Mantilla, The Veil of the Bride of Christ

Whether you are simply curious to find out the reasons behind the tradition of women covering their heads in church or are already convinced it is a good and beneficial practice, whether you are perplexed to see it making a comeback everywhere or are already a long-time dedicated veiler yourself, Anna Elissa’s Mantilla: The Veil of the Bride of Christ is the most thorough, insightful, and serene guide to veiling ever written—one that will equip you with answers to your own questions as well as the never-lacking questions of friends, relatives, and strangers. Resting her account on Scripture and Tradition as interpreted by the Church Fathers, St. Thomas Aquinas, and papal, liturgical, and canon law texts, the author offers arguments of fittingness on behalf of veiling, responds to common objections against it, offers practical advice for choosing, wearing, and even designing mantillas, and shows how the veil contributes to a Eucharistic way of life that treats femininity as a gift, a treasure, and a mystery. To illustrate and verify her points, Anna Elissa presents a substantial collection of testimonials from women of all ages about their experience adopting and wearing the veil—and from men, too, including clergy, about why they value the practice and its return. Appropriately for a book about the language of signs and beauty, Mantilla’s chapters are graced with nine full-color plates of exquisite artworks featuring women in veils.

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