If my wife will not wear a head covering, is she sinning, and am I?
A married viewer who accepts Robert's teaching on head coverings says his wife is too shy to wear one and her priest told her it is not a sin to go without; he asks whether he should press the issue against her conscience and whether either of them is sinning.
Answer
This is a tough spot for a husband. My role, as I see it, is to remind the church of what she has already taught, on head coverings, on the inspiration of Scripture, and so on, but I have no authority to bind anyone. The church practiced head coverings for two thousand years and then simply dropped the ball; there was never any official teaching that women shall not wear them, just silence. In 1 Corinthians 11 Paul gives it as the Christian practice, and it signifies that the woman is under authority, within the chain of God, Christ, angels, men, women. So a head covering symbolizes a woman's submission to her God-given role, including bearing children. But since the church today does not require it and your wife's priest told her it is not a sin, you cannot hold her responsible if she is too shy or not ready; you have to give her space. She is not required to wear it, though she should study the issue, since you are her husband showing it to her, and she may come to a personal conviction just as I did, and hope the church one day sees it again. Meanwhile her conscience is satisfied, and yours can be too; move forward.