More Public Witness of Clerical Dress
It happened again. I was running some errands while wearing my Roman collar. As I was preparing to leave the store, a woman approached me…
It happened again. I was running some errands while wearing my Roman collar. As I was preparing to leave the store, a woman approached me. “Could you do something for me?” she asked.
“Sure,” I said. “How can I help?”
“I’m not Catholic,” she continued. “But I’m really struggling right now. Can you please pray for me?”
I said of course I would pray for her, and asked if she’d like to tell me a little about her situation. She did. She had just gotten out of a long term toxic relationship. She knew she was better off, but it still hurt and she was having a very hard time. I listened to her story, offered a few words of comfort, then asked her if she’d like me to pray with her right now.
She nodded, so right there in the parking lot I extended my hands over her and said a prayer of consolation and blessing. She thanked me. I assured her I would continue to pray for her in the days to come.
It was a brief encounter, less than five minutes, but in that moment I was able to be Christ to her in some small way. And it wouldn’t have happened if she had not recognized me as a minister.
Brother clergy, pay attention: this is why we wear clerical attire. This is where the arguments that deacons should not wear clerical dress out of humility or “solidarity with the people” fall apart. Wearing “regular clothes” does not make us more approachable, as some claim. It makes us invisible.
We are supposed to be icons of Christ in the world. Yes, we should strive to give that witness through the holiness of our lives — but forgive me for thinking that suffering woman might not have noticed my halo.
I have a confession to make. As I left our ministry center to go run my errands before heading home for the day, the thought entered my mind to take the collar off. I almost did, but something told me to leave it on instead. I believe it was the voice of my guardian angel, and for once I listened. But there have been many times when I have not, and I can only wonder what divine appointments I may have missed.
So I write this to encourage myself as much as anyone else. People need to know that there are Catholic clergy in the world — not just in our churches but in the streets and marketplaces, as well. They need to see us. For every encounter like the one I described above, there may be dozens of instances where the sight of a priest or deacon in his collar, or a nun in her habit, may impact a person’s life in an invisible way that we’ll never know about. We should never underestimate the value of that public witness.