Meaning of "praying and prophecying" in 1st Corinthians 11

[Sam Jer]

Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head.
But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven.
For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. (1st Corinthians 11:4-6)

What does praying or prophecying refer to in this passage? It would seem that whatever it is would be allowable for women to do, but Paul also taught that:

Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church. (1st Corinthians 14:34-35)

So how does one "pray or prophecy" without speaking in the church? If it just said prayer, I could understand it as being congergational responses (such as saying the amen, a practice specifically mentioned in 1st Corinthians 14:16) and/or congergational singing. However, the "prophecying" part complicates the matter quite a bit.
So, what is it? What does praying and prophecying refer to?

To clarify, this thread is supposed to be about a specific interpetative question, not a general head-covering thread.

 

[Request-Deleted member 11775]

When he that leads the worship prays aloud the rest of the congregation pray together with him silently.

As far as prophesying, other parts of Scripture perhaps shed light on the fact that it likely refers to singing of Psalms

1 Chronicles 25 v 3
Of Jeduthun: the sons of Jeduthun; Gedaliah, and Zeri, and Jeshaiah, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the hands of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied with a harp, to give thanks and to praise the Lord.

 

[Andres]

It's a synecdoche representing public worship. Parts of public worship are referenced to mean the entirety of it. Another example is Acts 20:7:
"And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight."
"Break bread" in this passage refers to the disciples coming together for public worship. So 1 Cor 11:4-6 states that when the church gathers for public worship, men's heads should be uncovered and women's should be covered.

 

[Sam Jer]

It's a synecdoche representing public worship. Parts of public worship are referenced to mean the entirety of it. Another example is Acts 20:7:
"And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight."
"Break bread" in this passage refers to the disciples coming together for public worship. So 1 Cor 11:4-6 states that when the church gathers for public worship, men's heads should be uncovered and women's should be covered.

Does it solve the problem with Prophesieth though? It is hardly a normal part of the order of worship from Abel to the second coming, and wouldn't the woman be on the receiving end anyway given that it it is shameful for a woman to speak in church (1Cor 14:35)?

 

[Poimen]

When he that leads the worship prays aloud the rest of the congregation pray together with him silently.

As far as prophesying, other parts of Scripture perhaps shed light on the fact that it likely refers to singing of Psalms

1 Chronicles 25 v 3
Of Jeduthun: the sons of Jeduthun; Gedaliah, and Zeri, and Jeshaiah, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the hands of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied with a harp, to give thanks and to praise the Lord.

John Lightfoot, From the Talmud and Hebraica. Volume 4. New York: Cosimo, 2007, page 262:

“Ver. 3: ὁ δὲ προφητεύων He that prophesieth.] The word προφητεύειν, to prophesy, comprehends three things, ‘singing psalms,’ ‘doctrine,’ and ‘revelation:’ as ver. 26.

To prophesy is taken for ‘singing psalms,’ or celebrating the praises of God, I Sam. x. 5, “Thou shalt meet a company of prophets,…with a psaltery, and a tabret, a pipe, and a harp, וְהֵמָּה מִתְנַבְּאִים and they shall prophesy:” where the Chaldee, ואינון משבחין and they shall sing or praise. And chap. xix. 24, 25, ואזל מיזל ומשבח And he went forward singing. And he put off his (royal) garment ושבח and sang.

From this signification of the word prophesying, you may understand in what sense a woman is said to prophesy, chap. xi. 5; that is, to ‘sing psalms.’ For what is there said by the apostle, “A man praying or prophesying,” and “a woman praying or prophesying,” is explained in this chapter, when it is said, “I will pray,” and “I will sing.”

 

[Contra_Mundum]

It is worth noting that Paul never alleges that the church in Corinth was actually permitting women to prophesy in public Christian worship. Whatever the proposals on the table were, he writes in 1Cor.11:2, "Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you." Thus, what Paul has to say, he says as a means of enforcing the ordinances he left them with. The elders were holding the line on this matter, and Paul commends them; which is a rhetorical ploy intended to make what he has to say later from v17ff--when he begins, "Now in giving these instructions I do not praise you, since you come together not for the better but for the worse,"--somewhat more palatable. First he praises the church, then he rebukes them, a useful strategy for gaining his hearers.

When women did prophesy--and the NT contains numerous examples of that reality, whatever the form or forms one allows is contemplated--there were certain rules and decorum that belonged to the incidence. Those rules and decorum contained no implications that could ever contravene ordinances of worship such as found in 1Cor.14:34-35, not least for which what Paul writes about God's nature in v33! Rather, we would expect such rules and decorum to go along with rules and decorum of worship in sweet compatibility. I say Paul implies by the terms of 1Cor.11:3-16 that the rules and decorum of women prophesying would be incompatible with public worship. But as a matter of fact, whatever were the demands for change that some urged, the situation with respect to worship in this particular was not the scandalous departure and failure of good order and discipline that marked the liturgies of communion (1Cor.11:17-34) and of preaching (1Cor.14:6-40).

In fact, what Paul says with respect to the "golden silence" of the women at the conclusion of ch.14 suits both that context, and bookends this large portion of the letter by "bringing it back around" to actually verbalize the specific implication of ch.11:3-16 with respect to worship that he had left out of that section. The argument might go thus: if GIFTS demand a place in worship for their DISPLAY, then what is this restriction on women speaking out in worship? GIFT demands DISPLAY, ergo let the women prophesy in worship. But Paul doesn't agree with that premise. What he proclaims about worship completely undercuts that whole form of argument. Having a gift doesn't prove the principle that the gift holder gets to do whatever he or she wants to do with it. This holds true for men as well as women. The rules weren't formed or predicated with any consideration of such a premise.