A Cover for Glory: A Biblical Defense for Headcoverings

Head coverings, feminism, and the rise of the controversy

Head coverings have not really been an issue for many many centuries, but lately it's becoming a bigger and bigger issue. Some controversy has been coming up on the issue of head coverings and as we're going to see author of the book a cover for glory States kind of clearly that it was not an issue until.

One two three.

Welcome to the rap report with your host andrew rapaport where we provide biblical interpretation and application. This is a ministry of striving for eternity and the christian podcast community. For more content or to request a speaker for your church Go to striving for eternity .org.

Well, welcome to another edition of the rap report. I'm your host andrew rapaport the executive director of striving for eternity and the christian podcast community of which this Podcast is a proud member.

Introducing Dale Partridge and the ministry at Relearn

We are here to give you biblical interpretations and applications for the christian life. I am joined today by Someone that I met when I was doing a show with dead man walking greg moore. We had not met at least that I know of before that.

But.

In the discussion we got into discussing head coverings, which Dale had written a book on and I was thoroughly interested because folks who follow this show and my apologetics live show know that. We have had several podcasters in the christian podcast community who've changed their view on head coverings including.

My co-host on apologetics live drew so he had changed his view. The guys at I think it was do theology. Were preaching through first corinthians and changed their view To a view of wearing head coverings for women.

This is based out of first corinthians chapter 11. And I was very interesting. Dale has a book out called a cover for glory Subtitled a biblical defense for head coverings. Dale partridge welcome to the rap report.

Hey brother, i'm excited to be here and have this conversation. Hopefully it's helpful for the church and he is hoping to change my mind.

We will see but you know I'm, not opposed to changing changing my view if that's what scripture says. But and that should be the case for all of us, but for dale for folks who may not know who you are.

Can you introduce yourself let folks know a little bit about yourself? And the ministry at relearn .org which folks you all go check out.

Yeah, so, uh, i'm a You know husband father. I have four kids. I live in Prescott, arizona. Which is a little bit north of arizona about an hour and a half north of phoenix. I pastor a church here with a handful of elders and faithful men called kingsway reform church Presbyterian by doctrine westminster.

Confession of faith is the the confession that we hold to.

Um.

We are uh applying to be a part of the crec. So we're in that process of of that journey. Um, I I uh operate a ministry called relearn .org, which is primarily an app that We have essentially it's you know If some people might know of canon or canon plus very similar in the sense that we we focus less on video.

Actually, in fact, we don't really do video. Ours is we want to create an incredible library of Reformed audio books for the entire family. So we have great books for moms dads, uh, teens kids and one thing that we do that's kind of unique is that we actually have sound effects and music and All around theology and and narrative biographies and stories that are really unique and well done.

Uh for the entire family, so we started that. Um. A couple years ago and it's been a really great project so far been fruitful. Um, and we just passed over a thousand subscribers. Um, which has been a big blessing for us.

And and so yeah, that's you know, we have a podcast on real christianity. Um record my sermons all the normal typical pastor stuff, but you know, yeah, my life seems to be filled with just constant teaching.

Well typical pastor stuff, oh, it's okay. A lot of teaching and a lot of other things that get in the way of teaching.

Yeah, yeah, it's amazing. I I've often been uh, you know overwhelmed with The balance of it all and you know, I I don't know if you're truly called a pastor until you've tried to quit at least once. Um, and so.

You get to a place where you go. I'm I don't know if I could do this. I'm done or you know. And then you know, you have a good conversation with your wife. You're one of your co pastors or elders comes and has a good conversation with you.

You wake up the next morning the holy spirit fire and you get at it. Um, and so.

That's been my journey for the last eight years. Well, it actually took me three times to quit my first church. I I I went to the the elders and I told them I just I i'm resigning. And I said that verbally.

They rejected it verbally. I then put it in writing. I actually have a letter of them rejecting.

My.

Resignation in in writing, uh, and then the third time I was like look there there's just Too much going on and they accepted it uh, and that same church actually just contacted me to take today to come back and uh, and Come back to the pulpit there for you know to help them out.

And so I was like Ah, okay. Do I do this? So yeah, it's it's you always have that. It's it is a ministry that is hard for people to understand. I've. We have enough pastors and people in full-time ministry in the christian podcast community that i've been talking.

I've been talking with several wanting to do a podcast of those in full-time ministry.

And.

I want I already know the first episode. The first episode. I want to start by just asking all the pastors. So you start working on your sermon saturday night, right? Yeah, okay. Like just let's deal with all the myths that people believe in the church about pastors.

Yeah, yeah. No. Yeah, if there's a moment that I have a sermon that's not. Started by saturday that is a massive problem. That means that I had the flu that week that means that you know some insane thing happened, but yeah, that is uh,.

That is the real deal. That would be a real problem for me because most of my sermons I'm usually would be working on about four sermons at once they're at different levels. But if I didn't get started months in advance.

Because some of the stuff just takes a lot more research you got to do. Yeah, for example, let's let's deal with the topic right head coverings if you're coming to first corinthians chapter 11. There's a lot more you have to read When it comes as the issue of head coverings.

I haven't preached through first corinthians yet so I I've I've tackled chapters of the book, but I haven't gone verse by verse and I haven't tackled chapter 11 to preach it. But you know if I was I I would be having to read a whole lot more.

Because that there's a lot more I think that's lost in the area of head coverings because.

Of.

Well, whether the culture we live in or culture over time and. And you actually address that in in some of the book, right? So so let's let's get into first. Why did you write this book a cover for glory a biblical defense of head coverings?

What what brought this about for you?

You know my wife and I Maybe 10 to 12 years ago. Be we joined a church and the pastor there held this position. And we were younger in our faith and he didn't give us this, you know incredible exposition of the passage but.

Uh, he made a few points that were helpful for us and we we looked at the text together. My wife actually had a conviction even before I did. But we we saw you know primarily that Men take their hats off when they pray that's been a historic practice forever and is still generally the practice even today and it's because of that particular passage of scripture and so the reason that you have the farmer that takes his hat off and When he prays or at nascar when they pray and there's 10 000 people men take their hats off.

That's really you know The fruit of this particular passage in america. And so, uh, you know, I started seeing the inconsistencies between well, why why are men? Um willing to follow this passage and women not well that makes total sense with feminism.

Um, then I started doing some history looking about some research. And this is you know years ago finding out that essentially head coverings were vast majority of church history uh women were wearing head coverings, I mean the the first chapter of my book is the history of head coverings and Most women that read this book and men.

Um say i'm already convinced by the end of chapter one just from the historical argument they continue to push through. Because they want the biblical evidence, but it's hard to fight against the historical argument when you have you know the puritans and the reformers and the pre-reformers and the catholic church and and the medieval church and and the early church and the church fathers and and you start to see like This and it's not just in their writings.

It's in their art. It's in their sculptures. It's in their In their paintings it's in their Illustrations and their engravings. It's it's everywhere. In fact, it's extremely rare to find something church related.

Uh.

From you know any previous century that you don't see a woman wearing a head covering and so. When I started to find out that that head coverings essentially disappeared in tandem with the feminist movement.

That was when it really kind of piqued my interest to go, huh? Okay, so you start to see uh, you know, it shifts over to bonnets, uh bonnets shift over to hats.

Um.

Uh hats, uh shift over to kind of Doilies and little small things and fashionable statements and when the fashion got out of trend essentially the hat went away. Um, you start to see uh bonnet burnings from feminists.

You start to see hat burnings from the early, uh in the early 1900s. You start to see groups of feminist women that specifically targeted head coverings as the means of their oppression and you start to realize.

Okay.

Uh, this is certainly sociologically compelling and um, and so I had always held that position and then when I when I Uh decided to write the book I I did a podcast my wife maybe I don't know six years ago now on this and we had.

It's still like our number one podcast i've done like 260 episodes and you know, seven million downloads on our podcast and. That podcast on head coverings is still our most popular episode. And so I thought all right.

This is certainly an important discussion to be had and we've also noticed that there's this. There's this just the real data of more and more people are coming to a position on head coverings. As you mentioned even at the start of the show.

And so I thought one day i'm going to write a book. Um, and it. It just took me a while because of the amount one. I wanted it. I didn't want to be new. I didn't want to write a book about something that was really new to our home and.

But we really had been doing this for a decade before I even started writing this. And then two. It took me like a year to study for this book. I mean I read some incredible uh historical writings. Um, there is a couple other even modern, uh theologians.

Uh in the last, you know, 100 years that have written on the topic that have done some extensive work.

And.

I I read the books that most people wouldn't read. Read, you know. Four five hundred page six hundred page books on the topic. And tried to take all the best content out of it and sum it up into like a less than 200 page book that you can Read in like a couple hours and so, um.

It's.

So far, it's uh, i've had several pastors. Uh, write me reform pastors that are like hey you you push me over the edge. Thank you. This was helpful. I've had um, i've had several. I i've only known a handful maybe two three women that have told me they've read it and not really, uh.

Adopted the position um, and so I you know, joel webb and I talk about this and and he says I you know. This is his words, but he says I would rather debate someone on head coverings than calvinism because it's an easier argument to win.

Um in the reality, I think it's true. I think that it's I think it's easier to win the argument if we're going to use scripture and we're going to have a you know historical uh cultural grammatical hermeneutic um, you're you're it's easier to win the debate around head coverings than it would even be.

Uh, you know against a you know, a provisionist or whatever obviously i'm a calvinist. So I believe that you know calvinism is correct, but but it's it's harder. It's a harder go in terms of the exegetical work.

Than.

Than head coverings and so. Um, that's that's the story and I guess we'll we'll go with that.

Why feminism changed the head covering debate

Yeah, I mean it is quite interesting. You're as you mentioned the first chapter. And as I said in the opening you make the case that really this was not a debatable issue until feminism. So, you know that that's a strong argument you make in the book.

So flesh that out a bit more. For folks, I mean because and again folks the book is called a cover. A cover for glory a biblical defense of head coverings and I should mention the best place to get it.

Yes, you can get it on amazon. But why support a secular company just saying go to relearn? dot org. Glory, that'll get you to the relearn learn store. That way well they get most of the money instead of amazon because amazon's going to use that money to.

Well.

Attack christianity anyway, so but that is the way they they do things and unfortunately, you know, it's it's hard to to to do things without uh the world system that till we get a fully parallel economy, that's we're working toward it, but Uh, the best place to go is relearn .org Dot org Slash glory.

So with that let's talk about this. Why do you think?

The.

The issue of feminism came in and the reason I I think this is such an important thing is.

Many.

And then we'll get into this more detail probably later when we look into the biblical arguments. But many believe what happened in corinth was That women were shaving their heads saying look I could be like a man.

It was like the early women's rights movement was to shave your head in corinth. And that this is the issue paul's addressing is to say well women shouldn't shave their heads. They should have their heads covered with their hair and that that's what the head covering is.

Um, which would be quite interesting because If that is what he's arguing. And yet we see historically that women would cover their heads.

Hi, this is daniel minnick from the truth spresso podcast. Truth spresso is a member of the christian podcast community from striving for eternity Ministries and I encourage you to check out all that the christian podcast community has to offer.

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Head coverings as a symbol of authority and creation order

It would actually be the feminist movement That caused paul to write it in the corinth to now. Do away with the head coverings.

Which yeah, it creates it. It creates a contradictory narrative. Um in my opinion there so I I think I will address the issue is the hair the covering. And I think that honestly is the easiest argument to debunk.

And so we will hit that one. Hard in a second, but I think that when we talk about the history A few things that come to mind is one we're seeing the loss of male authority now men don't need to be uh men don't need to feel like being a man is oppressive because god has.

Given us this station we have authority in the home and the church and we're supposed to be like the ultimate patriarch christ who is a loving and gracious authority. Um, but we are the uh, the image and glory of god.

Um, it doesn't say that women are the image and glory of god. It says that women are made in the image of god. But men have a unique station in chapter 11 that we are Uh the glory of god in a way that uh, the women are the glory of man and so.

Women.

This whole issue around head covering is about the issue of authority. It's about physical symbols that demonstrate the spiritual order.

To.

Other christians and to the spiritual world. And so when you remove.

The.

Physical elements that distinguish Authority. It shouldn't shock us that we are now confused about Who can be in authority? And so what I mean by that is that um, when we have a church that's trying to ordain women.

Um, you know when you eliminate the visual symbols of authority the qualifications of authority are forgotten. And so it's part of the kind of i'm just like you i'm the same as you. Now god gave us this beautiful.

Uh, you know um study on clothing. That clothing communicates, uh, we know that it's very important. Uh throughout history there's a there's a whole theological argument around textiles and and um and uniform, etc, etc, but but if we take away the actual uh physical elements that communicate authority we shouldn't be Confused.

Why the church is so confused? About who is in authority and so I think that was a real big. Uh, when you walk into a church full of women covering their heads. Uh, you're not going to often find women trying to be ordained.

Um, it is it is uh. It is a sign that women are really in submission to their husbands. And that is a great and helpful trait to the ecclesiastical life of the church.

One of the criticisms that folks will make is that what they see. Women wearing head coverings and I think I think what a lot of people are referring to is more. They'll see it in the the mennonite. They see it in the the amish.

Where.

It's almost like women are second-class citizens. Almost. I think for some when they think head covering they're thinking islam in first off just the the. For folks that may not even realize the. The burqas that are worn within islam.

The women wear that. But it was actually only for muhammad's wives initially. So that wasn't a practice that you could argue that because some muslims will say well, this is historically the way it's always been.

No, it isn't it. The burqa started with um with his actually his youngest wife uh, aisha, but.

The.

The thing is that that was you know. The full covering where only see the eyes was to protect his his wives from walking around town to identify them. Uh now all the women, you know are supposed in islam are supposed to do it, but We're not talking about that when we talk head coverings.

Right. No, no, and honestly I mean the scripture commands women to do it while they are praying or prophesying now. We need to qualify those terms. Um, what is prophesying you're like, oh, well, you know women can't prophesy.

Women can't be pastors. So therefore, you know that that you know, this is just talking about something else. No, the reality is is that women do prophesy. And what is prophesy. Prophesy means that it's a proclamation of the truth of god to uh to the world.

Now when you're singing rock of ages, are you prophesying? Absolutely, when you do the lord's table, it says that you proclaim his death until his return. You are in a sense proclaiming you are prophesying.

When you are doing recitations in your liturgy and you're reading scripture aloud. Are you prophesying. Certainly you are. And so when you're partaking in spiritual activities including prayer? You are to cover your head now.

There's so many angles and pieces of this conversation to have Uh discussed before you can really grasp what's going on.

Um.

You know one is essentially at the core. Why did I call the book a cover for glory?

Well.

Uh because man is the image and glory of god. Women is the glory of man.

Um.

And the idea is that uh, because god Our man is the image of in glory of god. He is to Not cover when he is spiritually Exercising his spiritual realities and so he is not to be covered. He is god's glory.

He is to be shown.

Um now.

Woman is the glory of man.

Um.

And she is to cover that glory in the presence of god uh, because she is now i'm saying glory of mankind she is The glory she is the most beautiful part of mankind. But she is the representation of man coming out of adam.

Adam is the representation of god coming directly from god. And so there's some great deep theological realities of genesis and intertwined here and eve and adam and so many things that we We could spend more time on.

And honestly if you've ever written a book, you know that when you write a book You quickly forget everything that you've done after about a year if you're not constantly debating it. So Um, i'm not going to be able to to you know extensively remember every element.

But I remember even studying for this book going my goodness. This is phenomenal interesting fascinating.

Um.

You know theological systematics. That are very helpful to put together.

Um.

But I think the best part for us Andrew is to really sit and talk about the hair as the covering because I think that's the number one Argument in the church and and you know, I think I I can deal with that pretty easily.

Why the hair-is-the-covering argument fails

Yeah, and that's I mean right from the text. You know the the argument gets made because it says I mean verse six, right? Uh for if a woman does not uh does not cover her head let her also have her hair cut off.

But it it is. But if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved Let her cover her head and so the fact is hair is directly mentioned.

So.

This.

You know, but I'm going to preface it this way and just say There's a lot here that 2 000 years removed from corinth. We don't. It's hard for us to know exactly what paul is referring to unless he says so because there's a lot in this.

As you bring out in your book, there's a lot that brings us back to genesis because later it's going to talk about you know from um the next uh, not the next verse it's um verse 10 it says therefore the woman ought to have her her.

Uh.

To to have a symbol of authority on her head because of angels. Yeah, um verse nine is for indeed man was not created for the woman's sake but the woman for the man's sake. So you have a lot going on in his argumentational why.

This is the case that is not fleshed out and You know, this is Probably the only text that's really clear on this topic of head covering. But just because it appears only once does not mean that doesn't make it a doctrine.

Well, yeah, and there's there's more text on head coverings than several. There's more text on head coverings than women teaching in the church. Um, I mean, there's more there's more content on head coverings than on, you know, new testament on parenting.

Um, there there's there's a. This is a robust passage of scripture and you're like, okay, this is this isn't this is 16 verses.

Uh that you.

Half a chapter on a particular issue um, and so I think it is worthy of looking at seriously now a couple things I want to talk about is one is. You know, you know You mentioned earlier The women covering their are shaving their heads.

That argument I always it reminds me of like nt rights. Argument that you know, oh in first corinthians chapter 14 when it says the women shouldn't Be teaching. Oh, it's just talking about those loud mouth brazen women that are in corinth.

You know the ones that are in the historical records and you're like what dude you can't you one you can't import a non-biblical concept into the bible and then apply this. Reduce and reject the you know, move the biblical concept away because of a non-biblical Example and and so, you know.

It also says in in first corinthians 14 that this is the practice in all of the churches. It says that again in first corinthians 11 that this is the practice and all we have no other custom Amongst the churches.

We know that the introduction to first corinthians is not written just to corinth. But it's written to all who are in every place call upon the name of the lord. Jesus christ. And so this is a letter that has again Sure a specific but also a general Christian message and so that is something we need to think of just contextually.

Who is this written to and can we just trust that this was written to christians? Not just in corinth, but everywhere and I believe we can I think we apply that are you going to say, you know? First corinthians 13.

Now that's just for corinth. So what's really easy to just kind of take and create a.

Local.

Application for the passages that we don't like but we're not going to take the local stuff. And explain it away on the passages that everybody likes first like first corinthians 13.

Now.

When it comes to this topic around the phrase, uh for her hair is given to her for a covering. Uh again many people say look it's right there dale the hair is the covering. It says it right. Case clothes, you know.

Head coverings. They're not needed. Let's let's just move on.

Um.

But I really believe that out of all the arguments. This actually is probably the weakest argument um, and and just follow along with me for a second because in chapter 11 verse 6 Paul says. For if a woman Does not cover her head Let her also have her hair cut off.

But if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off her head or her head shaved Let her cover her head. Okay, and just you just need to i'm going to read it again because I want you to just follow along with this and i'll Do a little exegesis here with you in a second.

So for for if a woman Does not cover her head And let her also have her hair cut off. Okay, you're about to see the contradiction there. But if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off Or her head shaved let her cover her head end quote.

So in other words if the hair Is viewed as a head covering? Why would paul say for if a woman does not cover her head Let her also have her hair cut off. I want you to just slow down with me for a moment To look at this with me if her hair is the covering.

Then you have to read the text like this. For if a woman does not cover her head with hair Let her also have her hair cut off. And this interpretation of the text it creates like a logical contradiction within the passage.

And it reveals that the covering that paul is referring to Is not a woman's hair. He's talking about and actually said if you don't have that covering on then cut off your hair. Because that's disgraceful.

Furthermore the the fact that paul only commands covering for women during certain functions Like praying or prophesying is also evidence that it's instructing the use of a removable covering because if if the hair Were the covering That he has in view then they would always be covered during all the functions because women don't take their hair off.

Um.

And more importantly if the hair Is the covering that paul is calling for? Why would paul even? Have to write to tell women to cover their heads again. Some people will take the historical. Oh There's so many bald women everywhere running around.

Um, really in the church there was all these bald women running around.

Um.

Again, we don't have a we don't hardly have any. In fact, uh, in fact, I couldn't even find Any. I saw lots of like stuff that came out in like the 1600s. But nothing that was early church claiming that women were.

That were shaving their heads. This is this is an extremely uh hard to trace Uh citation that is so incredibly popular in our feministic culture and so under the view that the hair is the covering again, it would be like Paul writing women to tell women to like wear their hands because when they pray when they pray and prophesy.

Of course, they're going to wear their hands because their hands like their hair are connected to their body. The other thing is that when when um, if the hair is the covering. Uh, then then why isn't the hair covering for men?

And so you're supposed to take something off your head. Are men supposed to shave their heads when they when they uncover. Um, well, of course not. No. No, it's because they're talking about a physical covering.

Um.

And and you look at the greek words that he uses In this passage and you start to realize that those are the same greek words that people use for veil or for a shawl.

Um.

And and so you there's a lot of evidence there that really can help you. Grasp that this is not talking about. A hair is the covering it's talking about. Your hair is the physical covering for the physical world.

Your your covering is for the spiritual covering for the spiritual world. So there's two coverings. Um, and one each each of them have their their purpose. There's a sense of modesty. That is real. Uh um that you can that hair covers a woman, um, and.

That's.

Correlating with specific. You know physical realities of modesty. And then there's a spiritual reality where glory that we cannot necessarily see but angels can. Um is the spiritual covering that you would put on there and so again.

That's just a basic easy, I mean I spend like 100 pages on that in the book, but.

There it is. Well, it's because This is a. The issue we have to deal with is what is the covering. I? I've been asked for many years to to deal with the topic of head coverings and I I started studying this text there were struggles that I had with it because When you get into what is the covering that's a real issue.

Everyone agrees women should have their head covered. Now the question is with what.