The thing with the headscarf

Debates about the headscarf keep pushing themselves forward. So I had one conjured up imaginatively by AI. Would anyone have noticed? Not that I would have to wear one myself – but just to test what it would be like. Perhaps for fashion reasons. But perhaps also to visibly express my Christian faith? Why not. Mary, the mother of Jesus, may well have worn one too. Why should I have to justify myself for that?

A few days ago I observed a scene at Zurich airport: a security employee pointed out to a young colleague that she had to wear her cross, which apparently hung over her sweater, underneath it. A minor matter – and yet it stayed with me.

At the same airport there is an airport church and prayer rooms, open to people of all religions. Religious freedom does not only mean being allowed to believe something in one's innermost being, but also being able to live religion. The saying also applies: “What the heart is full of, the mouth speaks.” And to the same extent it shows outwardly.

That is precisely why the headscarf debate makes me thoughtful. It is sparked above all by visible Islam. But if religious signs are pushed out of public space, in the end it affects everyone: the Muslim woman with a headscarf just as much as the nun with a veil, the Franciscan in a habit or the Christian woman with a cross around her neck. Ultimately every person who professes anything.

Neutrality cannot mean that people may not show any convictions, any history and any spiritual home. Our Swiss constitution also begins with the words: «Im Namen Gottes des Allmächtigen.»

That is why I long for more visible religion, more serenity in dealing with it. Curiosity and questions: Why are you a professing Christian, Muslim, Buddhist or simply the way you are? Hey, your universe, your biography, are exciting! People should be able to live their faith happily. People without religion too. There is no ranking there, but mutual respect.

For me, the question of God remains one of the great questions of being human. To want to ban this from the visible areas of life is ultimately inhumane.