Growing up I attended a conversative Baptist church. On Sunday mornings I wore skirts or dresses and was only allowed to wear pants/jeans on Sunday nights. I was never allowed to wear shorts on Sundays. Shorts were reserved for Wednesday nights during the summer.
We left that church when I was in 8th grade and began attending church where I went to school. My mom grew more lenient with me and started allowing me to wear dress pants on Sundays. At my pre-teen age I actually liked wearing "short" skirts to church. My school dress code required us to wear long skirts or uniform pants. Not attractive.
In college, now that I was on my own, I continued to dress up for church. My mom's voice ringing in my ear, "You do not wear jeans to church on Sunday mornings." At this point I was ok with dressing up for church. Clothes had come along way since my youth and it was finally fun to dress up for church. My best friend always wore jeans to church. She wasn't one for all the fru-fru skirts and dresses required in most churches. Under her "influence" I would occasionally test the waters and wear jeans to church. I felt like I was sinning. It felt really weird to wear jeans to church on Sunday mornings.
Fast forward 5 years and I can be seen sporting jeans to church on a regular basis. I still feel weird when I wear them, but I get over it pretty quickly. I bring this topic up because I wore jeans to church on Sunday. It's amazing how much "church" has changed over my lifetime. When I was little I would never imagined wearing jeans to a Sunday morning service. You wouldn't be caught dead in them. That's completely changed now. I realized there are still some churches where it's not acceptable for women to wear jeans to church on Sundays, but I'm glad that I attend a church where it's ok. Don't read too much into this, it doesn't mean that the church is lenient on all issues.
When I have kids, they will dress up for church. I think it shows respect and is an appropriate learning experience for children. I may let them wear jeans now and then, but they'll start with dresses and khakis.
What is your Sunday morning church style?
i wouldn't be caught dead in jeans at church. i am not a regular, but even when i was, like you, i was raised to believe it just was not appropriate, that it was disrespectful not only to the church, but to people attending. i am pretty sure i could not walk into my family church, or any catholic church for that matter in anything denim. though, i have been to many in my adulthood where it is the norm, i still try to at least sport non denim (it's just not that hard). and i agree, its a fun excuse to dress up! interesting post!
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