Wearing the veil
God come to my assistance. Lord make haste to help me. Oh Sacred Heart of Jesus I trust in You.
I learned something today that I did not know. I can honestly say that in my almost 51 years I did not know that the church did not ok the non-use of the veil. I learned it from someone who is very knowledgeable and he gave me a paper on it. I told him that I have struggled with this for years and no one has been able to answer my question on the matter. It would seem that the powers that be have said nothing because they don't think the matter is worth the fight it would cause. According to my source it would be better if we the women of the church just quietly began to wear the veil and educate others quietly.
I am all for wearing the veil after the reason for doing so was explained to me. In fact I have one that I found at a thrift store hanging up with the pillow cases and place mats and I have a small one called a veil cap that I am planning to wear for prayers in side and out side of the church when Mass is not being said. Why this renewed interest you might ask? I'll explain; yesterday while participating in the Mass I was over come with such a feeling of love that I began to weep. The type of weeping that comes on all of a sudden and streams of tears just run down your cheeks. This morning I was asked to help distribute the Holy Body of Christ and as I did that feeling came again but the tears did not instead I found my self trembling ever so slightly. Then I attended a meeting for the Militia Immaculata of which I am a member and during the reflection time many things came up and one was centered on the veil. Now I have been struggling as I said for years about this should I or shouldn't I and one of the wives at the diaconate always wore hers at Mass and she was a convert from Mormonism. The rest of us cradle catholics didn't think anything of it and we neither questioned her about it or commented on it.
I was told that the misunderstanding came during the time of Vatican II when a reporter asked a Bishop about women wearing the veil and he commented that the subject was not discussed so the reporter then printed his story stating that women no longer had to wear the veil and women began to abandon the custom. Actually my mother never believed she should get rid of her veil so she did continue to wear it. It would appear that when the radical feminist became vocal the the veil became a symbol of servitude in the negative sense and when word got around that it was no longer necessary they felt that they had one a small victory over the male dominated church. Another misconception as well. They felt that it made women second class in the church. In fact NOW was recommending that all head coverings should be burned publicly in protest. Oh what a tangled web we weave. One of my favorite songs is called "The Servant Song" well actually there are two The Servant Song and just "Servant Song" but the words are similar. The ones I am thinking of are -- Won't you let me be your servant let me be as Christ to you pray that I may have the Grace to let you be my servant too.--- Now don't you see the irony. We are called to be servants of Christ a high honor we are not worthy of and yet the symbol that shows our obedience and servitude is no longer a part of our lives. It isn't about being less than a man or about not being good enough. A women was chosen to be the New Arc of the Covenant because no man could do it. We each have our part to play and if we can't be servants to each other how can we ever hope to be servants to God? It's goes back to what I wrote last night it isn't about us it's about Christ and his Church of which we are the body it is about a LOVE so strong and so big that it can't be understood unless we were to die on a cross the way Jesus did. Yes I am going to wear my veil again and my prayer cap and I have six more prayer caps if anyone wants them? I put it to my group we should put caps and veils in the gathering space just like we do the rosaries so if someone should see us wearing a veil and would like to do so they will be there for their use. Thank goodness I am still open to learn and re-learn the beauty of my religion. So if you see me with my veil on and you ask me why I am wearing it I will tell you with all my heart because I love Jesus and I want to show him that I am not afraid to belong to him and when I say I love the Lord with my whole heart, my whole mind and my whole soul it will be more than words it will really mean something.
I learned something today that I did not know. I can honestly say that in my almost 51 years I did not know that the church did not ok the non-use of the veil. I learned it from someone who is very knowledgeable and he gave me a paper on it. I told him that I have struggled with this for years and no one has been able to answer my question on the matter. It would seem that the powers that be have said nothing because they don't think the matter is worth the fight it would cause. According to my source it would be better if we the women of the church just quietly began to wear the veil and educate others quietly.
I am all for wearing the veil after the reason for doing so was explained to me. In fact I have one that I found at a thrift store hanging up with the pillow cases and place mats and I have a small one called a veil cap that I am planning to wear for prayers in side and out side of the church when Mass is not being said. Why this renewed interest you might ask? I'll explain; yesterday while participating in the Mass I was over come with such a feeling of love that I began to weep. The type of weeping that comes on all of a sudden and streams of tears just run down your cheeks. This morning I was asked to help distribute the Holy Body of Christ and as I did that feeling came again but the tears did not instead I found my self trembling ever so slightly. Then I attended a meeting for the Militia Immaculata of which I am a member and during the reflection time many things came up and one was centered on the veil. Now I have been struggling as I said for years about this should I or shouldn't I and one of the wives at the diaconate always wore hers at Mass and she was a convert from Mormonism. The rest of us cradle catholics didn't think anything of it and we neither questioned her about it or commented on it.
I was told that the misunderstanding came during the time of Vatican II when a reporter asked a Bishop about women wearing the veil and he commented that the subject was not discussed so the reporter then printed his story stating that women no longer had to wear the veil and women began to abandon the custom. Actually my mother never believed she should get rid of her veil so she did continue to wear it. It would appear that when the radical feminist became vocal the the veil became a symbol of servitude in the negative sense and when word got around that it was no longer necessary they felt that they had one a small victory over the male dominated church. Another misconception as well. They felt that it made women second class in the church. In fact NOW was recommending that all head coverings should be burned publicly in protest. Oh what a tangled web we weave. One of my favorite songs is called "The Servant Song" well actually there are two The Servant Song and just "Servant Song" but the words are similar. The ones I am thinking of are -- Won't you let me be your servant let me be as Christ to you pray that I may have the Grace to let you be my servant too.--- Now don't you see the irony. We are called to be servants of Christ a high honor we are not worthy of and yet the symbol that shows our obedience and servitude is no longer a part of our lives. It isn't about being less than a man or about not being good enough. A women was chosen to be the New Arc of the Covenant because no man could do it. We each have our part to play and if we can't be servants to each other how can we ever hope to be servants to God? It's goes back to what I wrote last night it isn't about us it's about Christ and his Church of which we are the body it is about a LOVE so strong and so big that it can't be understood unless we were to die on a cross the way Jesus did. Yes I am going to wear my veil again and my prayer cap and I have six more prayer caps if anyone wants them? I put it to my group we should put caps and veils in the gathering space just like we do the rosaries so if someone should see us wearing a veil and would like to do so they will be there for their use. Thank goodness I am still open to learn and re-learn the beauty of my religion. So if you see me with my veil on and you ask me why I am wearing it I will tell you with all my heart because I love Jesus and I want to show him that I am not afraid to belong to him and when I say I love the Lord with my whole heart, my whole mind and my whole soul it will be more than words it will really mean something.
posted by Nancy Garland | 3:39 PM
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