There is a silly notion in the Catholic Church in America today that those who have a religious vocation should not wear their religious attire. This idea suggests that priests, brothers, and nuns will be more approachable if they are not set apart from the crowd. This idea is silly on its face, harmful in its practice, and demonic in its nature. It is silly because we could follow this logic in any other area of life and have unwanted and possibly tragic results. If every police officer decided they wanted to fit in with the crowd and not stand out, we would not know who to run to in an emergency. We need them to stand out. Their uniform makes us feel safe, confident, and secure. If every nurse and doctor decided not to wear their uniforms to work, when we ran into the hall seeking help for our loved ones we would not know who to run to. Their attire makes them available to us in a time of need.
In comparison, if a priest does not wear his clerics in a public place it makes it extremely difficult to seek assistance in a time of spiritual need. The visible presence of those whose vocation is to the religious life makes us feel safe, confident and secure. Again, if we should find ourselves in great spiritual need like a desire for the anointing of the sick for a family member in the hospital, it is quite possible that we could pass by or even bump into and move on from a priest who is dressed in casual attire in the hall.
As I mentioned, this notion is demonic in nature because all things from the evil one seek to separate. This idea seeks to separate men and women from an association with their religious vocation until they choose to reveal that vocation. This encourages them to avoid being Jesus on the Cross and continue being Peter by the fire until a time convenient for them. The religious attire of those people whose vocation it is to the religious life is an outward sign of that vocation. Likewise, my wedding ring is a visible outward sign of my vocation to the married life. A habit or collar says, “I am completely in love with God and belong to Him.” My wedding ring says as much about my love for my wife. There would be a tremendous outcry by my family, friends, and community if I were to remove my wedding ring for any of the silly reasons given by those who are against religious wearing their attire. How could I tell my wife that I removed my ring because I didn't want to stand out or that I wanted to be more approachable? Most people would realize there is something wrong with me and possibly my marriage. They would also realize that I need extra help and encouragement in my vocation.
Therefore we as lay Catholics need to encourage our bishops, priests, seminarians, and religious to stand up and stand out. We need to let them know that if they do stand up and become a visible presence of Christ for our Church we will stand behind them. Let us tell our priests and religious how much we love them and thank them for choosing their vocation. In this time of scandal and turmoil in the world and the Church we need solid pillars dressed in black, brown, gray etc., that we can turn to and receive guidance from. Stand up father. Stand out sister. We love you. We need you. We want to see you!
