July 15, 2009

Does God care what I wear to Mass?

By Julie Filby

 “God doesn’t care what I wear to church as long as I’m there.”

Nearly every Catholic has either said this or heard someone else say it. On any given Sunday, people in the pews wear everything from shorts and tank tops—to formal suits and dresses. In today’s society, particularly during the more laid back season of summer: Does God care what we wear to Mass?

At the evening Mass on June 14 at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, Denver’s Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M., Cap., used a portion of his homily to address this topic. He said he receives a handful of letters each year from Catholics throughout the archdiocese complaining about the way people dress for church—either because they are dressed immodestly or too casually.

“I think the Lord is always displeased if we dress immodestly,” he explained. “We should be modest in our dress everywhere, especially in church. And I would ask all of you to keep that in mind.”

Then he pointed out that there is a distinct difference between dressing inappropriately and simply dressing casually.

“I suspect (the Lord’s) indifferent if we just dress casually,” he said. “I don’t think we should sit in judgment of one another about that.”

He used the example of someone who goes to the mountains for a hike, but doesn’t have time to stop and shower and change clothes before going to Mass, noting, “The Lord is more pleased by your being there (at Mass), than by your not wearing shorts.”

At the same time, he talked about the significance of showing reverence when celebrating the Lord’s presence in the Eucharist. An analogy he has used at other times when speaking on this topic is how people dress when they go out for dinner to celebrate a special occasion, such as an anniversary. Generally they dress in a respectful manner reflecting the importance of the event. Similarly, respect can be shown to Christ by dressing up for the celebration of Mass.

“But,” he stressed, raising his voice, “it’s more important that we come.”

Father Andreas Hock, S.S.D., chair of the sacred Scripture department at St. John Vianney Theological Seminary, who is in residence at the cathedral, said it is important for the faithful to dress according to decorum as a sign of reverence, first and foremost to the Blessed Sacrament, but also to show due respect toward fellow worshippers.

Express in a very tangible way, your faith in the real presence of our Lord Jesus Christ,” he said. “If you dress up for a wedding, you shouldn’t dress down for the wedding feast of the Lamb of God.”

Deacon Clarence McDavid of Cure d’Ars Parish in Denver, who is vice president of human resources for Rose Medical Center, said he deals with the issue of dress all the time, at the office and at church.

“People should ask themselves if what they are wearing is respectful of a worship environment,” he said. “Some current styles may be too revealing or otherwise inappropriate for church. Most people know the difference, but not all act on it.”

He shared a story of a young man asked to help bring up the offertory gifts one Sunday.

“His pants were sagging, in the current style,” Deacon McDavid said. “Before he brought the gifts up, he pulled his pants up. He knew the way he was wearing them was not appropriate and he changed it.”