How Should We Dress For Mass?

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Somewhere there was an article linking dress, reverence for the Eucharist by teens and their behavior. The higher their reverence, the higher standards they live.

Does anyone know where to find the article?
 
It seems that there are two things to be considered when we dress for Mass: 1) Who is present at the Mass, and 2) How our dress affects others.
In response to 1, Jesus is entirely and physically present at the Mass after the consecration and in the Tabernacle. If I were going to see a king on earth, I would not wear something unbefitting of the occasion. Likewise, we should dress appropriately for the Mass, since the King of kings, and Lords of lords is present at the Mass.

In response to 2, any clothing that is distracting of immodest is also not appropriate. In fact, both of these types of clothing should also not be in accordance with the previous paragraph.

Our dress also reflects our disposition towards what is happening around us. To come to Mass not wearing appropriate clothing shows that we do not have an adequate understanding of what happens in the Mass.
 
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spetreopn:
It seems that there are two things to be considered when we dress for Mass: 1) Who is present at the Mass, and 2) How our dress affects others.
In response to 1, Jesus is entirely and physically present at the Mass after the consecration and in the Tabernacle. If I were going to see a king on earth, I would not wear something unbefitting of the occasion. Likewise, we should dress appropriately for the Mass, since the King of kings, and Lords of lords is present at the Mass.

In response to 2, any clothing that is distracting of immodest is also not appropriate. In fact, both of these types of clothing should also not be in accordance with the previous paragraph.

Our dress also reflects our disposition towards what is happening around us. To come to Mass not wearing appropriate clothing shows that we do not have an adequate understanding of what happens in the Mass.
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I think your second point is the guide for appropriate dress. Clothing should not become a focus, a distraction or a concern and to the extent it does, you could argue that it is innapropriate. If everyone in a certain community always came to mass in a toga and I came in a suit, I would be a disruption and hence, inappropriately dressed (although devilishly stylish :cool: ).

It seems to me that standards for dress are entirely about the perceptions of others and to bring God into it is a pretty big stretch. To imply that an omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent God cares what I wear to Mass (in the objective sense, as in whether I have a tie on, whether my socks match, whether my shoes have closed toes) seems ludicrous. I think the typical “you should come to Mass dressed to meet the King of Kings” is a variation on that theme. I doubt the King of Kings cares as long as we are properly disposed.

I also think that for someone to judge my “understanding of what happens in the Mass” based upon what I’m wearing seems to be awfully presumptuous and imply the ability to see into someone else’s heart. I see that as another example that dress standards are all about the effect dress has on others, not the appropriateness of dress before God.

If it was solely up to God, we would probably all be naked anyway. 👍
 
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OhioBob:
It seems to me that standards for dress are entirely about the perceptions of others and to bring God into it is a pretty big stretch. To imply that an omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent God cares what I wear to Mass (in the objective sense, as in whether I have a tie on, whether my socks match, whether my shoes have closed toes) seems ludicrous. I think the typical “you should come to Mass dressed to meet the King of Kings” is a variation on that theme. I doubt the King of Kings cares as long as we are properly disposed.
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I am sorry that I did not make my point clear enough. My point is that how we dress is a reflection of our disposition towards what we are doing. I think that you are correct that God does not care about your clothing as clothing, but he does care about what you are saying by wearing that clothing. It cannot be denied that there is a strong correlation between inappropriate dress and lack of knowledge/respect for the Mass. I make the comment towards lack of knowledge because it is generally a lack of formation rather than a conscious attack upon the Mass.
 
I’m sorry if anyone thought I was angry in my last post. I’m not. Its just I once got mentally and figuratively beat up about how I was supposed to ‘look’ that its left a scar and these kinds of discussions just open old wounds. I just don’t want to be nagged into conforming to something that I haven’t been convicted of yet in my own heart. It just doesn’t seem to work that way with me. 😛

The body is more than raiment. We are more than the clothes we wear. If you wish to wear your best I think that’s great…but leave it with yourself and your family. We can tell others how we feel and give our opinion but in the end we alone are responsible for such decisions. There are some things we just aren’t responsible for… 🙂

dream wanderer
 
I am sorry that I did not make my point clear enough. My point is that how we dress is a reflection of our disposition towards what we are doing.
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I agree that it can be, but it might not be. That is an interpretation that you would be making from pretty sketchy data.
I think that you are correct that God does not care about your clothing as clothing, but he does care about what you are saying by wearing that clothing.
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I agree that He cares about what you are saying, but I think it is a presumption to assume that He interprets what you are saying to Him by your clothing. I think He can make a more objective assessment than that since He knows us pretty well. It is others that make that interpretation through subjective factors like dress, not God.
It cannot be denied that there is a strong correlation between inappropriate dress and lack of knowledge/respect for the Mass.
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I can’t make that leap. There might be a correlation, might not. Probably depends upon the culture you live in.

That is probably more true at the extremes - if I came to Mass in a loincloth you could safely assume I didn’t get what was going on (unless I was a converted indian and this was 1844). But to decide that my polo shirt and khakis means that I don’t understand the mystical reality of the Mass takes that correlation a bit far, don’t you think?

Blessings.
 
I would say “Respectful of Jesus” as my answer to the poll.

What is respectful of Jesus? It is non-offensive (morally) clothing, reverent postures and speaking. It includes considering that others are praying are being respectful of them and allowing them to pray without distraction.

Be careful enforcing a specific dresscode as what is respectful for one is not respectful for others.
 
This is such a timely topic for me. I will be spending part of my summer writing up the new guidelines for training our ushers at our parish. I also type up the bulletin for the secretary and this issue has just come up for discussion on Mass Etiquette.

We found a document, (not sure where we got it) and it has a whole page on What to Wear, What Not to Wear. And at the bottom it asked, Why Not?
The answer about not wearing certain inappropriate clothing was;
Code: 
 "This attracts attention to ourselves and does not give glory to God, which is why we are at Mass. This distracts others and could cause them to sin in their thought, which is NOT why we are at Mass."
It also mentioned times that our only opportunity to attend Mass is after or before work, etc.

I remember my mom always telling me that we dress modestly at all times because our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and should be clothed accordingly. Reading thru the comments here, more objections were for scantly clad teen girls. Maybe their mom’s didn’t tell them what my mom told me.

As the co-ordinator for our ushers, I have ushered Masses and when you serve in that ministry you see things a bit differently. Our ushers are to dress well. Neatly and the best they can. We live in a blue and white collar area and people can afford nice clothes or we have second hand stores that carry nice clothes. We don’t expect everyone to wear suits, men or woman. When I have ushered I wear a dress or skirt, nylons and heals. (Mostly so the old ushers will treat me with respect). ha, ha!

When I attend with my family I wear nice clothes. In the summer, summer dresses and if they have no sleeves I wear a little jacket or sweater to cover my shoulders. Nice slacks and blouses.

I enjoy seeing our parishioners dress well. It makes the Mass seem like a special occasion that it is. As an usher we see most of the people as they come in and I have seen some great looking outfits and then some very immodest outfits that are not appropriate. I can only wonder what our poor priest thinks when he see girls scantly clad! And tee shirts with stupid sayings really are not the best choice either.

We are thinking of adding a section in our bulletin on Mass etiquette. Mostly because I think some people are just not taught well about certain things, and others may just need a gentle reminder. And with the summer heat, a reminder that wearing beach clothing is not appropriate for Mass. We should not complain to much about the heat. Look at what the priests have to wear!

Thanks for all the (name removed by moderator)ut. This helps me out a great deal.
 
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Veronica:
As the co-ordinator for our ushers, I have ushered Masses and when you serve in that ministry you see things a bit differently. Our ushers are to dress well. Neatly and the best they can. We live in a blue and white collar area and people can afford nice clothes or we have second hand stores that carry nice clothes. We don’t expect everyone to wear suits, men or woman. When I have ushered I wear a dress or skirt, nylons and heals. (Mostly so the old ushers will treat me with respect). ha, ha!..
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I think it’s great that you are an usher. At my parish is has been next to impossible to interest women in the ministry of usher. It makes it tough to find enough ushers for all the masses.

Blessings.
 
We have one woman who ushers at my church but growing up I never saw it and always wondered why not? I think thats great!
 
I have been trying to get more women to usher for practical reasons. My goal is to have at least one woman at each Mass. Some woman will only feel comfortable approching a woman for assistance and to ask questions of the delicate nature. So it is a practical reason to it. Also our priest thinks we smile more! It is also a greeting ministry combined with ushering.
 
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Veronica:
…Also our priest thinks we smile more!
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You’re probably right about that. Us guys are far too solemn. But we can learn! At least some of us can… :rolleyes:

😃 😃 😃 😃 😃 😃
 
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kamz:
We have one woman who ushers at my church but growing up I never saw it and always wondered why not? I think thats great!
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Probably because historically, ushering duties were handled by porters, a minor order open only to males.

The minor order of porter was abolished with the avent of Vatican II.
 
Before my reconversion to Catholicism, I used to throw clothes together with some kind of thought to dressing appropriately but not too much.
I was always in a hurry. In other words, I always put God last and barely made it to the last Mass scheduled on Sunday. Now I can’t wait to get to Sunday Mass at 11:00 because I have to put God first!

Now I dress modestly without showing excessive skin (read clevage, thighs…) as I see some people do. It’s out of respect for our Lord and for others attending Mass. Females are not to dress in an obviously sexually suggestive manner to entice males anyway – let alone at Mass! --since it invites occasions of lust in thought.

The idea that poor people can’t afford nice clothes is an argument I’ve heard before. No one is suggesting anyone wear expensive clothing but clothing showing respect – modest, clean and ironed clothes, for example.

It all boils down to whether we respect Jesus’s presence at Mass enough to take the time to show up in clothes respectful of Him and those around us. If there are any occasions where we dress nicely (job interviews, weddings…wherever you can think of where you dressed up nicely (but not formally) where more should we dress nicely than at the holy sacrifice of the Mass in adoration of God, the greatest event/celebration on earth?🙂
 
When we are at Mass, we are going to meet the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. When I was in college, I wore very casual and sloppy clothing to Mass. I just assumed that it didn’t matter because it’s what’s inside that counted. However, our actions often reflect what is inside of us.

We should have the decency to put on some nice clothes for Mass, even if it isn’t a suit and tie. We shouldn’t wear the stuff we slept in last night, nor should we wear the kind of stuff that we use for housework or yardwork. We must bear in mind some measure of dignity for what we are going to. We must also not attract undue attention to ourselves.

I tend to think that casual dress should be tolerated as you never know when someone’s washing machine went out. Immodest dress should not be. There needs to be a certain standard of modesty below which no one will be allowed in the church building. As for those who say that people can’t afford nice clothes, Fr. Benedict Groeschel has said many times that the poor never come badly dress for church.

David
 
Think of it this way.How would you dress if you knew the Jesus Christ himself was going to say the Mass?
 
David Ancell. I just assumed that it didn't matter because it's what's inside that counted. However:
As in the externals usually show the internal?
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We should offer the best we have to God, so long as we do not do so in a manner that draws undue attention to us and distracts others. For example, I think hats are lovely and appropriate for ladies, but I don’t live in a place where this is customary. If I dressed in a frilly suit and wore a hat, it might distract others.
 
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