I'm sure your first question is "Why would an elephant be at mass?" Not your first question? Man, I need to work on my mind-reading skills. I'll ask my mom for some pointers. But on a more serious note, the elephant that I'm referring to is veiling or wearing a mantilla to mass. If you have done this or even just been in the same pew as someone who was then you know what I'm talking about. There seem to be two stock responses to a woman who walks into mass with her head covered.
A) "Why are you doing that?" " Didn't you know we aren't in the Dark Ages?" " Vatican II abolished/destroyed/freed you from the slave hood of the veil."
B)"Good for you!" "I am so glad to see a young woman wearing a veil!" "You are so brave!"
The thing is, I don't feel enslaved by my veil. I feel empowered, set free. When I pin my veil on before I walk into church it focuses me. I'm reminded that I'm not there to compete with the other women to see who is wearing the best dress or made the best pie. I'm there for my weekly date with Jesus. My veil is a sign of my womanly dignity. I can't really put into words what I want to say, but that's what more intelligent bloggers are for! So I'm going to link to a few blogs that say it better than I ever could. In the meantime, enjoy this picture of an elephant in church!
And now the links:
This link is to an article about veiling, the article is kinda long but really well written. The Catholic Knight
Fish EatersThis blog post is very concise and has great resources about wearing and making your own veil.
Catholic Mothers Online
This last one is my favorite, it's written by a woman who converted to the Church and is very honest and beautiful. She also raises an interesting question, Have you ever seen a picture/statue of Mary without a veil or headcovering? Something to think about....
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