Garments of Praise
Flicking through my email this morning I come across the e-flier for Worship Leader magazine, and there, buried in the side column for advertisers is this little gem.
Hmmmmm.
I've been out of Western Christian Culture for some time now, but even so, hmmmmmm.
I had a quick look at the web site, and at first glance it doesn't look so bad, but really, do people actually wear reversible mid thigh ephods and metallic wing collar capes in church dance routines? And would anyone actually wear a special shirt for praying?
Doesn't the Bible say "pray without ceasing"? If so, would you really want to wear this without ceasing? 
Fabric: MicroMatique 90%Polyester, 10%Spandex. Machine wash cold, hang dry.
Description: Uni Fit full shirt with 4 snap yoke. Long full sleeves with cuffs. Perfect generous cut for both men and women. Side openings for ease of movement.
If any of you wear special clothes to pray then please let me know - I'm genuinely interested in the reasons.
This post is a part of Watercooler Wednesday over at Randy's blog, Ethos.
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11 comments:
Wow! That would get a little cumbersome.
And sweaty - it's man-made fibres. Hey, at least it's not mixing linen and wool. Leviticus 19:19.
nothing says spontaneity like reversible wing collar capes. :)
My daughter and I were at Berean recently, looking for kids' supplies to take to Africa - we ran across the clergy clothing section - oh, and it's really great - our favorite was a black baseball cap with a priestly collar around it - you know, the white, flat knot. So the flat knot was dead center, right above the bill of the hat. I took a picture of Alyssa wearing it, but seem to have lost the pic. I'll post it on my blog sometime. Hilarious.
I don't wear any particular prayer garments, but I can see the validity in them. They sort of tie into the whole 'sacred space' aspect of prayer. If you're not familiar with this, it's basically setting aside a special space where you can focus 100% on prayer/meditation. Attaching meaning to these places can enable a person to better focus on prayer, or even a particular aspect of prayer. This is sort of the way some people see churches... a place where God can hear them better. That's probably the wrong way of looking at it, but they are at least making these spaces sacred and thus may be more readily able to put faith into their prayers while in these 'spaces'.
Prayer garments can fit into this ritual as well. By wearing a particular garment that has been labeled as a prayer garment (not necessarily by the manufacturer), a person may feel better suited and more comfortable/focused on prayer. It is just like the posture you maintain while praying. Many people feel the need to bow their head and close their eyes in order to fully focus on prayer. Others may remove their footwear or cover their heads. I think prayer garments fit quite well into this commonplace theology. The danger is to think that one is unable to pray without having a particular garment/posture/space.
Pray naked.
monson, thanks for the information - very interesting and useful to help me understand a little more. Not having been to seminary, I don't understand anything about sacred spaces. Must say though that I'm inclined to go with JVo on the need for prayer garments though.
Let's call it what it is folks... a cheese makers smock. T.
A friend of mine recently had an epiphany about the importance of sacred space, check out her post at: http://sutefaniiwiruson.blogspot.com/2008/06/sanctuary-of-body-mind.html
I usually go with straight-up spandex with my team.
What team, you ask?
The heavyweight liturgical dance team. And yes, there is a weight minimum.
Pat - I'll be on the next plane - when do you perform?
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