“Old habits die hard” is an old saying I grew up with. I’ve noticed it’s a very true saying when it comes to legalisms we learned in church. One such legalism many of us learned in church was to be properly dressed when going to church. Even when legalism grew lax over time, it still was very strong on what is proper attire when participating in the service. This week’s assigned gospel reading ends with a parable about being properly attired for a wedding. That and something that happened to me this week, reminded me of this old saying.
Tuesday, I was honored to be one of the speakers for a “Unity Service” at Highland United Methodist Church. The music was performed by an ensemble of the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus and the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir. As enlightened as I think of myself, I nonetheless, found myself noticing the difference in the attire the two groups wore for the occasion. The Oakland Interfaith Choir was dressed in their beautiful robes reminiscent of those worn when I grew up in my black church experience. The SF Gay Men’s Chorus was dressed in rainbow color T-Shirts – some wearing jeans, others wearing shorts.
In this beautiful service, is that one of the things that caught my attention? Yes, it was, but only for a nanosecond. Having grown up with that old legalism about being properly dressed for church, it was an example that “Old habits die hard.” However, that experience also gave me a quick insight into the parable for this Sunday. Being dressed properly for the occasion is not about our outside attire, it’s all about properly dressing our spiritual and emotional selves.
Join us for worship this Sunday. Then join us for a potluck dinner immediately following worship. All members are asked to please attend for our Annual Congregational Meeting. I’ll be preaching a sermon on this parable called “Are You Dressed Properly for the Occasion?” based on Matthew 22:1-14.
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