Remember Church?

Just recently I was talking to a friend and somehow the topic turned to cultural differences. Not the differences, say, between the U.S. and Asia, but cultural differences between the more liberal north and the more conservative southern states.

One of the most striking differences is formality. Especially when it comes to those of attire. People in northern states, especially in bigger cities, are much more casual about how they dress. Well, except for when they go to interviews. People seem to dress just equally formal for professional interviews. But one example I can think of is at weddings. I have been to two weddings in South Carolina. At both of which, every woman was in a dress and every man was wearing black suits with ties. In St. Louis, which I will consider a more liberal city even though Missouri as a state in general is still a bit more conservative than St. Louis, I have been to one wedding. And at this wedding, maybe slightly less than half the people were dressed as formally as those I saw at weddings in SC.

Another example is church. I found out people in St. Louis went to church in jeans. I realize that sometimes people go to church for more social reasons than religious. But even so, at no church gathering, however social it may be especially on a Sunday, would you see anyone dressed in jeans in SC. I'm not trying to pass judgement on those who go to church in jeans. That concept was just not normally practiced in SC.

Which brings me to the topic of religion. I never really thought about this topic but now that I think back on it, its a very prevalent difference. When I was in college in St. Louis, no one talked about God or Jesus that much. Maybe it was just my group of friends, but that topic just doesn't come up as often in regular conversation. Even if it did come up, its more likely to be because of a religious reference and people are engaged in some intelectual debate or something about religious studies. But in SC, the word God or Jesus gets used much more often and more freely. More often than not, you get the feeling that God is like a father figure and Jesus is friend in people's minds. Not a study topic. People are more intimate with their talks of religion.

With that said, I never really considered myself to be a die-hard southerner. I never really thought myself as a conservative until people pointed that out to me in St. Louis. People made fun of me for being shocked that people went to church in jeans. I guess I don't mind it, but I wouldn't wear jeans to church. And I think wearing a suit with ties to weddings is more appropriate but I do like the idea of being more casual and celebrative in rejoicing in the marriage of two people. But I guess I am more conservative than most people in lots of aspects. During one of my interviews, I remained standing in front of the chair I was offered to sit in until my interviewer sat down. She called me a gentleman. I don't think I'm a gentleman by all means, but I guess the cultures around my high school community rubbed off on me. Now that I'm living in Boston, I feel myself becoming more and more distant with the Southern culture. (I don't really say "ma'am" or "y'all" anymore, both of which were said on a daily basis when I lived in SC.) I guess I am a southerner deep down, and I do hope that I don't become so foreign to the culture that people can't even see me as from the south.