Sacramento Church Implements Dress Code

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aicirt said:
Men improperly dressed: baseball cap on until usher had enough courage to tell guy to remove it. T-shirt wearers participating in bringing gifts up to the altar. AND just last Sunday…drumroll please…guy wearing Jim Bean burbon t-shirt to Sunday Mass!!!
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I presented the gifts once with a black leather jacket and a Mighty Mighty Boss Tones T-shirt.

My jeans weren’t ripped though. 😉
 
Rascalking said:
I presented the gifts once with a black leather jacket and a Mighty Mighty Boss Tones T-shirt.

My jeans weren’t ripped though. 😉
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I realize that one isn’t asked to bring up the gifts until they are at Church for Mass and their attire is their attire, but if you knew you were going to meet the President of the United States, would you wear a black leather jacket, a t-shirt and jeans for that meeting?
 
SwizzleStick said:
I realize that one isn’t asked to bring up the gifts until they are at Church for Mass and their attire is their attire, but if you knew you were going to meet the President of the United States, would you wear a black leather jacket, a t-shirt and jeans for that meeting?
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You know, I’ve thought about that for a long time. Something like, “Would I wear the same thing to go meet the govenor/president/etc?” The answer is, honestly, that I probably would. For my high school/college graduation, I wore blue jeans a t-shirt under my graduation gown. For a friends wedding, I’ve rented tuxes and stuff, but I didn’t cut my hair or shave. Yes, I do own several suits, and wear them to funerals, but not when I want to feel comfortable and pray.

I admit though, it’s a fair question-and one I’ve thought about-should I wear something better to mass? Like Khakis or something? I’d rather go to God when I am most comfortable. In the long run, I don’t think He cares.
 
Rascalking said:
You know, I’ve thought about that for a long time. Something like, “Would I wear the same thing to go meet the govenor/president/etc?” The answer is, honestly, that I probably would. For my high school/college graduation, I wore blue jeans a t-shirt under my graduation gown. For a friends wedding, I’ve rented tuxes and stuff, but I didn’t cut my hair or shave. Yes, I do own several suits, and wear them to funerals, but not when I want to feel comfortable and pray.

I admit though, it’s a fair question-and one I’ve thought about-should I wear something better to mass? Like Khakis or something? I’d rather go to God when I am most comfortable. In the long run, I don’t think He cares.
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Fair enough.

I don’t think one has to dress really fancy to go to Mass, but I think nice, modest dress is necessary. To me, that means no visible cleavage (of either kind), no shorts, no flip flops, no bare shoulders, no short skirts, no jeans should be worn to Mass.

I care. I personally prefer to dress in a way and to have my family dress in a way to reflect respect for Him and His house.
 
Last Sunday just before the last blessing, our Pastor asked everyone to dress modestly and appropriately for mass. He said that most of the congregation does, but wanted everyone to think about what they are wearing. He ended saying that the ushers would be at the doors at future masses and turn away anyone inappropriately dressed! Pretty strong words! I wonder how the ushers feel about this duty.
I was happy that Father brought the subject up. Inappropriate attire is usually just “not dressy”, it is exceptionally tight, low cut or too short.
Appropriate clothing can be just as comfortable as jeans & a T-shirt…and looking at the crucifix…how comfortable does Jesus look?
 
If immodest or otherwise inappropriate dress are an issue at your Parish at any time of the year, ask your Pastor to make an announcement on Sunday, and put a statement in your Church bulletin.

If that does not work, contact your Diocese Bishop.
He can put a statement in each Parish bulletin, and can have a statement read prior to each Mass.
 
Off topic…
Rascalking said:
I agree! Funny thought-I’ve seen ***people in business attire ***cut me off in traffic, not hold the door open for women, curse like sailors in public, etc. Same with women-sometimes the nicest looking ones (talking about attire, not physical appearance) act the most trashy.
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They also think they`re better than the rest of us.
People who look like me (long hair several inches below my shoulders, ripped jeans, leather jackets) go out of our way to be polite.
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You`re right: our fellow knockabouts know how to act decently.

CEOs should have their offices in the basement; not on the 100th floor, where they look down on the rest of the human race…literally and metaphorically.
 
We always had a family dress code for Mass. However I did not follow it during my grad school years when I was just about a daily communicant at the Newman Center.

Its simple: No T shirts, no jeans, no sneakers.

I realize that in resort communities and in hot regions there may be problems with the attire of those attending services. Dress straps and bra straps do not bother me.
 
I can understand, to some degree, why a dress code has been implemented. On the other hand, I have concerns. If the objective is to have people attired respectfully while before the Blessed Sacrament, then the focus should be to educate parishoners about the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Many people don’t believe in the True Presence in the Eucharist. Many don’t even know where the Tabernacle is. Only Jesus sees the heart of those who come before Him. Jesus is EVERYWHERE, not just in Catholic churches. Whether we pray on buses while commuting to work, whether we pray when walking somewhere, or sitting on a park bench or at the beach, the point is, our hearts are turned to our Lord. Often, people who are the best attired, spend more time adoring themselves in the mirror than they do praying. Jesus looks at the heart, not the clothes a person wears. I am absolutely certain Jesus listens and responds to the prayers of a person who spends hours before Him in prayer during Adoration, wearing shorts. Are people who focus on outward appearances/dress vain, seeking approval from humans more than Gds approval? Why encourage more vanity/coveting in the pews, with women dressing to one up the next parishoner? As for men who struggle with lust, and complain that women show too much cleavage, I would suggest that for some, even an “abundantly blessed” woman fully dressed is too much for them to handle. Men, learn from a real Man - Jesus. He respected all women.
 
Most of these posts seem to denote that the only place one meets God is in a church. Why confine your experience of and with God to a building?
 
Can’t we experience God elsewhere besides churches?
While people can experience God elsewhere, God is especially found in churches because the eucharist is there, which is Christ Himself. Also mass is celebrated in churches, which reenacts the sacrifice on calvary. And not only is Christ there, but people’s souls are united with Christ in communion. It is true that people should avoid wrongdoing everywhere, but people find this especially repugnant when thinking of doing in in God’s special presence.
 
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In Italy it is common to see such signs before entering a church. Yes God is present everywhere, but not in the same sense as when He is physically present in the Eucharist, and when we visit Him physically, we should show proper respect. It would be very helpful to see such signs before entering every Catholic church, especially given degenerate modern dress standards.
 
Gd is no less present outside of Catholic churches and He is not superficial. Gd is present in hospitals, where a sick person’s “Sunday best” is their flesh. Gd is present in North Korea, China, and in islamic nations where people are persecuted, tortured for belief in the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Gd hears the prayers of the homeless who sleep on the streets of America/Canada. Do they have a “Sunday best”? As for “Sunday Best” - define that. A wealthy person’s Sunday best won’t look the same as a homeless person’s Sunday best. Do you see homeless people worshipping beside you in your churches? If not, why not? It’s not like America doesn’t have homeless people. If your Sunday best is all about vanity and superficiality, then leave the clothes in the closet and the makeup in the trash. Gd is Pure. He isn’t impressed by fancy clothes or by makeup on a woman’s face. He wants your heart and soul.
 
WhiteLeather said:
Most of these posts seem to denote that the only place one meets God is in a church. …
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I don’t see that at all from the thread. Sure, we meet God everywhere. But, when one comes to His house to spend time with Him, shouldn’t one be properly dressed? When I say properly dressed, I don’t mean dressed fancy. I mean nice, simple, modest clothing.
WhiteLeather said:
…Why confine your experience of and with God to a building?
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I don’t think anyone suggested that anyone do that. But, a general dress code would have merits, especially since people do seem rather lost in that area. I know that wasn’t your point, but considering the topic of the thread, I decided to go in that direction because I’m pretty sure everyone is aware that God is everywhere and a part of every aspect of life.

It would be nice to be able to go out just anywhere and not have to see what one encounters daily out there, i.e. clothing that is too tight, too short, too much visible cleavage of both kinds, etc. A general dress code would take care of that.😃
 
BlsdBGd said:
I can understand, to some degree, why a dress code has been implemented. On the other hand, I have concerns. If the objective is to have people attired respectfully while before the Blessed Sacrament, then the focus should be to educate parishoners about the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Many people don’t believe in the True Presence in the Eucharist. Many don’t even know where the Tabernacle is. Only Jesus sees the heart of those who come before Him. Jesus is EVERYWHERE, not just in Catholic churches. Whether we pray on buses while commuting to work, whether we pray when walking somewhere, or sitting on a park bench or at the beach, the point is, our hearts are turned to our Lord. Often, people who are the best attired, spend more time adoring themselves in the mirror than they do praying. Jesus looks at the heart, not the clothes a person wears. I am absolutely certain Jesus listens and responds to the prayers of a person who spends hours before Him in prayer during Adoration, wearing shorts. Are people who focus on outward appearances/dress vain, seeking approval from humans more than Gds approval? Why encourage more vanity/coveting in the pews, with women dressing to one up the next parishoner? As for men who struggle with lust, and complain that women show too much cleavage, I would suggest that for some, even an “abundantly blessed” woman fully dressed is too much for them to handle. Men, learn from a real Man - Jesus. He respected all women.
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I don’t think one has to dress really fancy to go to Mass, I don’t think the point is to strive to be the best dressed person in Church. I don’t think anyone else thinks that either. But, I think nice, modest dress is necessary. To me, that means no tight clothes, no visible cleavage (of either kind), no shorts, no flip flops, no bare shoulders, no short skirts, no jeans should be worn to Mass. It’s about respect, not vanity.
 
Last Sunday at Mass I saw a group of about two dozen young people wearing mostly T-shirts, jeans, and shorts. One of the young men had a T-shirt with the slogan “The Devil Wears Prada.” Others had logos of sports teams, etc.

Normally I would be somewhat put off by this; but the young people in question were passing through our town on a mission/service trip to New Orleans from the upper Midwest. I don’t know all the details but I’m guessing their trip probably involves a lot of hard work like, for example, helping repair homes for elderly/low income people, cooking and serving meals for soup kitchens, etc. Personally I might have taken a little more care in choosing what I wore to Mass but I wouldn’t expect this group to be dressed to the nines.

I agree that dressing for Mass should always be modest, respectful, and not call attention to oneself. I usually wear the same clothes I would wear to my office job – a dress/skirt or nice pants; once in a while I will wear jeans.

I don’t fully agree with the notion that you should dress for Mass as you would for an audience with the Pope, the President, the Queen of England, etc . for the simple reason that most people other than heads of state or celebrities don’t attend events like that EVERY single week! For most people those would be once in a lifetime events. Also, most people don’t have to bring squirming toddlers or crying babies to the White House or the Vatican.
 
Secret_Square said:
…I don’t fully agree with the notion that you should dress for Mass as you would for an audience with the Pope, the President, the Queen of England, etc . for the simple reason that most people other than heads of state or celebrities don’t attend events like that EVERY single week! For most people those would be once in a lifetime events. Also, most people don’t have to bring squirming toddlers or crying babies to the White House or the Vatican.
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I see your point and understand. But, the point behind that thought is why would one carefully consider his/her attire and strive to dress well when they know they will be meeting the President, but just wear jeans or whatever when meeting our Lord?
 
I have to respectfully disagree with mandated dress codes for church for the same basis I argued it with my grandad over 30 years ago. God cares what is going on in my heart, not what I’m wearing on my butt. Sounds simplistic, but true.

I work construction administration full time and attend college nearly full time. Around that schedule, I attend our church as many days a week as possible. Between semesters that can mean seven days a week. At least five of those days, I go directly from work/job site to church or I will not be able to attend. I would rather attend in jeans than not go at all. That being said, I do not dress immodestly, nor do I behave immodestly.

God with Christ are my life’s center. Our parish priest believes firmly in dressing modestly, but as he comes from a third-world country, what you wear is of very little concern to him. We belong to a small, tight-knit parish and all of us are active in our communities, giving regularly to charities, local and international. Do the teens cross the line now and again? They are teens for goodness sakes! Those same teens have raised a considerable amount of money to go on a three-week mission trip to do work similar to Habitat for Humanity. With all the good we try to do, and the warm hearts that I encounter every day, I am absolutely not concerned with what anyone is wearing. We’ll all wear white one day.

My two cents,
Anne Marie
 
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