I remember one of my elementary school teachers explaning that her habit allowed her to make a silent statement of her faith to all who see her wherever she went. It seems a shame that making such a lovely, non-confrontational statement is considered unnecessary today. I think the opposite may be true.
Except when occasionally attending the Latin Mass, I choose not to wear a mantilla or hat. I still remember once in awhile not having the chapel cap for a high school Mass in the gym, and frantically trying to borrow one or buy another at the bookstore for $1.00. Then there was always the "attractive sight" of seeing the girls with a Kleenex plopped on top of their heads across the gym. In this day and age some have told me they wear one as a sign of modesty with their skirt way too short and their blouse way too low. Others have told me they wear it as a sign of submission to the authority of their husbands--I do not ever recall being taught this pre-Vatican II. We simply did it as a sign of respect and because we were told to do it. I have no problem with women wearing one out of respect and reverence as long as there is no "holier than thou" attitude going along with it and if they are otherwise dressed appropriately. For me, I would rather see a woman in a skirt or dress at a Mass than pants, flip-flops and a veil--just does not seem to go together!
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Veiled conveys a sense of the sacred and the mysterious!
I remember one of my elementary school teachers explaning that her habit allowed her to make a silent statement of her faith to all who see her wherever she went. It seems a shame that making such a lovely, non-confrontational statement is considered unnecessary today. I think the opposite may be true.
Except when occasionally attending the Latin Mass, I choose not to wear a mantilla or hat. I still remember once in awhile not having the chapel cap for a high school Mass in the gym, and frantically trying to borrow one or buy another at the bookstore for $1.00. Then there was always the "attractive sight" of seeing the girls with a Kleenex plopped on top of their heads across the gym.
In this day and age some have told me they wear one as a sign of modesty with their skirt way too short and their blouse way too low. Others have told me they wear it as a sign of submission to the authority of their husbands--I do not ever recall being taught this pre-Vatican II. We simply did it as a sign of respect and because we were told to do it. I have no problem with women wearing one out of respect and reverence as long as there is no "holier than thou" attitude going along with it and if they are otherwise dressed appropriately. For me, I would rather see a woman in a skirt or dress at a Mass than pants, flip-flops and a veil--just does not seem to go together!
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