Why did a Mormon Church tell my mother that she needs to wear a dress to their church
My mother told them that she dresses like Hillary Clinton, business clothes, and they said that she needs to wear a dress to Mormon Churches and temples.
WOULD JESUS REQUEST THAT YOU WEAR DRESSES TO CHURCH ?
Or would he just say dress nice. Or say come as you are.
I am not a Mormon, but I am a lifelong church attendee, and this is a common issue in churches. IMO there is absolutely no scriptural authority for it, and it is just a tradition among people, and the Bible warns us not to get caught up in such traditions. Tell your mom to wear whatever she wants, Adan if the congregation doesn't accept it, to find a different one.
What's funny is that I said something here about that -- that women need to wear dresses to a Mormon church -- and all the Mormons jumped down my throat and gargled my guts out.
Mormons are a masonic cult, whether they know it or not. I would highly advise staying away from these charlatans, before they have you convinced that Jessi's origins are very much like the origins of Superman. Also, if you look into it, Mormonism plagiarizes it's beginnings from Islam, in specific, the golden tablets/plates.
Sorry to say some Baptist & Penecostal churches are like this as well, the Mormon church is not a "Come dressed as you are." church, they have a dress standard.
@Trish your so funny, the people are men that come dressed up in pants.
I have been to wards in UT, OK, Panama, CA and NJ and no women ever wore pants to church....unless they where in Basic training.
Depends who told her, was it a church elder or just some meddlesome busy body exercising her snobbery?. Still, if it's true, (I was raised a Mormon, but not in America, I dint remember this rule)alto of churches, cultures, beliefs have protocols, your mum could abide or seek God somewhere less faddy Dody. The Mormon church will miss her 10% tithing though.
Dudes have to wear white shirts with a tie. Different colored shirts are looked down on and in some places the local leadership say you cannot help with the Sacrament if you don't wear a white shirt.
Things like this is what made me leave Mormonism. I studied the New Testament a lot and realized Mormons act just like the Pharisees. They pay attention to their meaningless "high" standards and forget what the whole message Jesus was credited with in the New Testament which is treat those around you well even if they treat you less than that.
When in Rome do like the Romans. I hate ties, but I still wear them. (Wasn't it Judas that wore a rope around his neck, just say in').
The ties I like to wear are usually somewhat unusual. I like my tie the best, that has the pictures of the lions and giraffes on them.
Someone could go to church in a loin cloth, but the problem is you would feel a might uncomfortable, sitting there in church looking like Ghandi, and everyone NOT looking (... as in don't look at the man in the loin cloth or his flabby stomach, Junior, I am telling you for the last time).
If you don't have the money for the clothes, go to the Bishop, set up an appointment, and he will give you a waver, so that you can go to Deseret Industries, and pick up something appropriate.
I have a hard time going with the crowd myself, on anything, but when it comes to contemporary fashion, there are some deviations that you can do, and some that you simply can NOT do.
Just one of those common sense things. If you are working at a factory, you wouldn't wear a suit coat and tie while lifting the widgets all day long. And if you were going to meet with a banker for a 10 million dollar loan, you wouldn't wear jeans and a t-shirt, regardless how stylish or comfortable the clothes are.
Is it mandatory to wear a dress to Church? Of course not.
But there is appropriate... and there is inappropriate attire. It depends on the venue.
Again, if it is a financial situation, then talk to the Bishop privately, and he will make something happen, so that appropriate clothes will be in your possession.
Honestly, I think the main problem with people, especially the younger generation, is that many people seem to be playing dress up. I am all for common sense in clothing.
So many times at Church it seems like you are witnessing a fashion extravaganza. Personally I think the effort is waisted, good enough is good enough.
Then again... I admit to reading GQ magazine myself, from time to time. It is a pretty interesting magazine, and there are a lot of fashion tips that I find worth while.
There's this thing called respect that's been around since the earth was created. It's to show respect to Jesus Christ. Also, did Jesus Christ complain when He was nailed to the cross and bleeding from every pore? No. So why are you complaining about this? By the way, since when can a church building talk? o.O
She doesn't HAVE to wear a dress. But most people want to know what the appropriate dress code is for....anything. Rather than stick out. Ive seen many women wear nice slacks. And yes I believe Jesus would prefer that the sabbath day be marked with enough respect to wear your best. Rather that whatever you throw on Mon-sat. Its funny how people act like Jesus doesn't/shouldnt care about anything we offer.
If that IS the best she has, I dint think a single person would care at all. But I do think as far as clothes go, the lord deserves as much respect on his day as we offer a judge in court or an interviewer or a wedding couple. We dress nicely for those occasions, why should we offer God any less respect.
Because they've got it in their heads that a woman being subservient and wearing a dress is "respect". Look at the moron, I mean Mormon Marvel M's answer. That misogynistic attitude says it all, thanks for showing such ignorance on behalf of your church dude.
Mormons try to wear their best on Sundays to honor God. If the best an individual has is a pair of ratty jeans and a stained shirt, though, then that's fine. We hardly care that much, and neither does God.
We do, however, realize that a lot of people would be uncomfortable showing up in jeans if everyone else was wearing nicer clothing, so we tell them what people TYPICALLY wear and then let them decide what to wear themselves. There aren't any rules about it. Your mother didn't/doesn't HAVE to wear a dress. Whoever told her that was just trying to make certain she was comfortable, which was a kind thing to do.
For the record, though, women aren't relegated to dresses. Most do wear skirts or dresses, yes, but plenty come in pant suits. It's not that big a deal.
it is a cultural dress code, not a religious requirement. they just wanted her to feel comfortable while there.
i sense that you are using misleading words. they recommended that she wear a dress. they didn't say she needs to wear a dress.
when is your mother going to a Mormon temple? only Mormons who have been active members for quite some time go to the temple. so if she's going to the temple sh would already be aware of the typical dress code at a Mormon church.
i think your story needs some more accurate details.
How many of these worshipers are wearing a dress or white shirt and tie? Ok, Darlene Zschech and some of the women are, but because they CHOSE to, not because they think Jesus wouldn't hear their praise in jeans.
I agree with Ruprect, I'm sure they told her that it's recommended that she wear a dress to church so she will feel more comfortable, since in most LDS church almost every woman will be wearing a dress or skirt. I doubt anyone will say anything if she shows up in pants.
If your mom isn't a member, she wouldn't be going to the temple. If she is a member then she would understand that the temple is considered very sacred and we dress to show reverence for the temple. That means dress/skirt for women and white shirt/tie and dress slacks for men.
As someone said, we dress in our best to show reverence, for some people their best may be jeans and a t-shirt. They wouldn't be turned away.
Um, I doubt the validity of this because there are people in my ward that show up in jeans. We are asked to wear our Sunday best. If that means your best pair of jeans, so be it. If it means a business suit like Hillary Clinton, so be it.
Perhaps it was a busy-body that spoke to your Mother and not someone with authority.
@ MD - ha ha, no, YOU'RE so funny! You've never been to my ward, so don't call me a liar.
That's weird, I thought clothing like that would be fine. It's just that you need to dress nice, as if God would be there. If business wear is something you always wear, then it's not really dressing up you know?
Would Jesus tell someone that they needed to wear better clothing to church? Are we perfect like Jesus? No we are not. And because of that we have to remember that people make mistakes. No one is immune to making mistakes and that is why we need Christ, otherwise our mistakes would keep us from being able to return to live with God.
Was your mother in the wrong for wanting to dress like Hillary Clinton? I do not think it matters. What does matter is that whoever was following the spirit of contention (3 Nephi 11:29) repent, for whenever anyone lets anger and hate into their heart the let the devil take them away from Christ.
So if the individual who approached your mother did so out of any motivation other than love then they were in the wrong. However if your or your mothers response was based on anything other than love then both of you also have areas that need to be taken before the Lord in prayer.
This is the Savior's church. We therefore dress with the idea of maintaining reverence and modesty. It is not a new idea:
9 In like manner also, that women
adorn themselves in modest AP-
pa rel....
(1 Timothy 2:9)
Business clothes are modest, but modest dresses are more reverent in the LDS culture. I am supposing whoever gave this tip to your mother had nothing but good intentions toward her, and simply wanted her to fit in more comfortably. She might feel tempted to feel offended and even rebellious against this suggestion, but neither of those feelings would be coming from God. Perhaps you are more troubled about this than she is; please do not try to upset her feelings, too, but let her handle this they way she wishes. She will enjoy and appreciate the Church a lot more without making this an issue.
My mother in law wore pants to church often because they more comfortable for her. Her Bishop asked her if she was a lesbian. Seriously.
Her Bishop later explained that God works better in us when our outer adornments reflect what we want on the inside. It's a lie. The dress code is all about control and conformity. Most pseudo-Christian organizations (cults) use the dress code as a control vehicle.
Organizations put a lot of energy into how people look (white shirts for men means they're focused on becoming like 'the brethren') believe that the outer appearance has something to do with the inner man. As a former Mormon now a Levi wearing charismatic, appearance and clothing have NOTHING to do with the inner workings of the spirit. And I mean nothing, zero, Nada, zilch.
When I was in an LDS/Mormon bishopric, I was chastised by the Stake Pres counselor for having a water bottle in a Bishopric meeting. He said I was clearly too casual about my duties. Control. Cult. And I've never regretted the decision to follow Jesus to healthier churches. Not a NY minute. And wow, little did I know I wasn't actually praying to the right God or seeking a relationship with the right Jesus. Now I'm free in Christ.
I'm sorry, Bryan, that's a crazy thing for your mom to have to go through, but I can't help laughing that someone actually asked her to wear a dress to church. Listen, if your mom has no trouble wearing a pantsuit when all the other women are in flower print dresses, she's not going to have much of a future as a Mormon. I hope she moves on and counts herself lucky that she got out with her ability to think for herself intact.
P.S. I think your mom is cool. I'm sure some poor priesthood-holding Male's head was exploding over this little episode and their inability to get her to conform without outright asking. Too funny.
Perhaps your mother misunderstood. While wearing our very best clothing is a way to show respect to God, in the end, going to church in whatever you have to wear is alright, as long as it is modest. No one should be turned away from Church because of what they wear, including in the LDS Church.
I have invited many non member friends to come to church with me, and "they come as they are..."
Why did a Mormon Church tell my mother that she needs to wear a dress to their church
