White Veil, White Dress
I received a comment on the photopost of Sarah's First Holy Communion asking about the symbolism of the white veil and dress. I looked a bit for an official account of the symbolism, then decided to post my own thoughts on it.
Leaving aside the veils for a moment, the white dresses show the innocence and purity of the children, who have just received their first Confession and about to receive Our Lord in Communion for the first time. There is a parallel to the wedding dress, but it is not to symbolize a marriage per se. The girls are not becoming nuns and the boys wouldn't marry Christ, but they are opening their hearts to Jesus, so there is an echo of marriage.
In the old rite, women wore a veil. (Today, many who celebrate the old rite wear a veil, but not all.) In our church, and possibly in the Church pre-Vatican II, girls who have yet to receive are unveiled (again with some exceptions.) So, at least in our church, the young girl receives her veil for the first time for this sacrament. It is a "rite of passage," a sign of a new relationship to Christ.
The idea of the veil for women is very beautiful, and it is related to the veiling of the Eucharist. The Blessed Virgin Mary was the Veil of Christ as she carried him, and all women are called to imitate Mary in faithfulness, charity, and modesty. I have also been told that a woman's beauty is to be veiled to help others focus on the most beautiful Eucharist. (I like the idea that I'm that beautiful!) Then, again, the other very important meaning of the veil concerns acceptance of God's authority, and the willing submission to that authority. This comes from Paul's letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 11:1-16) saying that women should have their heads covered. This last reason, of course, is why many women today reject the veil, since they don't like the idea of subordination to men, though in my humble opinion, they misinterpret what subordination means. But perhaps the most important thing to remember is that it is a gesture of reverence for women to be veiled in church in the presence of the Most Blessed Sacrament, and that is the main reason I wear a veil.
Comments
Thanks, Lisa! I didn't make the connection between the girls' veils and women being veiled in general during Mass. I've read of such a thing, but I've never seen it! Personally, I think it is a practice that could stand to make a comeback in the US, although I rather doubt that it will.
Posted by: Amber | November 15, 2006 8:55 AM
Hi, Amber! You know, a few years back, I first saw a woman wearing a veil, and it seemed very old-fashioned. Then we started attending St. Margaret Mary and I saw women regularly wearing a veil. I didn't wear one at first, and then I wore a little chapel veil. Then I wore a long scarf wrapped around my head (I sometimes still do) and now I wear a huge triangular white lace veil.
Took me awhile to get used to a veil. I had to ease into it. :-> But now I feel inappropriately dressed without one. The veil has been one of the things that has helped me develop a more reverent attitude at Mass.
Posted by: Lisa Roberts | November 15, 2006 6:21 PM