I don't believe I said on this thread anything about a suit and tie. I wear a suit and tie to church because I'm on the staff of the college the church has. But I don't believe a suit and tie are necessary for the typical church goer. Some of our deacons just wear a collar shirt, and I'm fine with that. But unless necessary for some reason (your son, I suppose), I think T's, shorts and the like reflect negatively on our Lord when worn to church. I would never wear such garb to see the President, or even for an appointment with the president of a company. Are they more important than our Lord? But in my over fifty years of ministry in two different countries, I have never once rebuked anyone for their dress in any situation. Just not my job.
Whatever we wear any time, it should not reflect negatively on our Lord and Savior. So, modesty, some dignity, etc. I once saw a guy in Tokyo with a hat patterned after an elephant head. It looked absolutely ridiculous! I took his literature, but he refused my tract. Turned out he was a member of what used to be called "Aum Shinrikyo," the terrorist cult that spread sarin gas in the subways of Tokyo in 1995, killing 13 and injuring 1000s. I was on a train through Tokyo the day after that attack, missing the event by a day, thank the Lord. That day there was a scare in Yokohama Station, but I heard nothing about that until I was home. God watches over the clueless.
On the other hand, the JWs and Mormons always dress nicely when doing their "ministry." Ponder on that.
You did not say that we have to wear a suit (or women wearing a dress), I agree. Perhaps I misunderstood your comment that wearing a suit and tie is "what evangelicalism used to be" and noot doing so is "invention of the New Evangelicals". If I misunderstood, my apologies.
The issue I have is cultural changes. Wearing a suit and tie is no longer the cultural equivalent of "decent" or "respectful" clothing. It os with some generations, but not in our culture as a whole.
Here is an example...a t-shirt that I like.
Now, the shirt is modest. It is decent. It is $800.00, but does not present as extravagant. It is well made and will last for years.
Granted, most at the church I attend (most below 30 years old) wear a Christian t-shirt, but no less decent.
Judging decency by our own standards is fine, until we start imposing that on other people. That is all I am saying.
When I was at a church in Kyoto they dressed in jeans and a collard shirt or t-shirt. I got the impression that they were welcoming and concerned with the gospel rather than outward appearances, worrying about what to wear.
@John of Japan , I am genuinely asking this....you said that wearing a suit and tie to church is "what evangelicalism used to be" and not doing so is "invention of the New Evangelicals".
Why a suit and tie rather than jeans and a shirt?
My answer is culture, and at that time wearing a suit was culturally acceptable while jeans were thought of as casual (they are no longer casual), and before that as work attire not to be worn in public (in the 60's young men did as a type of rebellion, but sometimes because that was what they had).
So why a suit and tie, or dress for women, or even collard shirt, as a standard for dressing at church?
I was curious, waiting to go to work, and did a little research.
Suits snd ties became the standard for public attire in the 19th century.
This started changing in the 20's but was revitalized after WW2.
Ultimately this changed again in the 1980's with the rise of "business casual"
Business casual was then replaced by "smart casual"
Today professional attire has shifted from suits to nice jeans and a t-shirt.
The tech industry is credited with influencing cultural norms regarding dress.
Even collard shirts are considered a bit too dressy by some.
Suits and ties, however, are still considered the standard in financial occupations.
I believe this can also be seen as a generational issue.
I prefer collard shirts at work (I want a pocket, and the colkar keros the lanyard off my neck). But I am the only person who wears a collard shirt on my shift. At first several mentioned this (noting "nobody" wears collard shirts). I let them know that I'm old enough to be their father.