Festive Not Formal: On Dressing up For Church

As life is currently hectic right now for me at this end of the semester crunch, I have decided to begin a new series where I republish stuff from my old blog here with sum updates.

~ D.M.

Original Publication Date: 02/02/2014 (since modified)

The Clothing Civil War of the Church:

The matter of dressing on Sunday is a hot topic in today's Christian world. For some, it's all about coming as you are and not trying to look self-righteous. Just throw on your jeans and T-shirt and you're good to go. On the other hand, you have the conservative lynch mobs trying to tie nooses, er, ties around our necks. You're going to see the King of all Creation, the Savior, so you want to look your best. If I might be so bold, I would like to suggest that both sides are absolutely right, and absolutely missing the point. Here are a few things to consider, and that play a part in the rationale behind my personal Lord's Day attire. I want to hit on these very briefly. What is Worship?

Worship is when God's people come into his presence to praise him, to hear his word, to pray and to feast at his table. Worship is not a casual event, but neither is it a formal dinner party. It's a celebration, a royal celebration but a celebration nonetheless. Should We Dress Up Then?

This depends on how you define, "dressed up." I find it interesting that many who argue, "Worship is special and you should dress accordingly" wear the same basic outfit they wear to work five days a week- suit and tie. Black suits at that. Worship is special and warrants more than our best imitation of CEOs.

Personally, I have made it a policy never to wear black on the Lord's Day, with the occasionally and sometimes necessary exception of my shoes. I wear white, sometimes a little blue but never black. Gray is the closest you will see me get to color of mourning.

To add to the fun, I will often wear neckties but I will also switch it up with a bow-tie or an ascot (yes, an ascot). Basically, I want my clothing to remind me that this is a joyous day, a celebration of the great marriage and not a funeral.

Now, I'm not telling you to avoid black suits on the Lord's Day. This is my personal practice because I feel incredibly stuffy in suits period, let alone black ones. Do whatever you believe is pleasing to the Lord and follow your conscience (Rom. 14:22-23). Seeing Worship as a Feast

Interestingly enough, most of the earliest records we have that touch on the subject report that early Christians dressed in festive clothing for worship. It was special but not stuffy. This is, I believe, a product of how they treated the Eucharist as a joyous event. I think we could learn something from the approach of our ancestors in the faith to our worship clothes and our worship attitude.

So then, rather than dressing out of a mindset that we need to look our best (and by best we usually employ the same standard we use for a job interview), we should dress with a mindset of "Hey, it's the Lord's Day! Now where are my bright red socks?" Okay, maybe not the bright red socks. But you get what I mean. It's a special day, and we should wear something special. Conclusion

So, that's my view. I dress with a sense of festive joy. The Church is where we gather to celebrate the great drama of redemption and eat at the table of the King, our Father. As my pastor likes to say, "The Church is where it's at."

So dress like it.