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Tallit
The tallit
is a prayer shawl “cloak”. It has special “tassels” known as
tzitzit attached to its four corners. We are instructed to
enwrap in the four-cornered garment with tzitzit in order to
remember God and His great love and all of His instructions, and be
holy to Him (Numbers 15:38-40).
Prior to donning
the tallit, it is traditionally held in front of oneself
as the following blessing is recited:
Blessed are
You, Yahweh our God,
King of the
Universe,
Who has
sanctified us by His Word,
and instructed us to enwrap
in the garment with tzitzit.
Then, from
behind oneself, it is draped over the head
before being dropped upon the shoulders. The tzitzit are
to hang from the corners: from their holes, they are pulled
horizontally to the edges of the tallit.
A tallit is to
be worn during daily prayers and during Sabbath and Holy Day sacred
assemblies, and may be worn during any day. When praying in
public, it is one’s prayer closet; it is draped over the head and
closed in front of the face to make one anonymous (Matthew 6:6).
The tallit is
sometimes also referred to as the arba kanfot, meaning the
“four wings” (in the connotation of four corners). It is spread to
arms lengths when reciting “He stretched forth the heavens like a
tent” (Isaiah 51:13 or Psalm 104:1-2).
The tallit is
called the “Robe of Responsibility” because the tzitzit are to
remind us of God’s instructions. The four tzitzit are traditionally
tied with a total of 613 loops and strands to represent the 613
mitzvot (instructions / commandments) of the Torah. The sequence
of the loops and strands at each corner numerically represent the
letters of God’s sacred Name – YHWH (10-5-6-5, Hebrew letters being
also numbers).
A woman who had
an infirmity for twelve years touched Yeshua’s tzitzit and was
healed; this act showed faith in the one who gave the commandments,
and had the power to heal (Matthew 9:20-22, Mark 5:25-34 & Luke
8:43-48). Many others also touched His tzitzit and were healed
(Matthew 14:36, Mark 6:56).
Yeshua’s tallit
was woven in one piece. At His crucifixion, the soldiers cast lots
for it (John 19:23-24).
While some other garments or objects might be treated more casually,
the tallit is a special personal effect, generally used for many
years or a lifetime and never discarded. It is likely to be given as
a special gift, as from father to son. When a man dies, it is
traditional that he be buried dressed only in his kittel – a
white robe signifying expectant resurrection, with his tallit draped
over him.
Kippah
A kippah is a kind of hat
(often like a beanie) that men wear to indicate reverence for God
above. Only priests are under a Biblical mandate to wear a separate
head covering.
1 Corinthians 11
1
Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ. 2 Now I
praise you because you remember me in everything and hold firmly to
the traditions, just as I delivered them to you. 3 But I
want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the
man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ.
The overall statement
is: (1 Corinthians 11:3) God is the head of Messiah, Messiah is the
head of every man, and man is the head of woman.
Paul’s argument for
man being head of the woman (verse 9) is from creation (Genesis
2:20-22, 3:16): it is not based upon custom. Then, lest this be
wrongly used, he clarifies the positions of men and women (verses
11-12). A man has a legitimate authority in leading a woman only as
he is following Messiah, for there is no right to selfishness.
Now, let us consider
some background.
Priests were required
to wear a migba’ah / turban (Leviticus 8:13). The High
Priest was not allowed to uncover his head (Leviticus 21:10), was
not allowed to go out of the sanctuary, (v.12) and could only marry
a virgin (v.13). Priests were not permitted to have long hair: “The
following priests incur the penalty of death: those who are
intoxicated with wine and those whose hair has grown long . ‘Neither
shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long;
they shall only poll their heads (Ezek 44:20)’ ” (Talmud:
Ta’anit 17b).
If a (man or) woman
had an infection of tzaraat (commonly translated leprosy) of
the scalp, she had to be shaved and stay out of society as a
niddah (one who is quarantined) until pronounced clean; this
was shameful to her, because it was a discipline for gossip or
slander (Leviticus 13:29-37 – see Commentaries Y2-33 and Y2-35).
A woman wearing her
hair upon her head was representing that she was married – under the
authority of a husband. Wearing her hair down represented
availability: she would be considered either available for marriage,
or a prostitute. “And these are they that are divorced without
their marriage settlement: she who transgresses the Law of Moses and
Jewish custom. . . And what is meant by Jewish custom? – If she go
forth with her hair loose, . . . (Mishnah: Ketubot 7:6).
Men normally wore a
tallit (prayer shawl) over the head while reciting the
Sh’ma (Talmud: Berachot 24b), and at other prayer times: “Cover
your head so that the reverence for heaven may be upon you, and
pray” (Talmud: Shabbat 156b). Yeshua instructed men to be
enwrapped and covered in their tallitot (prayer shawls) for
prayer: this is commonly translated something like “go into your
closet and shut the door” (Matthew 6:6).
There is no term in I
Corinthians 11 that would translate covering or veil, except in
verse 15, “her hair is given to her for a covering”. Many
translations, in other verses, supply a word like “covering” that is
not from the Greek text.
The conclusion is:
Paul was not contradicting Torah, Yeshua, and custom; he was not
telling men that it was a shame to wear tallitot or kippot
(head coverings). And he was not telling women to wear hats or
scarves: he was telling married women to wear their hair upon their
heads – so as not to bring shame upon themselves and the
congregation.
The issue is
displaying propriety – for men to represent themselves as subject to
Messiah, and for married women to represent themselves as subject to
a husband.
4
Every man who has it on his head while praying or prophesying
disgraces his head (Messiah). 5 But every woman who has
it not on her head while praying or prophesying disgraces her head
(her husband), for she is one and the same as the woman whose head
is shaved. (6 For if a woman does not have it on her
head, let her also have her hair cut off; but if it is disgraceful
for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, let her
have it on her head.) 7 For a man ought not to have it on
his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is
the glory of man. 8 For man does not originate from
woman, but woman from man; 9 for indeed man was not
created for the woman's sake, but woman for the man's sake. 10
Therefore the woman ought to have (a symbol of) authority on
her head, because of the angels. 11 However, in the Lord,
neither is woman independent of man, nor is man independent of
woman. 12 For as the woman originates from the man, so
also the man (has his birth) through the woman; and all
things originate from God. 13 Judge for yourselves: is it
proper for a woman to pray to God without it on (her head)? 14
Does not even custom itself teach you that if a man has long hair,
it is a dishonor to him, 15 but if a woman has long hair,
it is a glory to her? For her hair is given to her for a covering.
16 But if one is inclined to be contentious, we have no
other practice, nor have the churches of God.
9/23/2006 |