which is symbolised by the veil. Now, there are at least two ways of reading that text. It seems primarily to mean that the veil over her head symbolises that woman is under an authority, that of her husband. From this point of view, the veil stresses the God-given ordered hierarchy of marriage in which, as Pius XI said so eloquently in the encyclical Casti Connubii, the husband is the head of the family and the wife is the heart. No one will contest that the head is above the heart, but neither will they admit that the head is more important than the heart. Both are essential; both have their irreplaceable and non-interchangeable roles. So, if we interpret it this way, what St Paul is saying is that, by wearing a veil in church, the woman is professing openly her belief that all things are ordered by God according to His wisdom, and if her husband has the primacy of authority in the household, she, and she alone, has the primacy of love; she is the living heart of the family. We may also add to this another consideration found in St Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians,5 where he compares the husband to Christ and the wife to the Church. Just as the Church is under the authority of Christ, but is part of His Body and has been given a share in His divinity, so the wife is under her husband, being an essential part of his body, and on equal footing of dignity with him, even though her role is distinct from his. So, we have here a very beautiful profession of faith in the order of the universe, without which nothing can function properly. That mention of order and authority leads to other possible considerations on the “power” over the woman’s head. Here it can be likened to the crown on the head of a queen. The crown symbolises that the queen has a very special and unique power or authority. So the woman, by wearing the veil, professes that she has, and she is conscious of the fact that she has, very real authority in the household. There, she is truly a queen to be respected and honoured. This interpretation seems to be confirmed by the addition of the words: “because of the angels”. Even though some commentators say that St Paul is here referring to the clergy who are present in church presiding over the ceremonies – and according to this, it would mean that the woman must cover her head in order to avoid giving distractions to the priests, for yes, the priest, like any man, can be distracted when he sees a beautiful woman –, it is also possible to see here an allusion to the order of the universe of which the angels are an essential part. The angels were created in the nine hierarchical choirs, and because of that, they 15
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