"Go to Meeting Clothes"

The Sunday when I cross-country skied to Meeting was the one where I fell furthest below the sartorial bar set by my Episcopalian upbringing.  I had worked up a good sweat over about two miles, and the snow was still falling, so I was soaked inside and out.  The noisy gas heater was on when I arrived, and the empty Meeting House - the heated half - was warm and welcoming.  I peeled off my layers, hat, gloves, boots, scarf, winter parka, snow pants, and sweater, and arrived at the bare minimum - running tights, socks and a long sleeved t shirt.  I had brought a dry shirt in my backpack, and so changed in to that, and then sat down at the piano.  From there I could look out the window and see the snow continuing to fall.  Alone in the Meeting, I was not much concerned about being caught in the equivalent of my underwear.  The snow had been falling all night.  There was no life on the roads during my ski over.  Who would be nutty enough to fight their way through it?  Other than me, of course. 

Ten minutes later, the door opened, and several people arrived in good cheer.  They had seen my skis outside and wondered who had skied to Meeting.  They were little concerned with my garb, and while I was slightly embarrassed to be so casually dressed, I was not going to put on my ski overalls for Meeting, and so after playing a little more while the meeting settled into silence, I found a seat on the bench closest to the heater, closed my eyes and settled in as well.  Quakers have many wonderful qualities, and one that I find appealing is that they don't give a fig about clothing and dressing up.  Simplicity in dress was one of their early guiding principles, and remains so today.  I have had people ask whether the Quakers at my Meeting wear plain grey and black clothes like the Amish or the Mennonites.  No, the modern Quaker is not obligated to choose from a smaller palette of colors.  Simplicity of dress is I think more of an attitude.  I don't worry about being fashionable and having a new suit and tie for my Quaker Meeting.  Khakis and a sport shirt will do.  I have seen George, a birthright Quaker, looking dapper in a checked sport coat, and so I have picked up several similar coats at Green Street, the Bryn Mawr consignment shop where clothes go when they are weeded out of the Main Line closets.  I like the comfortable casual look that George has, and I love the prices at Green Street.  So yes, I don't mind wearing a jacket to Meeting.  But a tie - a hated tie - a rope to wrap around my neck for decorative purposes?  Never!  When I bike to Meeting, I will bring a dry shirt and sit in my shirt and biking shorts.  I know that there will be no small knot of people after Meeting talking about my fashion failures.  The Quakers will not measure me with that yardstick.  And while others may feel the need to dress up when they go to God's house for an hour a week, the Quakers believe that God is within each of us, that he goes where we go and does what we do, all week long.  And so perhaps he judges us on our ethic and our accomplishments, and not on what we choose to wear for an hour on Sunday mornings.