I ran into a man in the grocery store who approached me and asked if I was the local Unitarian minister. I replied that I am, and greeted him warmly with the memory that he has occasionally attended my church.
He gave me an enthusiastic thumbs up about his experience at our Sunday morning services and said, “But you know what surprised me? You guys dress really nicely for church! I mean, I think your ushers were even wearing ties! I’m an old hippie and I was a little bit freaked out.”
“Really?” I said. “I love knowing that! Because so many UU congregations are full of people in T-shirts and jeans and that always bugs me, so it’s so good to remember how it can go the other way, too. I LOVE how snazzy the men in my church are! Don’t tell them that you wish they were in flip-flops!!” And we laughed, and he said, “But it was fine when I realized that under their ties and pearls, all of these people were really cool. I mean, really friendly, relaxed, not at all what I thought they might be.”
So how about that?
I’d so much rather belong to a community that makes an effort to be spruced up out of respect for each other and for the Church and that “proves” itself warm and friendly, than to belong to a community that goes uber-casual and later “proves” to respect each other and their Church. That’s just me.
LOL, I think it depends on the region the church is in too. The UU church I attend is in the West, just a few minutes drive from the mountains. It’s a real mixed bag in terms of dressiness. Some wear traditional “church clothes”, and some people wear casual street clothing. I like that I can come dressed up if I want or I can wear a nice jeans outfit and still feel acceptable. 🙂
[We get a lot of “nice jeans outfits” at my church too — but very rarely do I see anyone arrive with that rumpled grungy look that’s so prevalent in UU life. I am SO embarrassed by our slobbiness at GA … have you ever noticed? – PB]
My 4 & 6 yr old daughters insist that I wear a tie to church.
🙂 I have a similar reaction to wearing my habit to LGBT outreach events. The habit itself is very explicitly Christian so some people’s first reaction is a bit hesitant, but folk talk to us after a while and realize that we’re friendly and affirming. It also goes a long way to reclaiming certain symbols and ways of presenting oneself to the world.
When I first started attending the local Spiritualist Church most of the workers dressed like slobs. I couldn’t believe the way they dressed.
Well, now that several of my fellow students and colleagues have taken more active roles, We have implemented a strict dress code. Men are to wear suit and ties. Women are to wear dresses or a professional pant suit.
Several of the other local Spiritualist churches are still behind in their attire and many people remark about how unprofessional they look and act.
We constantly get praise for how we look, act and conduct ourselves at our church.
I still believe people should dress up in their Sunday’s best for church. This is how I have been taught and raised. I will continue to push for it.
Thanks,