Why men don't wear mantillas in church

No matter how handsome the hat, it should
not be worn by men in church. The late Roy Campbell.

There's the obvious reason, of course, a mantilla, veil or headscarf is an item of feminine attire.

But. why then do men not wear a cap, a fedora or trilby at Mass?

Because, in Western Catholic society, the norm is for a male to remove headgear upon entering a house.

It is a mark of respect to the host.

If I, or any of my brothers entered the family home still wearing a school cap or a hat my dear father would immediately challenge such behaviour with the words: "Is thy father a Jew?".
At which point the offending article would be removed with haste.

Now, leaving aside what St Paul had to say on the matter, it is a fact that a woman may enter a home without removing her headgear and not cause offence. Do you see where we are coming to?

The protocol has been set; men do not wear hats in the home. Women may.

In Church, the same applies and, I hate to use this well worn phrase, but.....before Vatican II, all women wore the veil or mantilla to Mass. It was plain good manners.

I am not going to go into the reasons why and the beauty that such humility brings because this post on Catholicism Pure and Simple covers it so very well.

I am also, I suspect, preaching to the converted.

But, if you are not one of the converted, and, provided that you are female, give the matter some serious, mature, non knee jerk reflection - (please).

The wearing of mantillas.....so unfair

                                             

I mean, we men have no such easy means of assuming an aura of humility and dedication of self to God.

Women may carry a mantilla with them in their pocket or handbag and, hey presto, within a few seconds transform themselves from the worldly to the angelic.

Whenever I attend Mass with my daughters, my heart misses a beat when I turn and catch sight of them, head bent in prayer and a mantilla gracefully hiding the glory of their hair from the sight of man, but not from God.

In that instant I realise that they belong not to me but to Almighty God and that I am just the part time caretaker, the hired hand who only has a passing involvement in something much more intimate and beautiful, the relationship between them and Our Lord.

So, the mantilla has a transforming effect and that is why it is so unfair; we males have nothing remotely approaching this mantle of sanctity; we have to remove our cloth caps and go bareheaded into the House of the Lord, like schoolboys removing their caps while in the presence of the Head.

We stand there, dull and ordinary and zombie like while our wives and daughters positively glow.

It is good, therefore, to see another 'mantilla' blog appear, this time from Oxford's Amanda Lewin, please visit her blog 'Loving Mantillas' and add it to your bloglist.

This is Amanda's second blog (masochist) her first one being
 Catholic Home Education.

Why not visit both?  Why not add both?

What if I attended Mass tomorrow and.....

...wore a hat?

As a male, I mean. Could I enter the church and take my place in a pew wearing, let us say, a pretty natty fedora?

OK in the Synagogue but not in a Catholic church
that's the custom you see?

Would anyone notice? I think that they would...a man wearing a hat in church would stick out like, well, a man wearing a hat in church!

Would people be scandalised? I would hope so. It is our culture, unlike that of the Jew, Muslim, Sikh or Hindu, for men to go bareheaded at Mass; in church, at all times.

It would be grossly wrong and offensive to do such a thing. As a boy at home I was not allowed to even enter the home wearing my school cap.

"Is thy father a Jew?" was the usual challenge from my Pa and, of course, I would remove the offending article pretty damn quick.

I believe that few men would enter a home with their hat still on. It is not just in church that this rule applies, our culture extends into the home situation as well.

And when men who are wearing a hat meet a priest or a  woman, what should they do? Well they should take it off as a mark of respect, they should doff it to use a quaint old word.

Now, when a woman enters a church, how should she be dressed as regards to headwear?

What does our culture say in this situation?

What to wear at Mass or, rather, what not to wear

This is always a fine topic for lively debate and a full combox although, I am not airing it for that reason.

This dishes it out but, perhaps
the Vatican dress code policy
might be better.
Where did "ugly" come from?

The dress code for church is a matter that has gone by the board in most parishes today and, literally, anything goes.  I am not just talking about mantillas here, I am sure that good Catholic women have had enough of Catholic men telling them what to place on their heads, I am aiming this post at men in T shirts, women in skimpy dresses and children looking as if they have just strolled in after a romp in the garden.

Ashley E McGuire on Altcatholicah has a well balanced piece on the issue, let's face it, it should be no great deal, we should all by instinct look our best when we appear before Almighty God.
But, somehow, dress is such a sensitive issue. There is a certain priest of a certain order in London who bangs on about it ad nauseum. He is right to mention it but not so that by constant repetition, he drives people away from the Mass.

So please read Ashley McGuire's post (and take that hat off your head in church. Unless, of course, you are a woman).

APOLOGIES - I cannot give credit for the photo, lost the reference, but thanks to whichever blog it came from.

Mantillas? a little more on the subject

I do not agree with all the points listed in this clip (it has a slight fundamental Christian edge to it) but, overall, it raises some good points, especially concerning the Angels. H/T to This Crazy Love


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=U6zkiXOvwGQ

MANTILLAS ARE NOT FOR EVERYONE!

Mind you, you won't find this one in Church!

To Mantilla or not to Mantilla?

There was a recent report regarding a Cathedral in Sri Lanka whose authorities, in an attempt to encourage women to dress more modestly, imposed a requirement for all women to wear a head covering or veil.
Mulier Fortis has covered the subject very succinctly and from a woman's point of view. So, perhaps it is unwise of me to enter the debate.
However, despite being remarkably youthful and agile etc I do remember what life was like for a Catholic in the 1950s. With respect to a head covering, every woman complied either with mantilla, hat or scarf. If a group of school girls went into a church on an unplanned visit, say whilst passing en route to wheresoever, they would place handkerchiefs on their heads and not think anything amiss.
I believe that was all well and good. We did not stop to analyse it, it was just what propriety demanded just as men would remove their hats and caps upon entering church (and, even when passing a church).
This introduces a fine point to the situation; think what scandal and outrage it would cause if a male went up to Communion wearing a hat of some kind.And quite rightly so. Wearing hats indoors is for the Jewish male - my father, if catching me out wearing a school cap in the house would exclaim: "Is thy father a Jew?" I don't know where that phrase came from but as he grew up in London's East End, I guess it originated from there.
The point is, it just ain't done and if you commence removing the rituals of courtesy and reverence (like genuflecting, crossing oneself and remaining silent in church), you begin to dismantle the more important things such as regard for the sacred species.
I agree with Mulier Fortis, an imposition would not be helpful but encouragement would. It should be taught again in Catholic Schools for both boys and girls. Priests might like to remind parishioners that it is a good practice and piety stalls might like to stock up on a few mantillas.

Add dignity and style - wear a  mantilla!

And please, please, do not equate the mantilla with the niqab, the Muslim veil that conceals the face. That's a discussion I will save for another occasion.