Why the Veil?

Since talking about my veil in my last post, some have asked why the Church required a head covering and why it doesn’t now.  The short answer would probably include an exhortation of obedience to sacred scripture and the tradition of the time.  The wearing of a head covering, however, is a discipline; it isn’t and never was a matter of doctrine.  Traditions change and the importance of an action can be lost and can become just habit.  The Code of Cannon Law 1983 ended the obligation of the discipline.

With the obligation lifted and with the changes wrought by the implementations of Vatican II, a more modern way of thinking crept into the choice of wearing or not wearing the veil.  By the time I returned to the Church, the wearing of veils was entirely gone.

From the reading I’ve been doing on the subject and from the few women I’ve talked to on the choice, I’ve learned that the wearing of the veil is very much the answer to a call from the Holy Spirit.  In my case, I was hearing whispers of the possibility long before I actually took the veil back.  When I did, it had absolutely nothing to do with submissiveness to men.  It was about humility before God and my obedience to Him.  The veil covers my head but not my face.  At Mass, I am surrounded by a lightness that allows me to focus entirely on Him while not cutting me off from the community within the church.

I also feel a close attachment to Mary, His Blessed Mother.  She was always veiled and like her, I understand that the veil is a symbol of the different roles of men and women.  I like this distinction.  I like the veil as an outward sign of my special calling, as a woman, to serve Him as He asks me to serve.

I also honor St. Veronica who, when Christ carried His cross, recognized His real presence and gave Him her veil to wipe his face.  He gave her the blessing of His image in return for this act of kindness.

Many people regard scriptural references to women and submission as a negative but these references do not mean that women are less.  Men and women are equal in dignity and value before the Lord.  In a marriage governed by the principle of submission, both husband and wife are called to submission; she to her husband and he to Christ.  Just as Christ loves his Church and would not harm it, so a husband loves his wife and would do nothing to harm or diminish her. 

I’ve had to battle through my feelings of discomfort and self-consciousness as I’m often the only veiled woman in a church everywhere I go.  But six months of veiling has brought me to an understanding of why I have answered this calling.  I love the Lord and I choose to honor Him with this symbol of my submission to Him, my humility before Him, and as a sign of my special place as a woman in His plan for us.  I also love Mary, His mother and our mother.  She is my model of womanhood and whether a woman works, chooses a career, has a family, and often, in our society, is trying to do both, she is the exemplar of strength that has something for all women, no matter how they lives their lives.

I would encourage women of any age to try the veil again but with thought and discernment.  It is a calling and isn’t necessarily something that all women should even try to do.  But, if you are attracted to the possibility, it would not hurt to try it.  I started in the winter when it was cold and in church, I simply did not lower my scarf.  It was a start.  Each of us can find our own unique way if the call is answered with a “yes”.  It’s just a matter of listening, discerning, and then, deciding.