Women & Men in Society
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Dignifying the Man – III
The Glory Denied to God When
Man Neglects Dignity
The clothing a man wears is a representation of how seriously he takes himself and his faith. A man who normally wears t-shirts, jeans and sneakers believes that the body he was given, made in God’s image, is not important enough for good clothing. His usual excuse is that his clothing has little or no bearing on how God sees him and that God will love him regardless so long as he does his Catholic duty.
This could not be further from the truth. God gives us an intellect to guide our decisions and the wisdom to discern the right path. He expects us to pray so that we will be guided by His light. He shows us the hard, lonely path of discipline that faithful souls must endure countless times in Scriptures and in the lives of the Saints. Unfortunately, these standards are not applied by many traditional men today to dress. How, then, can a man expect to be one of these brave souls if he will not even make the effort to dress appropriately?
A practical reason to dress well
Today he affirms that clothing has no bearing on God’s love for him, and that it is only prayer, penance and good works that brings him closer to Heaven. Since he does not want to listen to arguments based on morals and respect for self and neighbor, perhaps he may be moved by a practical motive to improve his accouterment. Dignified clothing would benefit such a man since these good customs also have a positive impact on our intellect.
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In the 2015 study The Cognitive Consequences of Formal Clothing, researchers found that wearing dignified clothing had a positive impact on "abstract processing,” which refers to abstract cognitive thinking, which is a higher level of thought than the purely concrete. On the contrary, individuals who dressed in a relaxed manner showed higher levels of “concrete processing” which interprets information exactly as presented, often missing hidden meaning, metaphors or nuances.
For example, a man who dresses well might say he is “securing the house” when locking the door, whereas a man in modern attire might say he is “turning the key.” One tends to see the overall purpose whereas the other sees only the mechanics of the action. (p. 662)
This same study showed that abstract thinkers are more likely to choose long-term goals over short-term ones whereas the concrete thinkers do the opposite. (p. 661) The first looks toward the future and the consequences of decisions, while the second tends to think more of the immediate present.
Men who regularly dress with dignity for work, for example, will likely feel this difference while engaged in their work, even if they cannot describe it clearly. When they come home and remove their work attire, they return to the world of “concrete” thinking, setting aside the advantages of a broader thought process based more on wisdom. It is a great loss not only for him, but also for his home and family.
If he wants to serve God to the best of his ability at all times, then he should consider dignified clothing an essential weapon in his battle on this earth, since it will help him see the totality of his decisions more clearly: the hidden meanings and future consequences of his actions. The head of a family is called to think beyond his immediate situation, look to the future and provide wisely for it.
In the sloppy modern attire that has become the norm in our days, no matter how fervent his prayer, he is losing his footing as head of the house from a strictly practical perspective. He cannot see as keenly the problems in his family and marriage. Still less the crisis in the Church since his thinking tends to ignore the broader picture and nuances in situations. He simply does not see the problem of having a television in the home, the beat of modern music, the need for manners at the table and protocol in behavior. A consequence: He loses not only his self-respect and the respect of other, but also his authority over his wife and children.
The lazy concrete thinker, whose attitude is reflected in his dress, tends to simplify the crisis in the Church to a matter of restoring the Latin Mass and bringing back certain devotions, thus ignoring the entire upheaval of the good traditions and customs of Catholic Civilization that have also been lost. Thus he rarely enters that battlefield. If he truly desires to make changes to better help his loved ones and support the Counter-Revolution, he needs to actively enter both fields to face and confront the totality of these crises in a manly way.
Spiritual benefits
When he chooses comfort over dignity he is choosing his own convenience over God’s glory. If we are made in God’s image, then our bodies are more important than any icon, statue or holy art for these are non-living representations of God’s image. We who have living souls are made in His likeness and therefore we should respect Him by adorning this image with dignified clothing.
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A good-intentioned may go on his knees, inching his way to an icon of the Blessed Virgin, wearing hoodies and jeans. He will make an effort to honor a painting of God’s image that shines with dignity while he himself, a living, breathing image of God, is attired in sloppy, careless clothes. He goes to the Saints seeking third-class relics of those who tirelessly fought the good fight, appearing before their noble remains in slothful vulgar dress.
He cannot see the contradiction.
If he cannot do something as rudimentary as dressing well, how can he expect to handle the hard battles in this life? Why would God select such a man to be a leader, a fighter for truth and an example for his family?
By choosing good clothing, a man also will more easily make the right choices in other areas of his life. Caring about his clothes will help him to see the significance of his home’s decor, the music his family listens to, the better books to read, and many other things that can affect the soul. Choosing the morally good in every small decision will help him make the right choice in the larger and possibly more painful ones. When he neglects the details, he cannot see the whole picture.
The battlefield
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By choosing sloppiness he is choosing mediocrity and God does not make His saints out of the mediocre. Anyone who thinks they are doing God’s will while neglecting to at least try to dress better is deceiving himself.
I believe that once he asks, “How can I better glorify God?” he will start down the path of the ideal God set out for him. To continually choose the lesser good is to tell God, “I only want to do the bare minimum for you.” Does God choose men that do the bare minimum for great things? Will God’s army be composed of warriors bearing the banner ‘Bare Minimum’?
If a man wants to win his sanctification he will not go far with this attitude. On the other hand, if he begins to burn with a zeal to give glory to God in all possible ways, let him choose dignity over comfort so that God will give him the battles he deserves.
To be continued
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This could not be further from the truth. God gives us an intellect to guide our decisions and the wisdom to discern the right path. He expects us to pray so that we will be guided by His light. He shows us the hard, lonely path of discipline that faithful souls must endure countless times in Scriptures and in the lives of the Saints. Unfortunately, these standards are not applied by many traditional men today to dress. How, then, can a man expect to be one of these brave souls if he will not even make the effort to dress appropriately?
A practical reason to dress well
Today he affirms that clothing has no bearing on God’s love for him, and that it is only prayer, penance and good works that brings him closer to Heaven. Since he does not want to listen to arguments based on morals and respect for self and neighbor, perhaps he may be moved by a practical motive to improve his accouterment. Dignified clothing would benefit such a man since these good customs also have a positive impact on our intellect.
Dressing well affects a man’s thinking; he has more elevated thoughts than the sloppy man, below
For example, a man who dresses well might say he is “securing the house” when locking the door, whereas a man in modern attire might say he is “turning the key.” One tends to see the overall purpose whereas the other sees only the mechanics of the action. (p. 662)
This same study showed that abstract thinkers are more likely to choose long-term goals over short-term ones whereas the concrete thinkers do the opposite. (p. 661) The first looks toward the future and the consequences of decisions, while the second tends to think more of the immediate present.
Men who regularly dress with dignity for work, for example, will likely feel this difference while engaged in their work, even if they cannot describe it clearly. When they come home and remove their work attire, they return to the world of “concrete” thinking, setting aside the advantages of a broader thought process based more on wisdom. It is a great loss not only for him, but also for his home and family.
If he wants to serve God to the best of his ability at all times, then he should consider dignified clothing an essential weapon in his battle on this earth, since it will help him see the totality of his decisions more clearly: the hidden meanings and future consequences of his actions. The head of a family is called to think beyond his immediate situation, look to the future and provide wisely for it.
In the sloppy modern attire that has become the norm in our days, no matter how fervent his prayer, he is losing his footing as head of the house from a strictly practical perspective. He cannot see as keenly the problems in his family and marriage. Still less the crisis in the Church since his thinking tends to ignore the broader picture and nuances in situations. He simply does not see the problem of having a television in the home, the beat of modern music, the need for manners at the table and protocol in behavior. A consequence: He loses not only his self-respect and the respect of other, but also his authority over his wife and children.
The lazy concrete thinker, whose attitude is reflected in his dress, tends to simplify the crisis in the Church to a matter of restoring the Latin Mass and bringing back certain devotions, thus ignoring the entire upheaval of the good traditions and customs of Catholic Civilization that have also been lost. Thus he rarely enters that battlefield. If he truly desires to make changes to better help his loved ones and support the Counter-Revolution, he needs to actively enter both fields to face and confront the totality of these crises in a manly way.
Spiritual benefits
When he chooses comfort over dignity he is choosing his own convenience over God’s glory. If we are made in God’s image, then our bodies are more important than any icon, statue or holy art for these are non-living representations of God’s image. We who have living souls are made in His likeness and therefore we should respect Him by adorning this image with dignified clothing.
In the past no man appeared in church without a suit
He cannot see the contradiction.
If he cannot do something as rudimentary as dressing well, how can he expect to handle the hard battles in this life? Why would God select such a man to be a leader, a fighter for truth and an example for his family?
By choosing good clothing, a man also will more easily make the right choices in other areas of his life. Caring about his clothes will help him to see the significance of his home’s decor, the music his family listens to, the better books to read, and many other things that can affect the soul. Choosing the morally good in every small decision will help him make the right choice in the larger and possibly more painful ones. When he neglects the details, he cannot see the whole picture.
The battlefield
His battleground is also the table at home, where he should be dressed well & set good example
I believe that once he asks, “How can I better glorify God?” he will start down the path of the ideal God set out for him. To continually choose the lesser good is to tell God, “I only want to do the bare minimum for you.” Does God choose men that do the bare minimum for great things? Will God’s army be composed of warriors bearing the banner ‘Bare Minimum’?
If a man wants to win his sanctification he will not go far with this attitude. On the other hand, if he begins to burn with a zeal to give glory to God in all possible ways, let him choose dignity over comfort so that God will give him the battles he deserves.
To be continued
Typical dress in the 1960s for a middle class man
at dinner in his home
Posted April 1, 2026
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