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What is a Head Covering? Is it a Woman’s Long Hair or a Veil?

In 1 Corinthians 11, the Apostle Paul instructs women to cover their heads while praying or prophesying. For 1900 years, the church understood Paul to be speaking of an artificial covering such as a veil or scarf. However, in the 20th century, a view began to gain popularity which argued that Paul wasn’t speaking about veils, but hair lengths. In this video we’ll overview this debate and provide 5 reasons for why we believe a woman is to cover her long hair with an artificial covering when praying or prophesying.

This video is an adaptation of an article we wrote here.

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John Murray Quote Image #3

John Murray Quote Image #3

Source: John Murray – Head Coverings and Decorum in Worship: A Letter (1973) – Point #2

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Are Appropriate Hair Lengths Dictated by Culture?

Head Covering Objections
The Objection: Appropriate hair lengths are dictated by culture, not nature. In many cultures long hair on men is normative such as the Native American Indians. When Paul mentioned ‘nature’ he was appealing to their cultural perception of what was right to them.

One objection to calling long hair unnatural for men is the fact that in many cultures it isn’t seen as offensive. One example often cited is the Native American Indians in which many men wore their hair long. If in some cultures it’s acceptable for men to wear long hair, how can we say nature teaches the opposite?

Right In Their Own Eyes

First it’s important to establish that just because a culture embraces something does not make it right. A good example are the Mosuo people of China where the heads of their households are women. Though they probably see this as right in their own eyes, it is not how God designed it to be. It is the opposite of God’s created order (1 Cor 11:3).

Was Long Hair on Men Shameful?

Another misconception is a wrong view of Paul’s own culture. Since Paul called long hair on men “dishonorable” (1 Cor 11:14) those who advocate a cultural view of hair lengths assume that long hair on men would have been seen as shameful. The problem with this view is that solid literary evidence suggests otherwise. Read more

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Why Head Coverings? Reason #3: Nature

Biblical Case for Head Coverings

“…the long hair is an indication from ‘nature’ of the differentiation between men and women, and so the head covering required is in line with what ‘nature’ teaches.” – John Murray (Professor, Westminster Theological Seminary, 1930-66) 1) From ‘Head Coverings and Decorum in Worship’ a letter from John Murray to Mr. V. Connors www.headcoveringmovement.com/articles/head-coverings-and-decorum-in-worship-a-letter-by-john-murray

Paul’s third reason for head coverings is probably the most confusing and misunderstood of all his arguments. It’s an appeal to a persons sense of what’s right, based upon what nature teaches us. I’ll break that down more as we continue, but for now let’s look at our next verse.

Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? (1 Cor 11:13 NASB)

A rhetorical question according to the Random House dictionary is “asked solely to produce an effect or make an assertion.” This is what Paul is doing when he says “judge for yourselves”. We know this primarily because he just finished a lengthy defense for why we must practice head coverings. He wouldn’t then overturn that by allowing you to choose if you want to obey a doctrine rooted in creation. Rather Paul is declaring the debate closed. He’s saying “you all know this is the only right option”. No one would say that it’s proper for a woman to pray uncovered in church. That may not be so obvious to you right now, but stick with me.

This isn’t the first time believers are told to “judge for yourselves”. In fact we’ll turn to a few of those passages now to help us see this verse more clearly. Read more

References

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↑ From ‘Head Coverings and Decorum in Worship’ a letter from John Murray to Mr. V. Connors www.headcoveringmovement.com/articles/head-coverings-and-decorum-in-worship-a-letter-by-john-murray
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