From the Archdiocese of Manilla

Two rather funny videos promoting modesty at mass from the Archdiocese of Manilla.

In the news: 80 years ago

Almost 80 years ago to the day, Time Magazine ran a small piece in the Foreign News section on Mantilla Week in Spain:

To foreigners the graceful Spanish mantilla, a veil of cobwebby black or white lace worn on the heads of Spanish ladies,-is as typical of the country as bull fighting or olla podrida (meat and vegetable stew). In modern Spain the only times that mantillas are actually worn are at gala occasions, such as bull fights and during Holy Week. Her Majesty Queen Victoria Eugenie and the Infantas Beatriz and Maria Christina officially inaugurated Mantilla Week by marching into Madrid's cathedral last week, their heads shrouded in the most cobwebby of cream lace mantillas.

-A mantilla should be about two yards square. It is a venerable test of quality that a good mantilla should be sheer enough to be pulled through a wedding ring.


(A more recent photo of women wearing mantillas during Holy Week in Spain)

Honor Roll - Nominations Needed!

Something we'd like to do at Mantilla With Me is to start an honor roll for parishes where mantilla use is particularly vibrant.

Please post your nominations in the comments section below. You can email pictures to mantillawithme at gmail dot com.

You can see the full honor roll at http://www.mantillawithme.com/Honor%20Roll.html

Why Wear the Veil?

By Sr Patricia Therese, OPB

In ancient traditions dating back even thousands of years, the “veil” represented purity and modesty in many religions and cultures. A veil, or head covering, is both a symbol and a mystical sacrifice that invites the woman wearing it to ascend the ladder of sanctity.

When a woman covers her head in the Catholic Church it symbolises her dignity and humility before God, not men. It is no surprise women of today have so easily abandoned the tradition of the chapel veil (head covering) when the two greatest meanings of the veil are purity and humility.

The woman who covers her head in the presence of the Lord Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is reminding herself that she must be humble before God. As with all outward gestures, if it is practised enough it filters down into the heart and is translated into actions that speak volumes. The “veil” covers what the Lord calls, in Holy Scripture, “the glory of the woman”, her hair. Covering her hair is a gesture the woman makes spiritually to “show” God she recognises her beauty is less than His and His Glory is far above hers.

In doing this she is reminded that virtues cannot grow in the soul without a great measure of humility. So she wears the veil to please God and remind herself to practice virtue more ardently.

There is no other piece of clothing a woman may wear to serve this function. The veil symbolically motivates the woman to “bow” her head in prayer, to lower her eyes before the great and mysterious beauty and power of God in the Blessed Sacrament. By the bowing of her head and lowering of her eyes, she is more able to worship God in the interior chapel of her heart and soul.

The veil or head covering a woman wears gives a beautiful sense of dignity to a woman. When she wears it, she identifies herself with God’s greatest creation, the Blessed and Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of God. There was none on earth that loved and loves the Lord Jesus more than the Blessed Virgin Mary. In her love, her humility breathed forth like sweet scented incense before God. The veil she wore symbolised her purity, modesty and of course her profound humility and submission before and to God Almighty.

Those women who love Jesus must come to realise the imitation of His Mother in wearing a chapel veil (head covering) and in other virtues is a small sacrifice to make in order to grow in spiritual understanding of purity, humility and love.

The covering of a woman’s head in Church is a striking reminder of modesty, something old but lost in the society of today. Modesty and purity walk hand in hand.

When a woman veils her head she is shielding her heart to be wooed by the love of God in the Blessed Sacrament. This is a mystical ‘country’ that only the Eternal Father may enter. Her veil is like the lighted lamps of the virgins waiting for the Bridegroom, an indication that she is prepared to receive Him at a moment’s notice; an aureole of her spiritual love for the Bridegroom. Wearing the veil is an act of love of God.

Why should a woman wear a head covering or veil in church? Not to be praised, not to go along, not for tradition’s sake, not to stand out in the crowd, not because you say or I say or anybody says…But because she loves our Eucharistic Lord Jesus and it is another small sacrifice she may offer for her soul’s sake and for the sake of many souls who have no one to offer for them.

About This Blog

Welcome to our blog!

This is a forum for posts and discussion amongst Catholic women about the mantilla. We hope you enjoy reading our posts and comments. Feel free to join in!

We'd also like to invite you to visit our official website: Will You Mantilla With Me?

Here you'll find more information about the mantilla and its resurgence in popularity among young Catholic women.