Church Leader: No Halter Tops, Sandals in Church
Some churches, especially megachurches, have a come-as-you-are policy that allows worshipers to attend services without having to worry about what they are wearing.
But is wearing a miniskirt and a halter top to a worship service crossing the line?
An archbishop in Mexico says it most definitely does, and he doesn’t want to see any scantily-clad women in his parishes.
Jose Guadalupe Martin Rabago, Archbishop of Leon, has issued a dress code for parishioners in his city after getting fed up with seeing women attending Mass wearing halter tops and low-cut blouses. He told reporters over the weekend that he is tired of seeing women and men attend Mass dressed as if they are going to the beach.
Critics have called him misogynistic for commenting on how female parishioners choose to dress for church, but Rabago insists that there is nothing demeaning about his comments. He is only asking that all believers dress with the dignity required for a house of worship.
After all, he said, Christians should know better.
“They know that for a wedding or a quinceanera they should dress one way, and for a trip to the beach they should dress another,” Rabago told reporters after a July 24 Mass, according to the Catholic News Agency (CNA).
The archbishop had a few words for men as well.
“Some men show up at church dressed in a way that is undignified, wearing shorts or sandals,” Rabago said. “The place they are in requires something else.”
Critics lashed out at the archbishop after photos of posters displayed at some of Leon’s parishes appeared in local newspapers, the CNA reported. The posters, which explicitly ban women from wearing miniskirts, sleeveless shirts, or low-cut blouses, feature the message: “Respect God’s house. Don’t come dressed like this.”
This is not the first time a church leader has called on the faithful to put more thought into how they adorn their bodies before entering a church.
A top official in the Russian Orthodox Church even went so far as to demand a dress code for the entire nation, saying that women could not be trusted to dress themselves.
The Orthodox leader's proposal, which was suggested in January and has not gained much support, also called on men to reconsider wearing t-shirts or shorts in public.
