Ok this just seems wrong

[funnyyetsavvy]

At Mass the past two weeks the reader of the lesson was a young man (teen I think). BOTH times he actually read with his sunglasses perched on his head, and this past Sunday while ascending the steps to read, he lost his flip flop and had to go back down to put his ‘shoe’ back on.

Am I the only one who thinks this is not appropriate?

 

[strngrnrth]

Awful. Why couldn’t he have dressed up just one notch: real sandals, sunglasses in pants pocket? Then next time he could try deck shoes and leave the shades on the pew. Then he could get experimental and read while wearing gym shoes and socks. It wouldn’t be too hard or feel unnatural for him, and he could communicate respect.

 

[athansor]

I’m no fan of flip-flops, but I have worn my sunglasses on my head every day for 10 years, to work, church, basically anywhere where I will go outside during the day (even job interviews). That way I don’t lose them, don’t have to worry about sitting on them, and they keep my hair back out of my face just like a headband.
I never thought that someone would see that as in bad taste…hmmm.

 

[Jeanne_dArc]

OK, wearing flip-flops does not mean your going to hades. I have been reading at my church since I was 15, I always dressed nicely wearing at least a knee-covering skirt or khakis with a nice shirt. I also almost always wore flip-flops, this is because they happened to be my nicest shoes that went with my dress clothes (aside from an old pair of 3 inch high-heels.) I wore flip flops to prom, along with half the girls I knew wore flip-flops to formal dances.

Well, a new priest came to my parish and basically banned flip-flop wearing for the readers. This really offended me, since I was the only reader under the age of 50 and the only one wearing flip-flops. (I never wore them when I read again, I might add. I respected his opinion.) But it drives me crazy when people judge me for wearing flip-flops. There is nothing in the Bible banning flip-flops!

 

[stringbeanduck]

I’m no fan of flip-flops, but I have worn my sunglasses on my head every day for 10 years, to work, church, basically anywhere where I will go outside during the day (even job interviews). That way I don’t lose them, don’t have to worry about sitting on them, and they keep my hair back out of my face just like a headband.
I never thought that someone would see that as in bad taste…hmmm.

Not sure if your Catholic, but when you come in front of the Blessed Sacrament(or near it) you should dress appropriate. Sun glasses and flip flops aren’t all that reverent when it comes to Mass.

 

[CarrieH]

If a person was giving a presentation at their workplace, would they wear flip-flops and have their sunglasses on their head? Of course not. Is it not just as important it is to present the day’s readings to the faithful, serving as lector? Those who are in leadership roles such as lector or cantor should dress the part, going at least business-casual if not something a bit more formal. Sorry, flip-flops and shades are inappropriate. If someone in the pews keeps their sunglasses on their head, it’s no big deal to me, but I do agree with the other posters that flip-flops are too casual to wear for Holy Mass. :twocents:

 

[Phemie]

If a person was giving a presentation at their workplace, would they wear flip-flops and have their sunglasses on their head? Of course not. Is it not just as important it is to present the day’s readings to the faithful, serving as lector? Those who are in leadership roles such as lector or cantor should dress the part, going at least business-casual if not something a bit more formal. Sorry, flip-flops and shades are inappropriate. If someone in the pews keeps their sunglasses on their head, it’s no big deal to me, but I do agree with the other posters that flip-flops are too casual to wear for Holy Mass. :twocents:

Define ‘flip-flops’. To me that refers to $0.99 rubber footwear that you wear to the beach or in the shower and that I wouldn’t wear to Church or to anywhere dressy. OTOH, I wear my leather toe sandals to the office and to Mass with a dress or skirt in the summer.

 

[idrum677]

Be glad that you have a young man who volunteers to read at Mass and a parish that actually allows it.

It may not be the young man’s fault that he is not properly educated on attire. We need to lead by example, not snicker in the pews about what someone is wearing.

I teach my children that not all people do the right things in life. It is our example, however that can be a powerful teacing tool.

 

[kage_ar]

If a person was giving a presentation at their workplace, would they wear flip-flops and have their sunglasses on their head? Of course not. Is it not just as important it is to present the day’s readings to the faithful, serving as lector? Those who are in leadership roles such as lector or cantor should dress the part, going at least business-casual if not something a bit more formal. Sorry, flip-flops and shades are inappropriate. If someone in the pews keeps their sunglasses on their head, it’s no big deal to me, but I do agree with the other posters that flip-flops are too casual to wear for Holy Mass. :twocents:

It does depend on the business… there are Fortune 500 companies that are very causal, where jeans and sandals are fine.

 

[GraceDK]

At Mass the past two weeks the reader of the lesson was a young man (teen I think). BOTH times he actually read with his sunglasses perched on his head, and this past Sunday while ascending the steps to read, he lost his flip flop and had to go back down to put his ‘shoe’ back on.

Am I the only one who thinks this is not appropriate?

And how is his heart?
Has he love for his neighbour … is he trying to do his best?
I admire that a teenager does the readings at any rate and tries to help out at church… If I saw him in my parish I would think “its great that he is there” and I would give him a big smile…Then I’d let the Holy Spirit be concerned about his style of shoes and whether to teach his heart to make some changes on that little area if the Holy Spirit sees that as important… I think He might want to teach him a lot about the Love of Jesus first and a lot of other more pressing issues related to that and worry less about the details of his appearance at first…

 

[idrum677]

And how is his heart?
Has he love for his neighbour … is he trying to do his best?
I admire that a teenager does the readings at any rate and tries to help out at church… If I saw him in my parish I would think “its great that he is there” and I would give him a big smile…Then I’d let the Holy Spirit be concerned about his style of shoes and whether to teach his heart to make some changes on that little area if the Holy Spirit sees that as important… I think He might want to teach him a lot about the Love of Jesus first and a lot of other more pressing issues related to that and worry less about the details of his appearance at first…

 

[bpbasilphx]

There was a time when I would have given sunglasses oni the head in church the hairy eyeball.

Now with cataracts coming in, I frequently have to wear them before my eyes in church.

While normally, flip-flops would not be appropriate footwear for church, there MAY be good reason for his wearing them.

In any case, it’s for his parents to deal with. Not you.

 

[allhers]

:clapping: I agree too, isn’t it about time that people starting looking into their own souls and hearts instead of nit picking everyone to death. Yes it would be nice to give our best always to the Lord and in some people’s cases, that is their best!!
How do you know if that person doesn’t have something seriously wrong with one of their toes or something and can’t wear regular shoes, why not instead start giving the benefit of the doubt and pray for one another?

 

[petitfleur]

Flip flops dont bother me but I must admit there was a young lady in a MINI skitr and sleevless shirt showing clevage. And i wondered if the person who organizes the readers ever mentions modesty. but it was a passing thought.

 

[Wolseley]

In any case, it’s for his parents to deal with. Not you.

In any case, it’s for the pastor to deal with, not the parishioners or the parents.

IMOHO, nobody should come to Mass dressed like they’re going to the beach. Not unless the beach patrol requires that everyone on the beach wear three-peice suits and formal dresses with hats and gloves.

“Not appropriate attire for the beach”, you say?

Precisely. Let’s think about that for a while, shall we?

 

[CarrieH]

Define ‘flip-flops’. To me that refers to $0.99 rubber footwear that you wear to the beach or in the shower and that I wouldn’t wear to Church or to anywhere dressy. OTOH, I wear my leather toe sandals to the office and to Mass with a dress or skirt in the summer.

Here’s photo of various flip-flops, borrowed from Wikipedia. The first two in the bottom row I would call thong sandals rather than flip-flops, and those might be OK for Mass, IMO. The pink ones on the top might be OK if they were clean. As for the others, well…if you absolutely don’t have anything better to wear…

It does depend on the business… there are Fortune 500 companies that are very causal, where jeans and sandals are fine.

Yes, it depends on the business. But even in more casual environments, most people would dress a little nicer if they were going to be up in front of a large group giving a presentation, don’t you think? Let us not forget that those who are up front reading/singing/giving a presentation are acting in a leadership position, and it is best for them to set a good example.

FWIW, where I work, the office people are allowed to wear sling-backs or “peep” toes, but not both. Completely open-back shoes such as clogs or mules are forbidden, as are sandals and flip-flops. Those of us “in the trenches” have to wear totally-enclosed shoes, but that’s a matter of safety.

 

[duskyjewel]

My Liturgical Director, who trained me as a lector, and who is responsible for training those in the various ministries, would be on me like WHITE ON RICE if I wore sunglasses or flip flops while reading! Even if they were nice… the “flopping” is distracting, and we are supposed to be proclaiming the Word of God, not drawing attention to ourselves. This point is stressed over and over in our training and in follow up sessions.

This is the fault of the young man, for his clothing choices, but more of whomever is in charge of training your lectors. This should have been addressed in the training, and that person should have spoken to him about it after the first time with sunglasses.

 

[GemmaRose]

I think the young man could dress more appropriately. However, I’d rather see sandals and flip-flops than some things I have seen, such as the middle-aged reader wearing a dress that probably hasn’t fit properly for a decade or two.

I also think it may be a “Florida” thing. My brother and family moved to Florida and one of his daughters married a native Floridian. My niece’s father-in-law is also a native Floridian who is very laid-back, sartorially. He wore khaki SHORTS - at least they almost reached the knee - for the Baptism of his grandson… my first great-nephew! I think my nephew-in-law caught the look on my face (which I didn’t realize doing) when I saw his father’s attire, and he said, “It’s a Florida-thing. People are really laid back here.”

What do I know? I’m a Brooklyn girl!

---

*“Dear God, do You know the greatest grief one of Your creatures can bear? It is the thought that she can never love You enough. ” *- St. Gemma Galgani

 

[CarrieH]

I think the young man could dress more appropriately. However, I’d rather see sandals and flip-flops than some things I have seen

Amen to that!!! The worst I ever saw was in my parish church where I used to live 10 years ago. This was a beautiful 100±year-old church with no A/C, and it would get mighty hot in there during the summer. One particularly warm day at the Saturday vigil, the lector, a middle-aged woman, got up there wearing a tank-style swimsuit with a skirt over top! :bigyikes: I’m not the “clothing police” by any means, but I was speechless. I couldn’t believe Father let her stand up there and do the readings un-dressed like that. I was so embarrassed for her, I wanted to throw a choir robe over her. If only her greatest “transgression” had been the wearing of flip-flops! Instead, we had to look at her upper-body flesh “flip-flopping” around as she walked across the front of the church. I think someone must have said something to her, though, because she didn’t pull that stunt again.

 

[duskyjewel]

I think the young man could dress more appropriately. However, I’d rather see sandals and flip-flops than some things I have seen, such as the middle-aged reader wearing a dress that probably hasn’t fit properly for a decade or two.

You got me thinking about that line from Steel Magnolias: “looks like two pigs fightin’ under a blanket!”