I just heard an interesting segment on radio station KTRH-740. The subject had to do with “Judges calling for better-dressed courtrooms”. The lead article, by Scott Crowder, said:
Headed to court? To be safe, break out your “Sunday-go-to-meeting” clothes.
Americans have become awfully casual with their dress at the courthouse, and that does not please Humble Congressman Ted Poe, a former judge.
“T-shirt and jeans is, in my opinion, not respectful of our American judicial system,” says Poe. “It’s something that you would wear to Walmart maybe, but not something that you’d wear to the courthouse.”
Across the country, judges are cracking down on sloppy dress, and Timothy Foutsko of the National Center for State Courts says there’s good reason.
“Those judges that maintain a good set of decorum in their courtroom tend to have less acts of violence, less acts of people acting out,” says Foutsko.
In commenting on this Ted Poe said that people should dress for the courtroom as they do for church. I wonder if he has noticed how people are dressing for church now-a-days? The way some people dress is pitiful. I could write a long article about this and I have done so in the past, but most people don’t care. They are going to do what they want regardless and they flaunt their rebellion without any shame whatsoever. They have no respect for scriptural principles, the pastor’s conviction, or the impression they make on others.
I will spare you the details, it wouldn’t do any good to spell out the specifics. Everybody gets the picture. Unlike the courts we don’t try to force people to conform to a dress code, but that doesn’t mean that you should dress any way you please. Common decency demands modestly and the dignity of a church service should motivate us to be at our best and be blameless.
When I think about dress codes from the past I can’t help but think that we owe an entire generation an aplogy. If what we see today is fine then what we required then was wrong and unfair. Part of the problem is that when you give an inch people take a mile–they always go to the extreme.
I know this is a touchy subject, but we need to be reminded that just any dress isn’t appropriate for a worship service–not now, not ever. The song “Just as I am” speaks about coming to the Lord for salvation, not the manner in which we dress for church. We don’t have a rule that requires people to comb their hair, shine their shoes and wear deodorant, but it’s a pretty good idea if you do. Over the years I have bent over backwards trying to be understanding and considerate regarding this issue, but some folks just don’t care. It seems strange that people have more respect for man’s law than they do for the Bible, more respect for the courthouse than the church house, more repect for the judge than the pastor. I hope you will THINK ABOUT IT!
