At Least He Got One Thing Right
Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does even nature itself not teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him, but if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her? For her hair is given to her as a covering. – 1 Corinthians 11:13-15 (NASB)
In my opinion, the logic of Paul’s argument doesn’t work. Here’s how the logic goes: (1) Women should cover their heads. (2) Nature shows this because a woman with long hair is good, because long hair is a covering. (3) However, women’s long hair should still be covered. (4) Furthermore, men should not have long hair at all.
At this point, I’m lost. Is long hair a covering or not? Because for women, long hair doesn’t count as a covering. But for men long hair does count as a covering. Paul is grasping at straws. He’s taking the shifting sands of preference and trying to make them universally applicable.
All scripture is useful for instruction. And in the case of 1 Corinthians 11:13-15, it is useful as a kind of cautionary tale. The only thing Paul gets right here is telling us to judge for ourselves. If I set out to dictate how other people should look when they pray, I set out on a folly. Let people make their own choices without shame. If the church matriarch unfailingly wears a hat to church—woe betide the one who dares criticize her chapeau. If a confirmand wears shorts every day, even in the winter, I’m unlikely to add anything to the conversation that subzero temperatures hasn’t already said.
Prayer
God, thank you for the beautiful diversity of humanity.
About the AuthorRev. John Edgerton is Senior Minister and CEO of Old South Church in Boston. He is the 21st Senior minister in the congregation’s over 350 year history.