1 Corinthians 11:1-16
2 I am so glad that you always keep me in your thoughts, and that you are following the teachings I passed on to you. 3 But there is one thing I want you to know: The head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.[a] 4 A man dishonors his head[b] if he covers his head while praying or prophesying. 5 But a woman dishonors her head[c] if she prays or prophesies without a covering on her head, for this is the same as shaving her head. 6 Yes, if she refuses to wear a head covering, she should cut off all her hair! But since it is shameful for a woman to have her hair cut or her head shaved, she should wear a covering.[d]
7 A man should not wear anything on his head when worshiping, for man is made in God’s image and reflects God’s glory. And woman reflects man’s glory. 8 For the first man didn’t come from woman, but the first woman came from man. 9 And man was not made for woman, but woman was made for man. 10 For this reason, and because the angels are watching, a woman should wear a covering on her head to show she is under authority.[e]
11 But among the Lord’s people, women are not independent of men, and men are not independent of women. 12 For although the first woman came from man, every other man was born from a woman, and everything comes from God.
13 Judge for yourselves. Is it right for a woman to pray to God in public without covering her head? 14 Isn’t it obvious that it’s disgraceful for a man to have long hair?15 And isn’t long hair a woman’s pride and joy? For it has been given to her as a covering. 16 But if anyone wants to argue about this, I simply say that we have no other custom than this, and neither do God’s other churches.
Should women wear head coverings in worship?
A few months ago I was talking to my niece and this was a question that she was wrestling with. Should she be covering her head in worship and if not, then is it right to pick and choose which parts of the Bible should be applied and which should not.
This is a real challenge and (heads up!) there will be an even harder passage in chapter 14 which demands that women remain silent in churches but we will explore that when we get there. However, her question I think is important. We can not pick and choose what passages we like and which we will throw away and ignore. However, the argument is muddy and complicated, so hold on and get ready to think openly and we will go slowly.
There are two main schools of thought here and I want to do my best to show you the debate around this passage and then will finish with what I think matters.
- What was the context?
Remember that this is a letter. Paul is writing to a church and they have had problems with their morality and disorder in their gatherings. Paul sees communal worship as sacred and holy and the reports are that they are being wild. He is writing to help them to live lives that reflect the Gospel.
- What does the word ‘head’ mean?
The word that he uses here is kephalē which can have two different meanings. It can describe authority over something (e.g. headmaster) or it can describe the source of something (e.g. fountainhead). Gordon Fee, a prominent biblical scholar says:
“She is thus man’s glory because she ‘came from man’ and was created ‘for him.’ She is not thereby subordinate to him, but necessary for him. She exists to his honor as the one who having come from man is the companion suitable for him, so that he might be complete.”
Paul is either saying that men have authority over women and so women should be subordinate or he is saying that women came from men and so should be treated valuably. Let’s continue.
- What does this headship for the Godhead?
In whatever way we interpret the relationship between men and women, we must also apply to the relationship between the Trinity. One of the common arguments in the feminist movement is that equality means to do the same things. However, within the Trinity there are different roles that do not imply inequality. God the Father sends the Son but the Son does not send the Father. It is possible to have equality and different roles. Those who argue for authority would remind us that the Father sends the Son but the Son never sends the Father. There can be equality and hierarchy.
Conversely, those who argue that the word means source argue Christ was made flesh by the Father but was always one with the Father. So, the connection to the Trinity is not about their different roles but their unity. Men and women work together in harmony seeing their differences as strengths. I have also heard it argued that verse 10 is better understood as women having authority over whether they want to cover their heads rather than women covering their heads because they are under authority. However, I have never read a translation that goes that far.
- What is the centre of Paul’s argument?
In verses 11-12 Paul states that women came from men but that every other man has come from women. His point is certainly that women and men are equal. He then also goes on to state that women’s long hair is their covering and that should be enough. So, the hair covering is not the point so much as the relationship between men and women within a corporate worship setting.
Finally, he finishes with the encouragement for people to judge for themselves but states that this is their custom (that women cover their heads), implying that it is his preference that they do.
So, what was Paul doing?
I think that Paul was trying to get balance. On the one hand, he argues for equality between the sexes and uses the Trinity as a parallel. On the other hand, they are acting in a way that is unlike any other church and he wants them to rein it in. I don’t think that he cares too much about head coverings but I believe that his point is that they should be operating in a way that brings honour to God, rather than thinking of themselves and their own desires. This is not to say that women must be subservient to men but that the pulpit is not a place to fight or to glorify ourselves as the women were doing. Our worship is always completely about bringing glory to God.
