Once upon a time certain groups of Christians decided that in order to live a holy life, they would put all worldly amusements and accoutrements behind them. Of course this included things like card games and the theater, but also included things like wearing colors. The result was a drab form of dress that, in its own way, called as much attention to itself as flashy dress.
Various wags had things to say, as they always do. One of my favorite barbs comes from Dr. Samuel Johnson: “Sir, a man who cannot get into heaven in a green coat will not sooner find his way thither in a grey one.”
Of course the observation seems both funny and a trifle obvious to us, but that’s because it’s lampooning a folk piety we do not have. The same spirit, turned around on our own shibboleths, will be just as funny, and will hurt a good deal more. So give it some thought: what are the folk pieties of our own day, and how could you harpoon them in a similar way?
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