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Covering Testimony: Erin Burnett

Head Covering Testimonies
Name: Erin BurnettAge: 16Location: Belfast, United KingdomStarted Covering: June 2014

Erin Burnett

1) Introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a grammar school student from Northern Ireland. I grew up in a loving Christian home, but my conceptions of gender roles were skewed by the liberal church that we attended (ordained women, pro-choice etc). I never read the Bible but acted in a very self-righteous manner. God began to act in my life and I suddenly desired to read the scriptures for myself. That is when I was saved by the Lord Jesus Christ. Over time I realised that I could not stay in the church I grew up in because I did not feel that the Bible was given the correct authority. My parents gave me permission to leave when I turned 16 – they do not agree with me but they have been great in not letting it affect our relationship. These days my free time is mostly devoted to exam preparation, but in my free time I enjoy reading and writing Christian fiction. I also have an interest in the theology of Calvin and the other reformers and I hope to study theology when I leave school. My greatest desire is to become a wife and mother, but who knows what the Lord has in store!

2) Where do you attend church? Tell us a little bit about it. Do others practice headcovering there?

I have attended Mount Merrion Free Presbyterian Church ‘full time’ since January of this year. Before that I just attended the youth fellowship. It is a head covering church. One of the sermons on this website was preached there! It’s a fairly small church in the middle of a housing estate that is great for going out into the community and sharing the gospel. I love the expository preaching. The Free Church can have negative political connotations attached to it, but I assure you that their main focus is and always has been the gospel.

3) What led you to start covering?

When I first read the New Testament at the age of 14, there were many things that surprised and shocked me, especially 1 Timothy 2 and 1 Corinthians 11! Head covering in the Christian church was foreign to me. I though head covering was only for Muslims. I heard the cultural arguments but I just wasn’t convinced. Dismissing important parts of the text leads to a slippery slope where more and more teachings are rejected. We just need to look at most mainstream churches to see how dangerous this is. Other objections I encountered were that it was only for married women, or that ‘women’ was referring to adults only. I stopped and started with it for a while as I was not fully convinced. However, after seeking the Lord’s help and reading materials on websites such as this and Sermon Audio, I became ‘convinced in my own mind’ as Paul would say. I love head covering and God’s design for femininity in general. 🙂

4) What counsel can you give to women that do not cover out of fear?

Fear is Satan’s tool to keep us from living our Christian life to the full. What is the worst that could happen? After all, to the rest of the world it’s just a simple piece of cloth. Throughout our walk with Christ we will have to overcome many challenges and this can only be done through prayer and reading of his word. A favourite verse of mine is 2 Timothy 1:7: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
And hey, it might even be fun. 😉

5) What would you say is the best and the most difficult aspect about head covering?

The best thing about it would be that I feel much feminine, and there’s a physical symbol of my separation from the world and its feminist culture. It also proves to people that you take the Bible seriously (not implying that those who do not cover do not take it seriously!).

The most difficult aspect would be people assuming that you must be a legalist, or that I’ve succumbed to fundamentalist brainwashing. It’s also all too easy to start looking down at people who don’t cover, which is not the humble attitude we should have! Although head covering is important, we mustn’t let it distract it from the most important commandments of all.

6) What kind of covering(s) do you use? Where did you get them?

Right now I use crocheted hats like the one in the picture. My mother bought them for me, I’m not sure where from. I’m looking for more bandana sort of coverings for the summer months. A lot of the lovely websites that others have posted have hefty shipping fees for outsiders. 🙁 If anyone knows a good place in the UK/Europe, that would be great!

Would you like to share your story of how you came to believe in head covering? Tell us about it here.

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