"When Tradition turns into Traditionalism"
Proper 17.B.21
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
The Rev. Melanie McCarley
Debi Thomas grew up in a church where jewelry was not allowed. She writes: “No one in the congregation wore engagement rings or wedding bands. Women and girls weren’t permitted to wear rings, necklaces, bracelets, or earrings. Even play jewelry. It was all banned. Anyone who showed up on a Sunday morning sporting an “ornament”—even first-time visitors ignorant of the prohibition – could be denied Communion.