August 06, 2019
Gentlemen, be clothed in the Lord's majesty!
Have you ever thought about dressing better for Holy Mass? I’m not talking about dressing for a wedding or a funeral, but EVERY Sunday Mass.
There are two specific lines that have inspired and guided the direction of my channel, @catholicsundaybest. The first one is from St. Francis de Sales in which he encourages "devout man or woman to be the best dressed person in the company, but the least fine or splendid, and adorned as St. Peter says, 'with the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit.' " St. Francis definitely encourages us to be well dressed, and according to our means. We dress according to the requirements of the situation: we dress for our work, for sports or to special occasions. If we are blessed to own dress clothes, we can wear them to occasions that call for them, such is the purpose of having a "dress code." However, if we do not possess such garments, we are encouraged to dress to the best of our abilities, but be mindful not to overdress. Our best is reflected in our effort not in the lavishness of our attire.
In all things, there is a line that we carefully navigate as Christians. We show passion or zeal without leaning towards pride. We show humility and meekness without lowering our opinion of ourselves. The former qualities are virtuous while the latter lead to sin. We must then exercise careful self-examination: To what purpose do we dress well or act modestly? Do we elevate our Lord or ourselves? Are we becoming scrupulous in our actions that we reflect ourselves or do we strive to lead others to Christ?
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