Dress For Religious

[Andrea348]

When I first started looking for orders to potentially join, one requirement was that they HAD to wear lay clothes. My own clothes was something I did not want to give up...but what can I say, God spoke to my heart and now I am all for habits. I thought habits were not necessary at first because of the saying that it made it easier for people to relate to them and see them as equals. As time went by I realized that habits are wonderful because they provide a visible witness for other people. People can easily identify sisters and know where to go if they need help. I also could not imagine becoming a religious, taking the vow of poverty and having to worry about what to wear. Wearing the same habit every day seems to better illustrate poverty to me. I'm from the Philadelphia/South Jersey area and there are very few sisters in my area that still wear habits that I know of like the Daughters of Mercy and Immaculate Heart of Mary Sisters, and these are modified habits with shorter skirts and veils. What a great witness and inspiration for people to see sisters in full traditional habits, like the Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, who I will be joining (God willing.)

Just wondering what others thought about habit wearing in general, and do the sisters in your area wear habits or lay clothes.

[dlz7486]

I have never seen a sister in person who wears a full habit - you know, Reverend Mother in "The Sound of Music" style. But, the sisters in a Franciscan order by me wear skirts and headpieces/veils/whatever, and usually just sweatshirts with "Franciscan Sisters of ____" or something like that. A sister who's a pastoral associate at my parish never wears a habit or anything close to it.

I think habits are cool, and if I were a sister and were participating in church-related things, I would wear it all the time as a great testament to my devotion to Christ. But I wouldn't wear my full habit to the supermarket or something like that. The priests that I know don't wear their collars all the time, and frequently, when they're doing stuff outside of church, they don't wear them at all and wear normal clothes.

In my opinion, habits and collars and things like that offer a type of symbol of true commitment and devotion to Christ, and they have a certain quality to them that makes the wearer seem a little bit closer to the Divine. But then, seeing these people in normal clothes is a breath of fresh air - it reminds me that essentially we're all human, and we're all on our own journey towards Christ and true communion with God in Heaven, and we are ALL humans and sinners - ordained, religious, or neither. Sometimes we assume that all priests, nuns, and brothers are holier than the lay person; sometimes this is true, but in the end, were all on the same page - we're all human, aiming to get to Heaven to be with Jesus.

I don't think clothes play a huge role to demonstrate our real devotion anyway. What counts is where we are in our spiritual journey. I know plenty of hypocrites with collars and habits. Okay, maybe not plenty, but they're out there.

Sorry if this was off-topic and somewhat contradicting. Habits are way cool. No doubt about that.

[cappie]

Speaking as a Capuchin Friar and a parish priest I can say I believe that the Capuchin habit is a important witness to the Franciscan Tradition. I wear my habit much in the same way as the Archbishop of Boston who is also a Capuchin,i.e. when engaged in my work, but as they say: clothes do not make the man. St Francis adopted his form of dress because it was what the penitent wore as a form of clothing and as he said he wanted toform a brotherhood of penance hence the habit.

While I have nothing against habits, as I said I wear one, and I think it doesn't do the Salvation Army any harm to be seen as a witness in a uniform,we must be careful of making "gods" of habits. As it says in the Bible "Man looks at appearances, God looks at the heart."

[crusader1234]

I personally like to be able to identify nuns when I see them, same with priests. I don't care about the whole habit, just give me something so I know. Especially considering I'm a teen I need a warning, haha, since at the soup kitchen me and my friends were talking about somthing we shouldnt have in front of nuns.

[IrishG8s]

This is a very personal subject with me. I think religiouse should wear the habits. It is one a distinguishing mark of thier trade and two it's something they have to give up. The Sisters of mary mother of the eucharist wear the full habit and think it'sa beautiful thing. So Go Habits!!!!!!!!
-IG-

[cathgirl]

I'd wear a habit! I agree with crusader, I like to be able to see if someone is a priest, nun, etc. I also think if I would wear a habit, I would less likely have to worry about worrying about my appearance. If I wore reg. clothes, I'd be more apt to care about my appearance, rather than God.

[friarMatt]

before I entered the friars, I used to say that I will never take my habit off. I have grown a little bit since then. The habit is a very important witness value both to the world and our brothers in the community. I wear it for all prayers in our friary and for mass, for meals, and for ministry. I wouldn;t wear it shoveling snow, going for ice cream or to the gym. Just my two cents

[cmotherofpirl]

This probably sounds harsh but sisters without habits simply seem to be just professional church ladies, instead of consecrated brides of Christ. They look and sould little different than the little old ladies I see at daily Mass.

If you are going to be a consecrated bride of Christ, then in public you should look like it.

[daugher-of-Mary]

I'm a little late posting because I've been away, but I agree with cmom...habits all the way! The Holy Father has specifically asked religious to be "identifiable in the streets" and a little pin that the Sisters around here wear just doesn't cut it. Besides that, habits are a beautiful mark of consecration to God. For Sisters, the habit is their "wedding gown"! Almost all orders have specific symbolism to the different parts of their habits, and that is a beautiful tradition as well. Don't get me started on the Carmelite habit...

[popestpiusx]

[quote name='cmotherofpirl' date='Jun 27 2004, 10:37 PM'] This probably sounds harsh but sisters without habits simply seem to be just professional church ladies, instead of consecrated brides of Christ. They look and sould little different than the little old ladies I see at daily Mass.

If you are going to be a consecrated bride of Christ, then in public you should look like it. [/quote]
Exactly. The polyester skirt, Sash shoes, and lapel pin just don't cut it. I think the lack of habits for both priests/monks and nuns has contributed to the vocation crisis. Modern religious are out of sight out of mind. There are of course some exceptions. For instance The Sisters of Life, Nashville Dominicans, Slaves of the Immaculate, and a few others. As far as male orders go: The Institute of Christ the King, FSSP, and Servants Minor of St. Francis, and a group of Carmelites up in Scranton. Low and behold, all these orders have people pooring into them.

[Jake Huether]

[quote name='cmotherofpirl' date='Jun 27 2004, 08:37 PM'] This probably sounds harsh but sisters without habits simply seem to be just professional church ladies, instead of consecrated brides of Christ. They look and sould little different than the little old ladies I see at daily Mass.

If you are going to be a consecrated bride of Christ, then in public you should look like it. [/quote]
Not harsh at all. I totally agree.

One of the nuns that was at our Newman center for my University, they had "modernized" her habit so that they had short skirts. It looks so inappropriate! I mean, this is a bride of Christ, and when she sat, I could see her thigh!

There is something mysteriously good and important about religious habits (for both males and females).

It protects their souls and their bodies. And it is attractive in a wholesome way, in that it signifies their holyness.

[Jake Huether]

[quote name='popestpiusx' date='Jun 30 2004, 10:05 AM'] Exactly. The polyester skirt, Sash shoes, and lapel pin just don't cut it. I think the lack of habits for both priests/monks and nuns has contributed to the vocation crisis. Modern religious are out of sight out of mind. There are of course some exceptions. For instance The Sisters of Life, Nashville Dominicans, Slaves of the Immaculate, and a few others. As far as male orders go: The Institute of Christ the King, FSSP, and Servants Minor of St. Francis, and a group of Carmelites up in Scranton. Low and behold, all these orders have people pooring into them. [/quote]
The IVE (Instituto del Verbo Encarnado - the Institute of the Word Incarnate).

These priests and nuns are A1. We have a few at a nearby Parish, and when they consecrate the Host, it is Immaculate! They hold Jesus up so proudly and reverently for a good long while. I'm not sure what the vocations to this particular Order are, but the Order itself is awesome.

[dUSt]

I've never seen the nun at my parish wear a habit. Ever.

[ThyWillBeDone]

I think nuns should where habits. That why people will recognize that they are a nun. But of cuarse I get what friarMatt is saying, I don't think they need to where them to shovel snow, or go the gym etc. But for the most part I think they should have them on. The nun at my catholic school never had a habit on. Some of us didn't even know she was a nun for several months.
Chris

[pax]

I really believe that a religious in a habit or a priest wearing his collar is an extremely powerful witness. It's a sign of a simple life totally consecrated to God and a powerful reminder to the world that there is more to life than riches, pleasure, and freedom to do whatever one wants when he or she wants it.