In Bible times, women typically covered their heads in public. They may have used a veil or their outer garment as a head covering. However, when the apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian congregation about head coverings, he was not simply discussing the customs of the day. Inspired by holy spirit, he wrote that a woman would need to cover her head if she were to pray publicly or to prophesy in the congregation, privileges that God had assigned to the man. (1Co 11:5) By covering her head, a Christian woman would honor the headship arrangement.​—1Co 11:3.