What Not To Wear At Church...

[überchic]

If I went to meet the president I wouldn't dress well for him. As I'm a not a US citizen this isn't suprising. However, if I went to meet Tony Blair or the Queen I wouldn't dress well for them either. This is more to do with the fact that I don't care much for Tony Blair or the Queen.

I don't think he meant GWB in particular, or Tony Blair, or the Queen, because obviously some people don't like them. I think he was trying to state that you would want to present yourself nicely to a person of high authority who you would respect.
This actually reminds me of a conversation I had with my dad on the way home from church. (We had talked about this subject in class.) His explanation has always been "It's out of respect; if you were going to see the president, you would wear something nice."
Anyway, I agree that you would present yourself nicely to someone in that position, but they can't read what your heart feels. God can. It's not that you spend a bunch of money on an elaborate outfit to wear to church, it's that you don't distract others from what they came to do. (Sorry, I know it's repetitive to bring up the distraction thing again!)

 

[überchic]

I spoke to a pastor regarding this quote:
he told me that it referred to the doorway of the gates to a city. these doorways were meant for people, and were generally rather small. in that sense, it was very difficult for camels to get through.

I strongly believe that Jesus did not mean that it was impossible for wealthy men to enter heaven. I do believe though, that this verse was conveying the message that if one were to be rich, they should share that blessing with others around them.

I believe that is true-sharing your wealth-but in context, the passage (which isn't from Timothy, it is Matthew 19:24, Mark 10:25 or Luke 18:25- when I looked up this verse from Timothy It was something about childbirth. maybe I'm confused) Anyway. The passage in context is:
Luke 18:18-25
18 A certain ruler asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

19 "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good—except God alone. 20You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.'[b]"
21 "All these I have kept since I was a boy," he said.
22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 23 When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth. 24 Jesus looked at him and said, "How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."

The point is, you're supposed to value God more than anything in your life. It says that you are supposed to "sell everything you have and give to the poor." I don't think that it literally means put your whole house and its contents up for auction; it means that if all you care about is getting those Gucci pumps you've had your eye on, you will have a hard time "getting into heaven" because God wants all your love.


I think I'm done for tonight...this is hard work!

 

[überchic]

ah! I just took a closer look back and saw that ignitioned32 pointed out the 2 Timothy verse that fit better. sorry!

 

[MissTrine85]

i was at at christening, where the grandmother of the child was wearing a seethrough D & G camisole, with nothing underneath beside a bra!!!

 

[cheepmunk]

I’d have this discussion a lot with a friend of mine who was a very conservative Christian, and we finally just agreed to disagree. Her point was that how one dresses reflects how much respect one has for the occasion. Therefore, showing up to church in sweats was disrespectful to everyone there and to God. It was also distracting to others trying to worship.


I agree with her to a certain extent, but I’d rather someone come to a mosque/synagogue/church wearing sweats that provide adequate coverage rather than a short, tight skirt with heels and a tight top. That’s distracting to others trying to worship and, IMO, much more disrespectful. Also, I have a hard time believing I have less faith than the person next to me because I wore jeans and she wore khakis. At least if the woman next to me is wearing jeans and a sweatshirt I know she's probably not there to pick up a man, and that I respect.


I do agree that it’s unnecessary to have special clothes for church. After all, if part of dressing respectfully for church is to convey respect for God, then you should wear those same clothes all the time, because God can see you everywhere you go. I wish more people would remember that communing with God isn’t something that only happens once a week at whatever house of worship to which they go.

 

[Trista]

Banned for life? For clothing? They couldn't speak to you respectfully and discuss the issue with you? Doesn't sound like they were concerned so much with you but with themselves and their perception of you. Sorry to hear that.

My hubby and I are developing a camp on a reservation for kids that are in households affected by drugs, alcohol, poverty etc. I'd worry more about the kid than the clothing IMO. Silly to say you're concerned with someone's soul if you are busy judging their clothing and outward appearance.

My husband is a pastor too, we wear jeans and t-shirts to church. People live in poverty here and that's what they wear. I'm glad to see them no matter what they wear. Jesus said for us to be fishers of men, He never told us it was our job to 'clean' them up; just catch them. Cleaning is His job. It's not my job to judge. Anyway, interesting thread!

They never said a word to me about it until it was too late and there was nothing I could have done to change it. Before I was set to go to the camp I had a meeting with a couple of the leaders where it was alluded to, but never stated directly, and then pretty much my mom comes home one day from work and says that dozens of people complained. If they were going to complain to me about the way I dress, they should have done it when I still had time to change it. They did it to make an example out of me.

I mean if it is a formal church service, held in a church, with people of all ages, you shouldn't dress like how I dress in summer. But if your clothes cover your butt, stomach, and boobs and aren't too low-cut AND you aren't trying to hit on members of the opposite gender and you are at a thing where it's not super-formal, like a youth camp, when most of the people who are there are using it as a vacation and they have no idea it's about God, then I see absolutely no problem with it.

I mean when I went to Christmas Eve service at my church, I try to look nice because any time is an excuse for me to dress up-and I was ushering, so I wore some gauchos and a black ruffled button-down. You had people there in jeans ushering on what is one of the more formal services of the year. I mean you don't have to wear a cocktail dress but it's a nice event, a lot of people dress up for it.