Written by Sometimes when I leave the house to go to the store, to run an errand, or even to visit someone at the hospital, my wife will (semi-jokingly) make the comment — “You don’t look much like a Minister.” She is referring to my attire. I am notorious for dressing casually. Right now I am in my office working on sermons and such, and I’m wearing shorts, sandals and a worn-out polo shirt. The only times I ever wear a coat and tie are Sunday mornings, weddings and funerals.
And I got to thinking, “What is a Minister supposed to look like/dress like?”
This has certainly changed through the years. When I was a kid, you never saw the Minister without a coat and tie — whether it was Sunday morning, Sunday evening, Wednesday evening, or Friday at the mall. He was always dressed up. Today, other than Sunday morning, the attire seems to be khakis and a nice button-down shirt. I rarely dress that way — I find it uncomfortable. I prefer blue jeans and comfortable shirts. And my Keen Sandals, of course.
When I’m out and about, I don’t really want to be recognized as a Minister. I want to to be seen as just a regular guy (it helps me get away with more mischief!). Seriously, when people know I’m a Minister, they act differently around me, and I don’t think that’s a good thing. I want people to be themselves, to be comfortable and relaxed. And I want them to know that I’m just like them — I have the same struggles, I’m trying to be a good husband and parent, I’m trying to make my way through life — just like they are. Isn’t that part of what Paul meant when he said, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22)?
When and how did the Minister’s attire become so important? When did our Sunday assemblies become formal affairs? I’m thankful that this has not really been an issue where I preach. I don’t always wear a tie on Sunday mornings, and as a general rule, I dress very casually throughout the week. And so far, it has not been a problem for anyone (as far as I know).
I look forward to the day (and I believe it’s coming) when I can preach and teach on Sunday morning wearing jeans and a comfortable shirt. And no one will notice.
What do you think? Do you want your minister to be dressed-up (at least in business casual) at all times?
This is a thought provoking discussion. When I first started in “the ministry” (another discussion, right?), I lived in a small town in the poorest county in Colorado. We had a rustic building, but it was in a good location. We often had guests from the community. They NEVER wore coats and ties, but they did usually wear (it seemed to me) some of their nicer clothing.
After sizing this up, I stopped wearing my dressier things and started wearing things that more closely resembled the attire of the locals. Within a year-or-so I would sometimes even wear jeans and a sweater on Sunday mornings, along with my cowboy boots. Gasp! It was always a hoot to watch the reactions of the folks who were vacationing in the area. They’d sometimes make comments, but usually just look at me and then put their heads together and talked amongst themselves.
I have more stories, but will spare you. Now, my rule-of-thumb when it comes to attire is: I wear whatever I feel like wearing. Really! Some Sundays I wear a suit. Other Sundays, I wear dress pants and an open collared dress shirt. One thing I don’t do is wear jeans and cowboy boots. They’d be a bit out of place amongst all the sophisticated people here in northern Delaware.
Great post, brother! Grace to you. -bw
A preacher looks like Jeff Slater.
DU
One of the things I love about visiting CrossBridge in Bham is that the minister does not dress up. One time when we visited he was wearing jeans, but normally it is khakis and a polo. I love the message that it sends. In my former life as a banker our bank president dressed this way. He said that his customers felt more comfortable talking to him and asking for a loan when he was “approachable”. That has left an impression on me….
Jeff, thanks for the comment on my blog. I agree about the minister attire. Thankfully, no one here in laid-back Colorado is too concerned about how I dress. they actually are more likely to make a comment when I wear a tie! I wear business casual around the office (we also have a k-12 school onsite) but much of the time people can see me in a baseball cap, jeans, or during soccer season, in my shorts and cleats. Good stuff! I also long for the day when I can be even mroe casual…
Reminds me of a story told by Lynn Anderson when he was preaching at the Highland church in Abilene. He always wore the requisite suit and tie to the church building and as he was making his appointed ministerial rounds. Over the course of the years, he had befriended a cashier at the gas station where he frequently filled up. One time, on his day off, he stopped in for gas wearing shorts, tennies, and a scruffy tee-shirt. The cashier exclaimed, “Well Reverend, I almost didn’t recognize you without your clothes on!”
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Jeff, I wear a tie about half the time on Sunday mornings. The rest of the time it is just a shirt, or maybe a black polo under a sport coat. Our congregation is in an upper-middle to middle-upper class area yet casual clothing is de rigeur. It is cool to see someone in an Armani suit beside someone in a T-shirt and jeans… and it is all right with both of them. I would imagine Jesus didn’t dress like a preacher, either.
I am NOT a fan of the bow tie!
Good question! Intriguing one, too, as this is a topic that just refuses to die in a lot of churches….
I find that looking at a person’s excitement about being in worship is a lot more important than looking at the clothes on their back. I grew up in a conservative church and received the dubious honor, at the age of 11, of having my Pappy preach a sermon from Ecclesiastes bemoaning the vanity of young people today (he changed it in the car on the way to worship) because I wore a short sleeved dress to church one Sunday morning. In Oklahoma, in the middle of July. When it’s about 400 degrees outside. Or at least 100 or so. With humidity.
At any rate, I’m now a youth minister’s wife, my pappy has mellowed, but people continue to complain about a “lack of reverence” which is apparently synonymous with “lack of necktie and wool suit every meeting.” Luckily it’s started to let up some, and maybe we’ll start to spend energy worrying about more important things…you know, reaching lost people and worshipping God.
Stepping off the soapbox now…
Be well!
Our pastor wears business casual most days, jeans some days, shorts some days and always a suit on Sundays. Personally, it seems like alot of work when most of the congregation is in shorts or jeans (there are usually a few with the “Sunday go to meetin” clothes on but no one cares. It is about what you get from the service, not what you wear to it.
Couldn’t help but come back to this and comment even though it’s an old post by now. I have to say that one of the things that drew me to our current church family was our minister who preached in khaki shorts, a polo shirt and sandals. I have watched my husband be abused by well-meaning brothers and sisters who couldn’t look past his hawaiian shirts and long goatee. (I’m glad the hawaiian shirt phase has passed on!) Let’s just say I’m happy to have a new set of issues to deal with. When I was in college and would hear this debate start up, I enjoyed walking into the conversation and piping my two cents in …”If David can dance naked in the street in praise to the Lord…pause…and look what happened to Michael when she chastised him for it – the Lord struck her barren!” Then I’d walk away. I was such a stinker! hahaha