Hello all and for any new visitors welcome to Metro Method. In today's post we'll take a closer look at the transition from traditional spiritual wear to modern spiritual wear, and how you can make modern spiritual wear work for you.
First, a brief history discussion. Since their
inception, religion and spirituality have universally institutionalized
symbolism as a staple of worship. Some
of the earliest evidence of symbolic behavior is associated with Middle
Stone Age sites in Africa dating least 100,000 years ago, whereby people
would use dyes to paint their bodies and living space with symbols representing
transcendental icons. Moreover, as far back as 25,000 BCE, archaeologists have unearthed graves that have contained primitive ritualistic
trinkets, including periwinkle shell necklaces, mammoth bone beads, and
fox-tooth pendants, believed to be associated with pagan burial rituals.
Symbols like these
have been used to by cultures help define the undefinable ideas that are
intrinsic to faith, the most commonly thought of in the United States being the
cross. However, in today’s modern age, you’re just as likely as to see a
conservative faithful wearing a small pendant, as you are a rapper dangling a
cross-shaped edifice down past their crotch (a style that was made popular
around the 1980s).
Notwithstanding
whether one group is holier than the other, the question then is, how has
religious symbolism evolved into as much of a fashion statement as a faith
statement? Without intending to sound cavalier, I submit that faith is as much
about self-expression as fashion and can (and is) unanimously represented
through our public persona. Simply put, when you feel strongly about two
elements of self-representation, it’s likely that the two will bleed into each
other and influence your decision making (you don’t see a whole bunch of nuns
running around in hot pants…thank god).
So fine, that said
you may be thinking ‘even if I’m willing to accept this premise about faith and
fashion, I’m fairly conservative and I just wear a cross around my neck and I’m
comfortable with that. Is that not fashionable or something?’
The answer: no,
that’s just fine! If you feel comfortable having a small cross tucked under
your dress shirt and suit, that’s no problem. But if your objective is to show
off your faith, you’ll probably want to find a middle ground between
bling-bling and illuminati.
To this effect,
here are some cool, slightly edgy, ideas for showing off your beliefs.
1. Men’s bracelet bands. Very practical and trendy idea
that’s flexible with many forms of self-expression. Men have been making
use of bracelet bands to make a statement for a while now, the most
memorable of which is probably Lance Armstrong’s yellow band, started in
2004. From a spirituality perspective this is easily adapted. A simple
leather men’s bracelet like that below can be a great outlet for
expressing ones faith. Buddha beads like those in the first image are
another great option to capture general spirituality.
2. Belts. Not one commonly thought of, but believe it
or not there are a lot of belt buckles that with a pair of jeans can look
very well put together. Be careful here though, there’s a fine line
between being obnoxious with a belt-buckle (which can be a huge fashion
failure) and being edgy and Avant-garde.
^ NO
^ YES
3. Necklaces. Yes necklaces as I said are fine.
However, where you want to show them off, being slightly less conservative
in this regard can go a long way in the fashion world. A typical cross and
chain for example can come off as too expected. I recommend again raw
leather necklaces in black for the greatest matching flexibility. Mix and
match pendants and charms as you see fit, though I would recommend a
smaller pendant, large pendants on men can again seem obnoxious (and too
much like big blinging).
These are just some
general tips and ideas, note that there are many other examples and ideas that
are equally stylish that have not been listed in this post.
That’ll do it for
me for this month’s post! Again, thanks to my supporters and your kind e-mails
encouraging me to keep posting!
This is Cade
signing out,
