Private prayer and dress code at home

[Jeanette_L]

Frankly, and maybe I’m alone in this thinking, but I don’t worry what I am wearing. I worry more about my state of mind. My priest always tells us to be true and not fake, and that is the most important. Since God sees us at all times, do you really think what you are wearing matters? Wouldn’t He rather know your heart is sincere?

I agree with you, *God is focused on our spirit *and all that lurks there unseen. Sometimes people can become too focused on outward things, often this leads to a false spiritual pride. “I am going the extra mile here, I am thinking more about what pleases God than the others who are not doing X,Y,and Z.”

If you study the early Church, do you know that they used to make the Christian converts be baptized in the nude, in front of everyone? That will strip the pride right out of you. You can’t possibly come away from that focused on the wrong outward things and how people think of you at Mass.

We need to be careful where we put our focus, and how we judge others who don’t meet up with our own standards, especially in matters of personal preference.

 

[Philothea53]

I think for a lot of people, not all but a lot, dressing up for church isn’t about the other people at Mass. It’s about being a good guest. God has invited you to His house for a very special meal, so showing up in shorts and a t-shirt is like showing up late: tacky. God would definitely rather you came in rags than not at all and He won’t ignore our prayers because we aren’t dressed up. But it’s just a sign of respect for the invitation.

This is such a nice answer. “…dressing up for Church isn’t about the other people at Mass, It’s about being a good guest. God has invited you to His house…it’s just a sign of respect for the invitation.”

 

[Philothea53]

do you really think what you are wearing matters?

So you would kneel at your home altar or sit in your place of prayer in the nude and feel perfectly okay with it?

 

[pmoo]

I agree with you, *God is focused on our spirit *and all that lurks there unseen. Sometimes people can become too focused on outward things, often this leads to a false spiritual pride. “I am going the extra mile here, I am thinking more about what pleases God than the others who are not doing X,Y,and Z.”

If you study the early Church, do you know that they used to make the Christian converts be baptized in the nude, in front of everyone? That will strip the pride right out of you. You can’t possibly come away from that focused on the wrong outward things and how people think of you at Mass.

We need to be careful where we put our focus, and how we judge others who don’t meet up with our own standards, especially in matters of personal preference.

Baptism in the nude??? Boy, that would tend to limit the number of new converts wouldn’t it???

 

[Jeanette_L]

Baptism in the nude??? Boy, that would tend to limit the number of new converts wouldn’t it???

It certainly would be a deterrant for those who weren’t really committed!

 

[thistle]

Where do you find this (Jesus does not care) in Tradition or the Bible?

Actually it doesn’t make any difference if you are naked. I pray in the shower and on the toilet. Do you really think Jesus does’t like me doing that? Where does it say in the Bible or in Tradition that Jesus only wants you to pray fully clothed and in your Sunday best.

 

[LilyM]

Baptism in the nude??? Boy, that would tend to limit the number of new converts wouldn’t it???

I’m certain they would have segregated the sexes at least - one of the duties of deaconesses at this time was the baptism of adult females.

 

[KathleenElsie]

Actually it doesn’t make any difference if you are naked. I pray in the shower and on the toilet. Do you really think Jesus does’t like me doing that? Where does it say in the Bible or in Tradition that Jesus only wants you to pray fully clothed and in your Sunday best.

I never said you could not pray when doing some things. I just personally feel that when I am not in the shower or on the commode that I should show respect for God and my fellow man in the way I dress and behave.

 

[Jeanette_L]

It seems to me that there is confusion about what we do to be culturally respectful towards our peers, and what is respectful before our Creator. We clothe ourselves not because the body is impure, but because of the fallen nature of those around us, so as not to be a temptation against purity for them. With God, this is not an issue. He created our bodies and all their functions and is not in the least bit offended by them. I mean let’s face it, we live in His presence 24/7, whether we’re aware of it or not, whether we’re praying or not.

When we use Him as an excuse in this way, to justify our wardrobe choices and to judge other people’s choices (which is the end result), we are setting ourselves up for the sin of Spiritual Pride and as a judge of others according to our “standards”, which are false. Classic mistake of the Pharisees.

And when you go to Mass and want to dress in a way that is “respectful”, being your Sunday best and so on, know that you are doing something cultural, not spiritual. All that is required is modesty for the sake of our brothers and sisters, anything above and beyond that is not a spiritual choice.

 

[Debra_C]

We’re supposed to pray always. Even our most mundane, daily chores which we do solely out of necessity can be offered as a prayer. That being the case, if you feel it necessary to follow a dress code for private prayer, you need to wear it 24/7. You can’t hide from God after all.

My thought is that dress codes are a matter of personal choice in the details, but above all, modesty is needed in public prayer and worship settings, or for private prayer in public spaces (such as a adoration chapel). There are plenty of folks that complain that casual clothing is irreverent for Mass, but jeans and a clean tshirt (that doesn’t advertise anything questionable) is still better that the dressiest short skirt or blouse with plunging neckline. But it seems unnecessary to apply dress codes to your private life, including prayer, beyond that which is required to live a moral life. One wouldn’t want to go out in clothes that would cause others to lust, for example. Of course, there are some who have chosen or vowed to observe a religious rule of some sort which specifies such things, but that again is a personal choice of spirituality not a Church wide practice.

 

[Debra_C]

pmoo;2552597:

Baptism in the nude??? Boy, that would tend to limit the number of new converts wouldn’t it???

It certainly would be a deterrant for those who weren’t really committed!

Maybe not–our concern about public nudity is only partially inherent to our nature. A large part of our inhibition is cultural. Though it is true that as soon as Adam and Eve realized they were naked, they were ashamed and ran off to clothe themselves, the Romans and ancient Greeks generally had no problem with public nudity. The bath houses were wide open and all bathed nude. The toilets were not only public, but not enclosed at all. At the gymnasiums, the men were nude. The original Olympic athletes in ancient Greece all competed in the nude. And the nude human form, both male and female, is the most common theme in Roman and Greek art.

Of course, we are also talking about a culture in which prostitution was considered a reasonable and respectable profession, and it was considered perfectly normal for adult men to have physical relations with prepubescent boys. This said, I certainly wouldn’t advise we throw out our cultural inhibitions.

 

[Jeanette_L]

Maybe not–our concern about public nudity is only partially inherent to our nature. A large part of our inhibition is cultural. Though it is true that as soon as Adam and Eve realized they were naked, they were ashamed and ran off to clothe themselves, the Romans and ancient Greeks generally had no problem with public nudity. The bath houses were wide open and all bathed nude. The toilets were not only public, but not enclosed at all. At the gymnasiums, the men were nude. The original Olympic athletes in ancient Greece all competed in the nude. And the nude human form, both male and female, is the most common theme in Roman and Greek art.

Of course, we are also talking about a culture in which prostitution was considered a reasonable and respectable profession, and it was considered perfectly normal for adult men to have physical relations with prepubescent boys. This said, I certainly wouldn’t advise we throw out our cultural inhibitions.

Thanks for the enlightenment on the norm of the ancient Church’s surrounding culture, it helps us to understand what we know to be an early practice of nude Baptisms.

And I’m with you, I’m glad those days are long gone!

 

[Philothea53]

Maybe not–our concern about public nudity is only partially inherent to our nature. A large part of our inhibition is cultural. Though it is true that as soon as Adam and Eve realized they were naked, they were ashamed and ran off to clothe themselves, the Romans and ancient Greeks generally had no problem with public nudity. The bath houses were wide open and all bathed nude. The toilets were not only public, but not enclosed at all. At the gymnasiums, the men were nude. The original Olympic athletes in ancient Greece all competed in the nude. And the nude human form, both male and female, is the most common theme in Roman and Greek art.

Of course, we are also talking about a culture in which prostitution was considered a reasonable and respectable profession, and it was considered perfectly normal for adult men to have physical relations with prepubescent boys. This said, I certainly wouldn’t advise we throw out our cultural inhibitions.

The only part that really had any bearing is the part about Adam and Eve recognizing their nudity and running off to get covered. Something about those ancient Romans and Greeks - do you think their lifestyles got them to Heaven?

 

[Jeanette_L]

The only part that really had any bearing is the part about Adam and Eve recognizing their nudity and running off to get covered. Something about those ancient Romans and Greeks - do you think their lifestyles got them to Heaven?

I think you’re misreading the intentions of Debra’s post. It wasn’t to condone the lifestyle of the Greeks and Romans, but to provide *context *to the practice of the early Church’s baptismal practices.

 

[Philothea53]

I think you’re misreading the intentions of Debra’s post. It wasn’t to condone the lifestyle of the Greeks and Romans, but to provide *context *to the practice of the early Church’s baptismal practices.

My apologies to Debra.

 

[Debra_C]

My apologies to Debra.

No offense was taken… and no, I don’t think such licentious behavior got them to heaven. In fact, the Romans had taken Jerusalem by the time of Jesus’ birth. This is the culture that the Jewish people were having to contend with while attempting to preserve their own culture and spiritual way of life. The Romans allowed them to practice their own religion, but do we honestly believe such surroundings had no effect on the Jews of the day? Our own culture certainly makes it harder for us to be good Catholics.

Perhaps the massive cultural debauchery surrounding the Jews at the time was the reason for God’s timing in sending us the Messiah? Just a thought…

 

[DebChris]

God is with me wherever I am. We are called to pray always. Earlier posts mentioned praying in the shower. This can be a time of cleansing of sins as well as of the body. It is a time when we are “naked before God” in both a literal and figurative sense, stripped of all pretense.
Bedtime, regardless of attire can be a time for laying ourselves before God and surrendering our lives to him.
One of the things I do at home is take off my shoes before prayer whether saying the rosary or reading Scripture. I started doing this after reading God’s command to Moses at the Burning Bush. “Remove your sandals for this is Holy Ground.” It is a symbolic gesture that gives the time and place where I am to God.