The priest was tired of constant questions and decided to answer once and for all whether women can go to church in pants.

It is still believed that a woman should not enter the temple in trousers. The image of what a woman should look like in a church has been shaped for years. But is it relevant now? To the question of what to go to church, the priest answered.



Today's edition. "Site" I wonder where this tradition came from and whether it can be broken.

In what to go to church, Igor made several weighty arguments and answered whether it is possible to go to church in pants. He noted that no rule of the Orthodox Church prohibits a woman to wear trousers. The Old Testament says, “A woman should not wear a man’s robe, nor should a man dress in a woman’s, for everyone who does these things is abominable to the Lord your God.” But now to treat it in the same way as in the Old Testament is simply stupid.



There were no trousers then, just as there were in the New Testament. But now they are and sewn specifically for women. Is it possible to assume that pants are men’s clothing? Absolutely not. So, as you can see, this precept is long overdue.



And priest Igor recalls that even Orthodox saints wore men’s clothes. For example, St. Blessed Xenia of Petersburg or Dosithea of Kiev. The church did not condemn them. And now they're both canonized. This reminds us once again that it is not the clothes that matter, but the content of the person.

It is also necessary to understand that this whole church tradition of wearing skirts and headscarves in the church exists only in our spaces. Orthodox churches in other countries of the world do not know about this. Jeremiah urges us to think about it.



The Church and the Holy Scriptures teach us to be kind and sincere, to act according to conscience. To judge a person for his appearance is clearly not what God teaches us. We have no right to judge others and discuss them behind our backs. Especially when standing in the temple. A lot of people do that. That’s what you need to think about first, not what to wear to church. Is God looking at your clothes?



Jeremiah says, “Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye and not feel the beam in your eye?” People are often alert to other people’s misdeeds, but unable to notice their own. It is better when a person comes to God sincerely, with an open heart, even in trousers and without a handkerchief. Than when a pious lady in a skirt to the floor comes to view, and after the service will condemn and slander everyone she meets in the temple.



Therefore, the priest proposes to leave all these disputes about what one can and cannot go to church. The main thing is to come and really look for God, not just look like a Christian. And we fully share Priest Igor’s thoughts on this. By the way, if you are afraid to visit the temple for the first time, read our advice.

What do you think of that?