My Veiling Journey

I can't exactly remember the precise day I first wore a chapel veil (also widely known as a mantilla) but I do know my "veiling journey" as I like to call it started off a bit rocky. First off, let me express that I've never been one to embrace the unknown. I like dreaming of what the future may hold, pondering on how a conversation could go, and so forth. I get frightened when I'm not certain how a change in my life will go, especially a drastic one. I find it hard to dream how it'll go because I'm so caught up in worry. So when my father announced that we were going to begin attending a new parish, I wasn't very fond of the idea. Looking back, I'm grateful that he made this important decision for his family. St. Peter and Paul where we had been previously attending was a nice church but however, it was not as traditional as we would personally prefer. So we started attending Our Lady of Ransom, a simple little church in a even smaller town. The very special thing about this church was that the mass was said in the Extraordinary Form every Sunday and the priest was a sweet old man, who knew each of us by name.

 If you didn't already know, I'm extroverted and extremely so! I adore being around people. So moving to a new parish and leaving people I was just starting to know was tough, but the fact that our new congregation was extremely small and mostly comprised of my family, was even tougher. Add to that experiencing a totally new form of the mass, and you've got one very confused girl who felt completely out of place. To be clear, I didn't always feel miserable. With time I began to adjust to both my new surroundings and to the mass. Looking back, I wouldn't trade that experience for the world. I learned so much, even if I wasn't fully aware of the significant lessons God was placing into my heart. During the first couple of weeks attending, my dad encouraged his girls to wear veils. He has always ultimately left the decision to us, but we didn't need much convincing. The other women there wore them so we figured we'd do the same. Fast forward to a year or two later, due to our priest being elderly, he unfortunately had to retire. So we started attending what is my current parish, Our Lady of Mount Carmel. I've been to a few Latin Masses since then, and because I previously have experienced the TLM I can appreciate it all the more and I look forward to every opportunity to attend one with gusto. It truly is a beautifully serene experience.

Traditionally, white or light colored veils are worn by unmarried women and dark colored or black veils are typically worn by married women. I started out wearing white by personal preference, until awhile later and begun alternating between the two colors. I like white as it plainly signifies purity + youth, and black simply because it's very sophisticated + classic. Since Vatican II came about ladies aren't required to cover their heads at mass anymore, which is a shame. Although I'm almost thankful for it, as shocking as that may sound. We women shouldn't be forced to cover our heads in a modest manner, we should be encouraged to do so. It's absolutely inspiring to see other women choosing to veil, especially young women like myself!

Seeing the little whisper of heaven in mass is the most stunning, humbling thing you will ever experience here on earth. We cover what is sacred...what is important. The tabernacle plus the alter are veiled in cloth, and even the priest and alter servers are veiled in a way. Veiling is way us girls can show total submission to God in modesty, and a visual symbol that you believe fully that Christ is surely present in the mass. So as I mentioned in the beginning, my veiling journey began a little rocky. I honestly only wore my veil whenever I went to a mass the Extraordinary Form. Why? I felt self-conscious. Instead of thinking about how lovely I looked to God, I worried what other people might say and think about me which was too hard for me to swallow at the time. So despite now attending a Novus Ordo regularly, I wear my mantilla at every mass. I swallowed my pride, and it felt so liberating to so do. Without my veil I feel bare, which is a huge transformation from what I used to feel. I've now worn it the past year or so with little to no hesitation and I couldn't love it more.

Thank you for taking the time to read such a lengthy post, it feels wonderful to share my story which has been on my heart and mind for what feels like a very long time. God bless, and feel free to ask any questions below concerning veiling, I promise I will do my best to answer them.