My son recently started playing competitive basketball. On game days, he and his teammates, all of whom are under the age of 12, are required to wear a collared shirt and look “professional” when arriving at the game. The coach wants them to be mindful that they are representing their team and community when they compete. Dressing the part helps build up character, he said.
The young coach’s words were music to my mom ears. I wholeheartedly agree. This is part of the reason my husband and I require our children to “dress up” for Sunday Mass. Changing the way you dress signifies something about where you are going and what you are doing. Most people generally take the time to shower, choose a special outfit, fix hair, and, in general, take care with their appearance, when merely going to the movies, to work, school, a party, or even to play a basketball game. How much more should we take time to prepare to meet our Lord in a most intimate way at Mass?
As we enter into the season of Advent, the Church imparts to us an urgency about time, repentance, and the importance of preparation. On the First Sunday of Advent (Dec. 1) we are told in the Gospel reading from St. Matthew, “Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.” It’s clear we need to be ready at all times for Christ’s arrival – not just his historical arrival as a baby in Bethlehem, but his second coming on earth. While we may not be judged on what clothing we are wearing when he comes, we will be judged on how we are spending our time.
Do we waste time on Sunday morning, focused more on preparing brunch than preparing ourselves to receive Jesus at Mass? Do we sleep in and get up with just enough time to grab yesterday’s jeans and t-shirt and run in behind the priest, halfway through the opening hymn? Are we giving Christ our full attention on Sundays by really preparing our bodies and souls for him? Does Jesus get the Sunday best version of ourselves, or the last-minute, tired, “gotta-check-Mass-off-the-to-do-list” version?
I truly get the fact that it can be an overwhelming task to get young kids ready for Mass. And, yes, it’s better to get there in street clothes then not at all. But, if we are to learn anything from our Advent journey, it’s that we really have no excuse not to take the time to prepare for what’s really important. Of even greater importance than what we wear on Sunday is whether we have prepared spiritually to receive Christ in the Eucharist. As we light each candle on the Advent wreath this year, take a few minutes to read and discuss the Sunday Gospel as a family. Ask your kids if they know that they need to prepare their hearts daily for Jesus’ coming.
Sometimes, I feel like our family sticks out like a sore thumb because we don’t wear jeans, yoga pants, or flip flops to Sunday Mass. Culturally, we are a “dressed down” society, and sweats and jammie pants are pretty much fair game everywhere, even in church it seems. In our family, we have tried to teach our kids that going to Mass on Sunday has to be something different than everything else they do. It should be the most special thing they do all week, every week. This doesn’t have to mean ties, dresses, and sport jackets (though those are great, too!). Clean khakis, collared shirts, skirts, and tunics can go a long way to make a subtle statement that some thought and preparation were put into getting ready for Mass.
Of course, Mass is no fashion show. There’s no place for one-upping one’s neighbour in the dressing up department. I don’t mind saying that a lot of the clothing my kids and I have worn over the years has been found at second-hand stores or were hand-me-downs. Dressing respectably doesn’t have to break the bank. Nor should anyone pass judgment on how others are dressed up or down at Mass – we have no idea what’s going on in any person’s life and we need to be grateful they have decided to place themselves in God’s presence.
At some point during Advent, most parents will put thought into what their children will wear to Christmas Mass. I admit, I can get a little caught up in the cute red plaid and velvet dresses and the sweet matching bow ties for the boys. Planning our Christmas outfits should be an extension of our Advent joy and preparation. It’s a small part of a bigger picture. Our goal this Advent is to build happy anticipation for our Lord’s coming. Taking the time to prepare our bodies and souls for Sunday Mass, Christmas Mass, and even day-to-day life, is taking the time to prepare ourselves for Christ.
Lazzuri writes from her home in Nova Scotia, where she lives with her husband, six children and her mom.
