Written by writer, editor and FCS mother Silva Emerian, Style Session is about fashion trends, style and Emerian’s connection with God. Published since 2015, Style Session returns to The Feather after a year-long hiatus. Style Session will be published bi-monthly and Emerian’s previous works can be viewed on her Feather author page. Emerian also runs her own personal blog, On My Shoebox and can be reached via email.

I am Armenian and I grew up on the East Coast. This means that when it comes to clothes, the dressier the better. East Coast Armenians dress up for everything! We love to look our best at all times. Are we snobs? I wouldn’t discount it. But we love to put our best foot forward in all ways, especially sartorially.

Growing up surrounded by well-dressed women and men, moving to Fresno was a bit of a culture shock. Things are, well, different here.

For example, everyone gets fully decked out at weddings on the East Coast. Maybe this is just an Armenian thing, but I’m talking ball gowns and sequins and tuxedos. I have relatives who have worn multiple gowns to their own engagement parties. Conversely, I was utterly flabbergasted to see a gentleman in overalls at a wedding here in Fresno a few years ago.

Am I being judgy? Probably. However I can’t help but observe the regional differences in how people dress.

I have even observed this disparity in the church setting. Let’s put aside for a moment the fact that God cares more about our inside than our outside. Obviously the Lord looks at our heart and we should go to church as an act of worship regardless of our outer appearance. The Bible is clear when the Lord says to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).

Maybe wearing our “Sunday best” is an outdated notion. But it’s one I grew up with. My parents were firm in that. Church has always been something special. We weren’t just going to the park or a casual visit to a friend’s house. Church was a big deal – somewhere we wanted to look our best.

Some people may view that as being show-offy, but that’s not what I was taught. I was taught that church is God’s house, and we should always look our best for Him. My mom taught me to always cover my shoulders in church and to sit properly and not chew gum. My dad always wore a suit.

Behaving respectfully mattered as much as dress, but it was most important that we were there every Sunday to listen and learn and grow in our faith. Can we do that in jeans and flip flops? Of course. But that would be so improper!

When I first moved here I was honestly shocked to see how some people dressed for church. Yes, I was happy that they were there. But tube tops? Ripped jeans? Leggings? I couldn’t believe my eyes. I understand weather is a factor here, but still.

Would you wear ripped jeans to a wedding? Would you wear a bathing suit to school? Just as there are dress codes and rules for different social settings, I thought the same applied to church. I guess I was wrong!

Last year we started attending a different church. It is a very diverse and welcoming church with people from all sorts of backgrounds. It’s not unusual to see someone in a football jersey on Sunday mornings. I swallow hard when I see it (mostly to keep my mouth shut) and silently thank the Lord that the pews are filled.

I know what matters most is their presence, not their outfit. But beyond the way I was raised and the settings I’m used to, I truly believe that the church IS a special place and that we SHOULD put forth our best effort for our heavenly Father.

Does that mean you shouldn’t walk into church if you can’t afford designer clothes? Absolutely not. I know it really shouldn’t matter. But don’t we put some extra effort when we’re getting ready to go somewhere special, like to formal or a first date or a family reunion? Shouldn’t we put in that same effort for the Lord?

Again, it’s more of an internal thing than an external thing to me. If you internally give something value (e.g. the church), then it should be reflected externally (e.g. how you dress for church). Or maybe it’s just my own personal belief of dressing up for important things and matching my level of wardrobe to the level of how special the event is.

I’m working on adjusting my opinion on this, but it’s still unbearably hard for me not to dress up on Sunday mornings. Do you dress up for church? Why or why not? I’d love to hear everyone’s take on this. And if I am completely outnumbered on this, I will force myself to wear jeans to church and snap a picture to share in a future post!

~ Silva

If you have questions or topics you’d like to see addressed in this blog, please email me at [email protected]. You can read more from me at www.onmyshoebox.com.

For Emerian’s previous blog post, check out BLOG: Style Session, No. 3, 2019-20 – Fashion to Frolic in the Foliage.

For more articles, read Year of the Student Journalist concludes, young voices speak out or Editorial: Students enter second quarter, seek study techniques, tricks.