It is my second day of working Day Shift and I am pretty tired. The reason, of course, is that I got up at 4am on Monday morning, worked until 4:30pm, drove back to Modesto to be in time for RCIA and then got home at 9:00pm. I went to bed at 9:30 and got up at 4:00am to start again.
However, tonight I go to Debbie's house in Concord so I will get a lot more sleep. I won't have to get up until 6am. Or even 6:30am. Talk about sleeping in..what a luxury.
So what is my complaint today?
Last night at RCIA our director decided to give a lecture to the Catechumenate on modest dress at Mass.
This is a fabulous topic; one that should be revisited often and taught with love and gentleness.
What happened last night, however, was absolutely ridiculous.
Several members of the Catechumenate stated that they were ready to start knitting shawls for some women to throw over them if they came into Mass with 'too much skin showing'.
What is too much skin?
Well, the director proceeded to tell people to measure four fingers down from their collar bone to determine in a shirt is too low, to never wear sleeveless shirts (she said only her husband should ever see her bare shoulders) to Mass and that all skirts must come to at least the knee.
The man teaching (Justice and Mercy) then stood up and gave a weird rambling speech about how Catholics are to be counter-cultural, that he knows how tough it is for women to shop because he takes his wife shopping, that Muslims teach that if they look twice at a woman it is somehow HER fault for being too enticing and that us women have to remember that he is a man and 'just cannot help himself'.
The Director then stated that 'they' (I am not sure who 'they' are) are considering handing out 'Modesty Tickets' at Mass to women who they feel are dressed improperly for Church.
Does ANYONE think this may be a slippery slope?
Just a touch?
I got a laugh when I mimicked the man by saying that, as a healthy woman I am offended by the young men and old men coming into Mass wearing baggy jeans with their underwear showing, rock and roll t shirts or bermuda shorts and that I just cannot help myself - I must look at them and so I find it distracting and they better shape up.
Look, I agree that people are coming to see Jesus in the Eucharist dress far too casual...but I would like to see someone tell me I cannot come in or receive Communion because I have on a sleeveless shirt.
And I deeply resent the reference to Muslims and how they treat or view women. They are horrid to females, kill or mutilate them if they do not adhere to their idea of modesty, mutilate their bodies so as to restrict or remove any chance of sexual pleasure and think that carving up someone's nose is just retribution for leaving an abusive marriage.
So, while I agree that Father should preach modesty from the pulpit, write about it for the bulletin and we all need to be mindful of how we approach The Tabernacle, the idea of having a squad of 'Modesty Police" gives me a headache.
There...I am done complaining for the day.
BIG SMILE!!!!
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