There are certain rules for going to church, performing Christian rituals and behavior during worship. Although they say that God lives in the heart of every person, people nevertheless built temples for special communion with him and made up certain norms for this communion. In order not to look like a black sheep in the church, it is important to know these rules.
As for visiting a church or temple, there are a lot of rules for this action, and it is sometimes difficult to follow them due to the fact that they do not correspond to the modern rhythm of life, modern realities.
How to dress for church
However, anyone who wants to go to a church or temple must know them, otherwise they simply will not get there, because religious institutions monitor this. Those who do not follow the rules of conduct are simply expelled from there - politely but persistently.
It is believed that the church is a place of communion with God. And at the same time, this place is public, because many people come there. And, in order not to embarrass them, you need to meet the requirements for appearance.
As they write in special manuals for visitors to churches: you cannot lead those present “into temptation and temptation” by your appearance. That is, the church and shorts are incompatible things. But not only that. The rules for visiting churches also prescribe other clothes that are unacceptable for the church. I mean Orthodox religious institutions, because in different confessions the rules are accordingly different - be careful..
So, for the Orthodox Church, in addition to shorts, they are also unacceptable:
- sportswear;
- swimsuit;
- clothes that are too open;
- clothes intended for going to a disco;
- things of a defiant style.
Simply put, trousers and a shirt, jacket or jumper are acceptable for men, and a skirt, blouse and scarf are acceptable for women. Women's hair should be covered.
There are also hygiene rules for going to church: you should not smell of anything other than a clean body. This is so, figuratively speaking. And more specifically, you should not pour a bottle of perfume on yourself and apply bright makeup before visiting a church. All that is permissible is deodorant and soft makeup.
Why are these rules so strict?
The fact is that in the church people still remain as they are. If a brightly dressed and decorated girl comes to the service, they will involuntarily look at her and be distracted from communion with God.
That is, this is a kind of church dress code, which is also in other institutions.
Although in the century before last, the church was just a place for a fashion show: every Sunday ladies and young ladies gathered for the service, as for another ball, and there they demonstrated their outfits and exchanged glances with young people - looking out for a worthy couple. However, this was a generally accepted norm of behavior, against which the ministers of the church either did not object, or simply could not do anything - history is silent about this.
And today the rules are the same for everyone. The exceptions are temples, which have become not religious institutions, but a kind of tourist sites. Groups of tourists are constantly passing there, they do not comply with these rules, this can also happen.
But in general, the meaning of the rule is as follows: do not embarrass other worshipers with their appearance, do not interfere with them to communicate with God.
