Bible -- Commentaries; Bible -- Feminist criticism; Women in the Bible
It is perhaps not fair to judge Paul by the strict letter of the word.
We are not well informed of the habits of women in his time in regard
to personal adornment. What Paul means by "modest apparel" (supposing
the translation to be correct), we may not precisely understand. Paul
speaks especially of "braided hair." In his time Paul evidently
considered as of account the extreme susceptibility of his sex to the
effect of the garb and adornment of women.
The Apostles all appeared to be much exercised by the ornaments and
the braided hair of the women. While they insisted that women should
wear long hair, they objected to having it braided lest the beautiful
coils should be too attractive to men. But women had other reasons for
braiding their hair beside attracting men. A compact braid was much
more comfortable than individual hairs free to be blown about with
every breeze.
It appears very trifling for men, commissioned to do so great a work
on earth, to give so much thought to the toilets of women. Ordering the
men to have their heads shaved and hair cropped, while the women were
to have their locks hanging around their shoulders, looks as if they
feared that the sexes were not distinguishable and that they must
finish Nature's work. Woman's braids and ornaments had a deeper
significance than the Apostles seem to have understood. Her necessities
compelled her to look to man for sup port and protection, hence her
efforts to make herself attractive are not prompted by feminine vanity,
but the economic conditions of civilization.
E. C. S.
The injunction that women should adorn themselves through good works
was sensible. The Apostle did not imply that this adornment was not
already possessed by women. Neither did he testify that the generations
of men, of Prophets and of Apostles had been objects of the good works
and all the ministrations of self-abnegation, which are required only
of the mothers of men. Comparatively few women, who have fulfilled the
special function which man assigns to them as their chief duty in life,
lack the adornment of good works. In addition to these good works of
motherhood in the family, woman has ministered to the necessities and
the comfort of the sick, the feeble and the poor, through the centuries.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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