Read Part One HERE
In this post I will continue to discuss the subject of Head Covering since today there is a Movement called the Head Covering Movement based on 1 Corinthians 11:5 and beyond
And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonours her head - it is just as though her head were shaved....
In this post I will share the viewpoint of well known Roman Catholic Church Father St John Chrysostom (347 - 407 A.D.)
1. St John Chrysostom; "The business of whether to cover one's head was legislated by nature. When I say "nature" I mean "God." For He is the One who created nature.Take note, therefore, what great harm comes from overturning these boundaries! And don't tell me that this is a small sin."
2. St John Chrysostom has furthermore stated: "The angels are present here... Open the eyes of faith and look upon this sight. For if the very air is filled with angels, how much more so the Church!... Hear the Apostle teaching this, when he bids women to cover their heads with a veil because of the presence of the angels."
My Comment
1. As for the business of whether to cover one's head was legislated by "nature", or in fact, by God, God did indeed create "nature" as we know from the Genesis 1 Account in which we are given details of what exactly God created and at which day He created certain parts of "nature". In that same chapter we are given an account of the creation of the first man and the first woman. I presume he believed that the first man was given authority over the first woman at that time even though we know that they were both given the task of ruling over creation, which is confirmed in Genesis 2 when the woman was formed from the man's side as his equal partner. St John Chrysostom then connected the Creation Account of Genesis 1 and 2 and referred to in 1 Corinthians 11:3.... the man is head (kephale) (meaning source of life) of the woman.... to 1 Corinthians 11:5 And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovers dishonours her head.... believing the words in this verse are part of Paul's teaching. But St John Chrysostom is not correct in his understanding for these words are not part of Paul's teaching but are part of a quotation from a letter Paul had received in which some religious leaders in the church in Corinth taught that women were to have "something coming down from their head" as a sign of their submission to a male authority. St John Chrysostom believed that the words "something coming down from their head" was to be understood as a veil. However, we are not entirely sure what it means. Moreover, Paul did not teach here that women were to wear a veil or anything else on their head as a sign of their submission to the authority of men. St John Chrysostom was, therefore, teaching something more in line with these religious leaders in the church in Corinth than with Paul's teaching. Paul's teaching, in the form of a rebuke against these religious leaders can be found in 1 Corinthians 11:11-16.
2. As for the Apostle teaching women to cover their heads with a veil because of the presence of the angels, St John Chrysostom refers here to 1 Corinthians 11:10
For this reason and because of the angels, the woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head.
However, the words "a sign of" have been added to the text by translators because they believed that the woman was under submission to the man's authority. But the original text simply states that the woman had "exousia" on her head, meaning she had power or authority on her head. And this power or authority is her own power or authority. So Paul was not teaching here that women were to cover their heads with a veil because of the angels but it is a teaching brought into the church, including by St John Chrysostom, because they believed that women had to wear a veil as a sign they were under submission to men's authority... As for the statement "because of the angels" we cannot be certain as to its meaning....
Read Part Three HERE
No comments:
Post a Comment