Google's Dress Standard

When talking in class about Google's ninth statement on what they 'know to be true', it raised some thoughts on how much society plays a part in group mantras. We discussed the example of Church on Wednesday and how there is a commonly recognized but unwritten dress code. Church goers usually dress in their "sunday best". We went into discussion about how more modern churches are doing away with the formal attire and are promoting and accepting a comfortable look. My thoughts in class went to other religions, in other countries. It is obviously a cultural thing, dressing up for church in the U.S. and I think that this reflects the societal ideals that we hold. Being dressed up for church represents two things: that we believe that we should like nice when going to worship, not for our sake but out of respect for whichever god, and also that, since church is a very social setting, a community, not just a place of worship, we want to look nice in the eyes of our fellow members. I tried to think of other religions that promote being dressed up when going to worship. Buddhism and Hinduism don't mind what you wear, Islam only requires females to cover their hair, I'm not sure about Judaism...? The point though, is that this is not just a religious thing; it's a sociocultural thing. Americans want to keep up appearances, with the cars we drive, the clothes we wear, bags we use, etc. It's a cultural shift that churches in the U.S. are changing their dress standards. It's more of a cultural reflection, that Google encourages comfy clothes and not suits in its offices. This shift may be representative of the idea that we need to be less materialistic and caring about others opinions of us. Google is stating the point that looks don't mind - brainpower does. The only place this might not fly is in Europe...haha.