Judas Maccabeus wrote: ↑Fri Feb 02, 2024 8:53 am
Grace wrote: ↑Wed Jan 31, 2024 1:08 pm
In Eastern anything other than a cap style covering is frowned on. This includes while sleeping and after washing the hair (ladies are to kinda perch their covering on top and hope it stays...). Maybe 15 years ago there was a strong movement to make sure that ladies were never wearing flowing veils at home (after hair washing or to sleep) because it "could undermine consistent practice". Some did anyway, especially those who had always worn a veil to sleep in, but they kept it quite.
For some reason I have a problem with other men (those in leadership) telling women what to wear on their heads and otherwise, in the privacy of a bedroom. (I heard that PJ's on women is also forbidden) The bedroom is to be shared with a wife's husband and NO ONE else! What happens in the bedroom and what the woman (or man) wears is no business of another man, even church leaders, in my opinion. Many years ago I worked with an Eastern young lady, who was also a bride to be. The outfits she purchased at Victoria's Secret for her wedding night, certainly would not have meshed well with a covering.
I am on our church Ministry team, and I can confirm, as far as I know, it is none of our business, and never has been.
I would wonder what the proposed enforcement mechanism for this would be. I cannot fathom this. I know our statement of faith and practice inside and out, most NMB’s do, and I have never seen anything like this. Is this really in EPMC’s, or is it just some bishop making things up as they go along.
I do not know what Eastern’s statement of faith and practice really is. I would be quite interested in knowing what it actually is. I teach history and have every Lancaster conference version that has ever been published in English, I wonder exactly what the progression was from the pre split version to the current one. The details of the Mid Atlantic separation are particularly interesting.
Would you be open to a history class here on MN? Sounds intriguing.
It would not be hard to get you a copy of Eastern's standards, but that wouldn't enlighten you much. It would look like many others. Eastern relies on "Bishop statements" which are not available to the laity. I believe it is a power play. Many members have asked for copies of particularly confusing statements only to be told they are not available because they could be misconstrued.
A few true examples- a long time school teacher, in good standing of the church had her loyalty questioned because of a statement made in the classroom. One of the questions she was asked was concerning her night time covering. It was still a veil, as she had always used aside from time at Bible School where a cap style night time covering is required (the matrons will replace veils that they see). She was told that she must change or stop teaching.
A different member was called into question for using a cranial therapist for her child after raising several concerns about her immoral husband. She was told she must cease using the therapist or loose her membership [this Bishop Statement, which I heard personally years ago, has apparently been altered along the way without anything public since ministry are now using cranial therapist and recommending them to the laity...]
Another member who had made statements that were taken as being disloyal was drilled and it was discovered that they use homeopathics at times. There was a distant Bishop Statement on that so it became a test of membership. Since others knew they used homeopathics, it also required a public confession. [This one actually occurred multiple times]
So how is it enforced? Some of these horror stories get out and ladies make sure they are doing what is expected of them. It works.
These things happen all too often, while known gross sin requires vague non-shaming confessions and little if any restriction.