Question: Should a woman cover her head for worship?

Answer: This is a long answer but it needs to be to completely understood what 1 Corinthians 11 is talking about...
We must first of all understand that Paul was writing to the church at Corinth and before you say, that's obvious,
I think we should try to understand what all that the history, the religion, and especially the culture entails.
If one was reading a letter from a pen-pal in India one would need to grasp the conditions under which he or she lived to better understand what was being said. So when we read any book of the bible, because it refers to churches in other countries; we should first try to understand the things pertaining to that country, during that time period, before we make statements, or judgments, or jump to conclusions.
In order to comprehend why Paul needed to answer this question for the Corinthian Church of God, which held their meetings in members houses, as to whether a woman should cover her head or not, we should all know that Corinth was a pagan city, the capital of the Roman province Achaia, and was the most important city in Greece during Roman times. The Corinthians worshiped Aphrodite the pagan goddess of love, beauty, and fertility, and in the temple dedicated to her worship over 1,000 slave-priestesses, known as sacred prostitutes, served. During their worship, if they were prophesying, they let their hair hang down loosely round their shoulders.
The city of Corinth had a population of over 700,000 who were mainly given to self-indulgence, and vice. The morals of the Corinthians were very bad, corrupt even when compared to pagan Rome. It was the custom throughout the region to shave the heads of female slaves and also women who were guilty of fornication or adultery. The sign of marriage in that day was the wearing of a veil or distinctive hairstyle, as a wedding ring is in our society today.
Obviously the emerging Christian church had it's problems just as the Israelites had when they left Egypt, learning new things but remembering the old. One can imagine how hard it must have been for Paul to establish a Christian church there, he also had opposition from some of the resident Jews. He replies:--

1 Corinthians 11:1-3"Be ye followers of me, even as I also {am} of Christ. Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered {them} to you. But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman {is} the man; and the head of Christ {is} God". (KJV)
PAUL IS SAYING HERE THAT CHRIST IS THE CHIEF OR FOREMOST OF EVERY MAN AND WOMAN, AND MAN IS THE CHIEF OR FOREMOST OF THE WOMAN, AND GOD IS THE CHIEF OR FOREMOST OF CHRIST.

1 Corinthians 11:4 "Every man praying or prophesying, having {his} head covered, dishonoureth his head". (KJV)
EVERY MAN HAVING HIS ACTUAL HEAD COVERED, DISHONOURETH CHRIST.

1 Corinthians 11:5 "But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with {her} head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven". (KJV)
SOME MARRIED WOMEN IN THE CHURCH WERE OBVIOUSLY REMEMBERING AND COPYING WHAT THE TEMPLE-SLAVES DID, AND WERE UNCOVERING THEIR HEADS AND LETTING THEIR HAIR DOWN. IN DOING THIS THEY DISHONOURED THEIR HEAD, ( head here is obviously referring to THEIR HUSBANDS). UNCOVERING THEIR HEADS WAS THE SAME AS HAVING THEIR HEADS SHAVED.

1 Corinthians 11:6 "For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered". (KJV)
IF THE WOMAN IS NOT VEILED THEN LET HER BE SHAVED. BUT IF IT SHAMES HER THEN LET HER BE COVERED, VEILED.


1Corinthians 11:7-10 "For a man indeed ought not to cover {his} head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man. For this cause ought the woman to have power on {her} head because of the angels". (KJV)
THE WOMAN OUGHT TO HAVE POWER, A VEIL, ON HER HEAD TO SHOW THE ANGELS WHO WATCH OVER US THAT SHE RESPECTS AND SUBMITS TO HER HUSBAND AND THEREFORE TO CHRIST.


1 Corinthians 11:11,12 "Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord. For as the woman {is} of the man, even so {is} the man also by the woman; but all things of God".
NEVERTHELESS BOTH SHOULD LOVE AND RESPECT EACH OTHER.

1 Corinthians 11:13 "Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered?" (KJV)
PAUL IS ASKING THE CORINTHIANS, BECAUSE OF YOUR CUSTOM OF MARRIED WOMEN WEARING THEIR HAIR IN A CERTAIN FASHION AND/OR WEARING A VEIL AT ALL TIMES, TO SHOW THEIR SUBMISSION TO THEIR HUSBANDS, IS IT RIGHT THAT THEY SHOULD LET THEIR HAIR HANG DOWN LOOSELY WHEN PROPHESYING BEFORE GOD IN CHURCH ASSEMBLY?

1 Corinthians 11:14 "Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?" (KJV)
BECAUSE HE WILL LOOK LIKE A WOMAN.

1 Corinthians 11:15 "But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for {her} hair is given her for a covering". (KJV)
PAUL IS SAYING HERE THAT THE LONG HAIR OF A WOMAN IS NATURAL EVIDENCE OF HER WOMANLY POSITION UNDER MAN, INSTEAD OF A VEIL.

1 Corinthians 11:16 "But if any man seem to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God". (KJV)
BUT IF ANY MAN IN THE CORINTHIAN CHURCH WANTS TO ARGUE OVER THE ISSUE AND WHAT I HAVE WRITTEN, PAUL SAYS, "WE HAVE NO SUCH CUSTOM, NEITHER THE CHURCHES OF GOD." HE IS SAYING, WE OF OURSELVES HAVE NO SUCH CUSTOM AND NEITHER DO THE CHURCHES OF GOD.

I think it should now be plain to all what Paul was saying in 1 CORINTHIANS 11:1-16.
He starts out by telling us the order of things under Almighty God in relation to humans. GOD is first with Christ under Him then man under both God the Father and Christ and finally woman is under man. The bible states quite clearly, woman was made for man, man was not made for woman. That does not mean woman is less than man, because God once again says in Ephesians 5:24-28, both should respect each other. It simply means that there is an order with God and man, just as there is an order in the animal world. ALL BY THE ALMIGHTY CREATORS DESIGN.
"Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so {let} the wives {be} to their own husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself". (KJV)

The bible says a woman's long hair is in itself a covering given by God so there is no need for any other covering.
Paul ends this discourse by saying if anyone disagreed with his appraisal of that situation, in the Corinthian church, then they should know that neither he (and his companions) nor the Church of God had such a custom.
So quite clearly there is no ruling in the bible that says all women should cover their heads in worship service to God.

[I would add that neither is it a sin for a woman to wear a head covering. However, to bind it upon others is going beyong what Paul taught (1 Corinthians 6:4). CS-webmaster]

By Penny Mae

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