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GloriaPatri4
Guest
I believe one thing may lead to the other
How would you feel if priests wore jeans & t-shirts to celebrate Mass in church?
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netmilsmom
Guest
This is where we part ideas.
I believe that only wearing jeans is not disrespectful and I don’t believe that wearing jeans leads to less.
My hubby in black or olive jeans does not make him look sloppy.
A dress shirt, casual jacket and dress shoes (polished in his Marine way) looks as nice as a suit.
It DOES come down to what is in your heart.
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aurora77
Guest
I respectfully disagree, too. If a person’s heart is in the wrong place, it will lead to more, but then, that person is more likely to be disrespectful in other ways, whether they’re dressed up or not.
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Maureen_Fiore
Guest
netmil(name removed by moderator):
I agree with you on this because jeans if worn properly(no tears,rips, or worn too tight) cannot possible tell that the person is disrespectful by no means. I wear jeans even to work, I work in a casual office and I still perform as if I wore a dress. I think the same when I go to mass. I always show respect whether I am wearing jeans or slacks. Makes no difference.
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JKirkLVNV
Guest
I don’t own a pair of jeans, so I don’t have a dog in this race, but one comment: I’ve taught on the Navajo reservation and now in an inner city school predominately populated by migrant workers. By and large, when both of those groups dress up, they dress up in nice jeans, for Mass, for weddings, for First Holy Communions, etc. I don’t see it as an issue. You’re suggesting that the priest might show up in what is essentially beach attire. I doubt anyone thinks that is appropriate.
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AltarMan
Guest
netmil(name removed by moderator):
To suggest that one trumps the other, or that only one is important is to employ a straw-dog argument, which is nonsense.
This is not a zero-sum game – one can dress formally AND have a heart that is adequately prepared to receive the sacrament of the Eucharist.
To suggest that one trumps the other, or that only one is important is to employ a straw-dog argument, which is nonsense.
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Stephen_Butler
Guest
I understand your concern, that you feel that casual dress is inappropriate. Myself, I never wear jeans or sandals to Mass as a personal, respectful choice.
However, I would suggest it might be helpful to look at this from the other way around.
The fact of the matter is that if casual dress is prohibited, substantially fewer people will attend Mass for the reasons you described. As I understand it, this is why the dress code standard was relaxed. I believe the primary intent was to accomodate those with less wealth, but I am not certain.
Would it be advisable to turn even a single Catholic away from the Eucharist and salvation for no other reason than to satisfy our sense of decorum? Because pants made of denim are considered to be less formal than those made of some other material? Because the footware once worn by Jesus to the Temple is no longer considered to be sufficiently respectful? Should our sense of fashion decorum outweigh our obligation to bring as many people to Christ as we can?
Personally, I feel that the salvation of just one soul is worth all of the denim and sandals I will ever have to look upon at Mass. I would request only that people dress modestly because some people, myself included, have a wandering eye and we would genuinely appreciate it if you would help us to keep focused on Christ without the distraction of flesh. Personally, I would suggest welcoming any who choose to walk through the doors.
And as for the Priest, while I would suggest that proper dress will encourage better attendance, if he offers me the Eucharist in Sandals, I will be no less thankful to receive it. After the Mass, I’ll offer to purchase him a new pair of shoes…
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bear06
Guest
I don’t know who this was directed to but yes. I try to dress up for weekday Masses. Our Lord is not less there than He is on Sundays. If I’m running home from somewhere with the kids and don’t have time to change then I’ll go in jeans. Better to get to Mass casual than not to go at all. God knows when you’ve tried your best.
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Isidore_AK
Guest
They’re much cheaper than that actually…
Try the Salvation Army, going-ou-of-business sales, anytime a company ‘upgrades’ their current work computer systems…they usually sell (very cheaply- $50 or less for a complete PC). There’s plenty of places to pick up a cheap PC.
Now where are the $99 suits? I’ve never seen one for less than $200…they certainly don’t carry them at Walmart…
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Marian_Carroll
Guest
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netmilsmom
Guest
I’m sorry, I’m either having a mom moment or my Polish genes are slipping in but I have no clue what you are saying here. Could you please restate it for a simpler mind (mine)?
I was saying that jeans of a different color, combined with a Sport coat, dress shirt and high gloss dress shoes is also dressed up. Is that what you thought I was saying? I’m talking about men of course.
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netmilsmom
Guest
Of course you must understand that none of these PC’s have enough memory or storage space to play any modern software. That’s why they are upgraded.They’re much cheaper than that actually…
Try the Salvation Army, going-ou-of-business sales, anytime a company ‘upgrades’ their current work computer systems…they usually sell (very cheaply- $50 or less for a complete PC). There’s plenty of places to pick up a cheap PC.
Now where are the $99 suits? I’ve never seen one for less than $200…they certainly don’t carry them at Walmart…
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axolotl
Guest
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Isidore_AK
Guest
netmil(name removed by moderator):
No, you can’t play the newest games, or use them for video editing, but they’re good enough for most applications. A 266Mhz Pentium with 64 MB’s of RAM & a 4 Gig HD will run Win 2000 or Win 98. Both of those are perfectly good operating systems. You don’t need the newest, fastest, highest memory machine to run word or excel, or to surf the net…yes, they start up a little slower, but they are perfectly serviceable.
Excueese Me? I’m a computer tech by trade, and most of the ‘obsolete’ computers will work just fine for running MS Office & the common internet applications.
No, you can’t play the newest games, or use them for video editing, but they’re good enough for most applications. A 266Mhz Pentium with 64 MB’s of RAM & a 4 Gig HD will run Win 2000 or Win 98. Both of those are perfectly good operating systems. You don’t need the newest, fastest, highest memory machine to run word or excel, or to surf the net…yes, they start up a little slower, but they are perfectly serviceable.
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netmilsmom
Guest
Who wants to run just Office?
That’s wonderful that you are a computer tech (if you belong to a family like mine, they look at you like a god) but most people are not. And most people are not simply doing work applications at home. They are running kids games and downloading songs. How do I know? My husband’s business is fixing the computers that people are talked into buying that are “just as good” or trying to run Barbie Magic Hairstyler on a machine from 1999. They crash as soon as you run Flash.
If you want nothing but a word processor and door to the net, great. If you actually want to do anything, you need something that’s at least 300.00.
Sorry to hijack the thread.
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Isidore_AK
Guest
netmil(name removed by moderator):
Lets see…assume a family of 5 (Mom & Dad, plus 2 sons & a daughter), outfitted as these people are suggesting…
These are -recurring- expenses…a computer can last for 5 years or more, and its more useful than a set of clothes thats worn once a week…
Sorry, but I was responding to the ‘If you can afford a computer to post at Catholic Answers then you can afford to dress nice for Mass’ comment. I was attempting to show that you can get a decent enough computer for dirt cheap (or free) to surf the web & let your kids do their homework (or post on CA) and still not afford to pay good money for clothes that are for exclusively to wear to Church…and try outfitting a family with ‘nice enough’ clothes to make some of these people happy, on a budget.
Lets see…assume a family of 5 (Mom & Dad, plus 2 sons & a daughter), outfitted as these people are suggesting…
- Dress shoes for 5- the kids need new ones twice a year.
- Dresses for Mom & Daughter, suits for Dad & Sons…kids outgrow them…call it a new set once a year for the kids. Even if you dress the guys in Khaki’s & dress shirts thats still $20-30 each for pants & shirts.
These are -recurring- expenses…a computer can last for 5 years or more, and its more useful than a set of clothes thats worn once a week…
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bear06
Guest
The point is that you should be wearing the best you’ve can. If you can’t buy nicer clothes, you should be wearing the best you’ve got when you can.
For those of you in tight financial straight, as we were in for most of our married lives, I recommend the “Dollar Stretcher” series. You can probaby get it at the library. It’s amazing how much blood you really can squeeze out of a turnip. I understand the large family dilemma. We have six kids and were married right out of college. This is probably one of the first years we’ve actually had some breathing room.
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netmilsmom
Guest
I have myself, my hubby and two girls who sing in the choir and go to CCD.
My hubby wears the same khakis to work as to church. If you are paying 30.00 for pants, you haven’t looked at Walmart.
I got my Easter suit at Salvation Army, 8.00. Rest of the time, 10.00ea skirt, blouse and sweater from Walmart. Black skirt goes year round.
My girls have 9.99 two for one, shoes from Payless. White for summer, black for winter. They pass them down. The little one never wears new.
ALL their dresses come from Salvation Army or Ebay.
My shoes are Kmart pumps, black for winter/white for summer 10.00
The whole idea is that if you are shopping to dress up without spending lots of money, you can. If you want to use it as an excuse, you can too.
I was always amazed that parents would have pictures of their families in the Christmas cards all dolled up then come in jeans for mass.
That is the point.
As I said before, YOUR best is your best. It may be jeans but each of us knows what is our best.
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bear06
Guest
netmil(name removed by moderator):
I’m not really sure what the large family did before Wal-Mart and Payless shoe source! Not only do we do the 2 for ones, we pass them down. Church shoes don’t seem to wear out as fast a tennis shoes. Now, if I could only find my son’s other dress shoe!!! :banghead:
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aurora77
Guest
While I don’t have a huge problem with people wearing jeans to Mass, I have to agree with Netmil(name removed by moderator) on this. The only clothes that I own that I haven’t bought from a thrift shop I’ve either recieved as gifts or gotten from work (they provide jeans and shirts for us–I’m in a messy job. ) Granted, it is just my husband and myself–and he’s a whole 'nother story, he’s 6’9", so very rarely can we buy recycled clothes for him. But, for me, some of my very best outfits have been $5 or less, for both skirt and top. I buy things that I can mix and match, so a few pieces turns into a number of outfits, so I don’t have to worry that I’m wearing the same thing every single week. We have a Goodwill superstore that sells some great clothes; yes, you may have to search through some duds, but it’s worth it to save $25 on a pair of dress pants. Resale shops are great, too, I’ve gotten brand new, with tags on name brand clothes for dirt cheap from the Junior League shop. It’s all a matter of choice. Yes, there are those who can’t afford $5 for a pair of pants, or $3.50 for a skirt, but those people are few and far between. Give up the internet access for a few months and a person could have a whole new wardrobe.
) Granted, it is just my husband and myself–and he’s a whole 'nother story, he’s 6’9", so very rarely can we buy recycled clothes for him. But, for me, some of my very best outfits have been $5 or less, for both skirt and top. I buy things that I can mix and match, so a few pieces turns into a number of outfits, so I don’t have to worry that I’m wearing the same thing every single week. We have a Goodwill superstore that sells some great clothes; yes, you may have to search through some duds, but it’s worth it to save $25 on a pair of dress pants. Resale shops are great, too, I’ve gotten brand new, with tags on name brand clothes for dirt cheap from the Junior League shop. It’s all a matter of choice. Yes, there are those who can’t afford $5 for a pair of pants, or $3.50 for a skirt, but those people are few and far between. Give up the internet access for a few months and a person could have a whole new wardrobe.- Status