1 Corinthians 11:5Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Therefore, after saying, "Every woman praying or prophesying with her head uncovered dishonors her head," he does not stop there. He continues, "For it is one and the same as if she were shaven." If it is always shameful to be shaven, then obviously it is always shameful to be uncovered.

Answer. One must know that the divine Apostle, by saying that Christ is the head of every man, showed that Christ is the head of the faithful man. He means the man zealous in practicing the divine commandments and contemplating the doctrines of piety. Therefore the universal wording does not include unbelieving men. How, indeed, could Christ be the head of unbelievers?

Thus, at the first understanding of this passage, as we approach the meaning of spiritual interpretation, we say that the man is the practical intellect. It has as its head the word of faith. Looking to this word as to Christ, the intellect contemplates its own life. Through spiritual practice it has raised that life from the gracious gifts of the commandments. It does not dishonor its head, that is, faith, with any outward and material covering. For it places nothing temporal and subject to dissolution above faith.

The “woman” of this intellect we call the very habit of spiritual practice. It is grown over and covered, as with long hair, by many varied ascetical thoughts and ways. More than this, it has the intellect itself as its own head, covered by the fullness and seemliness of these thoughts and ways. Christ, as we understand it, is enhypostatic faith. God manifestly appears as the head of this faith. To Him Christ raises the word of faith, showing God according to nature to the intellect that is being raised.

Again, the “man” is the intellect concerned with natural contemplation in the Spirit. It has as its head the Word, the Maker of all things. He is revealed according to faith from the ordered structure of visible things. The intellect does not dishonor Him by concealing or hiding Him beneath anything visible. For it sets nothing else above this Word.

The “woman” of this intellect is the sense faculty that dwells with it. Through this faculty the intellect sails the sea of sensible nature and gathers the divine logoi found within it. It does not permit the sense faculty, stripped of rational coverings, to become the servant of irrationality and sin. Nor does it allow sense, by rejecting the divine logoi as coverings, to receive irrational passion as its head instead of the intellect.

The head of Christ, that is, of the creative Word, proportionately manifested in beings through their natural contemplation by faith, is the Intellect that ineffably begets Him according to essence. To this Intellect the Word, through Himself, brings the intellect that is being raised. He does this through the pious contemplation of beings, supplying it with contemplative reflections of divine realities proportionate to the knowledge of visible things.

On the other hand, the “man” is the intellect that has entered mystical theology. It has as its head the uncovered Christ, apprehended by the intellect in an unknowable manner through indemonstrable initiations. Or, to speak more precisely, it has the Word of faith known beyond the intellect. Above this Word none of the things that exist is placed. Neither sense, nor reason, nor intellect, nor thought, nor knowledge is placed above Him. Nor is anything known, anything conceived by intellect or reason, anything received by sense, or anything sensed placed above Him. In other words, this is the intellect striving in the praiseworthy renunciation of all things. This renunciation wholly surpasses both itself and beings, and is supremely deifying.

The “woman” of this intellect is thought purified of every sensible fantasy. It has as its head, as it were, the intellect wrapped in beginningless contemplations that surpass thought. These contemplations belong to ineffable and unknowable doctrines. The head of Christ, that is, of the Word mystically manifested according to His greatness, is the Intellect absolutely and in every respect infinitely removed from all things. The intelligible Christ makes Him known to the worthy, since He is by nature the Word of the Intellect. For Holy Scripture says: “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (Jn 14:9).

Indeed, contemplation of the Word becomes clear knowledge of the Intellect that begot Him. For the Word manifests the Intellect existing in Him according to essence. To this Intellect He raises the human intellect, which hastens toward identity with God by grace. In contemplation it has been freed from the difference and manifold quantity of beings. It is united with the Godlike Monad in the identity and simplicity of steadfast ever-movement around God.

Therefore every practical intellect that prays or prophesies must see only the uncovered word of faith. By “praying” we should understand asking for the comprehension of the principles of the virtues. By “prophesying” we should understand asking to be granted the modes by which these virtues are fulfilled and shown in works. Such an intellect must not apprehend or perform, by passionate attachment, anything that covers the head. It must not place anything else above this Word.

And every woman, that is, the virtuous habit of the practical intellect, prays and prophesies. In other words, it is secretly moved according to its inward disposition and forms virtue in outward ways. If it lacks rational discernment, it dishonors its head. It pursues the good for the sake of passion and is deprived of reason, which adorns it like a veil.

Every intellect engaged in natural contemplation dishonors its head when it prays and prophesies with its head covered. This means that it noetically investigates the logoi of beings, or communicates them to others as a teacher, while bearing some manifest inclination toward something else, apart from a pious aim. It dishonors its head by setting some passing thing above right and pious knowledge.

And every woman, that is, sense, naturally receives sensible things. Yet if she does not have on her head the intelligible logoi of visible things that cover her, she dishonors her head. She brings contemplation close to passion through natural attachment to what is visible.

Every intellect that has become beloved of mystical theology dishonors its head when it prays and prophesies with covered head. This means that it enters the prescribed contemplations unknowably, and teaches and initiates others into the mystery of theology. If its contemplation has any form while it is being initiated into the mysteries of the Word who surpasses thought, or while it initiates others into Him, it dishonors its head. It places Him who is simple and beyond every contemplation beneath some being or object of knowledge.

It must behold without sight the true God the Word Himself, stripped of every covering of thought and knowledge. It must clearly know how the negative judgments about God, spoken because of His transcendence, correspond to reality. It must also know how far they disclose the positive affirmation of divine Being through complete detachment from existing things.

And every woman, that is, the thought of such an intellect, dishonors her head when she prays or prophesies with uncovered head. This means that she has been released from the noetic power that covers her with the thick veil of many mystical visions. She dishonors her head by rejecting divine and ineffable knowledge, which covers the intellect as head.

Therefore let every man, whether the practical, natural, or theological intellect, have his head uncovered when he prays or prophesies, that is, when he is taught and teaches. Let the practical intellect prefer nothing to faith or virtue. Let the natural intellect set nothing above the first Word. Let the theological intellect not shape Him who is beyond contemplation and knowledge according to the form of beings accessible to contemplation.

And let every woman cover her head. By woman I mean the habit of the practical intellect, the sense faculty of the natural intellect, or the wise thought of the theological intellect. Let practical habit bear rational discernment between what edifies and what does not. Let sense bear the knowing power of reason directed toward visible things. Let thought bear wholly indemonstrable knowledge that surpasses thought. For every habit, sense, or thought not covered in this way differs in no way from one shorn. It possesses no word of virtue, piety, mystical knowledge, or divine love.

Therefore every woman must naturally have authority of reason upon her head. I mean rational governance. This must be especially because of the Angels, who observe the visible and hidden movements of our soul. They record our every thought and every deed, for our praise or accusation on the dread day of Judgment.

It is also because of the reflections of conscience concerning what we have done. Under these, the same Angels are figuratively understood. They condemn or justify us even now, and will do so later, on the day of Judgment. It is also because of the evil angels, who watch our habit, sense, and thought. As soon as they see these stripped of rational and noetic discernment, piety, and knowledge, they rush to attack. They create in us the opposite, by which I mean lack of rational discernment, impiety, and ignorance. Through these the wicked demons customarily set vice, error, and godlessness in motion.

God is called the head of Christ as the Intellect of the Word by nature, and as His Beginning by cause.

The Israelites were clothed by the Spirit in place of glory, though they were not led by Him. Therefore the word "Church" is spoken both of many and of one soul. For the soul itself gathers all thoughts into one, and before God it is a church.

This is because the soul has been united with the heavenly Bridegroom for communion with Him, and has been mingled with the heavenly. This is understood both of many souls and of one. For the Prophet also says of Jerusalem: "I found you abandoned and naked, and I clothed you," and so on, as though speaking of one woman (Ezek 16:8-13).

In another place he says: "Man and woman need many signs, to one of authority, to the other of subordination. Among these is that the woman should be covered, and the man should have his head bare.

If these are signs, then both sin if they violate good order and the commandment of God. They transgress their own limits, the man sinking to the woman's abasement, and the woman exalting herself by her outward appearance over the man."

What made the violation of this natural order especially unpleasant in Corinth was this. Certain persons allowed themselves to violate generally accepted decency, propriety, and modesty during the holiest moments of prayer and inspired edification.

In the primitive Church, both men and women were counted worthy of these things, as happened, for example, with the daughters of the Apostle Philip and others. This was in fulfillment of the words of the prophet Joel: "Your sons shall prophesy, and your daughters shall see visions" (Joel 2:28).

He does this so as not to defile chaste souls by that reminder. By deriving the command from a higher source, he sanctifies both the command and the very matter it concerns through common Christian contemplations.

Thus Christ the Lord, with His statutes, is seen in everything. Chrysostom also says, concerning the very derivation of the command from Christian principles, or its confirmation by reasons, that this might have been unnecessary. For believers, a single command would have sufficed.

The Apostle gives this reason for the weak. "The Apostle brings forward this reason," he says, "in order to make the weak more attentive. For the one who believes as he should, and is firm in faith, needs neither proof nor reason for what is commanded him, but is satisfied with tradition alone.

But the weak person, having learned the reason, keeps what is said with greater zeal and obeys with greater devotion."

What does it mean, "a woman praying and prophesying"? In the first times, in the assemblies of the faithful, the Spirit of God manifested His special action upon certain persons. To one He inspired prayer, to another a word of edification.

Both prayer and a word of edification could and can arise from one's own reflection and immersion in Christian truths. But they knew how to distinguish what was from the Spirit and what was their own.

The one who felt this stirring would stand and pronounce before the assembly what the Spirit of God inspired in him: either prayer or a word of edification. Women too were not deprived of the gift of entering such a state. They likewise stood and pronounced prayers or words of edification.

But the Apostles judged that it was improper for women in church either to pronounce prayers or to read instructions. Therefore they forbade this, as Saint Paul forbids it below in 1 Cor 14.

Here he speaks only of the impropriety of doing this with an uncovered head, so as not to burden them all at once with his ordinance. The word of edification is called prophecy here because this inspiration resembled the prophetic state.

Moreover, direct prophecies, that is, predictions of the future, often entered both into prayer and into the word. Chrysostom says: "At that time there were men who prophesied, and women also had this gift, for example the daughters of Philip and others before and after them.

Of them the prophet of old said, 'Your sons shall prophesy ... and your daughters shall see visions' (Joel 2:28). The Apostle commands the man to be uncovered not always, but only during prayer.

But he commands the woman to be covered always, as is clear from the addition, 'for it is one and the same as if she were shaven.' If it is always shameful to be shorn, then obviously it is always shameful to be uncovered."