Dressing up for Church.

[Valjean]

When I was younger my parents used to make me dress up. Which I hated of course, but I did anyway. They would tell me that it was out of respect of the sacred church and god. This I agreed with at the time. However, one day a poor man came into the church. He was dirty, and had a horrid stench to him. He was dressed in ragged clothes (not fit for church), and was clearly sick. The whole congregation turned to look at this gastly man as if he was satan. But all he wanted to do was sit and hear mass. And at this time I understood...

Did this man have less respect for the church or god than say the doctors who wore armani suits? No, of course not.

Did he deserve to hear mass, or even more, contribute to it? YES!!

I believe it is within the poor and sick that god resides most often. Not in the fancy dress of the "respectful."

There are many stories of God sending an angel in the guise of a stranger or pauper, as a test.
Best take care -- the treatment you give to the least of His creation, you give to Him....

I hope the pastor of your church went out of his way to make this stranger feel welcome.

 

[Master Vigil]

There are many stories of God sending an angel in the guise of a stranger or pauper, as a test.
Best take care -- the treatment you give to the least of His creation, you give to Him....

I hope the pastor of your church went out of his way to make this stranger feel welcome.

I let him sit right next to me. Gave him my hymnal, and the priest just kept performing mass like it never happened. Which I felt was appropriate.

I like thinking of St. Francis when I read this discussion. He was a rich, VERY RICH, son of a clothing merchant in Assisi. But when he finally understood the nature of god, he gave it all away. And became a poor beggar. Was that disrespectful? No, of course not. Did he go back to his father and ask for nice clothes when he went to church? Or when he went to see the pope in rome? No. And when he met the pope, was he scoffed because of his attire? No, the pope kissed his feet!!!! Why?

Is god more present in church than in your living room? Why then do you only dress up for church? By that logic you should dress up all the time. But when you realize that no matter what you own, what nice things you have, god doesn't care. I believe he would rather you be poor and ragged. When you stop worrying about your material possessions you can focus more on the immaterial that is god. Why would god want you to worry about what to wear? If anything, god would want you to worry about "what do I have that I can burn"?

I see no disrespect of someone who wants to be comfortable in church. God doesn't care if you wear your best, for he cares about the worst. Simplicity is the path to humility. And humility is the key to enlightenment. May peace and joy fill each and ever one of your lives today, tomorrow, and on.

 

[Valjean]

Likewise, God should not care if you kneel or fold your hands to pray, or gather in a sacred space. A worshipful heart should be the only thing visible to Him. But humans crave symbolism, and appropriateness in dress and action is psychologically important to people.

 

[BUDDY]

EEWRED, And your not been judgmental?

Probably, but only when then evidence is there to judge correctly. If I know someone who can dress appropriately, and yet chooses not to, then I can rightly judge them based on that knowledge. Meaning, they care little for the assembling of christians for worship to God. Plain and simple. How you present yourself does matter. It is a sign of what you think. I am not saying that those that are wearing jeans and a t-shirt are doomed to hell, no. What I am saying is that those who rolled out of bed in time to throw on jeans and a t-shirt and get to church, when they have something at home that is nicer to wear and could have put some effort in how they present themselves, should be ashamed to show up to worship God that way. What is wrong with having expectations for personal appearance?

 

[Master Vigil]

What is wrong with having expectations for personal appearance?

Because personal appearance doesn't matter in the eyes of god. It may in your eyes, but why should they worry about your eyes?

 

[BUDDY]

Because personal appearance doesn't matter in the eyes of god. It may in your eyes, but why should they worry about your eyes?

I guess no one is understanding my reasoning here.

I do understand that God cares more about the heart, but I also understand that a person's appearance can be a window into that heart. If someone dresses inappropriately for worship when they could have avoided it, it tells me that they have more important things to do, and therefore their heart isn't in it.

Then again, John the Baptist preached in animal skins, so maybe I need to rethink this a little bit.

 

[Master Vigil]

Then again, John the Baptist preached in animal skins, so maybe I need to rethink this a little bit.

And Jesus said for his followers to give up everything. They could have been rich, but it didn't matter. It would have been disrespectful if they would have kept their nice clothes.

 

[uu_sage]

Depends on mood, and whatever is comfortable, and common sense. Most of the time you will find me in jeans, or slacks, and a shirt. The shirts will vary from "normal T-shirts", to Hawaiian, to everything in between. There has been at least one time where I have been know to wear sweats to church. Not a fan of "dressing up" unless I have good reason to do so (i.e. performance, wedding, ect.)

 

[sojourner]

Dress depends on many things. As a general rule, I say, "You wear the best you have 1) out of self-respect, 2) out of respect for others, 3) out of respect for God." Dressing up puts one in a different frame of mind. In effect, you're telling yourself, "What I'm doing here is important."

That being said, dress also depends upon the social situation. If no one else dresses up, you probably want to look nice (no holes, rumples, or stains), but not "dressy."

Dress is not a matter of prestige or pretension. It's a matter of respect. Wear the best you have. If you're a street person, wear what you have. God doesn't care what you wear to worship. Neither should anyone else...but you should.

 

[Katzpur]

Dress depends on many things. As a general rule, I say, "You wear the best you have 1) out of self-respect, 2) out of respect for others, 3) out of respect for God." Dressing up puts one in a different frame of mind. In effect, you're telling yourself, "What I'm doing here is important."

That being said, dress also depends upon the social situation. If no one else dresses up, you probably want to look nice (no holes, rumples, or stains), but not "dressy."

Dress is not a matter of prestige or pretension. It's a matter of respect. Wear the best you have. If you're a street person, wear what you have. God doesn't care what you wear to worship. Neither should anyone else...but you should.

I suspect you're going to get some flack here, but not from me. I couldn't have said it better.

 

[James the Persian]

I suspect you're going to get some flack here, but not from me. I couldn't have said it better.

I quite agree. Great post, Sojourner, and my sentiments exactly.

James