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Home , Clerical collar

ON WEARING THE CLERICAL Reviewed & updated 5/17/2019

I am puzzled at the reactions I get from time to time from people because I wear a clerical collar. In the Baltimore and Central Pennsylvania areas where I have pastored, it would have been thought strange if a did NOT wear the collar, especially if ‘on duty’; i. e., leading worship, pastoral visitation, hospital visits, or anywhere else where his/her presence was representing God or the church. Since it was both normal and expected I’ve never really thought about whether to wear it or not. But faced with people reactions I’ve taken the time to think through if I should wear it and if so, why.

My thoughts on this subject have fallen into two general categories:

THE MINISTRY OF THE CLERGY COLLAR, or wearing the collar, or wearing clerics. Let me begin with an actual experience I had on 5/16/2019 in the Lake Wales Medical Center. I was making a pastoral visit to a parishioner who was a patient. So, I put on a pair of long pants, and my short-sleeved clergy with the tab collar. I had with me both anointing oil and a Communion kit.

I entered the Hunt Building, signed in at the front desk and took the elevator to the 3rd floor. When the elevator doors opened, there was a sitting area through which I was walking to reach the hallway to the patient rooms. I was perhaps half-way through the seating area when I heard a woman’s voice call out “Good afternoon, Father”. Rather than ignore her, I stopped, turned to see who had spoken, spotted a lady in a hospital , walked over and introduced myself. I gave her my name and said, “I’m not a Father, I’m one of them Protestants”. I was content to let it go as her having mistaken me for a Roman Catholic , but she replied “I belong to (and gave the name of the local Roman ) and in all the time I’ve been in here no one has come and brought me Communion. I sat down and said, “Would you accept Communion from a Protestant?” She replied, “Sure, it is all Jesus”. There was a younger woman in street clothes obviously sitting with her. I invited her to join us and she said, “I’d be happy to”. So, then and there, in clear view of everyone else sitting in that area, I served Communion for the three of us and prayed for her.

I could fill pages of similar occasions when the simple fact that I was wearing clerics allowed me to to perfect strangers who I might not otherwise have encountered because they did not know that a man of God was present and available to them. That fact alone justifies wearing clerics when I’m ‘on duty’.

MY SENSE OF WHO AND WHAT I AM—in the New Testament Paul refers to himself “a slave of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God”. (Romans 1.1 NET). This statement is now widely recognized as a definition of what it means to be ‘ordained’. The status of the slave in his society was a metal collar which could not be removed—it made the wearer instantly recognized as a slave. That is the origin of the clerical collar. It identifies those who wear it as ‘slaves for Christ’. And so, ordination sets apart certain persons at certain times for certain functions—the rest of the time we are just pilgrims like everyone else. When I am stepping out my front door to perform tasks for which I am ordained—it is fitting that I remind myself and those who see me, that at this time and in this place, I am not my own man. I am about my Master’s business. The collar reminds me of that, helps keep me focused on the Ministry to which I am called and announces to the world that I am God’s servant—and so available to those who need to speak to a person of God.

I suppose there may be places or groups of people where the clerical collar is not commonly worn. These folks may react negatively simply because it is strange. However, my cultural/traditional environment says to me that if I’m doing pastoral stuff and am not dressed appropriately, I am as uncomfortable as if I showed up at my sister’s wedding in and a T-shirt.

Throughout our society people wear to identify who and what they are: police officers, postal workers and service technicians to name a few. I see no reason why the church should not similarly their professional face in the community.