Uncut hair in church history
 

I'm looking for documentation concerning the "uncut hair" doctrine in church history. I'm not looking to discuss the scriptural issues, as that has already been done here multiple times.

Up until recent times, it seems that long hair has been the accepted norm for Christian ladies since the time of the Apostles. However, did ladies ever trim it in any way while still leaving it long? It has been stated that the "uncut hair" doctrine is a new one. That would mean there is documentation that shows this. Anecdotal information is welcomed, but I would really like someone to point me toward the correct historical or theological research.

My own research shows that the "uncut hair" doctrine is indeed an anomaly in our time. But that research may be incomplete.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

In Numbers chapter 6 we find the vow of a Nazirite in which a man or woman would not cut their hair for a designated time of consecration. This could be for a specified time period or could be for life. After the time of consecration the hair would be shaved off and offered as a sacrifice to the Lord. Since the vow was for both men and women, and since the vow was to let the hair grow, it seems to me that both men and women would be cutting/trimming/altering the length of their hair before the vow was taken and again after the vow was completed. So, in my opinion, there is nothing under the law which said a woman could not cut/trim/alter the length of her hair when she was not under that vow.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

I did a quick search. I'm not sure about the doctrine but the practice is mentioned in a book: "A history of private life: from pagan rome to byzantine" it mentions "women's hair was kept uncut" in atleast one culture(pg. 454). The reference is somewhat vague though.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

I was raised UPC and I remember very well as a child that most of the women in our church trimmed their hair and lots of the little girls had bangs. (That was in the days when the ladies all had the "rolls" at the end of their hair hanging down - don't know how else to describe it.)

I was old enough to know the difference when with the installation of a new pastor and change in the district regime, that trimming the hair was no longer permitted. This would have been in the late 50's or early 60's - before everyone started wearing their hair up in the big hair-dos.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Victorian women, and even women in earlier times than those, would weave locks of hair into jewelry or framed wall art. It's not a highly known practice, but seems to have been common at the time. Here is one example: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/11479. Some would say that these are ONLY made from the hair of those who died, but that's incorrect. Also, men AND women contributed locks.

Several stories, such as Louisa May Alcott's Little Women, describe a woman getting her hair cut to sell it to a wig maker. Although in these stories others are shocked that they've cut their hair SHORT, there is never outrage that their hair was on cut at all. Many are considered heroines, and their acts self sacrificing but morally good and pure.

However, though I've never found a website that confirms it, in some studies I did over 15 years ago on women's clothing, there was some evidence that around 1800, some ministers did preach against curling 'love locks' into the hair at the sides of women's faces. Part of their argument appeared to be that the curling techniques used (and the subsequent wiring of the hair to hold the style) broke it off short, if I remember correctly. Of course, the same ministers were preaching against "slit skirts" that showed the under skirt or decorative petticoat (different than an undergarment) and slit sleeves that showed no skin but rather showed a puff of a different colored fabric underneath. They apparently didn't preach against the very low cut, tight bodices that were common at the time or the reactionary fashion in which some younger women refused to wear corsets, however.

edit: Here is another article on hair art: http://indianastatemuseum.wordpress....p-on-hair-art/

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

My mother's experience growing up in the UPC was similar to Sweet Pea's.

They had bangs and trimmed their hair, and sometimes even had "short" hair styles. A new pastor came in the late 60's and uncut hair became the law.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

In the late nineteen fifties and early nineteen sixties, women and girls in the UP churches I went to usually kept their hair long enough that it could be curled or rolled and come down to about the shoulder. Some wore bangs. "Long" hair for women was considered "long" because it was longer than the men's styles which were often butch or flat top or greased down and slicked back with a "wave" in the front.

ref the attachments for UPC women's hair styles of 50-60 years ago

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Thanks for the above responses. They have are indeed a help.

I'm also interested in the historiography of the theology of uncut hair. Most commentaries and bible word dictionaries seem to define the Greek word keirō translated as "shorn" in I Corinthians 11:6 (KJV) as sheering as a sheep or to cut off or cut short. I'm wondering if there have been any actual translators or theologians in bygone eras who have interpreted this word to mean "to trim" only or "to cut, no matter how little".

I realize that arguments from silence are not always the strongest, but in my study of this issue I found something interesting. Rather I did not find something. M.D. Treece, the celebrated conservative apostolic theologian, does not even address the "uncut hair" issue in his translation of 1 Corinthians chapter 11. He discusses the need for long hair, but does not address in detail the linguistic reasoning for teaching a totally uncut hair doctrine, though I'm sure he supports such a doctrine. I found it curiously lacking in his otherwise exceedingly detailed discussion of this chapter. Why would he neglect to take on such an important issue, since there is such heated debate over it? Why not settle the issue by a thorough explanation, citing the major scholars or linguists who agreed with him?

My goal with this thread is simply to find out for certain who else, if any, have ever taught the totally uncut hair doctrine throughout history.

Of course, there are those who have taught against everything, including marriage. I'm looking for more balanced views. I thought this discussion would be useful.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Very interesting. I remember seeing similar hairstyles in old family pictures. My family goes back about 4 generations.

Are these actual pictures of UPC women? Do you know who and where?

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Don't reconize the other women in the photos, but the first one is Gene Tierney, next to last is Betty Davis, both were very famous actresses.
I think Sam was just giving examples of the hairstyles of the time, rather then actual UPC women.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Thanks. Apparently I'm not very well versed on my actresses. Been in the UPCI conservative wing for too long. I'll try to catch up.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Very interesting thread!

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

So far it's been interesting. I'm hoping to learn from the accumulated knowledge on this board. I'm beginning to wonder if anybody really knows how people saw the "uncut hair" vs. "long" issue in the past.

I would like to walk in the old paths. It would be great to know just what those really are.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

My MIL's father was a pastor in the COG. On his deathbed, he made her promise she would never cut her hair. She never did have it cut, until they put her in a nursing home.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Those pictures were not actual UPC women. They were just random pictures found on Google that showed, in my opinion, the hairstyles of women in UPC churches years ago.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

When I studied this, I thought it was very interesting that the Jews have apparently never had an 'uncut hair on women' doctrine. I think that's pretty significant.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Why Bob Your Hair, Girls

Why do you bob your hair, girls?
You're doing mighty wrong;
God gave it for a glory
And you should wear it long .
You spoil your lovely hair, girls,
You keep yourself in style;
Before you bob your hair, girls,
Just stop and think a while.

Why do you bob your hair, girls?
It is an awful shame
To rob the head God gave you
And bear the flapper's name.
You're taking off your covering,
It is an awful sin;
Don't never bob your hair, girls,
Short hair belongs to men.

Why do you bob your hair, girls?
It does not look so nice;
It's just to be in fashion,
lt's not the Lord's advice.
And every time you bob it
You're breaking God's command
You cannot bob your hair, girls
And reach the Glory land.

Why do you bob your hair, girls?
It's not the thing to do;
Just wear it, always wear it,
And to your Lord be true.
And when before the judgment
You meet your Lord up there,
He'll say, "Well done, for one thing,
You never bobbed your hair.

From Ozark Folksongs, Randolph.
Collected from Laura Wasson, Ark., 1942
Note: Written by Blind Alfred Reed and recorded by him in 1927.
In a modern tradition, he followed his success with "Why Do You
Bob Your Hair Girls, No.2" in 1929


Remember when this was posted several years ago?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pamBuNngU_I

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

So was that an actual belief in 1927 or just a folk song? Obviously caught on with some people for it to be popular.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Could you direct me to some sources? You don't have to post your research, just point me in the right direction.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

I'll have to look it up again. I can't remember exactly where it was, but I can probably find it.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

"Bobbed" hair was hair cut to chin length (or less) in the 20s--flapper style. It doesn't mean "cut at all".

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Might be difficult to find out... if there wasn't an issue for most people.

Though this article leans to the ridiculous, I assume it might be real, since it was published by the Letcher Co Historical Society (It might not; you'd have to call a local library and see if they had anything from the original date on microfilm to truly confirm it):
http://wright-bates.com/bobbedhair_scandal.htm
Notice that in the entire article, there is only one statement that might indicate criticism of CUTTING hair. That one statement was written some 40 years after the incident, in 1964/5.

There is also this leaflet: http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Books...ossy_wives.htm
Keep in mind this was a very strict Fundamental Baptist preacher. More about his leaflet and the general situation of the time can be found here: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/...1.html?start=2

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Very interesting stuff. I have to run in a minute, but will give this information a more thorough reading later tonight. Thanks so much for this information.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

As a child in the 50's my sister and I both had bangs (and my father did the trimming).
My mother went to a beauty school for a trim and color rinse when she was first getting grey hair. ( 1959 or so)
From what I recall at camps.....hair was long enough for pony tails or updo's but not always uncut.

Hair was worn down more often in the 50's and 60's. Perhaps the beehive of the 60's caused the directive.:heeheehee

I have umpteen photos that show shoulder length at church functions.
And a huge collection of ABI yearbooks from 50's & 60's.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Bauer's has about the most complete listing of documents which cite a particular word or phrase in ancient Greek. There is nothing that equates "being shorn" with "trimming one's hair..."

"Long" hair on women is pretty much the norm throughout the ancient world. "Uncut" hair was almost always mentioned in the context of a vow - such as the vow of the Nazarite, however, this applies to BOTH men and women and usually for just a prescribed period of time.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

I would be interested in even one Old Testament reference where a Woman trimming her hair was considered sin. Can anyone produce one?

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

I was not brought up in a Pentecostal church.
I got saved in 1955 and joined a Baptist Church.
I was later baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, joined a UPC church in Racine, Wisconsin and then later was baptized in the Spirit.

The girls and women in the UPC church in Racine wore their hair in various ways. The older ones wore it in buns or wrapped around something (don't remember the name) close to their head. The younger ones wore it down and curled. It seemed about shoulder length.

I spent one year at ABI (1956/1957) and the girls there wore their hair rolled or curled and usually about shoulder length.

I came to Ohio and attended a UPC church from 1957 to 1963 or 1964. Older women usually wore their hair in buns or a French twist. Younger women and teenagers usually wore theirs down in a page boy or curled and it was around shoulder length. They later adopted the oatmeal box also. Little girls who were not teenagers had quite short hair.

I attended an ALJC church from 1963/1964 until 1978 (or maybe 1979). The women there had a variety of hair styles, mostly quite short and dyed.

During the sixties and seventies some ladies (and some teen age girls) began to use hair pieces to add height to their hair. Some used rolls of toilet paper or oatmeal boxes to make their hair taller.

At various times in the 60's and 70's I visited African American Churches (PAW, PCAF, etc) and the women wore their hair quite short.

What limited fellowship I have with UPC folks now it seems the women keep their hair short enough to manage but long enough to fix into a "Pentecostal do." Some pin on hair pieces to go to church.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

The fact that the commandments of the Law are pretty detailed but for some reason omit any mention whatsoever of a woman being forbidden to cut her hair would be a strong indication of just how the Jewish people, particularly Jewish women, understood this issue.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

The old "rat." The pressures we put upon women and especially girls is just plain silly.

I came into the UPC as a teenager and into a church that had a similar history that you describe. By the time I joined (1979) the idea of uncut hair was a doctrine. This proved to be a real problem with the ladies coming out of the Apostolic Assemblies and other Oneness groups.

The girls in the pastor's family had all cut their hair in the past. The younger girls had that "page boy" style of bangs until they got into their teens. Then it was a competition to see how high they could pile it up. They also all wore slacks at different times - even the pastor's wife.

By 1979, "uncut" hair and "dresses only" had become the creed - though it was obvious that this was a new "consecration" that they were still trying to implement. Thus, upon my arrival, there was an atmosphere of increasingly harsh demands for conformity.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Nope. No one can. Good eye, Michael.

:highfive

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

I'll admit, I was ignorant for thinking that a woman cutting her hair was a sin. I say, do what you want as long as you are not convicted of it. I eventually got tired of my split ends. I know a woman with hair so incredibly long, that when it's down, it touches the floor. She's kept it up everytime I've seen her in Church. I've heard her talk about the weight of it, and she says it is pulling her bald. Her husband won't let her cut it. Distinction is not an issue. Your hair doesn't have to be touching the floor for someone to be able to tell you are a woman.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

One does not have to consider something a sin or not, to not in engage in the activity based on what is in scripture.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Well, I can say for certain that if it can be found in scripture that a certain activity is a sin, I won't engage in it for that reason. If you abstain from something based on what is in scripture, why would you not also consider it a sin to partake?

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

For the simple reason of your first post. I believe what the Bible calls sin is sin. Anything else is a conviction of the Holy Ghost. There are principles on the scripture like hair where the Bible never explicitly teaches uncut hair. However because long hair is a glory to the women and to be shorn or shaven is a shame, people have adopted by the leading of the Spirit a standard for the church. Not one statement in the Bible says if a women cuts her hair an inch, that is a sin and they will go to hell. However the Bible does teach in my opinion that a women should have long hair and its a shame to be shorn.

So while I may not believe cutting an inch is a sin, I do believe you live by the principle of the scripture and adopt your standards based on that. Do you understand my point?

Or say Television. No scripture says thou shalt not look at a TV as it didn't exist. However scriptural principles such as (put no evil thing before thine eye) and (set your affections on things above) lead one to develop a standard of limited or no TV viewing. One can't say its a sin to view the TV but one can say that it can LEAD to sin.

Does that better clear up my point?

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Not to split hairs here (pun intended), but television did not exist when scriptures were written. Hair did. Nothing is said about trimming hair, and no, long hair does not presuppose a lack of trimming. That would be ludicrous logically.

However, this thread is not about what is said in scripture, as that has been discussed elsewhere on this board. Rather it is about how this issue has been interpreted through time.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Or say Television. No scripture says thou shalt not look at a TV as it didn't exist

This is what I said. Please reread my post.

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

It seems when you study any group, including the Jewish faith, you have three factions - Conservative, Moderate, Liberal.

Having said that, I ran across an older comment on a religious forum. The girl was saying that her grandmother was part of a "holiness" Church of Christ group that taught that women didn't cut their hair.

I ran into an older women (70ish) who told me they were taught not to cut their hair in the Baptist faith.

And, as I posted, my MIL was a part of the COG and they taught against cutting the hair.

The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that it is in preparation for a belief that in heaven the wives will be asked to use that hair to wash their husbands' feet. And I also read, somewhere, that they believe they will also wash Jesus' feet at his second coming.

I didn't study any of this further and I guess it doesn't really get you anywhere, but, at least, it could give you some group names that believed and taught this in times past. Basically, many felt the scripture was important enough to take it seriously. Some "uncut" and some "long", but trimmed.

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I know someone who has hair about 2 feet past her feet. It is so heavy and thick that it takes hours to wash and arrange. It's weight causes her migraines and is giving her neck and back trouble. Yet, she is afraid to talk to her WPF pastor about shortening or thinning it.

Is that crazy, or what? Is that what Paul had in mind?

Re: Uncut hair in church history
 

Same with the woman I told about.
Conviction should let you know the borderline.
I'm not saying to test the Spirit, absolutely not.
Make good judgements. Shorning is not a good judgment.
Be sure that people can tell you are a woman.
As I said "distinction is not an issue."
Paul would have been straightforward if he meant uncut.
Best argument I've heard is "why would a woman want to cut her glory."