Do you wear jeans to Mass?

[brotherhrolf]

Huh? How does making a sacrifice during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass be a “me” thing? I think human beings have the capability to both endure the heat and worship at the same time, or have we become wimps?

Gerard M. Hopkins an English Jesuit poet said something in one of his poems to the effect “Hold them cheap may who ne’er hung here”. I rather doubt you have any idea of how just how hot a packed church in south Louisiana during the summer can get even with a/c. I can assure you that I would be soaked to the skin in sweat within minutes were I wearing coat and tie. Not only do I have high blood pressure, I am also diabetic - both conditions affect my ability to handle heat. Now, offer it up is, in theory, a noble concept. From my point of view, however, I would be far more cognizant of the heat than I would be of Mass. Thus the emphasis on “me” not Him.

Human beings can handle the heat, eh? Did you watch any of the suffering and death of those folks left out in the south Louisiana heat after Katrina? Hold them cheap may who ne’er hung here.

 

[DiscerningDave]

Gerard M. Hopkins an English Jesuit poet said something in one of his poems to the effect “Hold them cheap may who ne’er hung here”. I rather doubt you have any idea of how just how hot a packed church in south Louisiana during the summer can get even with a/c. I can assure you that I would be soaked to the skin in sweat within minutes were I wearing coat and tie. Not only do I have high blood pressure, I am also diabetic - both conditions affect my ability to handle heat. Now, offer it up is, in theory, a noble concept. From my point of view, however, I would be far more cognizant of the heat than I would be of Mass. Thus the emphasis on “me” not Him.

Human beings can handle the heat, eh? Did you watch any of the suffering and death of those folks left out in the south Louisiana heat after Katrina? Hold them cheap may who ne’er hung here.

How dare you in an earlier post relate me to the same era as you!!! I, sir, am 32 and do not need unecessary years added to my life!!!

I agree, a coat and tie is not necessary, especially if it is really hot. You are also correct in stating that being uncomfortable to an extreme extent distracts you from the main reason why you are there.

However, I still believe one should, at a minimum, wear khaki slacks or pants. Heck, you can get a pair from the Gap for 25 bucks, much cheaper than some jeans and they look so much nicer. There is a reason you see all of those archeologist types wearing khaki. One, it is easier to move in, two, cotton khaki’s breathes easier than denim, and three, it doesn’t show dust as much.
I realize this topic was dead before it started because everyone has their own opinion, but I will tell you this. Here in S. Louisiana, when it is really hot…if I don’t wear shorts when I am out and about…I wear khaki pants.

David
Laissez les bon temps rouler!!!

 

[xsuasox]

I almost always show up in jeans and a t-shirt. I don’t have the money for an extensive wardrobe, so it’s not a matter of disrespect or laziness. I save my really nice clothes for Solemnities and major feast days. The only downside is that my parish is in a wealthy area, so I feel slightly uncomfortable being in jeans/shirt/sneakers. But I try to wear nicer t-shirts, leaving the punk rock T’s in the closet in favor of one with an image of the St. Benedict medal on it or something.
Basicly, I end up having to sell things to keep gas in the car, and spending money on clothes I am only going to wear for one hour each week seems like a poor decision. I have two pairs of jeans and one pair of dress pants. I have to make the dress pants last a while, so I save 'em for special occasions.

 

[brotherhrolf]

How dare you in an earlier post relate me to the same era as you!!! I, sir, am 32 and do not need unecessary years added to my life!!!

I agree, a coat and tie is not necessary, especially if it is really hot. You are also correct in stating that being uncomfortable to an extreme extent distracts you from the main reason why you are there.

However, I still believe one should, at a minimum, wear khaki slacks or pants. Heck, you can get a pair from the Gap for 25 bucks, much cheaper than some jeans and they look so much nicer. There is a reason you see all of those archeologist types wearing khaki. One, it is easier to move in, two, cotton khaki’s breathes easier than denim, and three, it doesn’t show dust as much.
I realize this topic was dead before it started because everyone has their own opinion, but I will tell you this. Here in S. Louisiana, when it is really hot…if I don’t wear shorts when I am out and about…I wear khaki pants.

David
Laissez les bon temps rouler!!!

David, the Gap doesn’t carry my size ! And I am an archaeology major but I did my field work in jeans. Khaki’s are fine elsewhere but they don’t hold up to blackberry bushes or stop snakes as well as denim.

I’ve been bald for so long I forgot that one can be bald and young - I was young once and bald!

I wear shorts too but I would never wear shorts to Mass no, I can’t say that. I wore shorts in Panama City Florida on vacation one Sunday but they were dress shorts. Dockers (or whatever Dillard’s calls their brand) and an oxford shirt is the norm for me.

I have been to many a Sunday Mass at St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans with tourists in attendance in shorts. Here in BR we have tourists off the Mississippi steamboats in the cathedral in shorts. I am glad to see them and to welcome them with hospitality. No fashion police here.

 

[Damascus]

I almost always show up in jeans and a t-shirt. I don’t have the money for an extensive wardrobe, so it’s not a matter of disrespect or laziness. I save my really nice clothes for Solemnities and major feast days. The only downside is that my parish is in a wealthy area, so I feel slightly uncomfortable being in jeans/shirt/sneakers. But I try to wear nicer t-shirts, leaving the punk rock T’s in the closet in favor of one with an image of the St. Benedict medal on it or something.
Basicly, I end up having to sell things to keep gas in the car, and spending money on clothes I am only going to wear for one hour each week seems like a poor decision. I have two pairs of jeans and one pair of dress pants. I have to make the dress pants last a while, so I save 'em for special occasions.

I really hope things get finacially better for you and will pray for you!

 

[kmknapp]

A< definitely!

the judo-length (a few inches below the knee) denims are the best bottoms I own, much better than the fleece pants. and they are more decent than the skirts left over from my working days, they never ride up into my lap or get tangled in my wheelchair wheels like the skirts do.

for fancier, like triduum, I’ll wear a collared polo shirt or buttondown denim blouse with, instead of the standard pocket t-shirt. And, I nearly always wear a hat for medical reasons (I’m balding enough to sunburn my scalp) which helps me blend in with the “Jumper Society”

If there’s need to dress otherwise, I’d need a couple month’s notice to get the clothes made and someone else will have to pay for it — I wouldn’t mind one really nice skirted suit…

karen marie

 

[starling]

So many Catholic parishes seem to have become little havens for the affluent suburbanite who lives in a little dream world, totally divorced from the realities of modern life, leaving the people Jesus specifically ministered to out in the cold. You want to know how it is to be a Catholic among the millions of unemployable and working poor in North America today? Just be thankful you have a choice in clothes, wear what you want, and don’t pay attention to what others wear or have to wear. For many people, a pair of jeans or track pants and a t-shirt is the only decent clothes they own. Millions don’t have the luxury of thinking about clothes. They don’t even have enough to eat. They can’t afford needed medications. What kind of small mind would even think what a person wears matters to God? Faith in Jesus is not some kind of little feel good game you play when things are going well. Shame on some parishes for not discouraging this kind of elitist thinking. This is not what the Catholic Church is about, although I sometimes wonder if this is what it has indeed become. Forget about little petty rules and start thinking about Catholic values.

 

[tracydaisy]

I never wear jeans to mass on Sundays and Holy days of Obligation, but during the week I have worn jeans.

 

[mrs_abbott]

So many Catholic parishes seem to have become little havens for the affluent suburbanite who lives in a little dream world, totally divorced from the realities of modern life, leaving the people Jesus specifically ministered to out in the cold. You want to know how it is to be a Catholic among the millions of unemployable and working poor in North America today? Just be thankful you have a choice in clothes, wear what you want, and don’t pay attention to what others wear or have to wear. For many people, a pair of jeans or track pants and a t-shirt is the only decent clothes they own. Millions don’t have the luxury of thinking about clothes. They don’t even have enough to eat. They can’t afford needed medications. What kind of small mind would even think what a person wears matters to God? Faith in Jesus is not some kind of little feel good game you play when things are going well. Shame on some parishes for not discouraging this kind of elitist thinking. This is not what the Catholic Church is about, although I sometimes wonder if this is what it has indeed become. Forget about little petty rules and start thinking about Catholic values.

 

[wisdom_3_5]

Just curious, please no bashing anyone if they do or dont, I just want to know if

A) you do it on a regular basis

Only if we go to mass on Sat. unless I’m a real mess from working in the garden. Also on Holy Days of Obligation when I meet my husband for mass at noon.

B) only have done it in emergency or less than 3 times a year
C)Have never done it
D) Have never done it and get hopping mad when you see it
E) I cant remember and I dont go to Mass often enough to notice

Just pick one of the above.

 

[Pug]

I often wear jeans. It is easier to come buy an inexpensive pair of black jeans that fit me well than any sort of dress pants. If I am in possesion of a nice pair of dress pants that aren’t dry clean, then I’ll wear those instead. Right now, I am in need of all new pants, so I’ve been wearing a junky pair of dress pants, which is a step down from my usual jeans.

 

[Michael_C]

I went to Mass in a collar shirt and slacks, but I wore sandals. I figured no one would ever know. The church was packed and no ushers showed up. I jumped up to help with the collections and presentation of the gifts. I was humbled going isle to isle with sandals on.

 

[brotherhrolf]

OK. Truth be told. I don’t think that the Most High gives a fig about what we wear. I think that the Most High is more concerned with that which we cloak our immortal souls in. You know…“Do justly, love mercy, walk humbly with your God”.

 

[Annunciata]

Yup! nice designer ones too…

 

[Jeanette_L]

It seems to me that it is human nature to expect from others what we expect from ourselves, most of the time even more from others than we expect from ourselves. And then, we in turn, set ourselves up as judges. It’s just human nature and difficult to avoid. We do this in all kinds of matters in everyday life, with family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, parishioners…

If a person sets a certain standard on dress, what is (at the very least) appropriate for Mass and what is not (not talking about modesty, which goes without saying), even if they say this standard is just for themselves, they usually tend to take notice of who around them is and isn’t keeping the same standard. In this respect, at the very least it becomes a distraction, however small, and with some people, more than a distraction, but rather an obsession. And also, an opportunity to feel superior to those who don’t meet the standard.

This can be a trap. Outward appearances may not correspond with the inward realities. Dont’ get caught up in nonessential matters that will amount to nothing when we stand before Him in eternity.

Christ was the friend of the poorest of the poor. The masses who came to him hungry and sick and poorly clothed, he in no way made them feel unwelcome or unworthy. He is still their friend.

Christ could care less about your putting on the ritz thinking he will be impressed. He cares more that you are clothed on the inside with His righteousness. He cares about your love for Him and your love for that poorly dressed person kneeling beside you, who may not come back if he sees disapproval in your eyes, leaving you to be a stumbling block to the faith of that soul.

Just guard yourself against motives that may not be what they seem.

 

[KatieD]

I don’t wear jeans to Mass. I wear either dress trousers or skirts. My husband, who grew up in a Protestant denomination in which one always wore a suit, wears trousers and a collared shirt or a sweater. Our college-aged kids tend to wear khakis or skirts. Occasionally, however, they like to wear jeans with polos or sweaters. We drew the line with them at shirts with slogans on them and it hasn’t been an issue.

 

[mosher]

OK. Truth be told. I don’t think that the Most High gives a fig about what we wear. I think that the Most High is more concerned with that which we cloak our immortal souls in. You know…“Do justly, love mercy, walk humbly with your God”.

Like most things that we do for Him it is really done for our own benefit. This would be another case of that.

 

[crmcfl]

We’d have to add a category for me F) depending on the Mass

For Sunday mornings, I dress up because I sing in the choir and that is the norm for my choir and my parish (a suburban elitist parish full of doctors, pro golfers and the like). Sunday night, I wear jeans because that is also the norm. I come from a family who held the “you’d better dress up for church” credo, and that plus years of Catholic school means I understand that position, and that is normally what I do, but I’d hate to see anyone not attend Mass out of fear of being looked down upon for what they wear. Jesus didn’t turn people away due to a dress code.

When I was in high school and college I worked summers helping run a day care center for the children of migrant workers (south Alabama, no a/c, under the blazing sun, breathing red clay dust, and sweltering in darned near 100% humidity - I hear you about the heat!). Our priest often said Mass out in the fields, sometimes on the beach (our day care center was an old summer camp) and nobody was dressed up. Disrespectful? No way. Those were some of the holiest and most reverent masses I’ve ever attended.

 

[chicago]

There was a woman who came into Mass last month 20 min. late.
How did I notice she was 20 min late?

She was almost …ready for a shot on a cover for Vogue- and she marched up to the front pew slowly…every man in the Church was looking at her.
Now- She was showing all. (Think Elle Mc Phereson) Low Ride Jeans that got to the point where … it was a bit distracting.

So, the whole Mass got derailed (slowed down- my Priest in this Mass was - distracted) by this. I think this was the first time some people stayed longer than usual at the Mass. But , I never saw her before or again.

Well, then, maybe she ought to come more often! Perhaps attandance at Mass would go up. Is not the reason beautiful women were created in order to get men to Mass?

 

[chicago]

I’ve never worn jeans to Mass… because I never (or at least very rarely) wear jeans. I just don’t care for them. Same with suit jacket and tie. About the only time I ever do one or the other or both is as a costume thing or in order to look cutesy and fanciful for some big event. Now sweat pants for Mass, OTOH…

Ultimately, I think this comes down to where you’re coming from. There is something to be said for “dressing up” as a sign of signifigant respect. There is also something to be said for not fretting over such things in order to enable yourself to better pray. There is something to be said for coming to the Lord humbly wherever you are. There is something to be said for offering whatever is your best. There is something to be said for comfort and health. There is something to be said for sacrifice. And on any particular Sunday, any of these concerns could come into play for so many different people (or even the same person), with all kinds of variance in what you’ll see or wear from week to week. The wonderful thing about Mass is that all of them come together and worship the Lord in common.