#coaliciónresponde is a weekly entry where the contributors of the Coalition for the Gospel respond to various concerns. You can use #coalicionresponde on social networks or write to us with your questions.
Before answering the question, it is important to clarify that not all topics in the Bible have the same importance. The way to determine the priority of a biblical theme has to do with how repeated the theme is throughout the biblical narrative, and how close it is to the gospel.
The question of the place of the veil in the church only appears in one place in the entire Bible: 1 Corinthians 11:3-16. Therefore, I must begin by saying that, regardless of the conclusions we might have, we cannot make the issue of the veil a central issue. As the same passage teaches us, this should not be cause for contention (1 Corinthians 11:16).
When studying a passage like this we should always look for the Biblical principles behind the forms or practices described. In fact, I already talked a little more about the differences between principle and form. In this sense, in 1 Corinthians 11:3-16 I find 3 principles that Paul wants to point out. The principles are clear, the forms (the wearing of the veil) are some of the most difficult to understand and interpret in all of the New Testament.
1. The principle of order
Verse 3 states the purpose of this section:
“But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.”
There is debate among scholars as to whether the meaning of the word “head” is authority or source/origin. But no matter what the meaning of “head” is in the text, Paul wants us to see that there is an order, especially in terms of the roles that each one must play.
In verse 10 it says that the woman should have a sign of “authority” on her head. According to verse 3, that authority would be the man or husband (there is also debate as to whether the nature of the relationship Paul is referring to is man-woman or husband-wife). It is interesting that it seems that Paul wants us to know that the angels themselves are witnesses of the order that should exist in the services of a church (although the meaning of “angels” is also debated).
How do we honor order in the church? We honor it when a woman’s participation in the church is clearly under the final authority of the man or husband. That is why Paul gives the commandment: “But every woman who has her head uncovered while she prays or prophesies dishonors her head, because she becomes one with the one with whom she is shaved” (v. 5).
In Greco-Roman culture, a woman’s hair was commonly considered the object of lust for men. It is also known that in Corinthian culture temple prostitutes—as well as celebrity women—did not wear veils and probably had flashy, showy hairstyles, in contrast to working-class women, both Roman and Jewish, who always covered their heads. head in public Jewish women even covered their faces.
The attitudes of the Corinthian women represented the feminism of the time, which challenged the common practices of decorum for women. In contrast, shaving has always had a context of shame (eg adultery) or mourning (Deuteronomy 21:12) for the woman. The principle is that when the woman participates in the church, that she shows submission to the order established by God by covering her head (in contrast to the feminism of the time), and trying to remain silent to show that she is not trying to dominate over the role of the man or her husband (1 Corinthians 14:34-35). The equivalent of not submitting to God’s order is shame (being shaved).
Man, on the other hand, should not cover his head, because it would be an affront to his head (v. 4). Again, these passages are best interpreted in light of the veiling in this society. 1) If a man covered his head, it could have several meanings for those present: following the Jewish tradition of covering his head with a prayer shawl, which would represent an image of being under Jewish law for Gentiles who did not understand these practices. 2) The symbolism of covering the head when someone is in mourning, which is contrary to the reason for coming together to celebrate Christ’s victory over death. 3) The resemblance of head coverings to members of the Isis cult, which Paul wants to avoid. Whatever cultural significance Paul has in mind when the man covers his head, it has to do with how he reflects his God-given authority and responsibility.
The order and responsibilities of genders was established by God himself from creation, before there was sin. “For the man should not cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but the woman is the glory of man. Because the man does not come from the woman, but the woman from the man. Truly man was not created because of woman, but woman because of man” (1 Corinthians 11:7-9).
The way we express ourselves externally should reflect our internal willingness to submit to the order and authorities established by God. ‘Glory’ is a reference to the reflection of our source or origin, but both male and female are created in the image and likeness of God (which is why Paul mentions likeness only once).
2. The principle of complementarianism
Paul wants to make it clear that the relationship he is pointing out between man and woman has nothing to do with their value before God. That is why he says “However, in the Lord, neither is the woman independent of the man, nor is the man independent of the woman. For just as the woman proceeds from the man, so the man is born from the woman; and all things are from God” (1 Corinthians 11:11-12).
Unlike the Christ-man relationship, the man-woman relationship is characterized by being of the same essence and value. Charles Hodge says of this relationship: “The subservience of the woman to the man is something totally different from that of the man to Christ; and that again is in a degree infinitely more complete than the subordination of Christ to God. And further, as the woman’s subordination to man is perfectly consistent with her identity as his nature, so Christ’s subordination to God is consistent with his having the same nature as the Father.
3. The principle of modesty
Paul wants the Corinthians to understand that a woman is to act and dress like a woman, and that a man is to act and dress like a man. That’s why he emphasizes so much the difference between the way both should wear their hair (men short; women long). In men, long hair was considered effeminate and was contrary to both Jewish and Greek custom. But for women, long hair is like a natural veil. Part of the meaning of veil in the text is the way she wears her hair: decorously and femininely (v. 15).
So, should a woman wear a veil?
It is clear that in the cultural context in which this letter was written the veil had a meaning that it no longer has today (especially in the West). Therefore, it is very difficult to apply the principle of the veil in the same way that it was applied in the Corinthian culture. In many churches where the veil is worn today, it is used in a very different way (not a cloak that covers all the hair and face, but just a small circle that covers only part of the head), as well as having no cultural significance. outside the church.
However, I also don’t think it’s a problem if a woman wants to wear a veil during church worship to honor the principles of this passage. As we have already seen, it is really about biblical principles of order and motivations of the heart. Submission is a voluntary disposition to an authority and to an order established by God.
Whether or not the women in your church wear veils, we must show in the way we dress and act that we want to honor order, complementarity, and modesty that point to the very attributes of God.
“But if someone seems to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God,” 1 Corinthians 11:16
Riddlebarger, Kim, First Corinthians (Tolle Lege Press: Powder Springs, 2013), p. 259
Hodge, Charles, 1 Corinthians (Crossway: Wheaton, 1995), p. 188-189
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