How should i dress at Catholic mass?

Question

I'm 13, and I have no idea how to dress at catholic church.

Answer 1

Depends on the church. Some are casual and some more dressy. Of course you should never go in a tube top and Daisy Dukes, but in some churches jeans and tee shirts are fine.

If you have a friend who attends that particular parish, ask him what the dress is like. If you don't know anybody there, give them a call, and ask whoever answers the phone (or send them an email). This is a perfectly legitimate question to ask a staff member of the church.

Answer 2

It kind of depends on what time of day the mass is. Usually evening masses people tend to dress more casual. Sometimes the AM masses are a 'little' more formal. You can wear pants and a blouse. You can likely get away with nice jeans, but I usually go with khaki pants just to be safe. I've been to tons of Catholic churches and everyone has always dressed about the same.

Answer 3

It varies around the world.

Women/girls who wear sleeveless tops are not allowed to enter St. Peter's, Rome, Italy, without first being given a kind of overcoat to keep the Pope of Italy from having nasty thoughts about women. The Pope is unmarried and has a dim view of marriage between women and men.

The same girls in America, dressed exactly the same way, attend Catholic Churches regularly particularly in states known for the sun such as California and Florida. They are not given overcoats to upgrade their standard of dressing.

So there are different criteria around the world.

Pew renters in more affluent areas of town can be noticeably a little better dressed than some congregations in lower income zip codes in town.

What attendees wear can vary from blue jeans to traditional dresses.

What is often not seen in lots of Catholic Churches is lots of jewelry, necklaces, rings, and glitz based on the idea that, in some way, the best dressed person at the service is supposed to be the minister who tends to dress in different colored costumes from week to week some (not all) would say like a drag queen from New York or California.

Answer 4

In these modern/liberal times the thought seems to be come as you like to mass,however we should be mindful and respectful of `Whom` we are approaching at the altar. This means that our dress sense must also be respectful in that we should not wear immodest clothing that deliberately shows too much flesh,the ideal for men is a suit and for women a dress. These being the ideal however does not prevent casual wear which itself should not be an occasion of immorality, some tee-shirts for example carry slogans or designs that are near the knuckle,and some people wear jeans that are designed to show flesh through slits. It really is a case of being ever mindful of the majesty of God and dressing appropriately, whenever someone comes to mass without due care to their dress then it shows a lack of consideration to God and to the congregation, and it is not a case of come as you are(God does not mind at all) as some would suggest, common decency dictates that this type of relativism is immature. God bless.

Answer 5

There's a bit of a varied crowd, from jeans and a t-shirt to a nice dress etc. Make sure whatever you wear is modest (no super tight clothing, no super low-cut tops, skirts should not be mini, etc.) I would suggest some nice pants and a nice top. Some of the parishes can get little stuffy though, so if it seems that more people are wearing skirts, that may be a better idea. Hope that helps!

Answer 6

Rule of thumb when dressing for mass. No bare skin, torn clothes or dirt. My mother is Catholic. She says dress nice because you want to please God. You visit someones home, you should dress nice for the visit. Jeans and a T-shirt are OK if they are clean and fairly new (IE: no holes or tares in the material. Hats are optional (I like hats so I would wear them if I go.... I am not Catholic, but I respect her beliefs and will visit church if she asks me to go with her.)

Answer 7

Hi, Kristen,

You don't have to dress up to come to Mass. The Catholic people are there to pray, learn, and receive the body of Christ in the Eucharist. They are not that interested in your taste in clothing.

But for the same reason, Catholics are urged to dress modestly.
http://www.catholicculture.org/library/view.cfm?recnum=7056

Nothing too short, too exposed, or see through. That draws attention away from the events of the Mass.

Cheers,
Bruce

Answer 8

dress modestly. If you have a dress, wear it. If you're like me and despise dresses a nice pants suit will do.

Answer 9

Ask someone who goes to that particular church for suggestions. Different churches have different socio-economic demographics.

Answer 10

just go as yourself but not to scruffy some older church members may dress up but it is not essential