Just so we're all clear

A recent (and anonymous) commenter posted (on the recent "misconceptions" post) that he or she "could have lived without knowing [I was] an athiest."

Why on earth my religion or lack thereof should matter on a blog about dresses, of all things (it's not like I'm claiming to be a prophet of anything other than the essential goodness of full skirts) is unclear to me, but, just so everyone understands, and so no one else feels a stunning sense of hollowness upon learning this belatedly:

First of all, it's ATHEIST. (It's one of those words that isn't "i before e.") And I never said I was one; just that I don't think God (if there is one) bothers too much with what you wear. I think any putative deity would be much more concerned about whether you show sufficient kindness than a little too much leg.

That "if there is one" should have tipped you off (if it matters) that I'm a card-carrying sealed-in-the-temple (and full-immersion-baptized) agnostic; I belong to the First Pentecostal Evangelical United Agnostic Church of We're-Not-Sure, which holds services whenever it gets around to it and has a very, very short Catechism. (Q. What do we believe? A. We don't know.)

Funnily enough, if you image-google "god dress" one of the pics that comes up is this one, even though I couldn't find the text "god" on the page:




Which, as you might remember, I wrote about here. I might say something about "moving in mysterious ways" or something "being a sign" but that would be unnecessarily provocative, don't you think?

To sum up: if your life is enriched by a strong religious faith, I am very happy for you. I have been privileged to know many sincerely religious people who are kind, thoughtful, and generous, and who live lives that anyone would be proud to emulate. I envy them their faith and certainty, and I am exceedingly grateful to them for not pressuring me to resolve my lack of certainty, because I can't believe (get it?) that will happen any time soon (as I have no plans for a trip to Damascus).

We now return you to your regularly-scheduled semi-Godless posting about dresses. (Although you should really click on that dress link above, if you haven't already. Did you know it's made of "Technofur"?)

Comments

[Anonymous]

Awesome. I love this entry. Thanks...

[erma]

Have you re-read the text of your previous post on the Technofur? Perhaps the exclamation with which you opened the post is responsible for the image turning up in "god dress" search results. It's a mighty powerful blog you run here.

[Hecate]

Aphrodite. Now there's a deity who cares about clothing.

[lauren]

I love that this post happened.

[Zoltar Panaflex]

Notice the flamers don't have the guts to do two simple things1) admit who they are2) spell a really easy word correctlyMy confession is I love Dress a Day. I envy your dress-fascination. I'm not a dress-wearer. I'm ill proportioned, and do better in suitpants.Please, please, keep on doing what you've been doing. Please. Please? I thank you. If you're in the Seattle area, I have some playful silk for you.

[Floridaprincess]

Oh for the love of Mike!!! I took a look at this post today. Im the 2nd paragraph if you know what I mean. You that county song " Im here for the party" Well "Im here for dresses" I hope I spelled everything correctly. Im a horrible speller.

[Amelie]

Oh, please don't waste any time or energy answering the fundamentalists. The should be ashamed of themselves, reading frivolous blogs about dresses instead of the serious materials that would suit their mood better. Besides that, fuck them...

[Cazzy]

Bravo Erin! I bought a great full skirt with pockets yesterday and thought about the blog. And a pink dress with midriff banding. yay!

[jill]

Would it settle the issue for you if you consider that those who attain heaven reportedly thereafter will be white robed (Revelation 6:11), as opposed to white pantsuited?A wrap dress for eternity. No chance of gaining weight and not fitting it anymore either.God is Love, and He (and we readers)love you very much, even while you are unsure if you believe in God, or when you are unsure if you like a particular dress. You know how it is hard to tell if a dress is right for you until you actually get into it? Same goes for God.

[blueZhift]

I think any putative deity would be much more concerned about whether you show sufficient kindness than a little too much leg. All I can say is amen to that! I wish more people thought that way.

[Carolyn]

Thank you for your wonderful response, even though I don't think it was necessary. This is a blog dedicated to dresses for Pete's Sake! I live in the Bible Belt (Alabama) and get so tired of the judgemental attitudes. I've been criticized for being an Episcopalian! Apparently we are not Godly enough! Thanks for your wonderful blog. It has been so inspiring!

[Diane]

If you think about it, most of the dresses you showcase would be perfect for wearing to church. Now you have some fodder for a "secret life" story. The dress that fell from grace!!! Really, who cares what your religious beliefs are? I'm here for the dresses and so far I've seen no indication that you are the devil. Red dress or no.

[vespabelle]

You could teach some of Christian proponents of modest dress a few things about style. Ugly modest clothing just attracts unwanted attention which defeats the purpose of "modest" dress.

[Gidget Bananas]

"A wrap dress for eternity." jill, DVF should pay you to make that her slogan! My fondest memories of my Church-going years was the brand spanking-new outfit, from hat to shoes, including gloves, that I got every Easter. Apparently in that corner of the religious world, God did care what you wore to the party! ;-)

[India]

A long time ago, in a city far, far away (Seattle), I lived with a couple of Star Trek geeks. To my still-intense embarrassment, we had a small picture of Lieutenant Worf from STNG stuck on our house's door. Yes, our front door. No, I don't want to discuss it. But this caught the fancy of our local Jehovah's Witness canvassing team, who, undeterred by our initial apparently-too-polite refusal to chat with them, returned a few days later with an issue of Awake! that they thought we would particularly like: the cover story was about space exploration.Anyway, I'm sad to say that despite this thoughtful gesture, not only did none of us end up accepting Jesus Christ as our personal savior (though most did concede that He was way cool), but also I do not remember what Awake! had to say about space exploration. However, I do recall that in that same issue, there was an article directed toward young people who wanted to know if it was consistent with God's word to hang out at the mall and be concerned with fashion. The article assured them that God wanted His followers--especially those whose faith would require them to go door to door, spreading His word--that it was important to look good. And if that required occasional binge-shopping at Strawberry, so be it.So. That's a long way of saying that while I don't believe in much, I do believe that insofar as God is concerned with clothes at all, He wants us to look purty. And I believe that dresses are among the best means of doing so. Amen.

[Marnie]

Man alive, what is it with people being all bent out of shape about folks who aren't of one religion or another. Can you imagine if someone went to another person's blog and chided them for being jewish instead of catholic? Can you even fathom that comment? Of course not because that would be rude. And the fact is you should be able to believe or not, in anything under the sun, including worshipping Zues if that's what gets you through the day, and it shouldn't be any of anyone's business. Sheesh.

[Robinson]

The only thing worse than having someone tell you that they don't want to hear about your agnostic tendencies is having someone be magnanimous about your agnostic tendencies.

[rowena___.]

erin, as always that was a very classy response to a seriously silly comment.this poor world is already a place where people are being slaughtered by the dozens every day for not being "believers". to have refuge in a little corner of the internet where the greatest concern is the fullness of a hemline is indeed a little taste of heaven.now--go find a truly heathen dress and share the link with us. :)

[Anonymous]

Alright, let's be a bit more objective here. If you are going to say what you think God cares about, you have brought up religion. So, don't be shocked that those who care about it a bit more than you do are concerned about your comments. It sounds like they are asking you not to mix religion with dresses if you are going to be flippant about it. And, frankly, I concur. I am not saying that you should not be allowed to have your opinion or free speech, but I am suggesting that if you are going to on the world wide web make statements that if you really think about it could offend a large percentage of the population, then you shouldn't really be surprised or indignant when some give you their opinion in return.I like your site, and I generally appreciate your sense of humor very much. I suggest that you may have been a tad careless in this case, and I encourage you to continue the generally good work, showing a bit more sensitivity to those whose deeply held beliefs may be offended by casual remarks such as you made or be prepared to respectfully discuss the issues you bring up rather than tossing the concerns of others aside as nonsense.With affection and concern,A Fan

[Anonymous]

That doesn't seem objective to me at all. I could have gone my whole life without knowing that this anonymous person has deeply held religious beliefs. In fact, I find it quite offensive that you have deeply held religious beliefs and I wish you'd stop making them public.

[Anonymous]

Erin - you are a class act! love your site.

[Lorinne]

The bottom line, to me, is:If you are going to decide whether you like this site, or want to visit it, based on whether or not Erin does or doesn't have certain religious affiliations, that's your prerogative. She chose to specify that she wasn't a religious person. If you're reading her blog, and you like the blog, and her stating that she is an agnostic makes you not want to read the blog, that's sad, but it's your choice. There is nothing controversial about what she's written.Erin, you are wonderful.

[Bellaleigh]

Oh for cripes' sake! I come here to read about perty dresses and to enjoy your fine writing style. If you want to say other stuff, well, far be it from me to tell you just what you should - or shouldn't - say on your own blog.Upon the first reading, your supposed offensive comments slipped right by me....shows how much I found them offensive. Or, my comprehensive ability is slipping. Whatever the case, write on! :)

[Francesca]

This was a lovely (although, as some have pointed out, unnecessary) response to those cripcrappy anonymous comments we all get from time to time. And while the anonymous comment didn't deserve such an elegant riposte, I am glad that we had the chance to read it.

[Jenn]

Preach it, sistah!People are so bizzare about religion sometimes. On with the lovely dresses!