Pastor, why don't you take off your suit?

The title of this blog is a question I am asked probably once a week by a congregation member.  I'm often asked the same question at other times by people who think my dress should be more casual to attract an outside audience.  Honestly, I think the discussion of what a pastor should wear in the pulpit has been discussed with far too many words and for far too many years.  People can and do make a case on both sides of this issue, and I am not here to give another such critique of people who do or do not wear a suit, vestments, or robes.  

What I am here to do is answer the question that is so often asked of me.  "Pastor, why don't you take off your suit?"  People ask me this question for all sorts of reasons.  Most Sundays the question is asked because the person is concerned with my comfort.  They truly believe wearing a jacket and tie must be pure torture for me, and they are giving their permission for me to take off those "relics of the past."  Still others, as I have mentioned, come to me with this question for a myriad of others reasons that I will not go into here.

So, why do I wear a suit?  The suit to me is part of my personal liturgy.  The process of preparing my heart and mind for delivering a message from God each Sunday begins as I wake up.  When I begin that day, my mind is focused on what God has given me to say that week.  This is sometimes in detriment to the relationships around me.

An issue my wife and I had to deal with early on in our marriage is my lack of attention to how she looks on a Sunday morning.  I remember one Sunday we spent the entire afternoon in silence, and I had no idea why.  Finally, that evening I asked her what had been bothering her all day.  She replied that she had worn a new dress, makeup, and fixed her hair that day, and I had not mentioned how she looked.  Everyone else had, but I had neglected to tell my beautiful wife of her beauty that morning.  

At first, I was tempted to be angry because I could not believe she would hold me accountable for that.  Then I realized that she is not in my head on Sunday morning.  She didn't understand the focus I needed in the morning to prepare for the monumental task in from of me.  She hadn't worked for hours on a sermon that she was hoping would be preached from her mouth the way it had come into her heart.  So, I explained to her what my Sunday morning is like, and I assured her that if we didn't rush home into comfortable clothes I would have time to process things apart from the sermon.  That talk may have saved my marriage!

I write all of that to explain my state of mind as I prepare for service on Sunday mornings.  It is a contemplative time for me, and as I put on each part of my wardrobe for the morning I feel as if I am putting on my uniform.  For me, the process of getting dressed in the morning is part of my worship.  I have a task ahead of me that scripture tells us is of the utmost importance.  In fact, the Bible says those who teach will be held to a higher accountability.  For this reason, I take Sundays very seriously.

Also for this reason, I choose to dress differently when I am proclaiming God's word within the assembly of believers than when I am simply walking around town.  To me, I wear a suit to set myself apart in that moment.  During that sermon, I don't want the words to be mine.  I want the entire message to come from God.  For me, wearing a suit in that moment conveys a message that what I am saying is serious and not of my own making.  I wear my suit because it conveys a differentness in that moment when I am proclaiming God's message from His pulpit.

There is one final reason I wear my suit.  As was explained to me by an acquaintance of Jewish faith, the Kippah or yarmulke is worn on the head to remind the worshipper that there is someone above him so he does not get too self assured.  In much the same way, the Lord commands in Numbers 15:37-40 the wearing of Tzitzit or tassels:

The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the people of Israel, and tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a cord of blue on the tassel of each corner. And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the Lord, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after. So you shall remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to your God."

The purpose of the tzitzit according to scripture was a physical reminder to live the lifestyle God wants of the person (obey the commandments).  By wearing the tassels on their clothing, and later attaching these same tassels to a Tallit or prayer shawl, the worshipper would be reminded of the call of God upon their life at all times.  

This same thinking is my final reason for continuing to wear my suit.  Whenever I wear a suit in the pulpit, I feel different.  I have a physical reminder to me the words I say in those moments are not simply my own.  The clothing I choose to wear in the pulpit continually impresses upon me the fact that I am but a sinner saved by grace, entrusted with the message of God for his people in that place.  If I were to simply show up dressed as I always dress, I would have to endure the temptation of believing the acceptance or rejection of the message presented had something to do with me and my successes or my failures.  When someone laughed at something humorous, I would be tempted to take credit.  When someone was offended at a piece of the gospel and rejected the message, I would be tempted to feel that rejection as my own.  

Instead, I wear a suit because it keeps me constantly aware of my place in this world and of the calling that has been placed upon my life.  Wearing the suit keeps my feet on the ground and my heart in the Word.  The suit is not about status, rather it is about me walking faithfully in service to my God.  

So, will I take off my suit?  No, but you feel free to come and worship God however He is leading you.  Approach me, talk to me, encourage me, and love on me because beneath the suit is a person who must rely on God just as much as you everyday.  In the pulpit, I am a mouthpiece for God, but in the everyday I am just Troy. The suit does not make me Superman, but it prepares me for the work God has laid out for me.  It is my uniform, and I will wear it as long as God leads me to.