This passage, without a doubt, challenges us in terms of contemporary discipleship. Taken by itself this passage will lead to arguments over hats in church and the literalness of interpretation. But often these arguments are made from translations, not from the original text. So how do we avoid getting lost in the weeds and avoid arguing over whether a woman should wear a lace doily on her head? To understand this passage, we must remember the church and the culture at Corinth. The church was bitterly divided, arrogant, and proud of its knowledge. It was highly sexualized and tended toward libertarian attitudes. In short, it reflected its heathen culture more than Christ.
The city of Corinth was highly sexualized and overrun with prostitution. The references to the hair in this passage must be taken in that context. Why was it shameful for men to have long hair? Because feminization of themselves was how male prostitutes (or transvestites) plied their trade. They were attempting to be what God didn’t make them to be. In the second century the church fathers went so far as to codify haircuts so that men did not wear women’s hairstyles. Fashion in Corinth was especially driven by temple prostitutes who cut their hair distinctly or shaved it to look like a little boy. In short, Paul is saying, when you speak the word of God, when you represent the King of Heaven, don’t look like a sexual deviant. Many Corinthians came out of this sexualized, polluted world and apparently still held to some of those customs. Paul is not ordering a specific type of dress for Christians; we are indeed free. But that freedom has a limit, and that limit excludes looking as if we were committed to a different god.
But there’s another issue here. Paul is advocating that Christians conform to their God-given roles. While asserting the equality and interdependence of men and women, husbands and wives, Paul points out that they have different roles. In the same way that God is the head of Christ, equal, loving, and united in purpose but with different roles, the man is the head of the wife or the woman. To determine if this is a statement of superiority, ask how long the head severed from its body will survive. The issue is about roles, not rules. The root issue is submission to God’s ordained order and authority, but it is manifested in appearance. Rather than gratuitous sexual anarchy where everyone determines their own sexual ethic, we are supposed to subject ourselves to God’s order. When this happens, He is glorified in our lives, and we are filled with His peace.
“Lord, let all aspects of my life reflect love, respect and most of all submission to You. AMEN”
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