![Picture](/uploads/1/6/6/7/16670620/1901727.jpeg)
I dressed up, too. But in addition to my white fancies I wore a yarmulke.
There is actually a rather long tradition within the church of clergy donning headwear, from the bishop’s miter (a crown shaped like the tongues of fire at Pentecost) to the four-pointed cap of the Reformation (precursor of our modern graduation cap). The medieval monk donned a skull cap (referred to in Roman circles as the zucchetto) to protect his tonsured head from the cold of the monastery, but today it is more often seen on bishops, cardinals, and popes than on the typical parish priest.
But I thought, why not? By wearing a yarmulke on my head, I was identifying not only with my Jewish cousins but with my own tradition’s historical roots. I wore it with pride.
Apparently, the Lutherans were quite impressed that a Jew had joined the procession. I was the buzz of the celebration. Oops!
The wearing of a skullcap is ubiquitous among practicing Jewish men, especially while praying in the synagogue (although orthodox Jews tend to keep their heads covered all the time). In egalitarian Jewish communities, many women have taken up the practice as well.
Tradition claims that the covering of one’s head as an act of piety goes all the way back to the early days of the Israelites, when the priests were ordered to wear special turbans when serving the tabernacle and temple. But the earliest record of wearing a special head covering actually goes to a second century CE reference in the Talmud (Tractate Shabbat, in case you’re wondering).
So, all those pictures you have in your mind of Jesus wearing a yarmulke are just as inaccurate as his blonde hair and blue eyes.
So why cover the head?
In Hebrew, it is known as a kippah, literally meaning ‘dome’ (as in, the dome of your head). But in Yiddish, the skullcap is called a yarmulke—which interestingly derives from an Aramaic phrase: yirei malka. In fear of the king.
Did you catch that? In fear of the king.
I know this expression carries with it a lot of baggage, conjuring a very masculine, even tyrannical picture. But let’s acknowledge that, and then get to parsing the expression.
In fear of the king.
The king, of course, is God—king with a capital K. And fear isn’t about being afraid, per se, but is an expression that, in the bible, implies deference, obedience and respect; e.g. the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding (Psalm 111v10).
So, Jews wear a kippah or yarmulke not because they are afraid of God, but out of an act of humility. It is submission, yes; not out of fear, but out of respect and love.
The prophet Micah once explained that God has shown us what is good, and along with justice and mercy, we are to practice humility with God (6v8).
I don’t suggest that Christians begin adopting the practice of wearing a yarmulke. Today, it is virtually a symbol of being Jewish; much like wearing a cross might be a symbol of being a Christian. But like the cross, the yarmulke symbolizes a relationship, a posture that one takes in the world, acknowledging that we are not God.
When I wear vestments for worship, I look like a complete fool. I wear a long white gown (in my case, a surplice, which is an inflated version of the more common alb, which is a modern version of the Roman tunic), and a colored stole (supposedly a derivation from a napkin worn by servants, but really a royal ribbon from ancient Rome that, depending on color and way of wearing it, was a sign of one’s political office). No one wears these impractical clothes today, except clergy. We even ‘spiritualize’ them (the white robe is symbolic of Baptism, the colored stole of the yoke of Christ, and so on).
But then, when I cover my head with a little skull cap, my mind goes to a different place…not one with flowing robes and colored silk, but one of simplicity and humility.
Who knows…maybe this Sunday I’ll dust off my yarmulke…in fear of the king.