1 Corinthians 11

We interpret 1 Corinthians 11 quite literally.

"4 Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonors his head. 5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, for that is one and the same as if her head were shaved."

Why don’t you interpret hair as being the covering?

We do not interpret hair as being the covering because if hair is the covering the Bible is referring to then that must mean that men are not allowed to have hair or he dishonors his head. If a distinction is made between long hair as being the covering (in contrast to short hair) then in that case this piece of scripture must mean that women must have long hair as their covering.

What is the purpose of headcovering?

Some believe that the headcovering is an extension of other modesty guidelines found in the Bible. We believe that wearing the headcovering is about more than just modesty for women. Women are to cover their heads for angel’s sake (1 Corinthians 11:10). “Through head coverings our women show all present that their position as a woman is also redeemed. No longer are they at war usurping and longing for the man’s position of authority (Gen 3:16). Instead they’re content in the role God ordained for them in Genesis 2.”

If you’d like to research this topic further we would like to recommend the following resource:

http://www.headcoveringmovement.com/articles/why-head-coverings-reason-2-angels