ira

>..why do ladies have to wear head covering and men do not?<

Men may not.

Because.

ira

>.. i' m just curious how such discrimination is justified ...<

Oh lord. If you call this "discrimination", what do you call the real thing?

PalenqueBob

Ira - let's 'parse' the word discrimination - means to discriminate or differentiate between men and women - why the difference or discrimination? Need not be perjorative outside of jo-jo i guess

Nikki

At the Greek monasteries in the Meteora, women were required to wear skirts but not head coverings when I was there two years ago.

Christina

Men don't have to cover their heads in the synagogue I attend. Of course, there are some more conservative ones with various dress requirements for women and men. This is true of many religions (I am anti-religion, so don't think any of those rules make any sense, of course they don't, they are just cultural and manmade).

Women don't have to wear head coverings in the Catholic church, I think that was done away with with the second Vatican council. If you see women putting pieces of trash on their heads to simulate a head covering, they are very old-fashioned, I suppose. Some people stick to customs from decades ago. The reason for that rule once upon a time is no different than any religion that dictates dress codes for women, such as many Muslim communities. The idea is that a woman's hair is too seductive and it's too worldly and it makes them too attractive, so you have to cover it up. It's a way of neutering women or protecting them from the crazed men who for some reason can't control themselves and are always thinking of women with lust in their hearts, even at the sight of some ugly hairdo or flabby upper arm. It's the same reason nuns used to have to cmpletely cover their heads (but more extreme for them, of course).

I don't know about the Greek monasteries, but it's clear they have very old-fashioned and cultuarally biased ideas about what clothing is appropriate for women versus men. The idea that men used to wear gowns or skirts many years ago and that this is nothing but cultural history makes no difference when the reasoning is not in any way logical. My niece belongs to a fundamentalist Christian church in a small town in the US, and they have the same rules -- women are not allowed to wear pants. They even make little girls of 2-3, toddlers, wear skirts which is not very convenient as they can't walk that well yet. My poor little grandnieces are always tripping over their skirts and falling on their faces. They won't let them cut their hair, either. They justify it by some of their own interpretations of selected Bible passages but it basically is cultural chauvinism and historical ignorance.

PalenqueBob

So does anyone know the reason, at least traditionally, that some Christian churches want ladies to cover their heads - is it a sign of mourning?

and men to take off their heads or hats i mean for similar reasoning.

Nikki

The court officers in the courts where I used to work make men take off their hats in the courtroom, but not women. I do not believe there is a religious basis for this distinction, but it is perceived as a sign of respect for men to take off their hats. They also make people take their hands out of their pockets, with the same rationale.

likeswords

Funny, it never occurred to me that the OP intended to cover her head with the shawl - they stopped requiring that in Catholic churches when I was in Catholic high school, years and years ago. But I used my shawl to cover my shoulders and arms just as a matter of respect for the local customs when I was in Europe. I think, as the sisters explained it to me (a nonCatholic), that the idea of covering your head was, for a woman a sign of respect, just as taking your hat off was, for a man, another sign of respect. If there's more to it than that, I would also be interested in knowing.

WillTravel

The custom of men taking off their hats when going indoors arises because in medieval times, the knights might be hiding weapons under their helmets, so this was proof they were not.

Women were to keep their heads covered because of what Christina described above - seeing women's hair will drive men to lust.

PalenqueBob

Re-reading th OP i think she probably means shoulders covered, which i think is requisite for entry to St Peter's and many Italian churches and there are Morals police at the entrance enforcing bans on shoulders and shorts.

Sorry i thought it was intended to cover her hair

ira

>Ira - let's 'parse' the word discrimination ....

If you are using the word "justified", you are implying more than just differentiation.

>It's a way of ...protecting them from the crazed men who for some reason can't control themselves and are always thinking of women with lust in their hearts,...<

I think that that includes every male person who is breathing without the aid of a ventilator.

>The court officers in the courts where I used to work make men take off their hats in the courtroom, but not women.<

Do you not realize the amount of time, effort and money that goes into making a woman look good in her hat?

>...seeing women's hair will drive men to lust.

Supposedly, there is a biblical verse that says, "A woman's hair is her crowning glory", but I can't find it.

WillTravel

Ira, that is something Paul said that to the Corinthians and Paul also told the Corinthian women to keep their heads covered in church.