About SiS Reflections: Transcendent Beauty exists in the world. One of the ways by which we can grasp and wear beauty is through clothing & accessories. Join me for short reflections through a favorite outfit. “For beauty includes three conditions, integrity or perfection…due proportion or harmony, and, lastly, brightness or clarity.”– Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae…
Fashion as a good and glorious image
What are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them? Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honor. In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis writes: “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can…
Does this Bible go with my outfit?
In David Dault’s thought-provoking book, The Accessorized Bible, Dault sets out to examine bibles as objects and how external factors play a role in their existence. In the chapter, “Fourth Thesis: A Bible is an Accessory,” Dault writes that bibles themselves can be accessories. Here, the behemoth domain of fashion interacts with the bible as…
C.S. Lewis and Fashion
A self-proclaimed “dinosaur”, C.S. Lewis did not consider himself a modern man. Yet he was well-read and culturally savvy, applying wisdom and insight issues of life. Lewis found that thinkers often discarded ideas just because they were deemed old-fashioned. Old ideas were no longer cool. Lewis referred to this as ‘chronological snobbery”: the uncritical acceptance…
An Approach to Style & Beauty using the Practical Wisdom of Theologians
Thomas Aquinas, one of the greatest minds of all time, tackled profound topics such as the nature of God and arguments for God’s existence. Yet his explorations did not stay within the metaphysical realm. He also applied practical wisdom to various issues of his day, issues that still affect Christians today, including style. Aquinas believed…
Truth, Goodness and Beauty in Fashion
Were the priests the first fashionistas in the Bible? The ones with the richest colors and wearing the most luxe jewels? If they were, then God would have been the first creative director. In Exodus 28:1-2, God gives the order: “Have your brother Aaron, with his sons, come to you from the Israelites to serve…
A Fashionista’s Christmas Reflection
Have you ever felt instantly elevated through an outfit, or a part of an outfit – a nice purse, good shoes or well-tailored pants? I’m sure most of us know the feeling of also being somewhat embarrassed by wearing a not-so-great outfit in public. Maybe we ran to the store in sweats or (heaven forbid)…
On art + fashion
In this rapidly accelerating technological world, I find myself drawn even more to original art pieces. In my countless trips to museums in my area and whenever I travel, it is amazing to witness what human beings have the potential to create. Art never ceases to inspire me. I’ve grown to appreciate various forms of…
The Armor of Fashion
What has fashion to do with reality? I believe it has everything to do with reality. It’s a constant that shows up with me everyday. It can also act as a refreshing novelty in the mundaneness of life. I think the late fashion photographer Bill Cunningham said it well: “fashion is the armor to survive…
Clothes Carry Power
In biblical times we see that literally clothes carry power. In 2 Kings chapter 2, Elijah and Elisha are walking together, as Elijah will soon be taken into Heaven. The great prophet Elijah folds his cloak and uses it to divide the water of the Jordan River, allowing both him and Elisha to walk through on…