Here is an image I found on a online photo hosting service. I entered the search term "Catholic Woman" and this came up. Now any practicing Catholic will probably recognize that no one actually prays the Rosary in the manner depicted in this photograph. The beads are supposed to serve as a way to keep track of the prayers, so the woman would actually have to be toucing the beads in order to do that. But that's my point, actually. This is clearly a staged photograph of what the photographer felt a Catholic woman looks like. And look and see what she is wearing on her head. A veil has been associated with Catholic women for 2000 years. As this picture illustrates, even random photographers recognize the timeless importance of the chapel veil to Catholic identity.
Wow. Great point!
ReplyDeleteI've always been baffled by photos that show people praying the rosary thus. You're right, every last one of them must be posed. It does look aesthetically pleasing, though, so I can't really blame them. It looks like this young lady is wearing a scarf, my own covering of choice, rather than a mantilla. That makes me ridiculously happy for some reason.
ReplyDeleteI sometimes hold my Rosary like this like this after I finish praying the mysteries and am just meditating.
ReplyDeleteI am an European convent woman and I often hold my rosary like this. The rosary is much more that a prayer page marker. For many of us our rosaries were handed down and we often hold them thus as a way to stay deep in prayer while we stay connected to our fore-mothers. But I guess that is the problem with generalizing from one image ignoring culture, inheritance, traditions, etc... I have plenty of images in my head of watching women in this sort of deep prayer touching the sacred, just like I remember more active moments of beads traveling through praying fingers.
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