This may be understood in the light of the verse before. There Paul said that “the head of every man is the Christ” and “the head of a woman is the man.” (1 Cor. 11:3) Hence, it may be reasoned that a man who prays with his head covered in a sense dishonors Christ. By wearing a head covering when praying a man would be acting as if he were a wife with a visible head on earth rather than being accountable to Christ as his head.

HEAD COVERING DURING PRAYER

Paul was primarily discussing what was proper in “the congregations of God,” particularly at meetings. (1 Cor. 11:16, 20-34) Hence, his directions about head covering during prayer basically relate, not to prayer when a person is alone, but to prayer in a group, in public worship. This is borne out by the inclusion of prophesying along with prayer. It is not likely that a person back then would prophesy alone in his room where he might be saying his personal prayers.​—Matt. 6:6.

Accordingly, neither a man nor a woman would Scripturally be obliged to apply the directions about head covering when saying a private prayer to God.

Similarly, a Christian man walking down the street with a hat on might offer a prayer to God. If his own personal feelings urged him to remove his hat, he should do so. But God’s counsel about head covering does not specifically require it.

What about prayers in congregational activities or in the family? In line with the principle of headship, if a baptized man is present, he should offer prayer with his head uncovered. That is true in the family even when just husband and wife join in prayer.

Likewise, a man listening to the prayer at the gravesite would not Scripturally need to have his head either uncovered or covered. He could do either, but likely would consider his own feelings and what would be inoffensive to others. If a man felt that he should take his hat off when represented by another’s prayer, he, of course, can follow the dictates of his personal conscience.