E
eiram
Guest
Hello,
I think it’s very sad that there are a good number of people who go to church in such sloppy clothes. They wear shorts, tank tops, flip-flops, and think nothing of it. I found an article that better explains how I feel:
Jun 9, 2009
“Culty of Casualness” in Church Dress?
The dress of people attending Mass has been deteriorating for years and now it seems, it has reached catastrophic proportions. There seems to be a “cult of casualness” in our dress.
Why do we dress up for weddings, funerals and (white collar) jobs? To honor those whom we love or those whom we serve. Love doesn’t make honor and respect unnecessary, it fosters it. Most married couples know that when familiarity and comfort in a marriage crowd out honor and respect, trouble follows.
“But comfort is a good thing and we like to be comfortable." Yes, that is true but not at the expense of love and reverence. Comfort is for the self, love is for the other. We must make a choice.
In the past, dressing up often had an element of pleasing the other. Now pleasing the self has taken precedence. Our society has been called a “culture of narcissism.” Those who have unconsciously bought into this philosophy will often bristle at the suggestion that they dress better for Church.
Some say God cares about the internals not the externals. But if that were the case we would not build beautiful Churches, wear beautiful vestments and listening to beautiful sacred music (ie. chant). Even the poor Cure d’ Ars and the simple Francis of Assisi strove for the fine vestments and altar linens. These are all ways of showing God we acknowledge his greatness and reminding ourselves of the same. Does it make sense to spend millions building magnificent Churches and then wear jeans, shorts or T-shirts for Sacred Liturgy? When we dress this way, does not our body language to God and others say, 'The Mass is not so glorious, and neither is God?"
In Sacred Scripture the Lord says, “Worship the Lord in holy attire.” (1 Chr. 16:29, Ps. 29:2) And the Cathecism of the Catholic Church states that our gestures and clothing “ought to convey the respect, solemnity, and joy of the moment when Christ becomes our guest” in Holy Communion. (CCC 1387)
Yet some object saying the Bible says, “rend your hearts not your garments.” (Joel 2:12) yes but is also says, "It is love I want, not sacrifice.’ (Hos 6:6) Yet we still have the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and we still find the apostles rending garments in the Acts of the Apostles. God is not saying these external things are rejected, but that they are useless without interior conversion. In fact, dressing properly for Mass, or even going to Mass, means nothing if we have no love in our hearts.
Let’s battle this “cult of casualness” by dressing in our best to worship our Thrice Holy God. Let us interiorly and externally “worship the Lord in holy attire.”
eiram
I think it’s very sad that there are a good number of people who go to church in such sloppy clothes. They wear shorts, tank tops, flip-flops, and think nothing of it. I found an article that better explains how I feel:
Jun 9, 2009
“Culty of Casualness” in Church Dress?
The dress of people attending Mass has been deteriorating for years and now it seems, it has reached catastrophic proportions. There seems to be a “cult of casualness” in our dress.
Why do we dress up for weddings, funerals and (white collar) jobs? To honor those whom we love or those whom we serve. Love doesn’t make honor and respect unnecessary, it fosters it. Most married couples know that when familiarity and comfort in a marriage crowd out honor and respect, trouble follows.
“But comfort is a good thing and we like to be comfortable." Yes, that is true but not at the expense of love and reverence. Comfort is for the self, love is for the other. We must make a choice.
In the past, dressing up often had an element of pleasing the other. Now pleasing the self has taken precedence. Our society has been called a “culture of narcissism.” Those who have unconsciously bought into this philosophy will often bristle at the suggestion that they dress better for Church.
Some say God cares about the internals not the externals. But if that were the case we would not build beautiful Churches, wear beautiful vestments and listening to beautiful sacred music (ie. chant). Even the poor Cure d’ Ars and the simple Francis of Assisi strove for the fine vestments and altar linens. These are all ways of showing God we acknowledge his greatness and reminding ourselves of the same. Does it make sense to spend millions building magnificent Churches and then wear jeans, shorts or T-shirts for Sacred Liturgy? When we dress this way, does not our body language to God and others say, 'The Mass is not so glorious, and neither is God?"
In Sacred Scripture the Lord says, “Worship the Lord in holy attire.” (1 Chr. 16:29, Ps. 29:2) And the Cathecism of the Catholic Church states that our gestures and clothing “ought to convey the respect, solemnity, and joy of the moment when Christ becomes our guest” in Holy Communion. (CCC 1387)
Yet some object saying the Bible says, “rend your hearts not your garments.” (Joel 2:12) yes but is also says, "It is love I want, not sacrifice.’ (Hos 6:6) Yet we still have the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and we still find the apostles rending garments in the Acts of the Apostles. God is not saying these external things are rejected, but that they are useless without interior conversion. In fact, dressing properly for Mass, or even going to Mass, means nothing if we have no love in our hearts.
Let’s battle this “cult of casualness” by dressing in our best to worship our Thrice Holy God. Let us interiorly and externally “worship the Lord in holy attire.”
eiram
