Today I will begin a series of posts to discuss the subject of Head Covering since there is a Movement called the Head Covering Movement based on their understanding of 1 Corinthians 11:5 and beyond.
I will share the views of some Roman Catholic Church Fathers, Protestant Reformers, as well as some well known men in the Evangelical world from the 16th Century until today on this topic before looking at the people who are leading this Head Covering Movement.
Tertullian (150 - 225 A.D.)
Writing about 160 years after Paul's 1 Corinthians letter, Tertullians states, "For throughout Greece, and in certain of its barbaric provinces, the majority of churches kept their women covered, so let no one ascribe this custom merely to the Gentile customs of the Greeks and Barbarians.The Corinthians themselves understood him (the Apostle Paul) to speak in this manner. For to this very day the Corinthians veil their virgins. So, on both sides of the matter, the apostle has written with sufficient clarity, in fact, he says quite succinctly, "every woman." What does "every" mean if it doesn't mean every class, every order, every condition, and every age." It is notable that Paul never appeals to the customs of the day in his arguments for the use of headcoverings.The practice of headcoverings as described in 1 Corinthians 11 was not a specific Greek, Asian or Roman custom. The failure to wear a headcovering would not have caused a scandal among the local population. Paul's appeal to nature, creation and angels indicates that the veiling was the most appropriate expression of headship in the church in every age.
My Comment
Tertullian mentioned the following subjects: nature, creation, angels, the veiling of women and headship.
According to him nature, creation and angels teach us something about the veiling of women in relation to headship.
These words can be found in 1 Corinthians 11, a chapter written by the Apostle Paul.
1.The word "nature" can be found in 1 Corinthians 11:14-15 Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him but that if a woman has long hair it is her glory?
2.The word creation can not be found in the chapter but he may be hinted at it in 1 Corinthians 11:3 Now I want you to realise that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.
3.The word angels appears in 1 Corinthians 11:10 For this reason, and because of the angels, the woman ought to have (a sign of) authority on her head.
4.The word veiling does not appear anywhere in the chapter but the word cover can be found in 1 Corinthians 11:5 And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonours her head - it is just as if her head were shaved. If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved off, she should cover her head.
5.The word "headsip" does not appear in chaper 1 Corinthians 11 but the word "head" appears in 1 Corinthains 11:3 Now I want you to realise that the head of every man is Christ, ad the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.
Let's now begin to look at each term used by Tertullian
1. Nature....Paul possibly used this term in his debate with the Greek believers. We are not quite clear what he meant with the words in this verse.
2. Creation.... As I have already said, the term "creation" cannot be found in 1 Corinthians 11. However, it seems Paul referred to the Creation Account of Genesis 1 -2 when he mentioned in 1 Corinthians 11:3 that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man... Paul used the Greek term "kephale" here which means "source," "source of life" for Christ was the source of life for the first man from whom every human has descended and the first man was the source of life for the first woman. Tertullian obviously correctly understood that "head"meant "source," "source of life" in this context.
3. Angels... Paul used this term in 1 Corinthians 11:10 For this reason, and because of the angels. the woman ought to have (a sign of) authority on her head.... It is unclear as to why Paul referred here to angels so we better not speculate.
4. "Veiling....The word "veiling" can not be found in 1 Corinthians 11 but he may be referring to 1 Corintians 11:5 which states that Every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonours her head...... she should cover her head. Tertullian seemed to understand from this verse that women's heads should be covered and he understood that the covering was to be done by being veiled. Sadly, he did not realise that the words in 1 Corinthians 11:5 were not Paul's words but were part of a quotation of religious leaders in Corinth Paul corrected later on in that same chapter.
5. Headship... The word "headship" does not appear in this chapter. Neither does it appear anywhere else in Scripture. It is a made-up term possibly related to the man being the head of the woman. Very likely, Tertullian accepted this term "headship" and understood it to mean that men were to be in authority over women because of the culture of his time when women were seen as inferior beings who were under the authority of men. This despite the fact that he correctly understood that 1Corinthians11:3 ... man is the head of the woman... is related to the Creation Account. Consequently, "head" could not mean "authority" but had to mean "source of life" as indeed it did....It seems he could not put aside his traditional/cultural view of men and women as we can see from his statement that "the veiling was the most appropriate expression of headship in the church in every age." which seems to indicate that he believed in the church women were to wear a veil as a sign of their submission to men's authority. He, futhermore, taught that this was not just for his time but for every age. Unfortunately, this unbiblical term "headship" and its meaning of "authority" has indeed been taught throughout the centuries and is still being taught today as I will prove in future posts.
Read Part Two HERE
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