Traditions: The Chapel Veil

The chapel veil is also called a mantilla, and is worn by Catholic women to honor the Lord as truly present in the Eucharist. This is a very old tradition and is also a symbol of imitation of Mary, the Mother of God.

The wearing of the Mantilla is an act of veiling a woman's physical beauty, so that the beauty of God may be glorified instead. It is also a way of emulating Mary, our mother, who is the archetype of purity and humility.  Moreover, the mantilla, or chapel veil, signifies the role of women as a life-bearing vessel.  The chalice holding the blood of Christ is veiled until the Preparation of the Gifts, and the tabernacle is veiled between Masses. Both of these vessels hold the Eucharist – the very life of Christ. (The Catholic Company. “The Tradition Behind Mantillas/Chapel Veils.” Accessed 8-17-2026. https://www.catholiccompany.com/pages/the-tradition-behind-mantillas-chapel-veils)

Following along the line of my recent articles,  this article is about a recent upsurgence in more traditional catholic practices.  I started this series by talking about how younger Catholics are not only coming to church, but they are also bringing with them an interest in traditional practices.  One of these is wearing a veil at Mass and adoration, and this is one that you can see appearing right before your eyes. This one is more apparent because it is hard to miss someone wearing a veil.

“There's a new uprising in the Church of millennials who are actually wanting a more traditional take on their faith," shares Leah Darrow, a former America’s Next Top Model contestant turned Catholic speaker and author. (You can read her full interview on veilsbylily.com). "There is something beautiful about how that piece of fashion speaks to faith and prayer life." (Leah Darrow, quoted in The Young Catholic Woman, “A Short History of the Veil.” Accessed 8-17-2026. https://www.theyoungcatholicwoman.com/archivescollection/a-short-history-of-the-veil)

The veil itself is an ancient tradition dating back over a thousand years before Christ, and was found throughout Middle Eastern cultures.  It has long been a symbol of submission, not only to men but to God. For More details about the history of veiling before Christ, Please see the article cited above (The Young Catholic Woman, “A Short History of the Veil.” Accessed 8-17-2026. https://www.theyoungcatholicwoman.com/archivescollection/a-short-history-of-the-veil). We see today that many Middle Eastern cultures still uphold the tradition of the women covering their heads, but this is different.

The tradition of Catholic women veiling their heads was seen in the early church, and in fact is written of in the first letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians, chapter 11. Here, the practice of veiling was seen as a symbol of a married woman being submissive to her husband, who is submitted to Christ. St. Paul makes the argument that women should cover their heads while in prayer. Although some find this reasoning uncomfortable, it is a way of showing that the whole household is submitted to Christ.

The Catholic Church adopted this practice more so for honoring the Lord in the Holy Eucharist, which is why Catholic women only wear the veil at Mass and adoration.

After Vatican II, many traditional practices were eased.  It is not so much that most practices were forbidden, but they were not mandated and so their use fell away.  Other examples of this include the Rosary and scapular as frequent expressions of faith. Again it is not so much that faith ended but traditional practices changed. As in all of America, the 70s and 80s were seen as a new era with new ways of living and worshipping. 

My purpose in this article is not to try to explain why the practice fell away, but, rather, why the veil has regained popularity.  I hesitate to use the word popularity because it implies a trend or something that is fashionable.  The truth is the veil is being seen popping up all over the churches, especially the enlivened churches and on college campuses.  The people who wear the veils are often leaders, although perhaps quietly so. Many of them are involved in small Christian community prayer groups and homeschooling which have also shown a resurgence.

This trend is noted in a website Veils by Lily, which is quoted here:

 “I have definitely noticed an increase of women, especially young adult women, wearing veils,” says Father Roger Landry, 54, Catholic chaplain of Columbia University. He interprets the veiling trend “as an attempt to be maximally reverent to God at Mass and in receiving Holy Communion.”  (Landry, Roger, quoted by Kearns, Madeleine, The Free Press “The Young Catholic Women Bringing Back Veils,” 8-25-2024. 88-25-202Accessed 8-17-2026. https://www.thefp.com/p/the-young-catholic-women-bringing)

Many see the resurgence of the veil is being tied to an interest in many traditional ways of worshiping, including the Latin Mass. The Latin Mass has undergone many changes in acceptance over the last 5 decades:

Veiling ceased to be the norm after the Catholic Church’s modernizing reforms of the 1960s, commonly known as “Vatican II”—which, among other things, placed restrictions on whether parishes could offer the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM). 

(Kearns, Madeline, The Free Press, “The Young Catholic Women Bringing Back Veils,” Accessed 8-17-2026. https://www.thefp.com/p/the-young-catholic-women-bringing)

The resurgence of the Latin Mass is linked to the resurgence of the use of veils. A brief history of the Latin Mass in modern America can also be found in the Free Press article. 

In the following decades, these regulations were gradually relaxed. But the roots of the mantilla’s resurgence lie in 2007, according to Father Landry. That’s when Pope Benedict XVI increased younger generations’ exposure to the TLM by officially lifting the restrictions on it. Pope Francis reversed this decision in 2021. By that point, however, it had caught on. The year before, a survey found a “high volume of participation” in the TLM among 18- to 39-year-old practicing Catholics in the U.S. (Kearns, Madeline, The Free Press, “The Young Catholic Women Bringing Back Veils,” Accessed 8-17-2026. https://www.thefp.com/p/the-young-catholic-women-bringing)

Social media and veiling

It continues to amaze me how much social media has just exploded on the scene and how it influences culture, even our attitudes about religion. In fact, this blog itself is evidence of that. You would not be reading this if there were no social media.  Facebook and Reddit are real storehouses of  information for Americans, and have recently become real megaphones for Catholic culture. We just love our social media and so that's where I turned for comments about why veiling seems to be increasing.

There is a Facebook article called “The Chapel Veil Is Back: Three Beautiful Reasons Some Catholic Women Are Veiling at Mass,” (https://www.facebook.com/churchpopsite/posts/the-chapel-veil-is-back-3-beautiful-reasons-some-catholic-women-are-veiling-at-m/1298956312265302/). I did survey research and found the following data after reading 30 comments:

Reverence, worship: 8

Adoring the Real Presence of Jesus: 7

Changes my focus and attitude: 6

Honoring Mary: 3

Felt called: 2

Latin Mass: 1

I am the Bride of Christ: 1

Others doing it: 1

Beautiful: 1

A full 50% noted that they wear a veil because it shows reverence/worship for the Lord, and especially honoring the Lord in the Eucharist. Our younger generation has a heart for true worship.

Along with the reasons noted above came this quote:

“4th reason - We veil the sacred. The sacred vessels can be veiled, the tabernacle can be veiled, the baptized and anointed body of the dead can be veiled, woman who is made to be the bearer of new life within her is veiled.” Tim Caruthers

Also, from Rene' Altizer McCarthey:

“It also serves to remind me that Jesus is my bridegroom and I’m his bride (as a member of his Church) as I walk up the aisle to receive him in the Eucharist.”

I love this quote from Meus Maria Bartolome Kaveny the most of all because it sums it up how even trends can change a person's heart: 

I started veiling when I attended the Latin Mass, honestly, at first just because most of the women did it, and I thought it looked cute. But after a few times, something changed. I couldn’t attend Mass without my veil anymore. It stopped being just “cute.” It became something reverent, holy, and deeply meaningful. Now, I find that I can no longer receive the Eucharist on my hand too, only on my tongue. Something is changing, what is happening?!