Crocs Clog aka Big Head Shoe & Church

Yesterday morning, I went to Church (Church of Our Lady Star of the Sea) in a pair of Big Head Shoe. As I was walking into the Church, someone mending the T-Shirt stall shouted across the main hall, "Brother, next time wear shoes". My sincere apologize to the Church for not being mindfulness of my dress code. My bad.

After some self reflection... I was thinking, why do we need to follow dress code? Wasn't clog a decent shoe as well? Why calling across the hall instead of asking me to go aside to remind me?

By looking at Saint Paul’s experience, we understand that missionary activity is a response to the love with which God loves us. His love redeems us and prods us to the missio ad gentes. It is the spiritual energy that can make the harmony, justice and communion grow among persons, races and peoples to which everyone aspires. So it is God, who is Love, who leads the Church towards the frontiers of humanity and calls the evangelizers to drink “from the original source, which is Jesus Christ, from whose pierced heart flows the love of God”. Only from this source can care, tenderness, compassion, hospitality, availability and interest in people’s problems be drawn, as well as the other virtues necessary for the messengers of the Gospel to leave everything and dedicate themselves completely and unconditionally to spreading the perfume of Christ’s charity around the world.

Christ's mission is to save sinners & to create a world where we are all equal. God did not send his only Son into the world to condemn its people. With all the Churches preaching to the world spreading the love of Christ, why would dress code still be an issue? Shouldn't Churches be treating the rich & the poor with equality? If am really unable to afford a pair of shoes, am I not allowed or welcome into the Church to receives God's love? If I'm injured that I can't wear shoes, so am I not allow or welcome to receive God's love too? Just feel that if this issue is being handled with another approach, it will be better.

Anyway, I do see quite a number of Priest wearing sandals during mass, so if sandals is shoes, why not clogs? Maybe someone can enlighten me on this. Come to think of it, does our Holy Father, His grace, Pope Benedict XVI & our Archbishop Nicholas Chia wears sandals too?