QUESTION:
Can a woman cut or trim the hair and still have 
long hair?  

ANSWER:
Many years ago, it was rare to find very many women in the churches who cut their 
hair. Now and then there would be one, but they were few and far between. Today, 
the opposite is fast becoming the norm. More and more women are not only cutting 
their hair, but many openly declare that there is nothing wrong with it. Often as a 
first step there seems to be an idea among some that if a woman just trims a little 
of her hair it is not wrong, but if she were to cut a significant portion of it 
off, she would he in violation of the above passage. Is this sound or correct 
reasoning? Please note the following facts before you draw your conclusion. "Doth 
not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto 
him? But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her 
for a covering" I Cor 11:15. The expression "have long hair" translates a Greek 
word which means "let the hair grow" Thayer p.354. The idea of length is not 
relative. Paul is not contrasting the length of a woman's hair when compared to the 
length of man's hair. (To argue that a woman's hair is longer than a man's misses 
the point.) In fact, the idea of a certain lineal length in so many feet or inches 
is not under consideration. Our hair is either natural length or not natural 
length. We either let our hair grow or we do not. If we let it grow we do not cut 
it. If we cut or trim it, we do not let it grow. Thus Paul is actually saying: "If 
a man let his hair grow, it is a shame unto him. But if a woman let her hair grow, 
it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering. "How much of her 
hair is given her for a covering? The word "hair" in this verse translates a Greek 
word meaning "head of hair" Thayer p.354. Thus it is a woman's "head of hair" or 
all of her hair that is given her for a covering. When a woman trims the edges or 
the last few inches of her hair, she no longer has "long hair" in God's sight. She 
ceases to "let the hair grow" by trimming it. To argue that trimming the hair will 
cause it to grow, also misses the point. Paul is not suggesting ways to get the 
hair to grow, but merely telling women to not interfere with its growth. When a 
woman trims her hair, she has cut her hair, and in so doing has violated I Cor.11:1-
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