Should there be actions taken to improve or even control immodest dress at mass?

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Mary_Harmon said:
As for sports team gear, I am a huge Cubs fan, but I would never wear Cubs gear to church.
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I agree with everything you said. When I saw the Cubs reference, I couldn’t help but wonder if the jersey might be an occasion of prayer.
 
I have no problem with modesty being the standard. I would like for what is “modest” to be definded clearly. I say this because my Parish Pastor mentioned to me that shorts are not appropriate for Sunday Mass. The case was my son and I went to Saturday evening Mass and then were going to play minature golf. Both of us had on dress shorts down to the knees and polo shorts. I am currently coming from the Baptist faith and am in RCIA; so to us for an evening service that is not inappropriate. He was very tackful in saying it and I really appreciated it. I also mentioned that I see people on Sunday with them on. He said he knew but wasn’t sure how to stop it. My only concern was that had I not been a person that is serious about my Faith I could have easily left and never came back. It would have really been nice if someone had given me a dress code when I inquired about the Church or had the information online at the Parish website. I think most people will adhere to the rules if they know what they are.
 
Muslim_Woman said:
Salaam/peace;

Hope my opinion won’t hurt anyone’s feelings. Personally I don’t know any Christians except online . I see/ saw Christians on the TV screen .

I saw in some documantiries / movies how Christians women wear dress inside the Church. I did not like the wedding gown the bride wore …too revealing .

In Islam , wife’s beauty is for her husband only ( & the vice versa ) . So , a bride’s showing her physical beauty to all … I found it unacceptable.

Also , in a news report , I saw young girls wearing very tight pant , T Shirts …I did not like that either . May be , I am too conservative 😊
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Thank-you so much for your comments! I value your opinion and recognize that you have a sense of the real advantages and gifts that accompany modesty. All too many women in this country seem to have lost touch with even the ‘experience’ of blushing, to use your word…so appropriately. A famous preacher named Fr Corapi speaks of the ‘deadening’ of one’s conscience, which I liken to the apparent lack of ‘blushing’ in individuals who should be doing just that, given the way they are presenting themselves! If you read the posts in this thread, you will find that there are allot of women who agree with your observations! Again…Thank-you!
 
I just remembered going to St. Peter’s in Rome many years ago as a child. They did not allow sleeveless blouses or uncovered heads for women. That was then.
 
RosalieM said:
I just remembered going to St. Peter’s in Rome many years ago as a child. They did not allow sleeveless blouses or uncovered heads for women. That was then.
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From a tourist info site for St. Peter’s Basilica:
The Dress Code is strictly enforced at St. Peter’s Basilica. No shorts, bare shoulders or miniskirts. This applies to both men and women. Even if you get through security, you will be turned away by the attendants at the door. On a hot summer day, I’ve seen dozens of men in shorts turned away.
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I think this is perfectly reasonable, quite flexible, and cognizant that both men and women are capable of dressing immodestly and inappropriately for Mass.
 
RosalieM said:
I just remembered going to St. Peter’s in Rome many years ago as a child. They did not allow sleeveless blouses or uncovered heads for women. That was then.
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I don’t know if it is still the case at St. Peter’s as I never got to see much of Rome while I was doing my studies there, but when I was at the Cattedrale di Santa Maria in Florence a couple years back, everyone (men and women) had to have their arms and shoulders covered. If they didn’t, they were provided a paper cover-up that was placed over their heads. It sort of looked like a paper poncho. At the churches in the town where I stayed for most of my studies, the people dressed pretty modestly for mass, although no head covers.
 
Of course there is no RIGHT answer. We should expect appropriate dress, however, what we as individuals and society deem appropriate is very different.
There are “rules” in the Holy Land, The Vatican, etc. I venture to say that most of us complaining about the dress in churches are older (baby boomers) and used to dress up to go downtown and to a family party.
I sing at weddings and funerals, and they don’t dress much better there either…it’s a sign of the times, just look at all the strapless bridal gowns!
As someone else said, it’s their problem, not ours. And who are we to judge? I suspect that we as human beings are far more judgemental than God.
 
I vote no-- obviously I am in the minority around here, but here is my reasoning.

First, I think people should know better. Shame on them. However, it is impossible for me or anyone else to know the circumstances of every individual entering the church for Mass. I would not want them kicked out. They need to be there. Hopefully they will absorb that this is a holy place and holy liturgy and that their immodest dress is inappropriate. If they have the means, they will hopefully dress more appropriately next time.

However, it should also be understood that not everyone has the means to go out and buy a warddrobe of clothes just to please everyone else and meet the standards of others regarding what is and is not appropriate for Mass. It’s possible that a person might just happen to wander in with no real understanding of why we are gathered there in the first place… should he/she feel unwelcome? Not only that, but has anyone else noticed how hard it is to buy truly modest clothing for women in stores these days? I end up sewing my own a lot, however, not everyone is able to do this.

I think the clergy should counsel people to dress modestly and appropriately and lay out general guidelines for doing so, but aside from such general encouragements from the pulpit or in bulletins, etc. I just don’t think it would be particularly Catholic to judgementally refuse entrance to those who fail to meet our standards or some such thing. Of course, if one were to show up dressed in a way that does not even meet public decency laws or something it might be reasonable to call the police and have them removed.

In the meantime, where it comes to my own children, I do have authority to say yea or nay to specific outfits and I exercise it. It is my hope that when they come of age and are on their own, I will have succeeded in instilling in them the virtue of modesty.
 
Have you tried sitting in the front so you can’t be distracted by others in front of you?
Sounds to me like you should be praying more and focusing on the Lord more than on other ppl. As long as they aren’t exposing themselves in public, it’s not your issue. I personally think that ppl spend far too much time worrying about NON issues than what’s really important - Our Heavenly Father.
Maybe evil is using them to get you distracted and unable to listen to the Lord. That’s what I’d start praying about.
 
Rules of dress, in a nutshell (with an emphasis on the word “nut”):

Anyone dressed more modestly than I am, is a prude.

Anyone dressed more comfortably than I am, with regards to the summer heat, is a slut.

Anyone dressed more casually than I am, is a slob.

Anyone dressed more formally than I am, is a Pharisee.

Anyone dressed more fashionably than I am, is vain.

Anyone dressed less fashionably? We must pray for her. (The Catholic equivalent of “Bless her heart”. I can now engage in nasty comments about her fashion sense).

Shorts are allowed only when I run late and would miss daily Mass if I took the time to change. (You don’t have that dispensation, unless I also happen to be wearing shorts that day.)

I hope this has cleared things up! 😃
 
I don’t wear immodest dress anywhere now. It has been about a year since I went back to skirts and dresses of appropriate length and will not go back. I gave 60 + pairs of pants and jeans to goodwill. I am more happy than ever, don’t even have to worry about it. To the Muslims, they look a bit like nuns but that is ok too. 🙂
 
Should the Church regulate the dress for Mass and other functions? I think not; then it is messing with the Freedom of Expression. Secondly, would one want a moral dress code to go to Mass or let someone come as they are and be able to worship God. Finally, what if one cannot afford “respectable” clothing? Does this mean that they cannot attend Mass or gatherings?
I just know there is something in the bible about “Judging Others”…
 
This actually came up in our family this past Sunday. We were staying with my in-laws and the kids had left their “good” clothes at another house. I chose to keep the kids home from church. They are 3 teenagers and the girls only had shorts and t-shirts to wear. Was I right in staying home and missing mass? Or should I have let them go dressed immodestly???
 
I was thinking about this today…
If a person cannot make it to Sunday Mass properly dressed, is their obligations dispensed with?

Examples to consider:

It took far longer than could be expected to get back from a weekend-long hiking trip. We are dirty and sweaty. We could change into clean casual clothes, but we can’t clean up before Mass starts. We won’t be able to get home in time to get Sunday clothes on.

I had intended to go Sunday evening Mass after a friend treated me to a round of golf at a local golf course, but we were tied up. Now I can’t make it, unless I show up in golf shoes, and a sweaty-but-clean-looking combination of khakis and a really nice polo shirt.

We’re in the driveway, ready to go to Mass, and my dress ripped down the front getting in the car. (This happened to me, although not on the way to Mass.) I have clothes that are modest up in my closet, and time to change, but they’re all either soiled, wrinkled because they’re ready for the drycleaners, or too casual.

The heel of my dress shoe came off, and the only other ones I have are old nasty tennis shoes and muddy work boots.

We run out of money for food and gas at the end of each month. We eat whatever is cheap, even though it is too high in fat, and wonder how we’ll make ends meet. Meanwhile, I realized this morning that I’ve gained weight so that my dress is way too tight to be decent anymore, and I can’t afford new clothes that are suitable for Sunday Mass.
 
EasterJoy said:
I was thinking about this today…
If a person cannot make it to Sunday Mass properly dressed, is their obligations dispensed with?

Examples to consider:

It took far longer than could be expected to get back from a weekend-long hiking trip. We are dirty and sweaty. We could change into clean casual clothes, but we can’t clean up before Mass starts. We won’t be able to get home in time to get Sunday clothes on.

I had intended to go Sunday evening Mass after a friend treated me to a round of golf at a local golf course, but we were tied up. Now I can’t make it, unless I show up in golf shoes, and a sweaty-but-clean-looking combination of khakis and a really nice polo shirt.

We’re in the driveway, ready to go to Mass, and my dress ripped down the front getting in the car. (This happened to me, although not on the way to Mass.) I have clothes that are modest up in my closet, and time to change, but they’re all either soiled, wrinkled because they’re ready for the drycleaners, or too casual.

The heel of my dress shoe came off, and the only other ones I have are old nasty tennis shoes and muddy work boots.

We run out of money for food and gas at the end of each month. We eat whatever is cheap, even though it is too high in fat, and wonder how we’ll make ends meet. Meanwhile, I realized this morning that I’ve gained weight so that my dress is way too tight to be decent anymore, and I can’t afford new clothes that are suitable for Sunday Mass.
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Christ does not care what you wear as long as you get to Church.
 
I think that you shouldn’t check your common sense at the door. I am not advocating that women go back to pre-Vatican II days and cover your heads but don’t come to church as if you were going to dig a ditch…
 
I agree with the previous post.

When we get so caught up in appearance that it becomes more important than God, we have a problem. Read Christ’s condemnation of the Pharisees, especially the one about them being whitewashed graves.

Besides, do you think Christ worried about how clean his tunic was when he prayed?
 
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