A Catholic church in Thailand was recently subject to online scrutiny after giving their altar boys a “Friar Tuck” haircut.
The haircut is also known as a coronal tonsure which involves shaving the top of the head completely clean and leaving a ring of hair behind as it was said to symbolise the crown of thorns worn by Jesus during his crucifixion, according to online encyclopaedia Brittanica.
The hair style, also distinguished by two styles which are the Roman or St. Peter’s and the Eastern or St. Paul’s tonsure, can be traced back to the fifth century and abolished by Pope Paul VI in 1973.
The St Anthony Church Donmottanoi who posted the images of the children’s new hairdo on Facebook, received much flak online with netizens calling the hairstyle “embarassing” and pointing out that such haircuts were not a necessary part of the church nowadays.
Another update by the church later explained that the boys got the haircut for a religious event honouring its patron saint, Saint Anthony of Padua, known for sporting the same hairdo.
Not only that, the church added that the boys were not forced to get the hairstyle and were even “compensated” after their participation in the week long celebration.
The church noted that the hair cuts were meant to “elevate the event”
The boys’ parents also gave their consent to their participation.
After the religious event, the church said that the boys were allowed to do whatever they wanted with their hair.