[Brillopad]

Originally Posted by DemolitionRed

Your kidding? There are many countries around the globe where Christian women are required to cover their hair. Start with Russian Orthodox and Coptic Christians. A lot of the Romanian women who sell big issue are covered from head to toe, including their hair because they are Orthodox Christians, not Muslims as so many wrongly presume.

I am a little confused by that. I am not religious at all so no expert on Christianity but I am pretty sure it is not a requirement of said religion in the West.

So that beggars the question does that have more to do with geographics and common views in certain countries towards women and their interpretation of how women should act/dress than the religion itself.

[user104658]

Originally Posted by Brillopad

I am a little confused by that. I am not religious at all so no expert on Christianity but I am pretty sure it is not a requirement of said religion in the West.

So that beggars the question does that have more to do with geographics and common views in certain countries towards women and their interpretation of how women should act/dress than the religion itself.

It's not a requirement of Islam either, there are many (millions, I would imagine) Muslim women who don't cover their hair... There are still more Muslims than Christians who do, obviously, but it's more down to interpretations of it and culture than any sort of strict requirement. It's more that most branches of modern day Christianity are pretty "relaxed" about which parts of the bible they follow, and which parts arent considered important any more.

There are also many Muslim women who seem to decide to wear it when they haven't previously worn anything, and whose families / husbands etc. don't care either way if they do or not, which might be surprising.

[DemolitionRed]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

It's not a requirement of Islam either, there are many (millions, I would imagine) Muslim women who don't cover their hair... There are still more Muslims than Christians who do, obviously, but it's more down to interpretations of it and culture than any sort of strict requirement. It's more that most branches of modern day Christianity are pretty "relaxed" about which parts of the bible they follow, and which parts arent considered important any more.

There are also many Muslim women who seem to decide to wear it when they haven't previously worn anything, and whose families / husbands etc. don't care either way if they do or not, which might be surprising.

Good informative post TS

I work with one Muslim woman who doesn't wear the head covering and dresses western style. Her sister, who like her, is single, wears modest clothing and head covering. My work colleague is a practicing Muslim. Like you say, many Muslim women don't wear Muslim style clothing.

Also, when I first went to Bucharest, I was astounded at the number of Muslim women in black abaya's and al-amira style head dressers. There were women praying on prayer mats on the streets. When you looked a little closer, they were holding rosaries and crucifixes. Since then I've never presumed that a woman who is wearing hijab in the UK is actually a Muslim woman because its just as likely she's an Orthodox or Coptic Christian from Eastern Europe or Egypt.