Dress Code

I think not a bit. Our circa 1930 American Gothic parish with traditional organ music is dotted with exposed midriffs, sagging pants, clinging dresses, sloganed t-shirts, etc. They dress in all manner of style, or lack thereof, but they show up and pray the Mass.

I don't think God is going to worry about this unless it causes scandal for their brother and sisters in Christ, and in some cases I suspect it does. Did He ever write a dress code? I know St. Paul had a word or two to say about it.

I think it does influence the dress: when "community", through songs that extol the virtues of We The Wonderful People and architecture that does not even attempt to transcend the ordinary, is promoted at the expense of reverence, then it's no surprise that people will dress as if they're going to the park for a barbeque. But it's really the pastor who is going to set the tone: like the previous commentator, I attend Mass at a beautiful Gothic-style church, with (mostly) lovely organ music. But unlike the previous poster, there is a great deal of reverence. People do NOT show up with sagging pants, mini-skirts, or exposed midriffs. They do NOT leave church early, and there is a great deal of quiet prayer before and after Mass. Our priest has set the tone, by speaking strongly about the teachings of the Church, particularly about the Real Presence, and the church architecture and music simply add force to his teaching.
Unlike the previous poster, I will not presume to say that God doesn't care what is worn to Mass. We show respect for an occasion by dressing appropriately, which is why the bride and groom at a wedding are dressed a bit differently then they would if they were going to the grocery store. What a person wears does make an impact on how they conduct themselves: anyone who has worn a shorts and a T-shirt as well as a tuxedo will recognize this.

Jean, I think you are correct. The priest does set the tone. I wasn't presuming to know the mind of God on the dress code. I was simply speaking my own mind.

Fivemurfs,

Yes, the priest can set the tone, but I didn't mean to imply that the architecture and music are neutral, that they have no effect---they do. In the case of our parish, the awareness and respect for God's presence that our priest asks of us is supported by the music and architecture. Last Sunday, I went to a parish which has new, orthodox priests recently assigned. The new pastor is wonderful and orthodox (not suprising, as his home parish is the same as mine), and his homily (which did briefly mention how we dress)was so as well. However, the architecture does not support that view: instead of saying, "This is the house of God", the architecture says, "Let's hurry up and get this ritual over with so we can fellowship with our neighbors in the Gathering Space. We're much more colorful and interesting than anything going on in here". It's typical modern architecture---very Protestant in feel; very sparse and plain. The Tabernacle is set off to one side (which isn't too bad---some churches I've been to don't have it visible at all), and people genuflect to the altar instead of to it, so God's presence is not shown any particular reverence.The music is heavy with Marty Haugen---again, "community" centered. The pastor has to fight all of this, instead of having it support his teaching. He needs prayers...