Depending on your level of familiarity with clerical garb, you may or may not be aware of the reasons for the wearing of clergy shirts in public. The clothes you wear may tell a lot about you, much as in many other professions. For religious leaders, clerical attire is a clear signal that the person wearing it represents the church.

If you're in the Catholic Church or another religious group, you'll likely be wearing a white collared shirt paired with some sort of vestment. Churchgoers regard these shirts, which are worn by priests as a symbol of their devotion, as an indication of their responsibilities to the community.

While serving in the church or in the community, priests, pastors, and other ministry leaders may don a clergy shirt as part of their uniform. There is a wide range of colors for clergy shirts for men, which might vary depending on the religion or religious group. A black shirt with a white priest collar is one of the most popular choices, especially for Catholic clergy or priests.

Many individuals don't know that clergy shirts for men come in two varieties. There are two types of collared shirts: the tab collar shirt and the neckband shirt. The fold-down collar of the tab-collar shirt features a hole at the throat where a neckpiece may be attached. A priest's collar is the easiest way to identify this. Mock turtleneck shirt-style narrow white fabric band wraps around the neck of the neckband shirt instead of a collar.

Many western nations have worn clerical shirts for decades now since they allow for a contemporary look while maintaining the classic elements of clerical attire.

To emulate the look of the cassock collar, numerous alterations were developed to fit garments that don't include a high-style collar. The Tonsure, a black collar with a white band, is one form of a detachable collar. This is a simple way to give a collarless shirt the look of a Roman cassock at the neck, just like any other removable collar with studs would.

For those who prefer the look of the Vicar's collar, certain clergy shirts for men have a high collar attached with a channel that can fit a full wrap-around neckpiece. In this case, just the black collar portion is linked to the shirt; the collar itself remains detached.

For example, the most common clerical shirt features a square hole in the front and a high collar with a tab. Priests may then easily insert a white plastic priest collar into the aperture using a simple slide motion. As a result of its simplicity and total comfort, this alternative is a popular choice. As a bonus, the flexible plastic collar doesn't stain as easily as cloth and is much easier to clean.

For a long time, Divinity Clergy Wear has proudly been the major provider of high-quality clergy vestments that reflect your expertise and commitment to your faith. They've listed, developed, and constructed the clerical gear you need so that your outfits meet your individual needs and keep you comfy. If you are interested in bespoke clergy robes and vestments, contact Divinity Clergy Wear for more information.

No matter what kind of profession you are a part of, you want to dress the part and make sure that you are presenting yourself in the most appropriate way possible. There are particular needs and expectations for members of the clergy in particular, making it even more important to choose your clothing carefully. As a member of the clergy, you play an important role in the clergy and in the community as a whole. You need to set a good example for the younger congregants and represent the church with pride. The way that you dress while in service reflects on the church itself and you want to make sure that you can raise your head up, knowing that you are performing a valuable service to the community.

For women in particular, getting dressed for service can be a little more involved. Women generally have more options, although it depends on your own church of course. There are different types of clergy suits you can wear as a woman of faith and you want to choose the ones that are the most appropriate and feel the best suited for you. Since this may often feel a bit vague, we have some tips for finding clergy suits that you can be happy with. Much of the details come down to your personal preferences and what is allowed by your denomination, but when you consider those factors, you can then narrow your options down to several great pieces that you can wear regularly for service.

Traditional or Modern
The type of garment you wear speaks to your ideas of how clergy members should dress. Some stick to traditional robes that are simplistic but ageless. Others enjoy variety with more casual silhouettes of dress suits that feel more contemporary.

Choose Your Colors
The colors you choose are typically limited based on the denomination you are a part of and what your exact role is, as some are allowed to wear certain colors while others are not. If your church gives you some flexibility in this regard, you will want to select colors of clergy suits that carry some symbolic significance.

These are some good general details to keep track of as you shop for the right clergy suits that will match both the role and your preferences. With all of these ideas noted, you should be able to find some great pieces to wear for service that make you feel comfortable and presentable to the public. Now all you need is some direction for where you can purchase these kinds of garments. We like to recommend the brand divinityclergywear.com because of their great range of products, coupled with their clear passion for what they do, which is felt throughout the company. You can tell that they take pride in what they do and try their best to serve members of the clergy to the best of their abilities. Theirs is a great shop to check out, filled with women’s clergy suits so you can pick up everything you need from there.

Certain ecclesiastic traditions may sound anachronistic for many today. Even religious people have a hard time reconciling their beliefs with the glaring difference in treatment women and men receive in church, especially in their leadership circles.

However, Christianity, and the Western Civilization by addition, has made great advancements in this regard, even if it has been too slow for today´s generalized impatience. This is due to the nature of Christianity and the revealed word.

Women in the Old Testament played extremely significant roles and weren't particularly barred from having important agency or leadership.

Moreover, women proved to be extremely important during the early days of the church. In fact, according to Bishop Cyprian of Carthage, Christian maidens greatly outnumbered men during the second century, and by 400 Augustine declared that any old Christian woman surpassed most philosophers in terms of spiritual matters.

This has led to the now widely spread complementarianism. This idea holds that women and men are equal yet are called to fulfill different but complementary roles in religious practice. Many have interpreted this to say that women have to stick to complementary non-leadership roles within the church. However, this seems to go against what many sections in the scripture say about women in the church.

Romans 16, for example, gives us an account of how St Paul greets Phoebe as a Deacon of the church, Priscilla is recognized as a teacher in Acts 18, and the four daughters of Phillip had the gift of prophecy and inspired speech in Acts 21. These are clear examples of exemplary women in positions of leadership.

In the case of Pentecostalism, women played a huge role during its early days and featured many prominent figures in ladies clergy suits fulfilling ample church leadership and community roles. Moreover, the biggest denominations in America, including the Church Of God In Christ, recognize the extreme importance of women in the ministry. They played an important role being the first at the tomb when Jesus resurrected, and the many occasions where they were called to teach the Gospel (Philippians, Titus, Joel, and Romans). The church recognizes the talent of thousands of extremely talented, spirit-filled, and devout women that are currently conducting important affairs in their churches and communities.

The church does impose certain rules regarding proper dressing for women. They want to encourage laywomen to go back to more conservative dressing standards and refrain from wearing unnecessarily gaudy attire. However, many stores dedicated to providing clergy attire offer the perfect balance between beauty and fervor for both churchgoers and ladies in the ministry. Ladies clergy suits and robes for women now come in a variety of colors and styles that perfectly match the sobriety and dignity of the position while offering comfort and style. One of the best distributors for those looking for women preaching robes and clergy dresses is Divinity Clergy Wear. Visit their online store today and check out their incredible collection of ladies clergy suits for every occasion.

To the uninitiated, the sheer volume of different types of clerical clothing and vestments out there can seem to blur the lines of understanding. The names may even run together; cassocks, stoles, chimeres, rabats, rochets, albs, surplices - just to name a few.

How about the clergy collar? That is not a “garment,” per se, but many priests wear them. What function do they serve, and is there more than one type?

Why Priests Wear Clergy Collars
The clergy collar, which goes by a few different names, including clerical collar, and occasionally a Roman collar, was originally a flat, white collar of cotton that encircled at the neck and fastened at the back. Of these collars, only a small, white square was visible at the front of the neck; the instantly recognizable calling-card of a priest - the priest’s collar.

Though they were originally made of cotton or linen, today some of them are made from plastic, as these are easier to care for.

It’s also interesting to note that it was at first a statement of fashion, as it was customary in Late Medieval Europe to wear a linen collar or “collarino,” sometimes richly decorated, about the neck.

As time went on, the fashion fell out of style among all but the ordained. When Pope Urban VIII issued an early-1600s proclamation outlawing the ornamentation of the collar among the clergy, only plain, white collars remained.

As to the reason that priests wear them, one of them is simply for the purpose of identity. A priest can be immediately recognized by his clergy collar if he is wearing it, especially since the color white contrasts so sharply with the black of many clergy shirts and cassocks.

While one reason is for the purpose of identification, for some priests, the clergy collar takes on deeper symbolic significance. Some ordained clergymembers see the collar as a symbol of their subservience to God and as a reminder of their servitude. To them, it is like a spiritual “shackle.”

On the Different Types of Clergy Collars
Today, there are two main types of clergy collars: banded clerical collars and tab collars. Banded collars are traditional, encircling the neck with a piece of white linen or cotton, just as the original clerical collars did.

Tab collars are much more contemporary. These typically consist of a small piece (“tab”) of white plastic that can be inserted into a clergy shirt. The white tab shows through, giving the impression of a traditional collar, but many of these are made of plastic, and since they can be easily removed, are also easier to clean.

Visit Divinity Clergy Wear
Interested in learning more about clergy collars and the world of unique clerical vestiture? Visit Divinity Clergy Wear online at DivinityClergyWear.com or pay a visit to their showroom conveniently located in Hamilton, New Jersey.

You can also follow them on their social media accounts, Facebook and Instagram, or get in touch with their customer service team directly at 877-453-3535.

This book is mostly about post-earthquake clean up, city planning, social issues and charity :/ None of it by itself is a bad subject, but more hanky panky (or at least snuggles/feels) and less city planning is always a win in a romance book, imho. Unless rubble removal makes you horny, of course.