Long Island Abundant Life Church長島豐盛生命教會
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  Long Island Abundant Life Church長島豐盛生命教會

1 Peter 2:13–3:7

11/30/2012

 
Click here to read today's passage on Bible Gateway.

Braided Hair?
So why can't women braid their hair (1 Peter 3:3)?  Here's some historical study with a quick application for what it means for us today:

"Although Paul’s exhortation for women to “adorn themselves with modesty and humility” (1 Tim. 2:9) fits the expectations of either Greek or Roman society, the adornment of the hair “with braids and gold or with pearls” (cf. 1 Pet. 3:3) fits a new trend originating in Rome.
    Greek hairstyles for women during this period were for the most part simple affairs: hair was parted in the middle, pinned simply in the back or held in place with a scarf or headband.  The women of the imperial household originated new styles; by the Trajanic period they had developed into elaborate curls, braids, high wigs, pins, and hair ornaments that were quickly copied by the well-to-do through the empire: “See the tall edifice rise up on her head in serried tiers and storeys!” (Juvenal, Satire 6). One can even date representations of women by the increasing complexity of hair fashions.
    If Roman styles seem a bit too far away to affect [local] fashions, consider that portraits of reigning empresses often appeared on coins minted in Ephesus and other Asian cities and that they had prominent statues in both public and private places. Portraits of provincial women from the era show that the imperial coiffures were copied in Ephesus and the other cities of Asia.
    Paul’s injunction regarding elaborate hairstyles reflects the increasing influence of Rome...during the third quarter of the first century A.D. And his skeptical response to this trend was due to his judgment that simplicity and modesty in dress befit pious women rather than external extravagance. [For men, Paul’s equivalent exhortation was to avoid obsession with “body-sculpting” in gymnasia in place of piety (1 Tim. 4:8).] Furthermore, his reaction to women’s imitation of latest hairstyles is understandable since it was quite a new trend, really begun only a decade or so before, and it carried connotations of imperial luxury and the infamous licentiousness of women like Messalina and Poppaea. Today, it is the equivalent of warning Christians away from imitation of styles set by promiscuous pop singers or actresses."
[1] (emphasis mine)

It's not about braids.  It's about:

a.  Making beauty and character INTERNAL (for all of us, not just women)
b.  Not imitating and therefore glorifying those that are examples of a life of immodesty, vanity, excess, and promiscuity

I think "b." has a lot to say about us and our choice of fashion today.

What do you think?

[1] Journal for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood Volume 2 (Lousville, KY: Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, 1996).
Rachel Vruggink
11/30/2012 06:55:24 am

I read somewhere braided hair was associated with prostitutes too. Is that true or is that only in the sense that the rich ladies were usually promiscuous?

Kevin Kuo
11/30/2012 05:35:39 pm

If you watch dangerous beauty granted nearly 1600+ years after Paul's time I believe the prostitutes that could do those elaborate hair do we're most likely courtesans. For upper echelon marriages it was usually never about love even to this day these marriages are forged for some kind of economic, social or political gain. This is not to say that one loves a prostitute but courtesans of then like high class escorts of today are highly educated which provided their contract employer with an edge in social engagements. I believe that the rich ladies used boy toys much like the wealthy men would employ the services of a courtesan. At that level of society the courtesan would pretty much be as wealthy as some of her clients. I don't think that rich ladies were promiscuous because of their wealth if they were already promiscuous wealth only multiplied their desire.

greg
12/1/2012 02:29:35 am

It's a possibility and BEFORE this time was certainly true. At this time it was more likely that a prostitute would have short, close cropped hair (see 1 Cor. 11). As the quote said, the elaborate braided hairstyles were relatively new at this time - around a decade as a fashion. In addition to being the style of famously promiscuous ladies, the rich would also use it to display their wealth by pinning lots of jewels and decorations into the hair, hence the statement by Peter. I think the context of the verse indicates that the problem is excess, not association with prostitutes. If that were the case I think that would be mentioned here, but the focus here is on beauty and riches of the heart rather than the body.

Andrei
11/30/2012 06:43:34 pm

Makes sense... I know Stuart talked in Sunday School about how his school has a dress code... do you guys think that is a good idea?

greg
12/1/2012 02:16:42 am

There are a lot of different reasons to have a dress code. In general I think it's good to secure modesty, but BETTER to educate people about modesty and let them do it by choice. It's a big topic.


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