“Being uptight and anxious about protecting our vestments from ridicule presupposes that they are fit subjects for mockery and that they will be held in scorn by all who see them. Is it any wonder then, when people respond with the very derision we imagined was inevitable? Perhaps we show and invite more respect by being forthright and open, and assuming that others will follow our lead.”

I’m not aware of any rule prohibiting viewing of the garment under appropriate circumstances. Doctors, nurses, police officers, morticians, customs agents, launderers, airport security agents, and others will ocassionally see garments in the course of their duties. I agree that they probably don’t pay much attention to anyone’s styles of undergarments. I think the best approach is for us to assume they will carry out their duties in a professional manner. Though they may be unusual, there’s nothing about garments that should promote derision except among the juvenile and boorish. Polite society does not generally engage in ridicule of others’ clothing choices. And (until experience demonstrates otherwise) it is likewise courteous for us to assume that anyone who encounters garments on the job will respond in an appropriate manner.

Living in NYC the past 5 years (where practically no one has access to private washing machines/dryers), I have sat through a least a half-dozen debates over the issue of sending out your garments to the laundry service or not. Faithful members (including leaders) fall onto both sides of the argument. In this busy city, where your time is more valuable to you than your money, having the immigrants who own the laundromat down the street come to your house to pick up your Gs, wash them, dry them, fold them, and deliver them back to you in a few hours (along with the rest of your laundry), might not only sound enticing, but be necessary (in order to survive!).

I haven’t yet succumbed…but fully plan to next fall when I start my 60+ hour/weeks at the law firm.

Thanks Wilfried. I love this image. It is a wonderful metaphor for openness and acceptance. If only we could hang our prejudices alongside each other to dry in similar fashion.

And, after reading my story, Andrew Sullivan himself provided us with what could be an appeasing phrase for all: “In the end, it seems, whatever God we worship, we all do laundry.”

As is often the case, your story struck a chord with me. A few years ago, I spent a month in very similar accomodations in central Africa. I was at a remote Shell Oil facility in the rainforest in Gabon. I still normally wear the one-piece garment (personal choice, for comfort). I would leave my laundry on the bed and find it returned clean and neatly folded the next day. I’m sure the laundry personnel had not seen garments before, but I like to imagine they simply did their job in a professional manner without giving too much thought to clothing styles. I suppose Sister Veronique followed the same policy.

Being uptight and anxious about protecting our vestments from ridicule presupposes that they are fit subjects for mockery and that they will be held in scorn by all who see them. Is it any wonder then, when people respond with the very derision we imagined was inevitable? Perhaps we show and invite more respect by being forthright and open, and assuming that others will follow our lead.