How Should We Dress For Mass?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Crusader
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
40.png
buffalo:
If everyone dressed up and that is the standard then there is no distraction. It’s only a distraction relative to the norm of your church.
Click to expand...
Yeah this is a good point. Americans as a group are very casual - in our relationships, conversations, homes, dress, etc. I work at a university and I would say most people wear jeans or similarly informal dress. At my new job I’ll be starting soon at a different college most wear jackets and ties. So it’s relative. But I think most people in this thread are just looking for some minimum standard. It’s no surprise that people dress like they are going to a circus when at Mass one finds liturgical dancers, clowns, horrendously irreverant music, priests who treat the Mass as a stand-up act, etc.
 
Totally agree with buffalo here.

In my parish we have a wide range of cultures and styles. You see everything in Mass form Indian saris to shorts, t-shrits and flip flops. If someone came in wearing a ballgown it might be a distraction.

Now the 5 year old in the next pew with the gameboy…that is a distraction.

-D
 
There is a relationship between teen behavior and irreverance. The more reverance they see the more postive their behavior. When we as adults are irreverent, dress to low standards, show a poor example in church we then become responsible for their irreverance as they learn it from us. Just a generation ago, men wore suits, woman dresses in Churches withour a/c . I as a child implicity understood the importance of their rituals and faith in their life… Can we say that now?
 
40.png
buffalo:
It’s only a distraction relative to the norm of your church.
Click to expand...
Hmm… is this dress-code relativism??? I thought the standard of dress should be relative to the importance of the situation, not to what others are doing. What if one were meeting the President, or the Pope? They wouldn’t let you in the Vatican in your shorts and flip-flops. Doesn’t OUR LORD deserve more respect?
 
In some ways, this question is a lot like the question of holding hands during the Our Father…It is possible to expend a lot of energy on something that common sense should take care of.

**I have seen posters nearly come to “blows” over the question of what is proper attire for Mass. **

**While I do not like to see people dressed in shorts, flip-flops, halter tops, etc…I have to say that I would rather these people be at Mass than be anywhere else. **

**Some people just don’t know how to dress properly, and some don’t have the proper clothes to wear…You can never be sure of which case you are dealing with…unless you know the people. **

I think it is helpful for regular Mass goers to try to set a decent example in the manner of dress. Clean, modest clothing is all that is necessary.

There have been a couple of times when, due to unavoidable circumstances I have ended up at Mass in jeans…The Saturday and Sunday night crowd does this regularly. I was clean, neat, and very reverent in my actions…I don’t think God was offended…

**I ordinarily wear a dress, or a skirt and blouse. **
 
This is really a sore point for me. I hate it when people I know can afford to dress better come to Mass looking as though they fell out of bed. Yes, God loves us but it is a sign of respect to put your best clothes on for the Supreme Being.

Our church does not have air conditioning and it gets pretty darn hot in the summer (in NJ). However, one can still dress decently.

In the old days, the priest would tell you off. I remember when I was very young (like 8), I went to confession in the summer. I was wearing a mid-riff top which were popular then. The priest let my mother know in no uncertain terms that I was dressed inappropriately.

Of course, I would never judge anyone I didn’t know. Someone could be visiting and not have other clothes, etc.
 
We should dress as we would dress when we have a private audience with the King of Kings. How would you dress if you were invited to tea with Queen Elizabeth?

Doesn’t God deserve your best?
 
I don’t know about the “how would you dress to meet famous person X” argument. I think it is weak. God sees us at all times, we are always in his spiritual presence. God sees me naked in the bath tub. To look at the issue of dress at mass as the same as how you would dress to impress some worldly ruler plays into the idea of the “Sunday Christian, Monday libertine” problem. We should always be aware of the eyes of God. While special care should be taken when attending Mass it is because of the dignity of the Sacrament, the specialness of the physical presence of Christ in the Eucharist, not the idea that we are going to visit our creator as the Triune God is with us always.

The clothes you wear to mass should, in the etiquette sense be appropriate to the occasion, which means dressing the way that people in that situation dress. If you feel that your congregation is to lax about dress you can always dress more formally. But to dress to far above the norms might not be very good either.

The clothing you wear to mass should be modest. I think this should be so in both the idea of physical modesty and economic modesty. Mass should not be your opportunity to show off your costly raiment.

-D
 
My vote was anyway as long as it is not grossly inappropriate. I live in an inner-city parish and we are just happy when people show up for Mass.
 
We should dress the best, most respectful way we are able, according to our means. Jesus Christ Himself, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity is being made present at the mass, that is no small thing! Also, if you need to dress formal for work everyday, there is no reason why you shouldn’t or couldn’t dress formal at mass, where heaven mystically touches earth, and we receive God Himself.
 
40.png
darcee:
I don’t know about the “how would you dress to meet famous person X” argument. I think it is weak. God sees us at all times, we are always in his spiritual presence. God sees me naked in the bath tub. To look at the issue of dress at mass as the same as how you would dress to impress some worldly ruler plays into the idea of the “Sunday Christian, Monday libertine” problem. We should always be aware of the eyes of God. While special care should be taken when attending Mass it is because of the dignity of the Sacrament, the specialness of the physical presence of Christ in the Eucharist, not the idea that we are going to visit our creator as the Triune God is with us always.

The clothes you wear to mass should, in the etiquette sense be appropriate to the occasion, which means dressing the way that people in that situation dress. If you feel that your congregation is to lax about dress you can always dress more formally. But to dress to far above the norms might not be very good either.

The clothing you wear to mass should be modest. I think this should be so in both the idea of physical modesty and economic modesty. Mass should not be your opportunity to show off your costly raiment.

-D
Click to expand...
Your bathtub is not the re-presentation of the sacrifice of Jesus to God the Father for propitiation of our endless stream of sins. In sum, your argument couldn’t be weaker.
 
Bud Stewart:
My vote was anyway as long as it is not grossly inappropriate. I live in an inner-city parish and we are just happy when people show up for Mass.
Click to expand...
Interesting. Fr. Benedict Groeschel often remarks how the poor of the South Bronx truly wear their Sunday best to church on Sunday.

I figured Philly would be similiar to NYC in this regard.
 
40.png
penitentman22:
We should dress the best, most respectful way we are able, according to our means. Jesus Christ Himself, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity is being made present at the mass, that is no small thing! Also, if you need to dress formal for work everyday, there is no reason why you shouldn’t or couldn’t dress formal at mass, where heaven mystically touches earth, and we receive God Himself.
Click to expand...
When it really comes down to it, most people could afford a nice suit/tie or dressy dress for Sunday Mass – even if they had to be procured from the local Catholic thrift shoppe.
 
40.png
Crusader:
Interesting. Fr. Benedict Groeschel often remarks how the poor of the South Bronx truly wear their Sunday best to church on Sunday.
.
Click to expand...
He could tell you more about what they wear in Larchmont!
 
40.png
Crusader:
After giving some thought to this matter, it’s becoming clear to me that jeans, shorts, printed t-shirts, immodest clothing, etc. are simply unacceptable to wear to Mass.
Click to expand...
Certainly not in cutoff jean shorts and a Ronnie Dio (satanic image) t-shirt. I was very angry when I saw a young man go up to communion whering that and wasn’t turned away!
 
40.png
Crusader:
Your bathtub is not the re-presentation of the sacrifice of Jesus to God the Father for propitiation of our endless stream of sins. In sum, your argument couldn’t be weaker.
Click to expand...
When did I say it was? In fact I clearly said "While special care should be taken when attending Mass it is because of the dignity of the Sacrament, the specialness of the physical presence of Christ in the Eucharist, not the idea that we are going to visit our creator as the Triune God is with us always. "

Cute one liner though, not terribly original but cute 😉

-D
 
Ok, this is my first post, so here we go…

I voted Formal because that’s what most closely matches what i wear (long sleeve shirt, dress pants, and tie). However, i think the poll is missing a choice, and that is your very best. No matter who you are, you should wear the very best that you have. There is very little reason not too. If it’s hot, and even if your church does not have AC, think about this: YOUR LORD AND SAVIOR SUFFERED AND DIED FOR YOU ON THE CROSS!!! I think wearing nice though maybe uncomfortable clothes is the least you can do. As for other excuses, like doing something before or after, it’s not that hard to change. If you can’t, then thats understandable. I realize that there are going to be exceptions, and I’m not blasting anybody. I know that no one is perfect, and that includes me.

As for being too showy, a few good points have already been made. It should not draw attention away from the Mass. However, let me make a distinction about being showy: This does not in anyway mean that you should “dress down” to match the rest of your parish. You should set an example to everyone else by wearing your very best. If they are distracted by your wearing of nice clothes, then they are too easily distracted. What showy does mean is that of course dress should be modest. It should not show too much skin It also mean thats it should not be too “flashy”, i.e. if a guy can wear a suit, it shouldn’t be hot pink or have other extravagant color schemes.

The key to remember is to just wear the very best to have. I don’t mean to offend anyone, but feel free to debate with me about anything. Thank you for your time.

P.S. This whole topic brings up an interesting question: Should dress for daily Mass be any different from dress for Sunday mass? You could also include differences for for special occasion masses (holy days, marriages, retreats, etc.) other than colors.
 
If I could I would dress to the nines for Mass!!! I’m coming before the King of Kings, Lord of Lords and I don’t think that my blah old working clothes are good enough for Him. However…at the moment I’m encased in jeans and second-hand T-Shirts so that’s my best for now. 🙂 But as soon as I’m able to get better clothes (I have some on the way that I ordered) and some skirts, I’ll go back to dressing nice.

I don’t feel bad though: God knows I’m wearing my best right now. But if I had an option, I would choose skirts and blouses.
 
The ‘how would you dress to meet the queen’ line just doesn’t work for me: if she were visiting my horse barn, I’d dress as I usually do: jeans, boots, polo shirt.

If I were invited to the palace for dinner, I’d have to rent tails and WHITE tie: black tie is not, strictly speaking, formal wear.

So should I wear a tux to Mass? Should women feel underdressed if they aren’t in floor length evening gowns?

The truth is NOTHING we could wear is really ‘good enough’ for Mass. But Christ is not only king of kings, He is also our friend and brother…

So long as we aren’t trying to be provacative, I just don’t see the problem: too much energy is put into things that don’t really matter.

sam
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top