Friends
,
IWhat is the general opinion, in prudence and temperance?
There are two answers, depending on whether you want to wear the cassock now, or after you enter the seminary.
I will address wearing the cassock now.
The clothes we wear speak about who we are, what we think, and what we do. It is of course possible to wear clothes that send a different message, but most of us donāt do that. It would be odd to meet a man in a kilt and tam-o-shanter, and upon wishing him St. Andrewās blessing, be told that he hated Scotland and everything Scottish.
The clothes most of us wear send a message that traditional Catholics donāt like. They turn us into walking advertisements, make us look slovenly, and lack anything that bespeaks self respect. Certainly, unless we are a miner, or a doctor or nurse, or a soldier, our garb says little about what we do. Not good options.
So much of our collective identity is gone. The farmer lacks his smock, the gentleman lacks his watch and chain, the wife lacks her apron, the maid lacks her bonnet, and so on.
In this sartorial wasteland, it is natural to want to wear something like a cassock.
We would not have the desire, or perhaps not have it so strongly, if we had dress that were appropriate to our mentality and occupation.
My advice is first to define yourself at present. Apart from being an acolyte, or a sexton, what do you do?
Then, having answered that question, determine what garb is appropriate for your station. Wear the appropriate clothing as often as practical. You will send a powerful message that way. It may be as simple as wearing white shirt with a tie.
Which speaks more loudly to the death of the Roman Empire: such and such a battle in a certain field, or the day the last man was cremated in his toga?
When enough people refuse to play along with the charade of modern life, modernity will die.
