Op donderdag 8 december is het ‘draag een sluier naar de H.Mis dag’.

For 2000 years, Catholic women have worn some kind of head covering in Church. Though the particular reasons for doing so have varied (for example, modesty, submission to God, etc.), this practice has always focused on the transcendence of the place - the church, the very dwelling of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Having been given this magnficent Gift by Jesus himself, every Catholic church holds something not found anywhere else: the true, living presence of our Savior, hidden under the appearance of bread and wine.

Today, wearing a veil - any kind of covering - is a symbolic gesture that points to the amazing reality of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. As women, we are symbols of the Church - the Bride of Christ - and “the veil is meant to be a visible reminder of the perfect submission of the Church to the loving rule of Christ.”

When?
On December 8, join a global movement to encourage devotion to the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, present in every Catholic church. Encourage your friends to join you - you won’t be the only one! - and wear the veil anytime you are in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, whether present inside a Catholic church for Mass or simply passing through momentarily. 

How?
With any kind of veil, and with the proper interior disposition.  Similar to a religious habit, your veil is a public proclamation of your desire to submit to the will of God for your life, and of your commitment to answering the universal call to holiness and continual conversion. Your veil is also a sign of the great dignity inherent to a woman, who has the potential to receive life within herself... both human life and the supernatural life of God.

What about ‘other people’?
It is natural to be concerned about what other people think. Sure, some may think the veil is an outdated practice with no meaning in today’s culture while others may judge us as trying to be holier-than-thou. Love, however, seeks to ornament Love with beauty and to worship in humility. An act of devotion like veiling does both, while drawing to the fore our love of God above all else.

But the Church doesn’t require it
Just as the Church does not mandate that every person pray the Rosary, neither does she mandate that every woman wear a veil. This does not mean, however, that either is not a worthy devotion. On the contrary, these devotions are pleasing to God when done out of love for Him.

VeilsbyLily.com/dec8