Question:  This is something we are trying to understand, within a small circle of friends.  Can you please shed some light on this for me?  Did Jesus have long hair and a beard?  See 1 Cor. 11:14.  Paul condemned long hair on men, so he must have not worn long hair himself.  More to the point, he wouldn’t have been so adamant on the subject if other members of the apostolic company were wearing long hair.  Above all, if Jesus had worn long hair, Paul would not have dared to make an issue of hair length.  We’re trying to understand the pictures of Jesus with long hair and a beard.  They also portray him in a Bedouin (long) style tunic, rather than a thigh high (Palestine typical) styled tunic.  Any clarifying of these would be greatly appreciated.

            Analeee

Answer:  Dear Analee,

            No one knows exactly what Jesus looked like – let alone his hairstyle.  It is interesting to note, however, that the Romans had far shorter hair than did the Jews of Palestine – Jews of that day tended to wear hair longer than the occupying Roman soldiers and many wore beards.

            What does Paul mean, and what does he not mean in 1 Cor. 11:14?

1.      He does not stipulate a length.

2.      He obviously means to state the obvious – that “nature” generally teaches us women have longer hair, and men shorter hair.  Paul uses a similar “nature” argument in Romans 1 to explain that there are certain behaviors that all humans know as right and wrong.

3.      He notes that hair is a woman’s “glory” – that it is a focal point for her, again, according to nature, in a way that it is not for men.

4.      Perhaps most importantly, Paul is talking about the relationship between men and women during times of worship, not at other times.  For example, he notes that women should worship with her hair covered, with a veil, while a man should not wear a covering for his hair – that is, at and during worship.

But, of course, many denominations interpret this differently – with only orthodox churches following the age-old tradition of the woman wearing a covering on her head/hair when she prays/worships.  Paul apparently teaches this, as a close reading and study of the context will reveal, because of contentions at Corinth – and many therefore reason that this is not a universal teaching that women for all time wear a veil over their hair at worship.  It is in this passage that 1 Cor. 11:14 appears – not in the context of men and women in any other place in society or culture.

            Paul is of course appealing to basic feminine and masculine roles and expectations, rather than about specific hair lengths in this passage – not only in formal worship, but always as we appear before God.

            Finally, we should also note that cultures and societies have – and do – differ about what constitutes long hair for a man and short hair for a man.  Thus, before we set up an authority, or accept an authority which will decide this issue for us, we should remember that even Paul did not fall into the trap of yardstick religion.

            In Christ,

            Greg Albrecht