Photo by Samuel L. Britten.
In years past there was the mentality that you had to wear your very best clothes to church for God – that’s how you show respect for God.
I think it was at Springfield Church of Christ (Fairfax, VA) that someone said, “You have to wear a suit to serve on the Lord’s Table.” And my husband said, “I’ve seen farmers stand up in their bib overalls and serve communion.” He had a pair of bib overalls and he threatened to wear them. I was mortified – my own pride I guess. I thought, “Honey, you really can’t do that.” And oh, he really had me going. He kept saying, “I think I’ll just do that. I’ll wear my overalls to serve on the table,” to make his point that God doesn’t care about how you’re dressed, He cares about your inner heart.
In later years men still wore suits to serve communion. Then we moved to Honolulu. To show up at Pearl Harbor Church of Christ and have them walk up in Bermuda shorts and flip-flops to serve communion… it just blew us away. Culture shock! But people over here, they’re not wearing suits and ties on Sunday morning to serve communion. The culture over here is: “We’re going to beach afterward. It’s a hot summer and we don’t have an air-conditioned building, so we’re going to wear the coolest clothing we have. We’re decently covered, and it’s okay with God. He’s not paying attention to what we’re wearing.”