I do not mean to pick on the dead but this video of the Pope in casual dress -- not even an old cassock and some comfortable shoes but some kind of poncho over black pants and a white shirt of some kind -- is telling. He was making a visit to a church in Rome which was undergoing renovation. It was not simply the Pope. His entourage was similarly dressed in non-church clothing -- albeit still with shirts and ties and an occasional jacket. Perhaps it was a spontaneous outing and I should be understanding because he was just hospitalized for 38 days and is still, by the look, not healthy. That said, it helps neither a Pope or people outside the faith to be uncomfortable with the uniform of office. Click here for one of the papabile singing John Lennon's Imagine. Pretty dignified, huh. (Apparently the link was removed by YouTube). How can anyone take seriously what we believe and confess clergy dress down without trying to be incognito? This Pope came expecting to be recognized and he was. So this was not some quiet, spur of the moment, in clandestine outing. There he was the Pope of the Casual, wanting us to know he was still there and still in charge but looking ridiculous. Even a suit and tie would have looked better than some strange blanket thing over his shoulders. But that is the point. Dress like you do not want to be taken seriously and you won't. I am quite positive I have no influence over any Pope or perhaps any clergy, but if you are reading this, I suggest you take a look in the mirror before you head out for the day (especially a work day) and ask yourself if you dress like someone who expects to be taken seriously. While this is especially true of pastors, it is also true of most of us. While some might find this nitpicky, this is an especially important question when those who have an office are not comfortable in the skin of that office. You can wear what you want in your own quarters, but in public wear the uniform of your office. Please.
2 comments:
"... this video of the Pope in casual dress -- not even an old cassock and some comfortable shoes but some kind of poncho over black pants and a white shirt of some kind -- is telling."
The video of a frail Pope Francis in a wheelchair, breathing from an oxygen tank, was taken two weeks after he was released from the hospital, having nearly died from double pneumonia, and less than two weeks before he did die.
Perhaps we should cut the Antichrist some slack on his attire.
Some later photos that day did show him still in the wheelchair, breathing from an oxygen tank, but now in his pope outfit.
Yes indeed, as you said, Pastor, this topic is “nitpicky.” In many situations, the Pope, in my view, is usually “overdressed,” that is, making a statement about pomp and tradition, wearing a very tall hat and a large cross on a spotless white cassock. This conveys the royalty aspect and hierarchy of the church, in its role as the central authority. It is part psychological as well, as the laity see that the Pope, his assistants, his company of Cardinals in flowing red, are firmly in charge, and this is headquarters where authority flows. All of the stained glass, the marble statues, high ceilings, golden artifacts and relics, brilliant chalices, candlelight’s, and hymns and chants emanating from the Medieval pipe organs reveal the pageantry of religion. But, we must ask ourselves this question, and answer it seriously: How do these things advance the Gospel to a dying world. So if the Pope dresses casually at times, perhaps it reminds him he is still just a man, a sinner saved by grace, and for him and us both, a humbling thought. Soli Deo Gloria.
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