- Feb 5, 2002
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Are black mantillas just for funerals? Katrina Fernandez fixes it for you
Dear Katrina,
A few Sundays ago an elderly woman told me that the black veil I was wearing at Mass was what you were supposed to wear for a funeral and that white or ivory ones were what you were supposed to wear at Mass. At least that was the tradition when she was a young woman, she said. I had always heard that single women wear white and married, widowed, or divorced women wear black. I only own two black mantillas and now I wonder if I should be wearing them to Mass if they’re supposed to be only worn at funerals. I would say less than a quarter of the women at my church wear veils, but I’ve seen all kinds of colors – brown, purple, beige, green, and even red. I’m relatively new to the practice, about four months now, so I wasn’t entirely sure and didn’t want to be doing something wrong. Do the colors have a special meaning? I had never heard that black mantillas were reserved for funeral masses before but now I look at my veils and think of mourning. What do you think?
Continued below.
Veiling at Mass: What are the rules?
Dear Katrina,
A few Sundays ago an elderly woman told me that the black veil I was wearing at Mass was what you were supposed to wear for a funeral and that white or ivory ones were what you were supposed to wear at Mass. At least that was the tradition when she was a young woman, she said. I had always heard that single women wear white and married, widowed, or divorced women wear black. I only own two black mantillas and now I wonder if I should be wearing them to Mass if they’re supposed to be only worn at funerals. I would say less than a quarter of the women at my church wear veils, but I’ve seen all kinds of colors – brown, purple, beige, green, and even red. I’m relatively new to the practice, about four months now, so I wasn’t entirely sure and didn’t want to be doing something wrong. Do the colors have a special meaning? I had never heard that black mantillas were reserved for funeral masses before but now I look at my veils and think of mourning. What do you think?
Continued below.
Veiling at Mass: What are the rules?
