upon them; as the LORD commanded Moses.

Eze 44:17 And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.
Eze 44:18 They shall have linen bonnets upon their heads, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing that causeth sweat.

Notice that the priest's clothing consisted of coats, britches (pants), and bonnets. Why would God tell us that "nature itself" teaches us that a woman should wear a head-covering, and that men should not, when he commanded over and over again that the priests (who were men of course) were required to wear bonnets when they prayed and prophesied in the priests office! The covering referred to in 1 Corinthians 11 is long hair, as defined in the passage itself; it is not a bonnet or head-covering.

This is consistent with the Old Testament, which commanded the priests not to have long hair:

Eze 44:20 Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only poll their heads.

They were commanded to be neither completely bald nor long-haired, but rather to "poll" (i.e. cut short the hair on) their heads.

Other proponents of "head-coverings" on women will say that if you "go back to the Greek," you'll see that the word for "covering" in verse 15 is different than the other words used for "covering" in the passage. Of course, they are not fluent in Greek, but because the words look a lot different, they assume that they must be talking about completely different things. However, there are many examples in our language of words that look completely different as different parts of speech, but that are actually the same. Here are a few examples:

- having faith (noun) means that you believe (verb).
- being undressed (adjective) means you aren't wearing any clothes (noun).
- doing something manually (adverb) means that you did it by hand (noun).
- thing that are lunar (adjective) have to do with the moon (noun).

You see how identical words can look completely different as different parts of speech. Therefore a woman can be uncovered (adjective - ακατακαλυπτω) because she is not wearing a covering (noun - περιβολαιου). Just because the words look the same in English does not mean that they will look the same in Greek. Apparently these head-covering advocates who couldn't even order a meal in a Greek restaurant think they know more than the KJV translators. This is why one should always beware when anyone has to "go back to the Greek" to prove their doctrine.

Now that we understand what "covering" is referring to in 1 Corinthians 11 (i.e. long hair), let's go back and look at the passage with this definition in mind:

1Cor 11:3 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.
1Cor 11:4 Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered
(i.e. having long hair), dishonoureth his head (i.e. dishonours Jesus Christ - see previous verse).
1Cor 11:5 But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered (i.e. with short hair) dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. (i.e. if a woman doesn't have long hair, she might as well be bald!)
1Cor 11:6 For if the woman be not covered
(i.e. she has short hair), let her also be shorn : but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. (i.e. in God's eyes, it is just as much of a shame for a woman to have short hair, as it is for her to be completely shaved bald).
You may say, "Okay, Pastor Anderson, I get it. Women do not have to wear head-coverings, but they do have to have long hair. But can't they wear head-coverings if they want to? Why are you against head-coverings?"

I am against head-coverings on women for two reasons:

1. I am against head-coverings because they associate you with the wrong crowd spiritually. Every church or pastor I have ever seen or known that taught that women were commanded to wear head-coverings was wrong on the Gospel. I have never seen or heard of a church that taught that women must wear head-coverings that believed that salvation was by faith alone. The churches and teachers promoting head-coverings on women teach a works-based salvation in one of the following forms:

- some teach you can lose your salvation
- some teach you must repent of your sins in order to be saved
- some teach you must surrender your life to Christ in order to be saved
- some teach Calvinist doctrines of "grace" which teach that if you don't have works, you aren't saved, and that God is the one who chooses who will be saved and who will be damned (TULIP).

The Bible on the other hand states that salvation is by faith alone:

Rom 4:5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
Rom 4:6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,
Rom 4:7 Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
Rom 4:8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

I have never seen or heard of any church that preached Bible salvation that taught women to wear head-coverings. Therefore, wearing a head-covering will lump you in with unsaved false teachers such as the Amish, Pentecostals, etc.

Eph 5:11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

1Thess 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.

2. I am against head-coverings because they are not modest apparel. Yes, you got that right, I said that they are not modest apparel:

1Tim 2:9 In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;
1Tim 2:10 But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.

The word "modest" in these verses is often misinterpreted to only mean "not revealing" or "not promiscuous." However, there is nothing revealing or promiscuous about broided hair, gold, or pearls. This passage is telling ladies not to dress in a way that draws attention to themselves. Their good works should be what stand out, not their appearance, clothing, hair, or jewelry. Instead of a "Christian uniform," it should be the good works of Christian ladies that stand out to the world.

mod·est

[mod-ist]
–adjective
1.having or showing a moderate or humble estimate of one's merits, importance, etc.; free from vanity, egotism, boastfulness, or great pretensions.

Women who wear head-coverings or Amish-looking dresses are doing so in order to purposely look different and stand out. There are many beautiful and stylish dresses for women to wear that are very modest and and not revealing whatsoever, but that do not purposely draw attention and cry out, "Look at me! Look how 'modest' I am!" Purposely drawing attention to yourself is neither modesty nor humility!

If ladies who practice "head-covering" were truly just trying to obey scripture and not draw attention to themselves, then why not wear a "head-covering" something like this:


or this:


Instead, this is what you usually see:


or this:

 
Conclusion:

Ladies are commanded by the Bible to have long hair. They are not commanded to wear an external head covering of any kind. If they do wear one, people will probably associate them with religions that preach a false Gospel.

180 comments:

  1. Thank you for this. As a woman who is trying hard to find that right line between being modest, pleasing to my husband ( not looking either frumpy or trashy),and not dressing to stand out for my own sake (as opposed to God's, this article is dearly appreciated.

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  2. 1. Your hair is not that long, Zsuzsu

    2. Why was that baseball cap or cowboy hat better than the bonnet? Why do you make a distinction? You are basically saying that bonnets are ugly, so therefore they are bad.

    3. Long hair may be a "glory" but that does not mean it is a commandment. It sounds like a recommendation, more than a commandment.

    4. There are lots of other recommendation in the Bible that I notice you do not follow. Can you honestly say you do everything the Bible recommends?

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    1. Bonnets are not in style in the population at large. They cause one to stand out and say, "Look! I am holier than thou!" if they are a style associated with one of the false Christian sects. The individual woman may not feel this way at all. But this is the message that the unbelievers perceive, if they get a message at all.
      There are many hats that are well known among the population at large that do not convey such a message. Any of them that are not seen as exclusively "mannish" are expedient.

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    2. It is unwise to criticize bonnets or any other distinct head covering by saying it leaves a holier than thou impression. By the same token your clean cut and tie appearance or even your wife's skirt could have the same effect.
      Also let us not forget that with all the gender confusion going on today a distinct feminine covering helps reinforce that distinction.
      For almost 100 years now, gender distinction has been dismantled little by little until today where you have Christian churches tolerating a unisex appearance and even worse confusion being taught in public schools. This really is a Satanic agenda to which the church needs to wake up to.

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    3. Fashionable.... replace this word with vain, same exact thing.

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    4. The Old Testament is really written by and for the Jews, Israelites, Hebrews.. called the Tanakh So none of this matters!

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    5. Yawn irvin, I find it odd that you would think a follower of Jesus would consider the Old Testament/Tanakh irrelevant. Jesus was a Jew, preached primarily to Jews, observed the Jewish holidays and read from no other scriptures except the Old Testament. Christians are called to be "imitators of Christ". If Jesus is the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament, then he is the Messiah of the Jews. Originally, all the first Christians were Jewish and were merely considered a sect of Judaism. They (and Jesus) worshipped in the temple right along side all the other Jews. It is the history of anti semitism within Christianity that eventually gave us an interpretation of Christianity that is devoid of its Jewish roots.

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  3. Thank you for this post, it always confused me when some Christians wanted to wear head coverings. Now I understand it. It is very clear the Bible is talking about long hair being a covering, it never we says to cover their hair.

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  4. No offense to you or your husband here, but can you please tell me how he is certain his interpretation is correct and many thousands of others are incorrect? I'm sure if I asked someone who believed in a head covering they might take the same verse and read it a different way. I guess that makes us human. You might see a shade of pink and think pink. Joe Smith might see a shade of pink and think red. Is anyone wrong? Well, I think it's hard to say..lol.

    I'm not suggesting he's incorrect or correct. I don't really know. I'm honestly curious. :)

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  5. Kaboom- you sunk my battleship!:) Thank you for writing this really. To be honest I am sad and drained and relieved. After so much study and prayer I thought I was interpreting the Bible right. Leaving the catholic church I was liberated from having the pope or the vatican explain scripture and thought with the Holy Spirit I could do it myself and it seemed so clear to me. Then again, what would Pastors be for? True. I have no problem with wearing hats or I was wearing a thicker headband. For me it was more of a constant reminder of God and my submission to my husband that acted as my filter for bad behavior and habits. My husband was really won over by my dedication to obey God's Word even if it was unusual in today's culture, and there were changes. Maybe its childish of me to use that fabric as a crutch? If so please pray for me..none of us have arrived and we are all just trying to grow more in the Lord. I won't wear it in public anymore because I do not want to be associated with the wrong crowd and trust me I never wanted to draw attention to myself, my heart is just to please God and my husband. I wonder if it would be so horrible to wear it at home? For some reason it just feels so right to pray that way and I feel protected as odd as that may sound. Thank you for posting all those verses and explaining the greek words. Wow, if God wanted to get my attention on the subject he sure knew how to do it..using my favorite pastor. I do appreciate it, even if my heart is a little heavy tonight.

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    1. Try substituting the word "covering" with the word "hair", and see if this gives any credence to the interpretation of the text.

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    2. I have just read what you have said. I struggle with what the covering means. I also think that You should not change because of not wanting to be associated with the wrong crowd. If you feel that God has lead you to wear the covering where it. People judge no matter what. It is when judgement day comes that it truly matter.

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    3. Karen R, check out the link below. What u said about feeling protected make a lot of sense! Keep on searching - God wont leave u in the dark!

      http://www.scrollpublishing.com/cgi-bin/sc/ss_mb.cgi?storeid=*10aa1248a706bb410f4e&ss_parm=A77aaa57a18d80656ecf59bdf4d091c26

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    4. There does seem to be something comforting about praying with a shawl on. While I don't see it as a command, I also have felt prompted to cover my head at times when praying. you should follow the leading of the lord in your life, and cover your head if you feel that prompting. It is certainly not a sin to do so. Blessings!

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  6. Karen,

    I'm sorry to "burst your bubble". My husband does the same to me sometimes, and I don't like it either. But I am not as quick as you to admit when I am wrong!

    It is evident that you really have a heart to please God, which is wonderful. Not having a strong church home will make it more difficult to grow in the Lord, but you are doing great.

    I don't think it is wrong to wear anything on your head (at home or about) that is "normal", i.e. not "religious" garb that stands out as different or weird. I have seen the headbands you mentioned online before, and thought they looked cute, just like something anyone would wear. If you feel it helps you have a better relationship with your husband, more power to you. I know of other ladies who wear bracelets with various messages for that purpose.

    I think part of the reason why so many ladies like the idea of headcovering is because we all love accessories, and dressing up. I mean, which one of us wouldn't like to wear her wedding dress every day of our lives if we could? Shoes, purses, scarves - most of us like all of these.

    Anyway, hope you didn't feel personally attacked, because it was never intended like that. I have been meaning to address this issue for over a year now, but didn't because I do not feel comfortable teaching the Bible on my blog. When I use verses on here, it is usually just to back up why I believe what I believe, not to dispute or teach those who disagree.

    Anyway, glad to hear your family enjoys my husband's preaching!

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  7. Hi Zsuzsanna, quick question- does it really matter whether people associate you with groups you don't care to be associated with? I'm not attacking, promise, just honestly wondering. Lots of people who follow different teachings might have similar customs(both Jews and Muslims prohibit pork, for example, but you don't see people mistaking them for each other). Once they hear your message, won't they take you at your word and stop thinking of you as (insert group here)? Although I agree with you that Christian women don't need to wear head coverings, I found that argument a little odd.

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  8. Thank you Zsuzsanna, I never took offense and like you said not having a church home yet, I am very grateful to have a Pastor address what I am struggling with all the way over here in GA. Your blog is a blessing, thank you!

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  9. very good. Lotsa scripture as usual. How sweet to see it helped another woman!

    Jessica

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  10. Thank you for this post. When my husband and I were searching for a church to attend, we tried the only Independent Baptist one in town. The second we walked in, my heart sank, because all the women had veils or scarves on their heads, and I sat there at the back feeling so disrespectful, like everyone was staring at me as though I were some harlot trying to seduce them all with my naked head.

    I was given a pamphlet (ugh, humiliating!) on head covering from the pastor, and something it said in it really made me question how I was brought up to interpret those passages. My grandparents grew up as German Mennonites in Mexico and converted to Baptist Christians during their move to Canada and are now missionaries to their family back home to get them saved. My grandma no longer wears the Mennonite head covering, and she taught me about how my hair is my covering like your husband shared here.

    I wish I didn't throw out this pamphlet so I could quote it directly, but it said something about how man reflects the glory of God, woman reflects the glory of man, and a woman's hair is her glory.. therefore, cover your hair in church so your glorious hair is not distracting from the man who is glorifying God. Basically it was saying uncovered hair on a woman was prideful, showing woman's glory when the service should be about God's glory which is reflected in man. I'm explaining this very poorly, and it just sounds awful now that I am typing it out, haha! but the way they had written it with the scripture used really made me question the topic, as I had never studied it personally on my own before.

    Yesterday I was wrestling in my spirit with this again, thinking back on that church and their pamphlet, and I thought to myself I should post this as a question for your next Q and A some day. I was so excited to see this entry without me even having to ask :) Thank you for re-affirming what I was always taught to believe about this topic.

    -Missina

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  11. Oh, and something just dawned on me! The verses describing priests wearing bonnets... all my life I have seen men remove their hats before prayer and then put them back on. Say at a church picnic if they are wearing ball caps, someone will say grace before the BBQ, and the men will tip their hats off for it. Do you think this is something respectful they should be doing? Or perhaps it is still rooted in these traditions of the theology of women covering their heads with hats.

    I am wondering now if the same people who say women should cover are the same people saying men should remove their hats so they aren't covered, totally missing the point about hair for both sexes. I imagine there are a lot of churches who have believed in head coverings for women who have since renounced that doctrine, but I bet they have yet to renounce the second half and still remove their own hats as men out of habit without realizing the two thoughts are connected.

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    1. Many men in my area wear hats most of the day - farmers and such. We are surrounded by Old Order Mennonites, as well. Both the men and the women always wear hats. Biblically, that makes no sense, if women are in fact to wear head coverings and men aren't while praying.

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  12. What a lovely heartfelt response from Karen R. If only all us ladies were as gracious when encouraged in truth!

    What a wonderful post! Thank you Zsuzsanna and Pastor Anderson! I agree that your blog/sermons are a blessing to many families!

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  13. This post was quite good, although there were parts I disagreed with (I know some Pentecostals that are saved, etc, they have a clear testimony of it and live it).

    I've not been able to understand what is so hard about this issue, honestly. The Bible specifically says in 1 Corinthians 11 that our hair is our covering, so why do people twist even that into needing another type of covering? The English is pretty clear on this one. "Her hair is given her for a covering" is pretty obviously saying that my hair is my covering.

    I'm working on growing mine out, it's just below shoulder length now.

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  14. The photo of you in Isaac's coon skin cap made me chuckle.

    Thank you for this post also. I have from time to time been confused on the issue of headcovering. I have trusted the lead of my husband and my pastor by not covering. This outline is very well defined and practical. Thanks to Pastor Anderson for his time spent in the Scriptures.

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  15. This post makes it sound like it's NEVER proper for a woman to cover her head, but not all women have long hair and what about them? When I first started going to church I had very short hair and even after I got saved it was nearly a year before I had what could be considered long hair. Likewise, my sister had a brain surgery a few years ago and she had to shave her head for it! Isn't it good for women with short or no hair to wear coverings until their hair grows out?

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    1. When speaking of long hair on women Paul was addressing new converts, former temple prostitutes at the temple of Venus/Aphrodite, the goddess of love and sex. They shaved their heads as a temple rite. These women were very beautiful and the church women were imitating them. Paul was saying don't do as the heathen do: cover your head until your hair grows out. He didn't say the hair had to be long. A head covering is not always modest. It can be a fashion statement, a mark of vanity or a way of flaunting one's spirituality. Motives matter. God looks on the heart.

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    2. Temple prostitution had been gone for 200 years when Paul wrote to the Corinthians. I see many good arguments and people referencing Greek, but this is a rather biased view. Many scholars fluent in Greek argue for head coverings, and let's remember one major tidbit of info without going into the Greek and the culture and all of that. Head covering was something that was primarily of Jewish and Christian culture. If Paul had been saying that only long hair was required (remember he uses a verb and you can't put on and remove hair to pray and prophesy), women would have given up head covering long ago. For any that would like more information, go to Head Covering Movement. There are tons of scholars, pastors, teachers, etc. in support of head coverings, so I'd caution you to be extremely careful before pronouncing something a false religion, for by doing so, you are denouncing many Christians in this country and in others and are calling false the Christians of every age up until the 20th century.

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    3. "If Paul had been saying that only long hair was required (remember he uses a verb and you can't put on and remove hair to pray and prophesy), women would have given up head covering long ago."
      Paul also said that FAITH is required rather than faith plus works, and 2000 years later, people still haven't given up trying to work their way into heaven.

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  16. Pastor Anderson:

    I'm a member of a faith-alone Church and have, during weddings, worn hats into the church. I'm a former Englishwoman and hats are rooted in our traditional life, but not my spiritual life. Are hats or even perhaps fascinators alright in the occasion of a wedding, where it does not speak to my religion, but rather my heritage?

    In the South, it's quite common amongst many traditionally African-American Baptist Churches to wear hats to services, particularly on Easter. Any thoughts on this, that, or the other? God bless you and the family and thank you for bringing the topic to us,

    Mindy

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  17. Wow, I didn't even fully read that post and the parts I did read were the most judgemental thing I've read in a long time.

    My inlaws and many of our close friends are mennonite. We were a part of their church for 9 years. Some of the women wear head coverings to church. They don't wear them everyday, just to church. They do it because they want to. I don't believe the Bible teaches that women must wear head coverings but they hold that conviction and really I could care less if they hold it. Their church most definitely believes in salvation through grace alone and I would know because I was a part of that church for many years.

    Also who really cares if a woman wears something on her head that stands out. All that says to me is her convictions are strong. Sure there are plenty of women wearing head coverings for the wrong reasons and plenty of women that wear them that don't believe in salvation through grace alone but to lump all women into one category just speaks of your ignorance.

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    1. true.............

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    2. I agree. I believe in salvation by grace through faith in Christ, and I also cover my hair. As for the "not wanting to stand out", I believe that the scriptures tell us that God made Christians "a peculiar people, set apart". We are SUPPOSED to look and behave differently from unsaved society. Cloth head coverings were known to be the proper interpretation of this passage all the way from the first century until the early 20th century, when women fell to following "cultural norms" and then "feminism."

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    3. Amen, Melissa, your are absolutely right. The hair as a covering wasn't even an argument until the 20th century. Paul was making a comparison about how even in nature, women have a cover, but in this case, long hair is a glory to us. We are to cover in the presence of the Lord, as the angels cover their glory in His presence, as I believe perhaps men also should. One interpretation was that the original translation meant that men were not to wear a long veil like a woman. But anyway, the many different opinions from learned scholars makes one thing very clear--to say those people are false and you aren't is the height of pride, not humility.

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  18. Ten years ago, my wife began wearing a covering in happy and joyful obedience to--what we believe to be--the simplest and clearest understanding of 1 Corinthians 11.

    My wife and I have prayed for and tried to give some encouragement in the midst of some of your trials. She brought this grievous post to my attention. I give it brief attention below. I urge you, Mr. Anderson, to remove, retract or at least qualify your commanding women to not wear a covering. Stop leading women astray with your (1) mishandling of this passage and your (2) ignorant and unfounded blanket condemnation of a part of Christ’s body. It is primarily this second aspect of divisiveness that I address below.

    Lord willing, I will give a response to your handling of 1 Corinthians 11 on our family site, www.babyhomepages.net/tenlittleinions

    (1)You mentioned that these teachers regarding the head covering “couldn't even order a meal in a Greek restaurant” I began reading the Greek New Testament before you left first grade. My wife and I met in graduate school; she was taking courses in education and in Greek and Hebrew. I was taking my fourth and fifth years of Greek exegesis at the time. I would have been reading the Greek New Testament before you finished first grade. My wife and I loved (and still do love) reflecting on Scripture in the original languages. We also have enjoyed Greek restaurants on occasion (insert smile here).

    I agree with you that it is unnecessary to resort to the Greek to understand 1Corinthians 11. I would, however, disagree with your conclusion.

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  19. (1) You stated, “Every church or pastor I have ever seen or known that taught that women were commanded to wear head-coverings was wrong on the Gospel”

    In your experience, how many covering-advocating pastors have you actually conversed with regarding the Gospel? May I suggest that there may be some genuinely born-again, missions-minded, large-family-advocating, passionately soul-winning, consistently child-training, train-children-in-the-church service kind of families and churches that are outside the scope of what you have “ever seen or known”.

    In just our county alone, over thirty different Mennonite denominations exist. Have you have entertained the possibility that you do not know all parts of Christ’s body? That, ultimately, it is only “The Lord knoweth them that are His?”

    While it is true that some Amish/ Mennonite groups walk in dead legalism. It is, however, both unfair and illogical to dismiss entire groups as it would be to suggest that all Independent Baptist pastors are as youthful and arrogant as you portray yourself in this post.

    I was a Baptist pastor until ten years ago. In that year, after my mother died, I resigned from the church to care for my father in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. We visited our first Mennonite congregation then.

    In our experience, we found men and women who were passionate about the gospel. We found men with basic education that preached the word with humility, a trait I have found (in my experience) to be absent among Independent Baptist preachers. We found families who invited all visitors to their homes and eagerly talked about the Lord; conversations about professional sports, television shows and the latest fashions were conspicuously absent.


    (2) You have remarked about the “many beautiful and stylish dresses…that do not purposely draw attention”. The Scripture is clear that a woman’s adornment (beauty) is not to be derived from her apparel (1 Peter 3:3). How much should “style” drive a Christian in their dress choices? You suggest that the covering is only long hair. Since your wife has cut hair. Cut hair that those in our area would consider short. How long is “long”?

    When our family went the Anabaptist/Amish/Mennonite direction, I gladly laid aside the ridiculously overpriced and fashion-driven necktie tradition. Do you wear a tie out of biblical conviction or out of conformity to fashion? James reminds us that pure, undefiled religion is keeping oneself unspotted from the world. Paul reminds us to not be “conformed to this world”.

    (3) In the comments, your wife tells Karen that her headband (covering) “looked cute, just like something anyone would wear.”. Is “something anyone would wear” a reliable standard for the Christian? How about it being “cute”? Are professing “Christians” so fearful of the world’s scorn? Fearful of being one who “stands out as different or weird”?

    Although, I disagree with your handling of 1 Corinthians 11, I can extend the grace to say that it represents a sincere effort to be obedient to the Scriptures. It appears that you are unwilling to extend such grace to others.

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    1. I thought it odd that he would post pictures of women in a ball cap and cowgirl hat and call those ok but day Amish prayer kapps are calling for attention. This is simply not true. The Amish have been dressing a certain way for hundreds of years, long before these two kapp styles became fashionable, but then, why should we wear those fashionable styles? Are we trying to conform to the world? Besides, to them, those are the styles that look odd.

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  20. Apparently, the first part of my response did not go through. Here it is again.Ten years ago, my wife began wearing a covering in happy and joyful obedience to--what we believe to be--the simplest and clearest understanding of 1 Corinthians 11.

    My wife and I have prayed for and tried to give some encouragement in the midst of some of your trials. She brought this grievous post to my attention. I give it brief attention below. I urge you, Mr. Anderson, to remove, retract or at least qualify your commanding women to not wear a covering. Stop leading women astray with your (1) mishandling of this passage and your (2) ignorant and unfounded blanket condemnation of a part of Christ’s body. It is primarily this second aspect of divisiveness that I address below.

    Lord willing, I will give a response to your handling of 1 Corinthians 11 on our family site, www.babyhomepages.net/tenlittleinions

    (1)You mentioned that these teachers regarding the head covering “couldn't even order a meal in a Greek restaurant” I began reading the Greek New Testament before you left first grade. My wife and I met in graduate school; she was taking courses in education and in Greek and Hebrew. I was taking my fourth and fifth years of Greek exegesis at the time. I would have been reading the Greek New Testament before you finished first grade. My wife and I loved (and still do love) reflecting on Scripture in the original languages. We also have enjoyed Greek restaurants on occasion (insert smile here).

    I agree with you that it is unnecessary to resort to the Greek to understand 1Corinthians 11. I would, however, disagree with your conclusion

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  21. This post or my comments never tried to give the impression that it is WRONG for women or men to wear hats, in church or otherwise.

    Since the covering referred to in I Cor. 11 is hair, it does not apply to a fashion accessory such as a hat.

    However, I would be no more likely to put on a Catholic nun's headdress or a pointy white hat like the KKK than I would be to put on what is considered women's "headcovering", such as what Amish, Mennonite, etc. wear. Sure, it doesn't mean that like them I believe wrong on salvation, but it would give that impression. Being associated with such things is "the appearance of evil", besides which it only serves the purpose of drawing attention to ourselves and how spiritual we are, much like the long flowing garments that Jesus rebuked the Pharisees about. Otherwise, any form of headcovering should be accepted in "covering" churches. I also don't think mustaches on men are wrong, in church or otherwise, but I would think anyone who wears one that looks like Hitler's is a little weird at best. God may look on our heart, but man DOES look on the outward appearance, and we ought not have the "appearance of evil".

    I find it interesting that many women who "cover" tie their hair up under their "headcover", to where the hair is mostly or completely covered, when that was what was supposed to be the covering. They look like they have short hair! Nobody can deny that according to the passage, hair is "a" covering - but if it is not on the outside, it is not a cover. Things that "cover" are on the outside, and seen, not covered themselves.

    As for the length of my hair: that's how long it will grow. Other than trimming a half inch or so off it every 6 months, I do not "cut" my hair. Because it is very fine and brittle, my hair would break off much higher up if I did not cut off the splitting ends. After every baby, I have considerable hair loss (about 1/4 to 1/3 of the total volume). While hair has a life cycle of about 7 years, mine would never last that long because I have about 3 pregnancies in that time span. Hence, it doesn't have enough time to grow longer before it falls out. It reaches midway down my back and in spite of all my efforts, it has not gotten past that point in years.

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  22. Hi, My husband wrote a two part response. So far, you have only published one-half. Both halves were filled with an educated truth that you may have found intimidating. However, with only half of his response you readers miss that I wear a covering out of joyful obedience. They may also conclude just from the part you published that I was the pastor. In the first half he begins with "My wife and I". So just for the record he is the author of the half you published.

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  23. missionarymomma, the comment was in the "spam" section for some reason. I just published it after looking into the matter following your comment.

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  24. I will not stoop to address your foolish and evil suggestion of a catholic nun's habait, a KKK hat to an Amish and Mennonite covering.

    As a lady who wears a covering and stands with the Mennonites and Amish who are born again, I believe the Bible both the Old Testament and the New Testament are the are verbally inspired by God, inerrant, and are the final authority in faith and life . I believe that God created the world by his powerful word and exisits eternally as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I believe the Jesus was manifest as fully God and fully man. He lived a perfect and sinless life. He died for sin and rose bodily from the dead.I believe in Salvation as seen Eph. 2,8,9,AND 10.- That it is by grace through faith not by works,but "unto works" which "God has before ordained."
    I believe that God offers assurance to those who genuinely and persistently believe. As evidenced by a life that is obedient to Christ. While I do not believe in a Salvation by works, I do believe the Bible. James 2:20"Faith without works is dead."

    I urge you to be very careful about dismissing a part of God's body.I would heed Jesus warnings about negating one of the least of His commands unless we become one of the least.

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    1. Hi! I am from Belize! Hope and pray all is going well! I agree with what you have to say about the head covering! If people would just realize that woman not taking their God given role and not covering their head goes hand in hand with the divorce rate rising. Women have a neat job if they are were God wants them to be!

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    2. I agree missionarymomma! Very well written!

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    3. I live in a predominately Old Order Mennonite Community. When I moved here 31 years ago, I assumed that these people were believers, but have come to find out that, for the most part, they are just following the traditions of men.

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    4. Iis obvious if you study out the text in 1Cor. 11 and not twist the meaning of it that while the hair is given as a natural type of headcovering that a cover over the hair is also needed to complete the headcovering. To mock or criticize very sweet looking women who cover their heads with scarves or caps is showing yourselves to be immature. Women traditionally wore head-coverings until the 20th century without complaint. Many women in the churches of today only want to look attractive and don't give too much thought into if they are distracting any of the men or women for that matter. It's sad when my husband says he has to feel on-guard when he goes into most churches of today because of the careless appearance of the women.

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  25. I just want to say that although sometimes a headcovering does make a woman stand out, it makes her stand out for the right reason, not because she is trying to be vain and look pretty and attractive but because she is displaying her devotion to God and through that display, she is making others think of religion and think of God. Sometimes this may lead to people asking her questions about her faith and maybe even converting to her faith.

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  26. Wow!!! There is so much to think about after first reading this post and then reading the comments. Aftter reading these comments I feel very confused on the matter. Perhaps a part 2 is needed? Thanks for the discussion.

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  27. I don't like these posts that I feel are rather silly and judgmental. I much prefer posts about your kids and family goings-on!

    That being said, I do have a question about head coverings. My two little girls adore playing "Little House on the Prairie" and yes, we have even purchased old-fashioned dresses with matching bonnets for them. They even wore them last summer to our church's Vacation Bible School closing program, because the theme for the week was the Old West. Exactly how in the world does this give them the "appearance of evil"?

    Also, my mom is a cancer survivor and lost her hair during chemotherapy, so she was completely bald for several months. She did purchase a very nice wig, but it was hot in the summer and cold in the winter, so sometimes she would wear a scarf or bandana on her head for comfort's sake. In the years since, she is cancer-free (thank the Lord!) but her hair has grown back very thin and patchy. She had thin hair before chemo, but now it is positively baby-fine. She must keep it short, or else she has bald spots everywhere and her hair will simply fall out if it goes much below chin length. It hurts me to think that your family would see her out and about and think that she is unsaved or "evil" because she has short hair. She is a lovely Christian person, who I believe is beautiful in the eyes of our Lord.

    To me, posts like this come across as unnecessary and hateful.

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  28. Our Conservative Baptist Church does not have a dress code. Most of the women wear dresses/skirts(Deut. 22:5 KJV and world history) to church on Sunday mornings(some women have visited that wear hats/coverings). I thought this post was great. It was an interesting point that many covering women put their hair up! My youngest daughter(20) has beautiful long hair but I am able to grow my hair to only a certain length now. I agree that the english in the KJV Bible is enough-we don't need the Greek when explaining why our house is alcohol-free -Proverbs 23:31,32,etc.( KJV) and the history of water purification-the Pilgrims gave their children an alcohol-free beer. The tie is an upside-down obelisk-we need to question its origin. I looked into the animal mascots/toys for sports and the explanation was similar to the occult book/movie The Golden Compass with Nicole Kidman-animal "demons" in paganism( we use the KJV word-devils).

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    1. We don't need the Greek? The NT was written in Greek!

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    2. There is no such thing as alcohol free beer. There is something that was called, among other things, small beer, that was drunk by children in order to keep them from being sickened by possibly bad water. http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2625/did-the-pilgrims-land-on-plymouth-rock-because-they-ran-out-of-beer

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  29. Last year our church published web sites that are ministries focused on reaching the Amish with the Gospel since the Amish think it is sinful/prideful to have assurance of salvation. As a home educator since 1985 I will advise my children to not use Catholic and Amish books(Pathway Readers) if they homeschool our grandchildren. Full disclosure: we did use the Amish Pathway Readers with our youngest child(now 18)and would have recommended them until our church had an article on the Amish bishop,etc. I do like Rod and Staff's books,(King James Bible-only Mennonites).

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  30. I thought your husband's interpretation was interesting... But reading posts like these, where it is apparent that there are an indefinite number of interpretations of Holy Scripture, makes me very glad that I am Catholic, and have the Magesterium to help properly interpret Scripture.I love covering my hair, and have respect for all women whether they cover or not. And by the way, I love God, know that I am a sinner in desparate need for a Savior and thank Jesus everyday for saving me. I also am not the person to make any determination about the eternal state of ANYONE'S soul. Neither are you or your husband, last time I checked, that was God's job.

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  31. he forgot to mention also being associated with muslim women too, and a true CHRISTian would not wish to appear to be like that.

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    1. Wearing a headcovering opens doors to reach Muslims

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  32. You do realize that the Amish were wearing this style of dress and hats for hundreds of years. They don't do it to "stand out". Fashion has changed over the years but they have not changed with it. They are wearing what their forefathers/mothers had been wearing hundreds of years ago.

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    1. Originally, it was the men who stood out. Only as styles have changed is it the women who stand out. It is obvious that he has little understanding of the groups he condemns because, perhaps, he does not wish to stand out, or accept the additional responsibility of standing out.

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  33. I am not sure if what was presented here would persuade me its alright to cover not. I don't, but I have often been convicted to cover, but that is something I still need to work out.
    What I would like to know, which might be way off topic. is why does 1 Cor 11:10 talk about the power on her head because of the angels? Just something that jumps at me often, as I research and pray about this.

    Another thing, if it is a personal conviction, to cover or not, why would it be a big deal to others who do not agree? Or have the conviction themselves?

    =)

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    1. I agree with you. Head covering has no bearing whether you will enter heaven. God looks at the heart of men behind what they do. In Romans I believe it talks about not doing anything that would cause your brother to stumble. When I visit my church back home they believe that woman should wear long skirts, arms covered and hair covered. I would not dare walk in that church other wise. It would cause a distraction for them. However, I do not believe that dress makes a person more saved. You have to follow the convictions of the Holy Spirit. If it is a sin to you do not do it. Romans 14:22 Hast thou faith? Have it to they self before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he allows. Here in this book Paul is talking about destroying the work of God over food. I understand that they are not talking about head covering but the same principle can be applied. Do not condemn yourself for what you allow and I you believe that your action will cause someone to stumble then adjust for the sake of the Gospel. That is for mature Christians. I would not go to a country where it is forbidden to have your hair un covered and teach the woman about Christ with my hair uncovered. First, I am going to follow the law of that land. Secondly, the woman would not even hear what I have to say because I do not respect there custom. The bible is clear on what will keep you from entering the kingdom and head covering is not one of them. Christ is coming back for a church without a spot or wrinkle. This is our spiritual garments, are they covered in fornication, adultery, homosexuality, idolatry, practicing falsehood, sorcery, murder, drunkenness, strive, envy, jealousy, dissension. We need the Holy Spirit who is our spot remover to show us our wickedness and turn from it. I personally like head covering, it is my humility before God. However, I do not turn my nose down to someone who does not. This is your personal walk with God. If God convicts you then you move in that. If God does not convict you then move in that. We need to be more concerned about what we do in the dark that we do not want anyone to know.

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  34. When our daughters were babies they wore Little House-type bonnets(I do not pierce our daughters' ears-Genesis 35:2-4,Exodus 32:2-4, Leviticus 19:28 KJV) in the summer. If they were a little older and wore similar bonnets I would have them wear their hair down not put up in a bun,etc. under the bonnet.To think that we would "frown upon" a baby girl whose hair hasn't started growing or a woman who can't grow her hair or can't grow it to a certain length-as suggested in a previous comment is silly(maybe even spooky).

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  35. I am a new poster and reader of this blog. While I believe everyone has a right to their beliefs, I am deeply offended by this posting. As a born-again Christian (and I have absolutely no doubt about my eternal security), I was raised in one of the 'false' religious denominations. I won't participate in this area, as there really doesn't seem to be a point in trying to debate this issue.

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  36. A NOTE/ WARNING for Taryn:
    If your logical reason for not using Pathway is over doctrine-- doctrine, by the way, which is absent from their school books. You may want to quickly separate from "KJV-only Rod and Staff" These books of course fill our church schools.
    1. While they use the KJV they are not "KJV-only" proponents like the IB's are.
    2. They teach that Christ requires turning from sin to be saved, (Gal.5:21), that it is necessary to show the fruits of salvation to show legitimate faith (John15:1-6), and that the Christian will not participate in war in obedience to loving their enemies (Matt. 5:39,44,)
    7) They do not particpate in flag worship as seen by saluting, singing, standing...(Heb.11:10,16) (Flag worship books are best bought from Pensacola.)
    8) Unlike mainstream evangelical churches, we have NO divorced or re-married members and all Rod and Staff writers hold to the view that remarriage is adultery and needs to be repented from (Luke 16:18).
    So, if you would rather have jewelry-wearing, flag-waiving,pre-trib, Army-enlisting, cut-hair (uncovered) cheerleaders and sportsmen writing your curriculum, you should look elsewhere.
    Personally, we are raising children who are intelligent enough to know why they believe, what they believe, and so use many excellent books that sometimes differ from our own views.

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    1. Oh! You are proud of your achievements. I thought we were all sinners saved by GRACE and not by listing any of our little 'good works' in public and boasting about them.

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  37. Rod and Staff has a tract in their catalog-Bible Translations-Why We Use the KJV. I am aware of their beliefs due to their catalog and tracts.

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  38. I do not wear a headcovering, yet respect those who do. We attend a church where head coverings are worn...but it is not without confusion. Some cover, some do not. Some wear their covering in church and remove it once they are outside the church doors. Some wear their coverings all day and every day. My husband and I are not convinced that there is a need for a separate covering, which is why I do not cover. Also, he believes it would hinder our ministry in street preaching...not able to reach some.

    Recently, a husband in our church led his wife to begin wearing a head covering because her long blonde hair was/could be a distraction to others. She was SO submissive and such a good testimony about doing so cheerfully. I have very long hair and am not PROUD of it, but do enjoy wearing it down...especially when I am with my husband.

    Our hair is our GLORY...and I want my glory to be seen. When women cover, they are (most of the time) concealing their glory by wearing their hair in a bun under their covering (Or they leave it down all together which kind of defeats the purpose of wearing a "HEAD" covering). Couldn't the back of the neck be seen as a sensual part of a woman's body also?

    Just a few thoughts here...sorry to ramble. Oh...and I like YOUR hat in the first picture!!!) :)

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  39. Why are you attacking my comment, Taryn? I was merely posing legitimate questions to Zsuzsanna and Pastor Anderson. I was curious as to how they felt regarding children dressing up and going out in public wearing bonnets, which my children did last summer. And my girls are not babies, either. They are 8 and 6 and both have full heads of hair!

    And my comment regarding my mom was because I wanted to know what their reaction (meaning the Andersons' reaction) would be to seeing my mom out in public with her short hair, them obviously not knowing her medical history or reasons for having short hair. It's not like she wears a sign explaining to people that due to residual from a disease that she cannot grow very much hair at all. What I gathered from Pastor Anderson's post was that yes, in fact, my mother would be "frowned upon" simply for the length of her hair. That makes me very sad indeed.

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  40. Now that I have a few more minutes I will add that I do not wear jewelry,am not pre-trib, not patriotic but pray for my country, and- agree that divorce and remarriage are not biblical. I am not a sports fan at all. I have some of Rod and Staff's resources on these subjects. I prefer the KJV Bible as well as they do and see that it is the only Bible sold in their catalog-it is the only one allowed in our home. I was raised during the draft and the Vietnam War-I'm 55- have 4 sons and 2 daughters and raised them to pray about it- if the draft should ever be reinstated.

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  41. Very good post. I agree with point number two especially! Just found your blog and I am reading it.

    I am a mom to ten and mil to one and I am going to be a grandmother in May! I think we might have ran across one another on the MOMYS digest or some other forum about ten or so years back or on another one of your blogs. Anyway, glad to have found you again.

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  42. Christian ministries that focus on reaching the Amish with the Gospel are mapministry.org, www.plainnewlife.org,and www.lightofhopeministries.com,etc.

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  43. Ran into your site believe it or not by a anti-IFB group called "stuff fundies hate" or something like that. Anyway, the more I read on their blog the hotter I got. They had your blog up for criticism, so I decided to check it out to see what all the fuss is about. LOVE YOUR SITE. Keep up the good work. I too am a pastor's wife with one more child left to homeschool. Make your home a safe haven. You and youR husband are doing a grea job. Enjoy your beautiful children.
    They are your little "arrows".

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  44. 1. I want to thank Zsuzsanna for writing an article that tries to teach in a loving way. I think we can all see that our Zsuzs has grown and matured in that area over the time ;-)

    2. The fact that jewish priests were commanded to wear bonnets is quite a big argument against the necessity for women to wear a headcovering, however, I don't think we can conclude that women must not wear one. If we think of former centuries where most people worked in agriculture, it was for sure necessary for practical reasons to wear a headcovering, in order not to get the (hip-)long hair caught into machines or animal claws & teeth. Additionally it was not possible to wash the hair everyday due to lack of elictricity etc.

    3. During the last weeks I have digged quite a bit into the beliefs of Calvinism and it totally makes sense to me. I have come to the conclusion that people don't understand Calvin because a)they only digg superficial and b)they hold humanist ideas of fairness and equality in their bosoms.

    To challange you all a bit:

    - What is a saving faith according to the bible? Is it possible that it is only a faith that causes people to persevere to the end (Matt 24:13)and that produces good works, is a saving faith? (James 2:17-21).

    - And how do we get saved? Through our decision pro Jesus or because the father pulls us to himself and enables us to believe? According to the bible we are rotten and rebellious through and through, nothing good in us that suddenly starts searching for God if he does not touch us first. (John 6:44, Romans 3:9-12).

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  45. Didn't Christ and all the apostles have long hair? Guess they were

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  46. I have no more time to devote to commenting on this post. It boggles my mind how people can think this is an area that can be interpreted different ways.

    While I believe that newly saved believers can fall for this, people who teach such nonsense are likely not saved to have their eyes so blinded to what the Bible says.

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    1. Do you really understand what you are saying and the judgment call you are making? I shudder as I read your words, for while I do wear a covering, I would never make such a judgment call about a woman who does not, and feel it is Biblically wrong to make such a judgment. If you interpret the Bible to say your hair is your covering, that is your right, but to call me blind because I differ is serious stuff! If you study early church history and read the early Christian writers, you will find they practiced and believed in women wearing a covering besides hair. Another point of interest: a young lady whose mother raised her to be a witch was recently loosed of several evil spirits among which some spoke to her. One of the things they said, along with asking her to quit using Jesus' name, was to remove her covering. Strange isn't it? Why would they care if the covering had no merit? I would urge you to study Romans 14 and be charitable to those who feel differently than you do. We must each live by our own conscience. Please be very careful about making harsh judgments! Lovingly submitted!

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    2. You said it very well. I agree.

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    3. I totally agree. Who are you to judge people?

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    4. (3) In the comments, your wife tells Karen that her headband (covering) “looked cute, just like something anyone would wear.”. Is “something anyone would wear” a reliable standard for the Christian? How about it being “cute”? Are professing “Christians” so fearful of the world’s scorn? Fearful of being one who “stands out as different or weird”?
      This is so true! You go missionarymomma!

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    5. You are so judging. it stabs my heart. What a shame.

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    6. This is the most judgemental thing I've ever read. This woman and her husband are so bent on her not wearing a headcovering, they are slandering well-meaning Christians. This post is twisting Scripture and all over the place just to get out of a basic Biblical practice.

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  47. Come on now, just read the Bible plain as can be. If the covering were the hair, then why did Paul spend so much time saying that if a woman be not shaved (bald) or shorn (short hair) then let her be ALSO be covered.

    You don't have to cover if you don't want to, but alluding that if a woman is called to cover, means she is not saved, you are WRONG.

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  48. I see what he's saying, not sure I agree 100% but I do have a question...It's actually not related to covering, but rather salvation. I saw this on another site and have yet to figure it out. I am not able to watch the video, but I read through the info below it. I was wondering what your take on it was? You don't have to publish this if you don't want if you have the time and want to answer you can email me or comment on any of my posts as I moderate them :D

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Tz4dfvvPoA&feature=youtube_gdata_player I explain in this video how the story of Simon, the magician from Samaria, found in Acts 8, refutes the false teaching of easy believism. This is basicaly any teaching that supports the idea that the only thing a person must do to recevve eternal salvation is confess Jesus as their lord and savior.

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  49. Interesting video clip.

    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/42366746#42329784

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  50. I have breast cancer and have lost my long hair to chemotherapy. I have to wear a head covering. Am I going to hell? I have 2 small children, and am trying to fight to live to be their mother for many years to come.
    Stephanie

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    1. You won't. Keep wearing that head covering, but most importantly- believe in Christ, read his word, love him, pray to him. God Bless!

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  51. I urge you to not be so set on the fact that you are "right" and that everyone who believes differently is blinded. I felt the same way for many years and about a year ago was led to start covering and have been so blessed by it. Yes, it is not a command.. but if you study the old testament you will find that women were all covered. That may have been cultural.. but it was GOD's culture that was doing it. and that's good enough for me. :)

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  52. I read the post & the comments and while I agree with both sides on some of the points, my final conclusion is this:

    Why do you wear the head covering? Is it to be noticed? Or is it for God? Do you think you HAVE to do it? Or is it a commitment that you willingly take? I think it has everything to do with attitude.

    I really think that it is left up to individual interpretation. Even Paul says to "Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered?"

    I, personally, wear head coverings of all sorts. Hats, scarves, bandannas, & head bands. I, interpret the verses as a second covering. I read verse 15 where it says that long hair is glory to a woman then I read in Galatians 6:14 where it says, "But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world." But that is me. I'm not going to condemn someone who doesn't view it the way that I do.

    I don't think that I'm going to go to Hell for wearing it or not wearing it. I also don't think that other people are going to either. For some people, it is a personal commitment & choice to honor God.

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  53. That is false teaching. And you need to remove this of your blog or God will call you least into the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:19).

    The reason I say that these verses in 1 Corinthians 11:5-6, 10, 13 is referring to a cloth veil on the women's head is because it clearly says so and in verses 5-6 Paul writes that if the women are not covered, it's the same as if her hair was cut short or shaven off. My point is, by your interpretation, if the woman being covered is her uncut hair, what hair is she going to cut or shave off, when if she is uncovered, she has no hair in the first place. Also, the Greek words are different for the word "uncovered" in verse 5, "covered" in verse 6, and "covering" regarding the hair in verse 15. The Greek word for uncovered in verse 5 is akatakalyptos which means unveiled. Please note that the Greek word here is an adjective. The Greek word for covered in verse 6 is katakalyptō which means to cover up, to veil, or cover one's self. One thing to note is that the Greek word for covered in verse 6 is a verb, something you do. Uncut hair makes absolutely no sense in this context because hair is a noun, not a verb. One cannot put on hair or uncut hair. The Greek word for covering regarding the hair in verse 15 is peribolaion which means a covering thrown around, a wrapper, a veil. One thing to note here is that the Greek word is a noun, which would fit the context for hair.


    You will see that when the Apostle was rebuking the Corinthians about this matter, he clearly stated in verses 5-6 that if a woman does not have a head covering on, it is the same as if her hair was shaved bald. And if she is not going to cover then she should have her hair cut short or shaved bald. If a woman is going to rebel by not having a veil on her head, she might as well cut or shave her hair off. This is shameful but that was the point that the Apostle was making. If it is shameful for a woman to have her hair cut short or shaved bald, due to rebellion, then it is shameful for any Christian woman to not have a head covering on her head. It is clearly a sign of the headship of the male over the woman and because of the angels. The very same angels who stand before the presence of the Father...

    Anderson you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God (Matthew 22:29). And the women in your church, including your wife are running around shaming their heads and in immodesty (Isaiah 47:1-3) due to your false doctrine, that is taught in many of these lukewarm and error filled churches, which I call "whorehouses".

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    1. Well said.
      Also, this is further supported in the testimonies of the Schnoebelens. Check out:
      http://www.withoneaccord.org/assets/images/freedownloads/HEADCOVERINGS%20MARY%20111113.pdf

      and

      http://www.withoneaccord.org/assets/images/freedownloads/Why%20Beanie.pdf

      Also, check out this video playlist:
      https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJn15PaNc5ROL_8NARllemJ6SkgLge9hf

      Delete
    2. Yes, you do need to remove this off your blog

      Delete
    3. The adjective translated "uncovered" is ακατακαλυπτος. This is a very rare word, but its single use in the Septuagint of Lev. 13:45 is extremely enlightening. The ESV reads "let the hair of his head hang loose." However, the Greek text would read, if woodenly translated, "His head [will be] uncovered http://www.puritanboard.com/showthread.php/44484-Greek-and-Head-Coverings(ακατακαλυπτος)." Here, the word head is used to mean hair of the head. Hebrew does this too, and the Greek is actually following the Hebrew literally. So, the phrase "head uncovered" can actually mean "having the hair unkempt" or something very similar.

      Delete
    4. I was with you until you called churches with uncovered women "whorehouses". These women have been taught since they were very young that their hair is their covering and that they are doing the right thing. Yes, they do need to read the Bible for themselves but to call them prostitutes is extremely disrespectful

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  54. It looks to me as if in Isaiah 47 it is considered nakedness if a women uncovers her locks before crossing rivers for example. I don't think she had a haircut before crossing these rivers. I think the bible is talking about a piece of cloth.

    1 Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon, sit on the ground: there is no throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt no more be called tender and delicate.

    2 Take the millstones, and grind meal: uncover thy locks, make bare the leg, uncover the thigh, pass over the rivers.

    3 Thy nakedness shall be uncovered, yea, thy shame shall be seen: I will take vengeance, and I will not meet thee as a man.

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  55. Last anon,

    by your logic, I guess it is also wrong to take millstones and grind meal (since you think everything listed in that verse is bad).

    Were people ever commanded to grind their own flour? No, it was just a common practice at that time in history before commercial food stores. The Bible is making reference to something everyday that people could relate to.

    The same time in history women commonly wore clothing that also covered their heads, for practical reasons such as sun protection, cultural preference, etc. You can hardly claim that everything in verse 2 is sinful? That a woman's hair is her "nakedness" and/or "shame" when the Bible says it is her glory???!?

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    1. I would like to know of one theologian, group, early christian, etc who believed the hair is the covering. Anyone before 1900 when everything started coming off. Some article in writing.

      Delete
  56. But from the context one can see that the daughter of Babylon is being humbled, even humiliated. Before she was in a high position, now she needs to work (I guess she had servants before) and even pass a river where she needs to lift her skirt which leads to showing her thigh which is definitely considered nakedness. To uncover her locks is not meant in a positive or neutral way here, it is something used to humiliate her. When you look at "Thy nakedness shall be uncovered", the word "uncovered" is mentioned twice in the verse before and referring to lifting/removing pieces of textile. Why would "uncover thy locks" even be mentioned if not to show that she is put into a humiliating position?

    Another verse in which the removing of a veil is being considered as negative, possibly degrading, is this one from the Song of Salomon 5:

    7 The watchmen that went about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took away my veil from me.

    Could a veil possibly be a sign of dignity/respect/virtue?

    Gen 24,65 For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a veil, and covered herself.

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    1. Thank you for this additional Scriptural support!
      Well said.
      Also, this is further supported in the testimonies of the Schnoebelens. Check out:
      http://www.withoneaccord.org/assets/images/freedownloads/HEADCOVERINGS%20MARY%20111113.pdf

      and

      http://www.withoneaccord.org/assets/images/freedownloads/Why%20Beanie.pdf

      Also, check out this video playlist:
      https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJn15PaNc5ROL_8NARllemJ6SkgLge9hf

      Delete
  57. {So, if you would rather have jewelry-wearing, flag-waiving,pre-trib, Army-enlisting, cut-hair (uncovered) cheerleaders and sportsmen writing your curriculum, you should look elsewhere.
    Personally, we are raising children who are intelligent enough to know why they believe, what they believe, and so use many excellent books that sometimes differ from our own views}

    SO,Let me get this straight, BASICALLY you are attacking anyone who is in the military and may be patriotic? Are you saying they can NOT be a true Christian? That seems to be quite delusional not to mention, ignorant, on your part..Sorry, but if it were NOT for all of those people who did enlist and SERVE their country.. where do you think we would be today. I know many fine born again Christians who serve in the military..I am sure that this post will not make the moderators cut, but I had to get it off my chest.. you see, my husband is active duty and has been for 26 years and is a devout man of God..not to mention a good husband and very loving father. So you maybe you can understand why I found your comment offensive.

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  58. The traditional Amish/ Mennonite head coverings may stand out in somewhere like Las Vegas, NV and a baseball cap or other hat would not, but in Lancaster, PA (common community for Amish/ Mennonite) how much would a hat like that stand out from their head coverings. They are not trying to show how modest they are, they just are living live in a modest way. For the dresses, they are plain for a reason if the dress were to be stylish the Amish/ Mennonite would be just like the rest of the world. Their dress sets them apart from the world and I believe that their way of living is better than most Christians who know they should dress modestly yet wear a bikini to the pool.

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  59. I attend a RPC (Reformed Presbyterian)Church and I will say that I am the only one who wears a covering. My reason behind it is because my hair is my glory and when i gather with my brothers and sisters in Christ I want to cover my glory so that God is glorified. He is worthy of it. and one thing that was NEVER mentioned and i presume overlooked was what about the angels? Paul says "... BECAUSE OF THE ANGELS" don't over look that. It's a testiomony to them to see the women wearing a covering.

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    1. Paul said women needed power on their heads because of the angels. He referred to the evil angels who are coming back again in the last days (as in the days of Noah) and will be looking on women with lust as before. Paul expected that to happen at any time and told the women to cover their heads for protection.

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    2. Thank you, Jeanna & the 'Anonymous' reply to your post. Both are well said.

      In the Sabbath portion titled, 'Noach' (this week's Sabbath portion ~ 10/25/14), the Hebrew Words YaHuWaH uses as Noach is Instructed to build the ark, He reveals the importance of the COVERING in the very timing of people who were once filled with fallen ones dying and likely looking for new dwelling places ~ thus the need of the details of the covering of the ark. In Matt. 8, demons being cast out by Yahushua begged to be cast into swine that then were driven (likely by the demons) over a cliff to die. Why? So they could again be released to go seek out other people to dwell in... like the people of the town who asked Yahushua to LEAVE them. He was bad for the pig business. Now we have upcoming judgments & MANAGED bloodsacrificing that is unleashing more demons looking for daughters of men-dwellings in addition to demonic star-gates & the Abyss that will truly prove what Malachi Ch. 3 speaks of; the difference between the righteous & the wicked. We should be working out our Salvation with fear & trembling. What action is causing a woman to be more correctable, draw closer to YaHuWaH, and make her prayers 'powerful & effective' (James 5:16)? Also, consider why a women being judged as to whether or not she has committed adultery would have to be Instructed in Torah to 'unbind her head' in the Sabbath portion Nasso?

       The Law Concerning Jealousy/ The Test for an Unfaithful Wife (Num. 5:11-31)
      Num. 5:16-31 = Jer. 17:13 & John 8:6 & 8
      Num. 5:18 = 1 Cor. 11:5-16. Yisraelite women did and are still required to continue to wear head coverings as seen here.
      Num. 5:22 = This is the first occurrence of the Hebrew word “Omein” which is pronounced “Awe-main” and mistranslated “Amen” [“the hidden one of Egypt who lives on”, the pagan name for the Sun God Aman-Ra, also known as Ra or Aman. With this in mind ‘see’ Exo. 23:13.]. “Omein” means {by the rule of 1st occurrence in the Bible being the primary definition that gives the fullest understanding of the word} “to show the acceptance of the validity of a curse or an oath”. It is used to indicate acceptance or a good message as in Jer. 28:6. It is not merely the ending of a prayer.
      Num. 5:23 = Deut. 27:15-26, Jer. 11:5, & John 8:1-11. Yahushua nailed the curse of Yisrael’s unfaithfulness to His execution stake, as Yisrael corporately had violated the Torah of a jealous husband; In so doing, Yahushua took the book with all Yisrael’s violations and canceled the curses that resulted from Yisrael’s unfaithfulness that were recorded in the book by the Kohen HaGadol/ High Priest. That is referenced clearly in Colossians 2:14.
       The Law for the Nazirite (Num. 6:1-21)
      Num. 6:1-21 = Acts 18:18, 21:17-22:29

      In this same Sabbath portion, the Torah Instructs on the Nazarite vow which includes the shaving of the head ~ something Rabbi Shaul/ Paul points to under the inspiration of the Set Apart Spirit in this teaching in 1 Cor. 11. By not understanding YaHuWaH's Torah Instruction with Hebraic teaching it is easy to be led astray since YaHuWaH gave this understanding to NO OTHER NATION, especially gentiles (Psm. 147:19-20).

      Also, this is further supported in the testimonies of the Schnoebelens. Check out:
      http://www.withoneaccord.org/assets/images/freedownloads/HEADCOVERINGS%20MARY%20111113.pdf

      and

      http://www.withoneaccord.org/assets/images/freedownloads/Why%20Beanie.pdf

      Also, check out this video playlist:
      https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJn15PaNc5ROL_8NARllemJ6SkgLge9hf

      I truly pray that this article that Steven Anderson has posted will not snare anymore people who have not yet studied themselves the Scriptures and are simply looking for someone else's homework to copy in the vain hopes that they can be complacent without conviction (Check out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyDSxHAp5_s&list=UUW4Hs-YF4XYYM7hMRVgMM8A).

      Delete
  60. " Women who wear head-coverings or Amish-looking dresses are doing so in order to purposely look different and stand out. There are many beautiful and stylish dresses for women to wear that are very modest and and not revealing whatsoever, but that do not purposely draw attention and cry out, "Look at me! Look how 'modest' I am!" Purposely drawing attention to yourself is neither modesty nor humility!
    "

    Some of us modest-dressing women/younger girls are in no way ( purposely )trying to draw attention to ourselves. Forgive me, but just because something's modest and it will draw attention to oneself, with some of us, this is not our motive ( to draw attention. ) Some are convicted not to wear certain ( in their reasoning. ) immodest apparel, some have been convicted to wear head coverings.

    Saying "Women who wear head-coverings or Amish-looking dresses are doing so in order to purposely look different and stand out.... " is quite hurtful. I will admit some probably do wear these things for attention-grabbing reasons, but just because one attention-wanting " group " ( referring to any such attention-wanting people ) wears head coverings, does not mean other head covering/ modest dressing women are also trying to grab attention.

    God bless.

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  61. With all due respect, this is a hurtful post and assumes the worst about those of us who wear headcoverings. We don't do it for attention, we just do it to obey God! The only reason our headcoverings stand out is because so few ladies are willing to wear one.

    The first time I ever read 1 Corinthians 11 as a young teen, I knew it meant a literal headcovering. When I inquired at church about it, I was told it was just a "symbol," and we didn't need our head literally covered with anything. That didn't make sense but I accepted it.

    Later I met some Christians who actually did wear headcoverings, and that inspired me so much I started to as well! I have never regretted that decision, and I believe my veiling is so much more than a cover, it's part of my witness as a Christian woman.

    I don't see how you can read 1 Cor. 11 and see it as long hair. To "shear" means simply to cut, so Paul says not having your head covered is like having your hair cut or shaved. Covering the head is symbolic of hiding one's glory, which is why in the Old Testament men would cover their heads to pray. But now, Christ is become the head of man - for a man to pray with his head covered, dishonours Christ! Likewise for a woman to pray with her head uncovered, uncovers the vain glory of man and dishonours both man and herself.

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  62. You look like a wonderful family trying your best to serve the Lord. However, on this subject of headcoverings I feel you have been terribly judgmental. The Amish and other groups like them who wear head coverings do so because they have strong Godly convictions to serve Him. I know for a fact they do not wear head coverings or plain clothing to stand out. It is their tradition to be humble. Knocking other faiths is not the way to go. I truely admire the Amish for their sincere dedication to the Lord. I often dreamed of being born Amish. Everyone interpets Bible scripture differently and will use certain stories to back their thoeries up so all Im asking is to respect all faiths that are trying to do good. No one that loves God and is doing good in this world deserves to be mocked whether you agree with everything they do or not. Thank you.

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  63. I would have to disagree with your statements.

    I do believe in covering the head and believe this was practiced by the early church, as was no other custom known.

    If you look up the greek words for covering in verse 6, The word uncovered comes from the Greek word akatakaluptos and is used only twice in the New Testament -- both times in 1 Corinthians 11. It means “not covered, unveiled”and is a compound word derived from the Greek words kata meaning “down from, through out, according to, toward, along”3 and kalupto, which means “to hide, veil.” They actually mean a physical covering,

    Whereas, The word translated long hair in 1 Cor 11:14 and 15 is the Greek word komao. Komao means “to let the hair grow, to have long hair.”5

    Also, as for your statemant about women who wear a headcovering to draw attention to themselves, I believe that was a fleshly statement made out of disbelief. I personally want to wear a headcovering to obey scripture as it says and to bring honor to my husband and show the order of headship. It is a protection and blessing. It doesn't matter who is looking at me, I do it for the attention of my heavenly father.

    Also, why would we wear a cap that looks like the world, the point of modesty is to cover up, and also to not look like the world.I don't understand the thinking of not wanting to look separate. The way the world looks is the complete opposite of what we should look like. Although I understand we are in the world but not of it.

    I'm not amish, nor am I pentecostal.

    The bible says Be ye holy as I am holy, and that we would first called chritsians at anitoch. No more or no less.

    Can you also show me where the bible actually says the words "faith alone", if not then I believe this is a false teaching.

    The bible clearly states,

    Men and brethren what shall we do, 1st chapter of Acts, the beginning of the church, Peter who was given the keys to the kingdom of heaven says" Repent,(yes you have to acknowledge who you are, a sinner, and who he is) be baptized in the name(singluar) of Jesus Christ,(there is no other name given among men by which I must be saved)(Also a command from Matthew 28:19 being fullfilled, Peter knew the NAME of the father, son and Holy Ghost, since he was given the keys) and ye shall recieve the gift of the holy ghost ACTS 2:38,

    And How do you know you have the Holy Ghost, Acts CH. 10, cornelius, they heard him speak in tongues.

    John Chapter 14, Phillip says to Jesus show us the father, and it will be sufficent, Jesus says Phillip, have I been so long time with you and you do not know who I am??? ITS SO CLEAR.

    Will be waiting for your response, I know you are busy with 6 little ones and a baby in august.

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  64. Hello, As the only lady in a conservative baptist church who wears a covering, I often wonder if I am seeing the scriptures correctly. I was convinced to wear one in my early Christian walk, and my husband and I wonder why it causes to much discomfort. I have not asked any one else to wear one, and I have learned not to bring it up first. When I go back to I Cor. I always see the same words, It is a shame for a woman to pray or prophecy with her head uncovered. God's word never changes. I have observed some things over the years, though, that seem to be consistent with those who have chosen to cover. I am not saying we are more spiritual, but there are some common threads. There is usually a turning away from worldly entertainment, such as sports, silly or unspiritual movies ( or no tv at all), women wear loose clothing such as skirts and dresses,they don't wear much jewelry or make-up they usually home school, and they start eating much healthier. 1 Cor. 11 is speaking about Christ being the head of the man, and I sincerely believe many do not see this passage clearly because perhaps they have not turned away from something in this world that could be an idol, and they are keeping Christ from being the head. The Lord bless

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  65. Not to say you are wrong, for this is something I have been praying about.
    The Bible was originally in Hebrew and Greek right? The original hebrew uses two different words for *covering, and *hair.
    They are used in contrast with each other, so from my understanding they are two different things...
    I've understood it to mean, we should not cut our hair, for it is our glory. For the head of man is Christ and the head of woman is man, and we should have a symbol of authority, a sign of submission to our husband.
    What are your thoughts on the words being different in hebrew and greek, yet both being translated as veil?

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  66. Matthew 6:25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

    1 Corinthians 10: 29Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience? 30For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks?

    31Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

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  67. As a saved Messianic Jew, I will continue to wear my tichel (or a wig), except in the private presence of my husband. When you see a woman with thick, full hair styled large that calls attention to it, that is immodest in my opinion. Either grow your hair long as G-d has commanded, or wear a tichel to keep yourself modest (along with proper clothing). My tichel means I won't be fixing my hair or taking forever to get ready for Church. No distraction from G-d. :)

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  68. Ok, I go to a church that does it's best to follow the standard of the bible (though, we too forgo the head covering for women, which I've been meaning to ask about), but something you said in the article caught my attention. I understand what you mean when you say salvation is faith based and not based on our works, but the bible does say you need to repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of sin (Acts 2:38, John 3:4-5, Romans 6:3-4). It's not that we are being saved through actions, rather we have faith to do things the way God said he wanted them done. If we say we have faith, yet don't do what God wants, what do we really have, but lip service.We aren't saved through deeds, but faith should inspire us to act.

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    1. I am glad someone already brought this up! I was thinking this very thought. Also, according to James, you cannot be saved without works, because your works show your salvation to others. You cannot be saved BY works, but you are most likely not saved if you do not have works. Salvation IS a surrender of your life to Christ. It comes along with being saved my faith. You are giving up yourself to be filled by Christ instead. Also, there are many churches that practice head coverings in the service that use "current" hats as opposed to bonnets. Finally, this issue ultimately comes down to an individual & Christ (I believe that passage says judge for yourselves?). Please be very careful about judging those around you. Would you please respond to this post & explain your position with solid Scriptural back-up? I mean this graciously and in love.

      In Christ,
      Raelyn

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  69. I have short hair because ny hair doesn't grow long and because I had to get my hair cut.Is it wrong for women to have short because I have short hair and women who get treatment for cancer or bald. Also the vow that men take doesn't that show men aren't sinning. Like what if they doing it to donate hair.

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  70. This is an example of twisting Scripture to make the Bible say what one wants it to say. The Greek cannot be translated as it is in the NIV footnote. Words were added to and subtracted from the Greek to get this interpretation. The NIV is not a word for word translation. There are many places where the biases of the translators comes through. This is one of them. I have not been able to find any basis in history or in the Greek for this interpretation. It is fairly clear from history and the Greek that 1 Corinthians 11 is saying that women should have two coverings - long hair and a veil.

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  71. Jesus didn't nail the ordinances that were AGAINST us to his cross just to turn around and put a couple new ones on us .. the LAW .. all 613 of them were nailed to his cross because they never applied to us in the first place and we now have to obey this head covering thing .. why?

    Colossians 2:14 - Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

    and yes I agree with some comments that it does make you stand out and yes people will associate you with the wrong "group" and therefore before you can share the true gospel with them they already have made up their minds they are not going to listen to a kook that has a 'thingy' on her head.

    Paul said a lot of things .. not all of it was to US for today .. like tongues that have ceased etc. those things were addressed because there was a PROBLEM in the church so Paul had no choice but to address them. in our culture we have no such custom that only prostitutes have their heads uncovered like they did in the times of Paul's ministry.

    they also wore coverings for the heat .. so yes even men had a covering sometimes. but like most scripture it has a literal meaning (for them at the time) and a spiritual one for us now. they had to deal with the literal head cover .. whatever that may have been .. we have the example to not shame our HEAD .. our husband .. to know our place. just like a lot of scriptures we can't just take that one and make a doctrine out of it .. use others that support the 'idea' .. Ephesians and every other book Paul wrote lacks the instruction of literal head covering but says that we are to honor each other as husband and wife at the same time Paul isn't even really talking about husband and wife he is talking about the body of Christ .. his church! the mystery!

    24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.
    25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
    26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
    27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
    28 So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.
    29 For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church:
    30 For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.
    31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh.
    32 This is a great MYSTERY: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.
    33 Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband.

    so you have to consider what people think in our customs of our times. things that were forbidden years ago .. like to even show your ankles were a horrible sin! to now .. when men can see women in clothing that is acceptable and not be tempted to think ungodly things. that is the key to be considerate of what your dressing could do to someone. if I went somewhere .. maybe a foreign country and all the women wore a covering .. I might be inclined to do the same as then I would be the one to stick out!! and cause trouble in that situation. in their custom I would be dishonoring my husband and I would not do that even though biblically I am not under LAW to do so.

    and as far as short hair goes .. depends on HOW short .. as long as the 'cut' looks like a women's hairdo and not a mans it's ok.

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    1. So I guess people can sin because they were nailed to the cross? They can get drunk and have wild orgies, and other such things? Jesus himself stated he did not come to do away with the law but to fulfill it. He obeyed the law, but what He preached against was misinterpretation of the law. Let's look at a couple of examples of the law and you can judge for yourself if they should have been done away with. Clean and unclean animals. Even Peter didn't interpret his dream to mean that we could eat anything. The flesh of unclean animals has been scientifically proven to be toxic to our blood. Weaving linen and wool together? Seem silly? All cloth has an energy frequency. The human body is a frequency of 100. Polyester is 15, the frequency of a diseased body. Rayon is the same. Silk is 0. It comes from an unclean animal. Conventional cotton is between 30 and 70. Organic is 100. Anything below 100 is draining to the body. Wool and linen are 5000! Very healing, unless woven together. Their energy frequencies flow in different directions, canceling each other out, leaving a frequency of 0. So, still seem silly to follow the Word of God? God gives us rules for our benefit, just like parents give children. Would you want them staying out all night, doing drugs, being unprotected, just because you know they are saved? I mean, with the mentality that we can do pretty much anything because it's nailed to the cross, you're saying we can sin and ask forgiveness later and there are no consequences, and that's unbiblical. Remember, all scripture is God-breathed, and Paul wouldn't have written at such length of it were not important.

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  72. I came upon your blog and found it very offensive. I wear a covering/veil on my head because I want to be obedient to Gods word and in submission to my husband. I am disappointed by your post. You could be leading others away from what God is commanding them to do. I find it hurtful you compared a godly Christian woman wearing a covering the same as someone wearing a kkk hat. What kind of Christian would even say that?
    You are twisting the scripture to what pleases yourself not God.

    Matt. 7:15 - "Beware of FALSE prophets which come to you in sheeps clothing but inwardly they are raven wolves.

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  73. Thank You Anonymous March 1, 2013 at 12:22pm
    I unintentionaly stumbled across this and Offensive is correct, My Hair is long and I also wear a prayer covering daily and veiling during Church Services in Obediance to God and Submission to my Husband..Truely My Prayer is that People Do Indepth research on their topics of choice..Before they Open their mouths or start texting or typing..The human race has become very bold when they do not have to look someone in the eye when they speak..

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    1. I would have to agree with you. I personally never wore a head covering because honestly I never thought I had to. I have always wondered and this past Sunday our pastor carefully shared the scriptures and where it led. He was gracious in expressing this often controversial and difficult subject. My husband and I have carefully examined the scriptures and this is a point that we would like to make.

      If a woman's covering is simply her hair as stated by the author of this blog and some others in comments, then how do we explain
      1 Corinthians 11:6
      "For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn..."
      Would the author of the blog or anyone supporting this argument explain how if the woman is not covered (physical hair) How can she be shorn (or shaven) if she already has no hair ie..a covering? That is a double negative.

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    2. To Barb,
      The answer is its a physical covering, not hair. You're citing of 1 corinthians 11:6 proves that entirely :) God bless

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  74. It amazes me when mere men twist God's word and make it say what they want. IT's another of God's many commands in His holy word that isn't obeyed as usual in todays apostate Church! We in America are just like the Israelites, spiritually blind. Jesus said that only a few will make it to Heaven, just as in the days of Noah where there were just 8 in all! Man made seminary schooling where they teach tradition and how to squelch the Holy Spirit!

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  75. I stumbled across this blog and I for one am very offended. You compare our headcoverings to KKK symbols and then turn around and insist on only "kind" responses on the bottom of your blog. The irony in this has no limits.

    As far as the covering, I feel sorry for you. You pick and chose portions of the Bible that suit your lifestyle and then attack those who wish to live Godly lives. I will pray for you.

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  76. I wear a head covering in church because I feel lead to and I desire to please God, additionally I am the only woman at my church that does so. In defending or opposing any interpretations of the Bible please remember not to put down those who think differently than you. I'm trying to please the Lord as is any woman who chooses to cover during church. I promise we're not the enemy :)

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  77. I wear a head covering. I believe that I what God's Word teaches. I have one question for you. If a woman's hair is her covering and a man is not to be covered...is your head shaved? I fail to see how a woman's hair is her covering...when a man also has hair.

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    1. I belong to Truelight Pentecostal Church in Spartanburg, SC. The women in our church all wear head coverings, we have no problem with them at all. In our church we are taught to look at this from a biblical standpoint, all women can not grow long hair, so if it is a commandment for a woman to have long hair an she can not grow long hair, then what? Is she in error. No. We invite you to write our church for more clarity at 121 Old Converse rd., Spartanburg, S.C 29307. Or look us up on you tube under seedofabrahm. Our prophet Bishop. H. Walker can teach you so very much.

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  78. I have been in the habit of wearing a head covering. I was brought up Catholic and as a child we girls and women always wore a hat. At the age of 3 I was for 6 weeks living in a CAtholic childrens home run by Catholic nuns and priests who worefull length habits and veils and priestly collar However it was later ruled that women were not to wear hats. I felt stripped naked to stop wearing my school beret, Easter bonnet, bandana(my father was Canadian) When referring to a map or atlas my father knew a man who always referred to it as the "Hatless/atlas!" When I was around 16, by that time Catholic women were stopping wearing hats but my Canadian aunt gave me a white scarf as a gift with Epo 67 on the corner. I was a bit reluctant to wear as as I thought she was telling me it was time I was married- at 16. She also gave me a gift of a red corduroy striped Canadian bandana which I was somewhat enamoured with. My mother still always wore a scarf in church but she had an aunt whose occupation was MILLINER. I chose to continue wearing a mantilla, scarf, hat or hood of my coat although even nuns in Scotland have mostly discontinued wearing their veils. I have read 1 Cornthians 11 many times and believe it to be taken literally- as well as long hair a woamn should wear a head covering. In America on EWTN Eternal Word Television Network the nuns are still wearing their veils. To become a nun when I was a child was described as "taking the veil" I see it as a mark of respect, submissiveness and obedience to the headship of one's husband. Unfortunately, although when I was first married my husband said that woman looked for even a handkerchief to put on their heads when entering the Catholic church he is developing the attitude that I don't need to cover my head with a mantilla,hat etc. Today I asked the priest in confessions about 1 Corinthians 11- he said I don't need to wear anything on my head. However I feel this could just be a laxity in the church among the clergy also, leading to immorality and nowadays there is the problem of same sex marriages/homosexuality,and smaller or no families because people spend their time following thier careers and materialism. I also do not like to wear a lot of jewellery which is also mentioned in Scripture, nor no longer plait my hair but I did plait it as a child before I became familiar with the scripture forbidding it.

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    1. Why are you taking so much of your post from your Catholic background and personal Catholic experiences?

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  79. It is not hair

    Let me explain. Take your eyes of the woman for a moment and look at how Paul addresses the man (1 Corinthians vs 4): Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. Is Paul talking about hair? This would be difficult to rationalise. If Paul is talking about hair then a man would have to shave his head before he prays or prophesises. Therefore all Christian men who are obedient to the Lord would render themselves bald.
    If Paul was talking about hair then this would be the only way forward. Men today should shave their heads before attending church services, this does not make sense.

    From a female perspective if Paul is talking about hair then any woman suffering from hair loss would fall under condemnation. This is ridiculous, no? Paul is in no doubt speaking about a head covering. He does not get into the fashion of such coverings but just mentions it is a covering. Men take of your head covering women put on a covering.

    Paul does mention hair in verses 13-16 but this is simply a natural example to illustrate his point of the previous verses, finishing of “ if anyone wishes to be contentious about this, we have no other practice, neither do the churches of God!.

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  80. I am an Indepent fundamental baptist women who believes that the av 1611 KJB is thee inspired word of God ..The pastor of my church teaches n preaches a covering should be worn by women ..he preaches SALVATION BY FAITH ALONE... not of works but of FAITH IN THE BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST ..IN HIS FINISHED WORK ON THE CROSS. Please do not lump all Christians who cover thier heads or pastors who preach and teach the headcovering..together with those who believe in a works salvation..i was really unimpressed by that statement Pastor Anderson .May God bless you and youre Family with Love in Christ Jamie .H

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  81. The words used in the original great for "covering" referring to long hair in one passage and for the covering required in another are not the same word. They are both translated as covering in English, but they are not the same word.

    As far as the priest's bonnets go, remember that with Jesus' death on the cross the OT ways fell away. The priests in the OT were not part of Christ's Body, and really all the talk of Christ being the man's head has to do with the fact that we are now in Christ's Body! This is for believers who have received the Holy Spirit, not ancient priests. The priests wearing bonnets in the OT did not sin by doing this, it was commanded by God. But after the cross, the whole priest system in the OT is abolished. Jesus is the High Priest now, and we're all new creations. This is not a commandment going back in time, but for the church after the cross.

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  82. This is supposed to be about head covering but yet you threw in there that Pentecostals are wrong for what they believe. You say that you only need faith alone... Jesus died on the cross for us so that we could be filled with His Spirit and He took on our sins.

    Acts 2:38(KJV) 38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

    John 3:3-5(KJV)
    3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
    4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
    5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

    Acts 2:1-4(KJV) And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
    2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
    3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
    4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

    Acts 10:46-48 (KJV)

    46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,

    47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?

    48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

    Speaking in tongues is the evidence of receiving the Holy Ghost / Holy Spirit that you HAVE TO HAVE to go to Heaven! It's part of Salvation (Repent, Be baptized IN JESUS' NAME and you will receive the gift of the Holy Ghost!)

    You are making a big deal out of how people choose to dress or feel as though they should dress but you aren't focusing on the really important things. SALVATION!! And who are you to tell ladies NOT to wear head covering? What if they are dealing with a conviction from God??? Everyone has their own walk with God and what may be wrong for someone may not be wrong for the next. That's why we have to have a RELATIONSHIP with God for Him to guide us in our own personal walks with Him. As long as we keep His commandments of Salvation, the rest of it will come through our relationship....

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    1. I am an apostolic believer. Baptized in both Father, son, and HolyGhost at the age of 11 and again in Jesus name when I came to Canada at 17. I was filled with the Holy Ghost at age 12 as well while still going to the church I was baptized in (not penticostal). I believe and the scripture does prove that salvation is by faith alone and not faith + works. It is wrong to teach that a person is not saved unless they are baptized. Baptism is an experience after salvation. Take me for example, I was saved some 6 yrs before I got baptized over in Jesus name. Filled with the Holy Spirit as well, speaking in tongues. God does not give the Holy ghost to unbelievers (unsaved people). It is the hearing of the gospel and our faith in Jesus that saves us 1 cor 1:21 among many other scripture. Galatians, Ephesians, Romans Hebrews... all books that tells us of the free salvation by Faith in the Grace of God. Not of works less any man should boast. Baptism is your open proclamation of the transformation that has taken place in you... this is a symbol of the inter workings of the spirit. Like Christ you die (in him) was buried (with him) and are raised up together with him to walk in a new kind of life. Old things are passed away, and behold all things are become new. This took place at salvation (the point where you believed and planted your faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. The goodness of God leads you to repentance. That is where the divine exchange took place, not in the water so to preach that a person is not saved unless baptized in Jesus is incorrect and unscriptural. Baptism is not essential for salvation but it is essential for obedience. This is how you symbolize the covenant of Grace in your life.

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  83. Unfortunately I disagree with you. I hear this a lot but I think you should take a look at the head covering movement: http://www.headcoveringmovement.com/

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  84. There are those of us who love the Lord God who are called by Him to a specific way of living the Christian life, that by it's very nature will stand out. As Christians in general, I am hard pressed to think that we should blend in with the background of the world, for we, as Christ's people, are the "Called Out" ones. How this is lived out will look differently for each individual who has their heart set on Christ.
    My journey with Christ brought me to a place two years ago where I committed myself to a season of particular devotion to the Lord, and during the course of that time was led to cover my head as an outward sign to myself and others that I am Christ's possession. I have since then stopped wearing a covering daily but still to worship in community on Sundays. I now again feel a prompting to take on a covering again for Christ and I stumbled upon your post while I searched to purchase a new covering. I was open to hearing your view on the matter, for in the Body, we must listen to and learn from one another. However, I am deeply grieved by some of the personal statements that have been made here, and through the posted comments, find that I am not alone. I am saddened to find such judgement in your position on the matter, especially since I know there are women who cover with pure and undivided hearts. This post was written in a condemning, rather than a loving and generous way. I am reminded that we are instructed in the Word to extend mercy to one another who are part of Christ's body, and that we must view each others "weaknesses" with careful consideration and respect, for our individual convictions, when in Christ, are born of His Spirit within us. We must leave room for God, Who cannot be contained in human understanding. Let's leave Him to sort the sheep and the goats and divide the chaff from the grain. It's His Church that He is building and it's larger and more expansive than we can imagine, for He is so far above our petty ways of viewing one another.
    I hope that you would take this comment and the others like it, that have continued on for more than a year after this post was written, as an invitation to reconsider and allow the Holy Spirit to teach and instruct and inform regarding this area of the Christian life.

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  85. http://christianfemininity.wordpress.com/category/head-coverings am offended for one that youseem to believe in "Cessation" & not Continuation especially since THEIR IS NO SHRED OF BIBLICAL SUPPORT for the position of cessation-YouTube Dr Charles Sproul-The gift of prophecy- Scriptures like Matthew 28:20& MANY OTHERS INCLUDING 1 Corinthians 13:8-14 also refute this SILLY Catholic born "dark ages" fostered-'Putting Gods Active Holy Spirit in a box"; DEBAUCHERY of a "doctrine"- & not to mention a DIVISIVE TOOL USED OF THE DEVIL TO KILL STEAL & DESTROY!

    While the fashions & "trends" of this world slide further & further from God & his HOLY HOLY HOLY Standard's- You as a professed Christian Pastors wife, don't seem to alarmed- but rather sound as if your just sitting on pins & needles waiting for some -Atheist cross
    dressing Christian hating likely homosexual fashion designer

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  86. New and latest "fashion trend"- to hit the shelf so you can go throw some more money in the "Hollywood, NWO, Anti Christ"- coffers!

    I realize this online conversation was first started in 2011. I'm curious if you still stand by your view of the Christian Woman's head covering???

    I truly am not wanting to engage in a unfrutfull argumentative ungodly debate- But I to (as PRAISE GOD MANY OTHER'S seem to have voiced) am offended at your judgmental stance & sheer ignorance regarding the issue of the Christian Woman's Headcovering. It is one thing to not see it as an actual veil/hat/cloth cover- & Go
    the UPC rout & NIV rout & view 1 Cor 11:1-16 as hair only- But don't assume your also able to then judge all others who see, & Gods Spirit teaches, different!

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  87. A little about me & my journey of salvation; I smoked cigarettes starting at age 11, stole my first car at 12, sleeping around by 13, Hung out with gang members in Seattle from 1993-1997- did drugs, committed crimes, had an abortion at age 23, HATED PEOPLE WHO WENT TO CHURCH AS I THOUGHT THEY WERE NUMBER THAN A BOX OF ROCKS!!!

    GLORY TO GOD ALMIGHTY- HE SAVED A WRETCH LIKE ME!! I am but a FILTHY RAG, and he's made me AS WHITE AS SNOW- PUT MY SINS AS FAR AS THE EAST IS FROM THE WEST , & Has set my feet upon the ROCK; & that Rock is Christ (1 Cor 10)

    At my Salvation moment God not only washed away my sins- HE also delivered me from cigarettes MIRACULOUSLY- I had no smokers caugh, no withdrawls, no cravings- He took that 15yr addiction COMPLETELY from me. At that moment I was "Born again- a NEW creation in Christ" I felt the presence of God daily after that moment. A few weeks later at a bible study some ladies prayed for me by laying hands on me & I received the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the gift of tongues- As the Bible says it will happen- I did not fake it or force it-'I was surprised as anyone that it happened to me AS I to once thought that folks doing that were NUTS! A few more weeks later I was baptized in Jesus Name (per Act's 2:37-38) at a non denomination 24 .hr house of prayer in Seattle. I was unsure of what church to go to- But I KNEW CHRIST & at that time to me that's all that mattered. LONG LONG LONG LIFE story Short; I visited many churches but never stayed at one long as I had a fear of being taught a lie from "some pastor"- so I became a avid Bible reader & if any one church said or held to a scriptural practice I was OUT OF THERE. Of course me being "unplanted" was unscriptual & ultimately I back slid in 2009. WHat I mean by backslid is that I started living for the world again & not God; my mindfulness of him was almost nonexistent eventually. But GLORY TO GOD- For Romans 8:28 & Hebrews 13:5-6 ;)

    He called me again & THIS TIME I REALLY LISTEN!!! He has BLESSED my life & walk with him first by leading me to a UPCI church wear I first was taught about modest dressing (a teaching I'd NEVER HEARD from Any Church prior) so Use been "pants free" for 3 yrs now & would never dream of going back......no wonder my walk with God fizzled out early & my attempt to lead folks to Christ failed . .Kinda hard to "lead people to Christ" with your cleavage out & bling on your tush! ;) Lol
    When the UPCI gals told me that 1 Corinthians 11:1-16 ment "uncut hair"- it didn't bear witnesses with me like the no pants thing did- So I prayed about it as I didn't want to have any division's between me & them as I felt that God had given me them to be my "home church"

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  88. So after praying for God to help me see his truth on the matter- I ended up getting a part time job at a Mennonite run store- I saw how they wear a "hardcover" & asked why& they pointed me to 1 Cor 11:1-16, I said well isint that about uncut hair? To my surprise they said they to don't cut their hair do to the "Shorn"-cut hair; & "shaven"-bald head; statements but also Covered or per Paul their "uncut hair" would be to God as if it were "shorn" or "shaven"; on my way home I praied about this, Google it, researched it, fasted & searched Gods word & weekend his Spirit on this (which I sincerely hope you will or have) And God made it clear that I'm to WEAR A COVERING!I made my own since I'm not mennonite (yet-lol) , at first I felt embarrassed to go out in public with it on (even tho it's bit that big & more modern than a bonnet) But God has shown me first hand what 1 Cor 11:10 means! Not only has my marriage to a "jehovah witness raised un born again on the fence cessation believing husband" been SIGNIFICANTLY BLESSED - IMPROVED- & FINALLY PRAISE GOD-JOYFUL ( he's recently thrown out his watchtowers & is considering scriptures that prove Jesus was God in flesh with a renewed view point-GLORY TO GOD) - And ; unlike your original statements about "headcoverings" making one stand out in a way that brings attention to THEMSELVES - It actually allowed me to be used mightily by God as a witness of Christ- it draws people who are searching for God & his Truth to you as they can tell at just a quick glance that your a woman who believes in God, is devout, and committed to living for the God that she believes in!! Long hair CAN'T DO THAT- UNCUT HAIR CAN'T DO THAT, A SKIRT OR MENNONITE HANDMADE DRESS CAN'T DO THAT, WEARING NO MAKEUP CAN'T DO THAT- only wearing a Symbol of AUTHORITY & SUBMISSION on your head BECAUSE OF THE ANGELS can do that!!!!

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    1. ... for her hair is given her for a covering. What part of this statement is difficult to understand?

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  89. God commands men everywhere to repent. I read your article where it claims that false groups teach people to repent. I do agree that long hair on women is the covering!

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  90. I Just got through reading this article with my girl friend. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I agree with a lot of it but before reading this I believed that literal head covering was not what the bible was speaking about. But your article has done the opposite of what it was intended to do: it has convinced me that the bible was speaking literally about having a covering on your head. I will explain why. Let me say I go to an apostolic church but just yesterday in church I told them I did not believe that I needed to put a hat or any such covering on my head to pray; the Sunday school teacher of course disagreed with me. But as I searched the scriptures today, and by reading this article, the Holy Spirit gave me a revelation about this that has convinced me to cover my head when praying, etc.

    You mentioned the verses in the old testament that showed the priests had to put cover on their heads while ministering before the Lord. So if the bible was speaking about physical covering why would God allow this in the old testament but in the new say that a man should not have his head covered but a woman should? This is where your article helped bring revelation to me. Ephesians 5:23-24 shows Christ as the head of the man and the man the head of the woman. The covering is a symbol of submission. Since the natural hair is given as a covering (to both man and woman) and long hair is a shame for the man but is a woman's glory, the question is, is God expecting us to put a cover (i.e. hat or bonnet) on the covering (hair) he has given us and if so why.

    My answer to the above is yes and this is what the Holy Spirit revealed to me:

    In the old testament Christ was concealed. In the new testament Christ is revealed. Christ is the head of the man which means Christ is the authority figure over the man. The priest of the old testament wore a head covering as a symbol of the concealed Christ... the glory of Christ was not yet revealed. In the new testament the men are told not to cover their heads because Christ is there head and you cannot and should not cover or conceal the glory of Christ. We are to glorify Christ not hide of conceal him seeing he's already revealed. The women on the other hand are supposed to cover their heads because the head of the woman is the man. The woman's hair is her glory but when she is married it is her husband's glory that should shine not hers seeing that the man is the image of Christ. So she covers her glory (with a natural covering) to show submission to her husband symbolizing that she is willing to allow his glory to shine in his role as her head and as the image of the revealed Christ, not hers (1cor.11:7). In the same way the man must not put on a physical covering and also keeps his hair short to allow the glory of the risen Christ to shine above his own glory.

    This attitude of submission is what should be taken when it comes to head coverings. I must decrease but he must increase John 3:30

    So ladies when you cover your heads, you are saying, "let me hide my glory and put my husband's glory first". Eph 5:24 - therefore as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. This goes for the unmarried woman as well. Because you many not have a husband to submit to but you must be submitted to Christ as you are part of the church. The head covering is a symbol of that submission... you hair is your glory so you are saying let me cover my glory because I want only the glory of Christ to be seen. With this attitude in mind, you will understand why even in the covering you chose why you must be modest, not ostentation or over the top... it is not to draw attention to yourself but to deflect it to Christ.

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  91. Just to make you aware, I have rebutted your article and cast down your argument (2Cor 10:5) against a woman wearing a head covering.

    Here is what I said:
    Some will argue this point like the writer of a blog entitle 'Why Ladies Should Not Wear Head-Coverings.' In it, the writer hinges their entire anti-head-covering teaching on this following statement:

    "The same passage that tells women to be covered tells men not to be covered. Therefore, if this were talking about something other than long hair (i.e. a "head-covering" or bonnet), it would be a sin for a man to wear it while praying or prophesying. This is directly in contradiction with many Old Testament passages that command the Old Testament priests to wear bonnets and mitres while ministering in the priests office..." -

    Unfortunately, this writer does not understand the fact that under the Old Covenant, men (including Priests) were UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF A MORTAL MAN -THE HIGH PRIEST. Therefore, Jewish men were commanded to wear head coverings while praying or prophesying (as all Jews still do so today) because they were under man's authority.

    Moses, on the other hand, who spoke to God Face to face, removed His veil whenever he went to speak with God in the tabernacle (Exodus 34:34,33), which was a foreshadowing of the New Covenant that was to come, when all Christian men would come boldly to the Throne of Grace (Heb 4:16) and speak with God Face to face (Matt 18:20).

    1Corinthians 11:5 teaches us that it is shameful for a woman to pray or prophesy with her head uncovered because of what is written in 1Corinthians 11:3, that she is under the authority of a man (whether her father, brother, or husband). Therefore, if a woman prays without her head covered she dishonors her head (her man) because A WOMAN IS STILL UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF A MORTAL MAN and she should have a "symbol" of that authority on her head (1Cor 11:10).

    The principal in both the New and Old Covenants is the same: A mortal who is under the authority of another mortal puts a covering over their head when praying or prophesying to God as a sign of that authority.

    Now, however, in the New Covenant, men are no longer under the authority of any mortal man (regardless of what the Catholics might say), but the Lord Jesus Christ is our Head (1Cor 11:3). Therefore, Christian men should (unlike men under the authority of High Priest) UNCOVER their heads while praying or prophesying to God through Jesus Christ. However, since a woman is still under the authority of a mortal man (1Cor 11:3) she must cover her head (1Cor 11:6).

    Indeed, a woman's long hair is given to her a covering (1Cor 11:15), but not a covering sufficient for prayer or prophesying (1Cor 11:6), therefore she must cover her head with something else, like a veil. Also, since a woman's hair is her glory (1Cor 11:15), or, in other words "glorious" (i.e. attractive), she should cover ALL of her hair in the presence of other men for the sake of modesty (1Tim 2:9). Women who fail to obey these commandments should beware (1Cor 14:37; 1John 2:4).

    Read my entire article here:
    http://sojlog.blogspot.com/p/head-covering-command.html

    Peace to you.

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  92. I find it disconcerting that just because I choose to wear a hat, typically a fedora or beret, that I am pinned into the category of ungodly. I have looked into this as well, and have simply drawn a different conclusion. By the way, my church does not preach this, it is a personal conviction for me to honor my husband. I do not believe I stand out nor do I draw attention to myself. I am typically found in a long shirt, leggings, and boots, with the above mentioned fedora or beret, found in any local department store.

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  93. I am also a mom of 7. 3 boys and 4 girls.

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  94. Wives/Women CANT CHOSE how much hair they will have all their lives

    Wives/Women CANT CHOSE weather they go bald due to age, genes, or disorder/sickness/chemo...ect

    So to view 1 Corinthians as only hair, or only intentionally uncut hair; IS NOT A BIBLICAL VIEW!!! IT IS NOT A GOD HONORING VIEW- as best it is a VERY misguided view of what Paul teaches "the Churches of God"


    What Paul taught is this:

    1 Corinthians 11:2-16
    Amplified Bible (AMP)
    2 I appreciate and commend you because you always remember me in everything and keep firm possession of the traditions (the substance of my instructions), just as I have [verbally] passed them on to you.
    3 But I want you to know and realize that Christ is the Head of every man, the head of a woman is her husband, and the Head of Christ is God.
    4 Any man who prays or prophesies (teaches, refutes, reproves, admonishes, and comforts) with his head covered dishonors his Head (Christ).
    5 And any woman who [publicly] prays or prophesies (teaches, refutes, reproves, admonishes, or comforts) when she is bareheaded dishonors her head (her husband); it is the same as [if her head were] shaved.
    6 For if a woman will not wear [a head] covering, then she should cut off her hair too; but if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her head shorn or shaven, let her cover [her head].
    7 For a man ought not to wear anything on his head [when praying, teaching, admonishing, prophesying], for he is the image and [reflected] glory of God [[a]his function of government reflects the majesty of the divine Rule]; but woman is [the expression of] man’s glory (majesty, preeminence).


    WOMEN/WIVES- NO MATTER THEIR HEALTH, AGE OR RACE; CAN CHOSE TO COVER THEIR HEADS JUST AS GODS WORD TEACHES WE SHOULD

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  95. Hi there, I thought some folks might like this link where another pastor exegetes the text and discusses the issue of headcoverings. God's peace! http://www.worldvieweverlasting.com/tag/head-coverings/
    it is a youtube video and the pastor is a faithful man of God.

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  96. Mennonites, as a denomination, are the finest Christians I know. It's crass to dismiss their traditions so flippantly. They aren't a "contentious" folk, you are, so what? Jesus loves us all.

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  97. SO this statement you made confused me a bit !!
    Notice that the priest's clothing consisted of coats, britches (pants), and bonnets. Why would God tell us that "nature itself" teaches us that a woman should wear a head-covering, and that men should not, when he commanded over and over again that the priests (who were men of course) were required to wear bonnets when they prayed and prophesied in the priests office! The covering referred to in 1 Corinthians 11 is long hair, as defined in the passage itself; it is not a bonnet or head-covering.
    I see the part of prophesying and praying here below 1Cor 11:4 Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. 1Cor 11:5 But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven.
    Yet here this says ministering to the offices .. the ministering part here at the bottom Exo 28:40 And for Aaron's sons thou shalt make coats, and thou shalt make for them girdles, and bonnets shalt thou make for them, for glory and for beauty.
    Exo 28:41 And thou shalt put them upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office.
    Eze 44:17 And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.
    Now my question is .. is ministering the same as praying or prophesying? im confused =(

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  98. “But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth having short hair dishonoreth her head: for that is even all one as if she had her hair shaved off. For if the woman have not long hair, let her also have her hair cut short: but if it be a shame for a woman to have her hair cut short or shaved off, let her long hair.”

    That doesn't make sense. :

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  99. Whether your position is for or against covering, before you render your decision, please view the following:
    https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSrWxE5LGssi0cvObvgekelCUbZz6t7us

    We are not to follow man but YaHuWaH Who will always confirm His Words.

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  100. I totally disagree with you.

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  101. Can't say I agree at all. As a matter of fact, the Amish have a very strong witness and are mainly respected by all who know them as genuine believers because they actually live out their faith. Additionally, up until very recently in our history, most women wore a hat in church and other settings as Christian teaching on this matter affected our culture. It was only with the rise of feminism that this culture wide practice began to be abandoned. The change came about because of the increasing abandonment of God and His word as the reference point and moral compass in favor of human wisdom and ways. Some of our old family photos depict the ladies wearing hats and gloves. We were not wealthy or privileged people; this was the norm for how a respectable woman dressed. If you go back in history and look at all artwork depicting Christian women, you will see women wearing veils or head coverings. You do make one point that I agree with. It is possible in our pursuit of obedience to God, to use something meant to arise out of humility, submission and modesty as a means of drawing attention to ourselves. The moment we enter into seriously obeying, spiritual pride is an immediate temptation. The flesh loves to derail us and will war against anything that cuts across it. Thus, if our motive truly is to honor God, we can wear a covering that doesn't stand out and draw attention to us or distract others; I don't think its inappropriate to be considerate of others who have been raised in a generation permeated with feministic underpinnings and who have been used to a culture that opposes submission and humility and sometimes fears it with good reason; we can allow the Holy Spirit to speak to others without being in their faces about it. We don't need to announce to everyone else that we are covering our heads in obedience and "you should too". Rather, let our example of humility and quiet submission to God and to our husbands if we have them, speak for themselves. Personally , I find baseball caps on women to be rather unfeminine and not very flattering though they serve their purpose if you play the game.

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  102. I can appreciate the opinions expressed in this blog post; however, with the exception of the actual scripture that is all that your words are. I wear a headcovering, as I feel called so to do. I do not wear one to 'bring attention' to myself or to 'stand out'. In fact, I choose styles that are not that uncommonly seen; a simple scarf wrapped around most or all of my hair (sometimes concealing tattoos and stretched lobes which I had done foolishly at a younger age, which I feel were wrong to have done and so I like to keep them hidden) is what I feel is what I should do.

    Whether or not you agree with me, or with anyone at all on the matter of the messages in the scripture you yourself have cited is irrelevant; any one of us could be wrong in our understanding of the passages, the point is that we are all trying to do our best to live our lives according to the God's word. And, I shall continue to wear a headcovering, in church at the very least, because that is what I feel is right.
    And for you to presume what you have about women covering their heads is simply unfair, and I urge you to be a little more thoughtful before making such accusations in the future.

    God bless and keep you and yours.

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  103. Why do Christians wear a headcover? Part 1 of 2
    Reason #1
    "every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head"
    "For 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."
    Women are to be submissive to men. Men take the responsibility of protecting, cherishing and providing for the emotional and physical needs of his wife. It is a blessing, not oppression. Christian women are to headcover to show that they accept that. That's also called "God's Headship Order".

    Reason #2
    "...the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels."
    There is much debate on what "because of the angels" means. I believe it is a sign that even angels (God's angels and fallen angels) recognize and respect. It is a mark that shows we are under God's, Christ's and man's protection.

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  104. I'm glad I found this site/blog. I have just started the thinking process about headcoverings... and by "process" I mean doing research, reading and praying. And this instruction has helped. BUT... my reason for commenting are the replies. To read on a site/blog such as this the ugliness and vicious backbiting are appalling and shocking.

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  105. Even R.C.Sproul affirms that Paul was speaking of two coverings and that his instruction still applies today. That this practice among Christians has come under attack in these last days I feel can only be explained by that fact that Satan knows that he has but little time left. Remember this, Feminism and women's head coverings are mutually exclusive.

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  106. I like how he tries to speak for women by telling us why we wear headcoverings. I wouldn't wear headcoverings to try to be modest or draw attention to myself. I'd wear headcoverings to draw attention AWAY from myself on days where I do not feel like doing my hair. Lol

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  107. On 1 Cor. 11! When we take Paul's letter as a whole, rather than traditional interpretation of a few isolated verses, it is easy to understand his message. For the def. of "ordinances as I delivered them to you" of v.2, ch.2:2 says this means: "nothing other than "Christ and Him crucified."
    Chapter 7:1 defines the context as being Paul's response to their religious questions, and in 7:12, he declares this is not of the Lord, but him speaking.
    The word "head" of our v.3 is defines as "supply" in vs.8-9 and the same Gr. word is translated to "sum" in Acts 22:28, meaning money as being the supply for citizenship. There is no indication to (chief) but Adam being the supply for the creation of Eve.
    Now,for Christian women,(In the Lord) The Gr. words for "power on" of v. 10, does not indicate a symbol, but "authority, rule, or jurisdiction, and is also translated to "I will give him "power over the nations" in Rev. 2:26. "In the Lord" she should have this jurisdiction, "because of the Angels" (For this cause). Angels serve the heirs of salvation. (Heb.1:14) Paul concludes, "We have no such custom." The Gr. word for "custom" is defined as "an established practice."
    Shared, because of a love for Bible truth and all readers.
    Ben Weaver
    email: benjaminweaver@frontier.com

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  108. I appreciate the thought and time you put into this blog entry. However, I feel that you overlooked something important. I think that people who write on this subject should acknowledge some women suffer from very thinning hair, especially after middle age (and some at a very young age). It's bad enough as a woman to live with the social stigma of inadequate hair to cover one's scalp, but these women shouldn't be put under condemnation by their church leaders as well. Many of these women opt for shorter hairstyles because it's easier to hide thin spots, rather than buy wigs, since a realistic one can be very expensive. In the event that these women can't afford an expensive wig, they are left with two options that you have declared to be either disobedient or immodest (i.e. short hair, or head coverings).
    I can't help noticing that when men decide to get personal in their attacks on women, they always have to bring up the hair. And the women I'm thinking of are all 60 and up, and therefore probably not capable of growing long hair. I know you didn't have any malice in writing this post. I'm just trying to bring something to your attention that can be hurtful to women who don't deserve to be hurt any more than they already are. No one should have to feel like they're less obedient to God for reasons that are out of their control. I'd hate to think that some of my acquaintances would be looked down on because their hair quantity leaves them no choice but to wear it short. Not to mention cancer patients who don't necessarily want to have to explain to everyone that they're in the process of growing their hair back in order to avoid being judged by everyone. Man looks on the outside, but God looks on the heart. In Paul's day, there was no such thing as feminine short styles. Today there are many short styles, that if you saw them on your male congregation members, you'd probably say they were effeminate, even though the style was short. I read a commentary on this passage recently which said women fulfill the spirit of this passage by wearing any style that is recognized as feminine, thereby acknowledging God's natural order of authority. I hope you'll consider whether it's indeed profitable to be so rigid on something so superficial in light of the fact that long hair is simply not an option for a surprising number of women. In light of your teaching, their only option is long stringy, sparse strands and conspicuous patches of uncovered scalp. Perhaps you only meant younger women, but I didn't see that. I have to assume it's rather insulting to older women that it just "goes without out saying" that they're not included. Older women are still women, so if we don't mean older women (or women with a medical condition), then this should be explicitly stated. Also, with teachings on this passage, there should always be an admonition included to give women the benefit of the doubt regarding a possible inability to grow hair. If you see a woman who always wears a hat, or scarf, maybe it's for a reason. And if it's short, don't dwell on it. You don't know the reasons why and it's a terrible invasion of privacy to have to explain it to everyone in church. Talk about an immodest amount of attention to draw to oneself. This is just one example of why there needs to be some protocol in place which allows women to communicate their thoughts to pastors, so that you can be aware of perspectives like this. If you're going to teach women, then you need to understand them. I realize you're married, but your wife doesn't represent all women, and therefore can't fill you in on everything you need to know. I'm sorry if I come across as harsh. I know that many people have been blessed by your sermons and diligence in preaching the Gospel. I wouldn't even bother commenting if I didn't respect you. Thanks for listening and God bless.

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  109. Hi,
    I think these 2 articles can help make sense of some of what is going on in that passage. They are from grace based ministries. http://www.tektonics.org/uz/veilwear.php
    http://christianthinktank.com/fem09.html

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  110. I am Mennonite. My family did not wear coverings. In fact, my mother shocked everyone by marrying someone divorced, and older. I attended church with my grandmother, and in college, attended church on my own. After college, I worked in an area where the only church was a semi-conservative church. As the women wore coverings, so did I, a practice I continued until I married, and moved, due to my husband's job, where there was no Mennonite church. I stopped wearing a covering. Two years ago, I told my husband I felt led to wear one again. While I think the Sunday message is always important, there are ones that stick with me more, as I'm sure the giver remembers some more easily. I remembered a message about coverings being a protection and a responsibility. At the time, I worked in a prison, and often commented that I was treated with more respect. I understood the literal protection. However, he also emphasized that it was a responsibility.

    We are not to be of the world, and I view cowboy hats and ball caps as being of the world, and trying to blend. A covering clearly sets us apart, and is a strong stance as to our beliefs. We cannot blend. In women's groups, we often "gripe" about people stopping to take our picture, without permission, as we do our errands. Apparently, we are akin to zoo animals. But, people snap those pictures because we are different. And, they visit because they are in search of something they often can't define. Hopefully, the picture will be reviewed, and inspire.

    Standing out means setting an example. A covering signifies a commitment, but it also means I think twice, as do others, such as our youth. When you are an example, there is much responsibility. I have a graduate degree, and work in a professional job. As in every place I've worked, I'm the moral compass. I have to set a good example. I do not swear. I scream in the car, rather than loose my temper at work. I am also firm, and I do not allow someone to take advantage of me. Forgiveness does not mean trust.

    One could argue that I should always practice those virtues, and they would be right. But, being different, makes me think twice. Clearly if I do something, because people think I am somehow closer to God, they think it is ok for the to do it. Without a covering, it would also be easier to hide by beliefs, and sin.

    I wear one now, the only person in our geographic area, because I'd had one too many encounters with nasty people. I remembered that a covering was my protection. I wondered if God was sending a message. It was an adjustment for people who knew us, but no one really said anything. Our small social circle is composed of expats, who understand, and I want to be clear, that even though we consider ourselves expats because we moved here, we are still in the US.

    I do not feel it is against God to wear one. I feel it is my protection from God.



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  111. Why not take Paul's epistle as a whole rather than isolate a few verses? 1 Cor. 2:2 defines "Ordinances"/ teachings, as I delivered them to you" as having been nothing other than "Jesus Christ and Him crucified."
    The word "But" of v.3, indicates that Paul is now continuing to respond to the questions that they wrote to him, as he has been doing ever since Ch.7:1. At times, the def. for "Head" of v.3, is "Source or supply." This same Gr. word is also translated to "Sum" Acts (22:28), meaning money as the supply for citizenship. 1Cor.8-9 provide a context for supply, but none for chief or ruler. Adam was the supply for the creation of Eve.
    At vs. 10-11,Paul changes to Christian women (IN THE LORD.) Some translators have twisted Paul's message in vs. 10-16,trying to force them to conform to vs. 3-9, which was about women who are only daughters of Adam and Eve, whereas being "IN THE LORD" bypasses that, therefore Paul says "We have no such custom."
    V. 10 clearly states that "Because of the angels/For this cause, ought the [Christian] woman to possess authority over her head." Rev. 2:26 translates the same 2 Gr. words as "I will give him power over the nations." The work of angels is explained in Heb. 1:14, as helping the heirs of salvation." There is no indication to symbol.
    With these observations, it appears that 1 Cor. 11:2-16 has been traditionally mutilated by well meaning translators.

    May our Lord direct and bless your responses. I welcome feedback

    e-mail benjaminweaver@frontier.com

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  112. Something to consider:
    When is a covering not a covering? When it's wadded or rolled up in a ball instead of allowed to hang down and cover its intended target.

    If I were to wear my long skirts twisted up into a ball and pinned at my waist, I would likely be arrested for indecent exposure, and to say, "But Your Honor, I WAS covered - I was wearing a nice long skirt!" probably wouldn't cut much ice with the judge.

    The Bible says that hair is given to women as a covering - the word is peribolaion, which translates to mantle, a garment which hangs down and covers the head, neck, and shoulders - but if we wear our "mantles" twisted up into little balls and pinned under a caps or doilies, what then do they cover? It's all the same as if our hair were cut short to begin with.

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  113. Did you say that you don't need to repent in order to be saved? That's literally all that John the Baptist preached, and He was the fore-runner for Jesus. And we do need to surrender our lives to Christ, Jesus said to deny ourselves, pick up our crosses, and follow Him, and that our lives are not our own, they were bought with a price. And it is also said that faith without works is DEAD. Not dormant, dead. I don't mean to be rude, but I don't think the gospel is being accurately represented in this post. He saved us by grace, through faith, not by works so none can boast--SO we can do the good works He created us to do. (paraphrase of Eph. 2:8-10).
    Are you saying all takes to be a Christian is just to believe in Christ? Because even the demons believe, and shudder. Works will come as an outflow of being changed by Jesus Christ, and if fruit doesn't come, how could it have been a transformation--if nothing changes?
    Thoughts, anyone?

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  114. I am quite taken aback by some of the things said in this post against head covering. I'm dismayed to see that the writer seems to have approached the topic with a preset judgement and interpreted it to fit his opinion. This is what my Pentecostal church does, too, and I know it's only human to think in this way. Personally, head covering is important to me, even though it goes against many things I've been taught. I'm not even allowed to practice it at church.

    This passage was perfectly clear to me the first time I read it, which is why I can't understand why more people don't get what Paul was saying. Putting it into practice should be solid proof, anyway! Covering my head even in private has been such a blessing to me. It humbles me and reminds me that I am under God's authority. For does the Bible not say that no flesh shall glory in His presence? Even if the writer of this article were correct about the hair being a covering, the very same verse says that hair is the glory of the woman. Why would we not cover it in worship, in respect to God?

    Another thing: the reasons given for being against head covering are rather weak and grounded on personal bias alone. I promise that the majority of women who cover their heads are not looking for attention, but are doing it out of a heart of worship. Please don't make such wild assumptions on character! Not everyone who dresses in apparel you consider "holier-than-thou" is a Pharisee. Perhaps it's not them who needs to check their heart. As it asks in scripture (NOT verbatim!), who are you to judge a servant of the Master who is trying to be pleasing in His sight? Modesty does not mean blending in with the world.

    Dear sir, I implore you to go over these scriptures again with a more open heart and mind! Here is a post I feel may explain some things I touched on: https://coveredrachel.wordpress.com/2015/12/13/rebuttals-for-headcovering-arguments/

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  115. I'm hesitant to wade into this debate. :-/
    My husband and I have experienced what seems to be legitimate conviction in agreement with my use of head coverings. While seeking wisdom to test that conviction, this was one of the articles encountered. I am distressed by the unkind, mocking tone adopted in it, the lack of humility and poorly tracked points. More so, a vast portion of the conversation encouraged in the comments testifies to confusion, lack of brotherly love, and arrogance. I am sad to think unbelievers may come here and see such a lack of Christ's attributes in those who could easily be mistaken to be claiming they are foremost in the faith.

    I don't know Greek, but I disagree with the author that awareness of the root words is inconsequential. The differences in the two Greek words used to denote covering, along with the fact that Paul discusses baldness/short hair and lack of covering as distinct things seem to clearly denote that covering is additional to natural tresses.

    We are not here to win battles of personal bias, to be witnessed as the best moms of the most children, or those with the longest skirts and hair. We are here to glorify God out of intense love, not because we are good, but because He first loved us. Our purpose in discussing the Holy Word should be to better understand our Father so that our hearts, submitted to the Holy Spirit, might learn to follow, not in dead works, but in active surrender to Him working though us.

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  116. Zsuzsanna, I have done an independent study on this subject in a flow chart style with just verses and notes, if you would like to read it. https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bx44W_xQvLzoWkxaMGlvaHV3VVk It seems to me that the problem is when people go beyond what the text says, or when they are confused by the Jewish men covering their heads--but they did not have Christ as their head, because it was before His time (and even now most of them reject Him, and they still cover their heads, don't they?) It is also very telling that the Roman Catholics teach salvation at least partly by works, along with so many other false teachings (praying to Mary, etc.), and the Pope, who is upheld by them to be the head of the church, covers his head to pray--an example of what not to do.

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  117. The title of your article is “Why Ladies Should Not Wear Head-Coverings.” The problem here is that you did not give any reason why they should not wear one.

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  118. As I read the article about head coverings, I immediately knew the author was in error according to his definitions of the words shorn and shaven. There is absolutely a difference in the two words depending on how and where they are used. In Paul's writings about head coverings, the word shorn means to cut, while the word shaven means completely shaved. The woman's hair is a natural covering for her head, but in public worship a spiritual or material head covering is required. Whenever the scriptures speak to the point of a man or woman covering their head, it's always about a material covering. History has always known women of Israel and surrounding areas to cover their heads with a material covering. Another fact, if a man wore a hat or turban into the church sanctuary, he would be considered as covering his head. This is why men of age have always removed their hats when entering a church building. Young men today have not been taught correctly and this is why many of them don't remove their hats in the church or other buildings they enter. A lack of true spiritual teaching. All women should cover their heads in a church sanctuary as a sign they are under the authority of their husbands. Likewise when a woman is praying or prophesying in public worship she is required or commanded to be covered (material covering) to show her submission to both her husband and to angels. Lastly this author declared that any church that required head coverings were also in error about how to receive salvation. First of all, everyone must repent of their sins, it's impossible to be saved without repenting. The bible says, "Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish" (Luke 13: 3,5). Second of all the Bible says, "he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved" (Mark 16:16). Again the Bible says, "And now why tarriest thou, arise, and be baptized,and wash away thy sins calling on the name of the Lord" (Acts 22:16). Neither repentance nor baptism is a work of man, but rather an act of obedience and an act of faith. Much error is in this article, and those who don't have the wisdom or scriptural knowledge can be misled and deceived. The Word of God must be rightly divided. Otherwise men as this author can mislead you and cause much destruction.

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  119. You know, I truly believe God looks at your heart. If you are wearing a head covering -- or not wearing one -- in order to honor God, I believe He understands this. This is not the big issue. What is? Micah 6:8: "What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?"

    Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets.” Matthew 22:38-40

    What counts most is loving God and your neighbor. LOVE. KINDNESS. JUSTICE. MERCY. Christians, debate the smaller points if you/we must. But let's put the emphasis on the big ones! And calling believers that believe differently than you on things other than the big issues "false Christians" ... where is the love in that?

    My feeling (and I may be wrong) is that when I'm praying in a church where all the women keep their heads covered, that is the right thing for me to do. But in a church where hardly anyone does, perhaps wearing a head covering would be standing out more than I need to.

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  120. I do wear all kinds of hats, kertchif, lacy veil, cowboy, straw hats, etc.... I love hats I think they are practical (keeping the sun off your face so you on't get skin cancer or keeping warm) and they are pretty :)

    I don't wear them at home much, but more when we go out, mostly because I HATE fixing hair!!!
    I also don't feel fully dressed without something in or on my hair (even a bow, headband, clips, etc. I dislike hair that just hangs in your face and isn't "done".

    A friend gave us challenged one time to fix our hair nicely, then cover it up, that would take away the prideful/glory of showing off a hairdo.

    It doesn't bother me if other people are covered or not. I do what I feel comfortable with at this point in my life.

    I started wearing an additional cover in church to prepare and focus MY mind. Not for anyone else.

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  121. I myself am a Christian Mennonite and I do believe in a head covering (whatever color, length it may be). They are a symbol to me of my loyalty and my submission.

    Every single person on earth will take the bible differently (even between wife and husband) and I don't believe that's a bad thing. As long as your intentions are of faith and you do your very best to follow the Lord I think your doing your best. There are so many versions of the same thing it's overwhelming!

    Just think of what it means to you and let others judge if they want. If you do what one person thinks is right the next will disagree and it becomes this big neverending cycle.

    God loves you and he wants you to join him in heaven some day, that's all that matters!

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  122. This is another type of head cover Time and Tru lots of women wear them now days that does not mean you are a Islam women or a nun it just obeying the Bible.
    There are lots of different colors and designs for Time and Tru head covering.
    We are not real sure if it just having long hair as your head covering or you need a scarf or some other type of head covering so people in the United States should get over it and let people live by the Bible not every thing in the Bible we understand we well find out when we get to heaven if we did it right or wrong so just stop making fun of people that do wear head covering.

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  123. There are lots of different type of head covering and designs this does not mean you are a Islam or Amish. Lots of women are going back to head coverings because of the bible.
    One type of head covering are Time And Tru that people can buy at Walmart they come in all different type of designs.
    Just remember the fad in the 1960 and 1970 women wore scarf and nobody thought anything of it.
    I think if a women wants to wear one its up to her or her husband if she married.
    there are better thing to fight over and some women where a head covering if their hair dose not go right in the morning.
    We will find out if we where right or not when we get to heaven so lets leave it at this.

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  124. After reading all the comments, my brain hurts so bad, I need to take a nap!

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  125. I am a young like a mennonite and I am reading this and I could not read the rest. I believe that everyone has their own conviction with God but I believe that we should all respect everyone's convictions and lives.

    P.S. I am not trying to be rude.

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  126. I just wanted to mention the one word about the hair being the only woman's covering...the Bible says it is given to her. A bonnet, a wrap, hat, you name it is not given it is purchased or made. The BIBLE says it is GIVEN. Which means God gave her the covering, the CREATOR gave her HAIR and not to cut it, but let it grow long. If the God of the bible knows the number of hairs on your head, this same God GAVE the woman her veil and it is her glory IF she doesn't lay scissors to it. AGAIN a VEIL is given not bought or put on, it already is on your head. Duh.

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  127. Sorry, but you are WAY off here. And I must say quite judgemental. I know many head covering churches that are spot on with salvation. You really need to look back to biblical history. I'm glad I'm not sitting under your false teachings. You better be careful because you just might be judged for the deception that you are teaching to others.

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Your KINDLY WORDED, constructive comments are welcome, whether or not they express a differing opinion. All others will be deleted without second thought.