Hot Red Dresses @ Church

Dress code represents tradition, not theology. At Grace our dress code is simple: wear clothes. For this reason it was surprising when a woman in our community showed up in a hot (yes I wrote hot) red dress for gathering one Sunday.

My grandmother gave me lectures about walking on the backs of my shoes, wearing stockings and slips, and never ever wearing pants without a belt. These rules especially applied to church. When spending the weekend at my grandmother’s, I always made sure to pack a nice outfit that would meet her approval. My grandmother went to a Lutheran Church and I needed to make sure I was dressed appropriately for Sunday worship. Every time I attended church her church, I was warmly welcomed and fully included in Sunday school. No one asked me if I was wearing a slip! My grandmother’s dress code was her own dress code; it was not ordained by Jesus himself. That said, for the first thirty plus years of my life, I tended to follow my grandmother’s dress code when it came to church.

Then I was called to serve Grace Community, a new sort of church that began in a condo. It felt silly to show up to Sunday gatherings in a suit and stockings (I had thrown out my slips years before) in a small condo of all places. Our Sunday gatherings were casual and serious all at once. Reverence had to do with deep spiritual engagement, not a dress code. I left my suits in the closet and preached in what I wore all week: jeans. Warmer weather came and flip-flops and shorts (gasp!) seemed just fine. One week I even preached right after returning from camping with my family; I am positive my sermon that Sunday was not affected by the bandana in my hair.

The way we dress, even if my grandmother would argue otherwise, has no impact on our spiritual lives. Dress code represents tradition, not theology. At Grace our dress code is simple: wear clothes. For this reason it was surprising when a woman in our community showed up in a hot (yes I wrote hot) red dress for gathering one Sunday. This woman tends to wear jeans and pulls her hair back in a ponytail every day.

Then something truly miraculous happened: during the opening of our gathering she stood up in her hot red dress, did a bit of a self-conscious twirl, and told everyone she was wearing a new red dress, size 12, because she could. The women and men in our community clapped and hooted! The part of the story you do not know is that this woman has lost over 200 pounds. Our community has journeyed with her as she has faced her demons, changed her life, under gone surgery, and lost pound after pound.

Wearing pants without a belt? I don’t care. Flip flops, no stockings, jeans? I don’t care. A new hot red dress, size 12? The best faith dress code I have ever witnessed.

Rachel’s red dress had nothing to do with impressing others, following tradition, or even fitting in. Her red dress had everything to do with faith-filled transformation and community. I believe Rachel has found the courage to battle her obesity because she has a relationship with her God that has nothing to do with uptight dress codes, but everything to do with transformative love. And I like to think that Rachel discovered this transformative love in her faith community, where you get to twirl in hot red dresses and receive loving hoots. 

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