Nativity costumes, specifically headwear. Is it offensive?

[NaturalBlondeYeahRight]

My adult DD just messaged me. They want to dress in nativity costumes for a charity run but was wondering if it was appropriate to wear tea towels/fabric on heads for the Shepards? She asked if we do at primary school still (yes we definitely do)
My first instinct is yes, of course it's ok. Its what people wore for practicality back in those times. But am I right? I'm not sure.

So she wants to take the piss out of the birth of Jesus but at the same time is worried about offending others?

Hardly taking the piss!

It's part of Christian culture, so no, I don't think it's offensive as long as it's clearly nativity based.

I would personally avoid anything religion themed for this kind of event.

The OP hasn't said that her daughter is Christian. Do you think it would be appropriate for a non-Muslim woman to do a Charity Run in a burkha or a non-Sikh man to do a Charity Run in a turban?

^^ Edit (continuing): Because it's a "funny" costume for a "fun" event?

Of course it’s fine. Why wouldn’t it be? World’s gone mad.

Could she not just be a donkey or something?

I am a Christian and wouldn’t be offended by people running a fun run dressed as people from the nativity. (As long as they weren’t mocking them them) I wouldn’t care about a towel for a headdress, love a homemake outfit over a shop bought one.

Last time I checked, a shepherd's outfit was not what Christians wore.

Now being dressed as a Pope, Archbishop....

Hope you don't live in NI. Running as a character person from the Bible, with or without tea towels, would be seen as offensive. There would be protests!!

As a joke costume for a charity run, I probably wouldn’t. It’s not the same as a childrens school play. There’s plenty of other Christmas themed things they could wear.

Is that Old Testament or New Testament?

Being dressed as Joseph (with a dream coat), or how about the Good Samaritan?

Or Old Testament God? Not the nice cuddly New Testament version

Stapfooterin

The rest of the uk is much more secular than NI. Most of the christians i know would have no issue with this.

You only have to google what would have been the clothes worn at that time in history to see that headgear was part of every day life. I would however try very hard not to have the wee lad lad rock up in a tea towel when getting a nice piece of fabric would be nicer.

Tea towels on heads as part of a shepherds costume is fine, but running a race dressed as characters from one of the most important stories from one of the worlds biggest religions is completely distasteful and is bound to offend someone.

I mean tbh it's not going to look great is it. It will be like she's just shoved a teatowel on her head. I don't think people wear tea towels.

Is it adults wearing these costumes? That’s how I read it. I’m just picturing a white British dude running along laughing whilst wearing typical Middle Eastern desert garb, plus headwear, in the name of a joke

I think that could have the potential to offend people, but of course, that’s their risk to take

^ Yes, exactly.

Proper headware fine, but putting a tea towel is insulting

Buy a proper Palestinian scarf from Palestine.
Support the last weaver of trad head dress there.
His trade has been hit by cheap and nasty Chinese imitations.
Google Palestinian Traditional Scarves.

I’d suggest they go dressed as Christmas trees of something. I think it has potential to be very offensive.

Children in a school nativity are in the context of retelling the story. It just seems incongruous in a fun run.

Keffiyeh traditional Palestinian scarves.
cool in summer, warm in winter.

No offence in one of these.

Standard nativity shepherds'wardrobe is tea towel on head and a dressinggown.

Mary wears a blue dress and the angels wear wings and/or tinsel haloes.

The donkey and sheep outfits are a bit trickier.

This is how I feel about it too. The context is all wrong and I'm genuinely not sure why your DD and friends think it's amusing.

I don't see an issue if a group of them all ran as the nativity scene. So Mary/Joseph, donkey, angels, shepherds and wise men.

It certainly wouldn't offend me as a Christian. In fact if a Christmas fun run I'd find it much more inventive than the 100's of Santa's running!