Every Catholic knows that "once a Catholic, always a Catholic". And there is something in this: the muscle memory in remembering word-perfect lyrics when you hear an old primary school hymn for the first time in decades, the comforting familiarity you feel when you enter a beautiful stained-glass church, or how you First Holy Communion was still the best day your life (un-ashamedly). A lapsed Catholic’s favourite thing to talk about is the one thing they spent the better half of their life running from: Catholicism.
In today's digital age, TikTok trends come as often as Shirley Ballas does whenever a male celebrity, with a vaguely pretty face hits the Strictly Cum Dancing dancefloor on a Saturday night.
There's always a new trend popping up.
But the latest #CatholicCore trend (under the same umbrella as Christian Core and its more problematic pal, Mexican Catholic Girl Core) has especially caught my attention. And, has sustained a pretty impressive shelf life of relevance amongst a pool of fleeting micro trends that come and go like the wind changes. (don't make that face, the wind will change and it will be stuck like that forever!!)
sooooo what is CatholicCore?
Cathlicore uses symbols and motifs well known within the Christian religion purely as fashion fodder, as a statement.
(Trimble, 2022)
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Sabrina Carpenter's 'Feather' music video (filmed in a Church) is adorned with sparkly religious motifs, coffins that read 'rip bitch' and a coquette Sabs dancing in a way that definitely doesn't leave a 5cm gap for the Holy Spirit..The priest who allowed such controversial filming in his church was subsequently stripped from his duties. |
Catholics don’t do things by half. I mean.. their whole 1500s mood board was literally about being the most flashy, decadent style of worship compared to their more modest Protestant brothers.
From the silken floor length garments worn by priests, to the fact that Mass is traditionally said in Latin (infamously the most bows and frills language going), Catholicism is one big theatric. Drama, decadence and threatrics. It’s all very Drama Kid/show tune/silk and gold/choirs/oh and the *literal* offering of Jesus' wafer thin body.
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Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker's wedding in 2022 was drenched in flashy religious motifs: from an ornate Catholic alter, chunky crosses and a wedding mini dress featuring a veil emblazzoned with the Virgin Mary |
Ok... why are we crazed for this Christiancor’blimey trend?
Reclaiming and reappropriating religious trauma:
Firstly, what do we mean by reappropriation?:
to take back or reclaim (something) for one's own purposestrying to reappropriate a disparaging term
Hot!
We can see examples of reappropriation across many resistance movements. Typically used by minority groups who have been oppressed by the majority ie; the LGBTQ+ community reclaiming the word queer, or the aptly named SlutWalk protests coined and incited by female protesters calling out rape culture and slut-shaming.
Disclaimer: I understand that Catholicism and Western Christianity might not be an explicitly oppressed minority group and therefore potentially unfitting for the criteria of reappropriation...I am focusing on the experience of individuals affected by religious trauma following an upbringing moulded by instutionalised religion.
Religious trauma:
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Indie girlie Ethel Cain has built her music brand around her complex relationship with Christianity after her Baptist Church upbringing |
Religious trauma is any trauma that takes place in a religious setting, often through psychological or emotional distress or emotionally manipulative practices.
Whilst a heavily encouraged religious upbringing might not be intentionally, or exclusively harmful, it does have the ability to negatively affect people in different ways.
Causes of religious trauma can include:
Using guilt and fear-mongering tactics to control behavior, thoughts and feelings based on strict moral coding
Rigid gender roles being used to limit and control
Repression of critical thinking and questioning
Physical, sexual, finanical and/or emotional abuse
(Sandstone Care, 2024)
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A controversial theme: The Met Gala 2018: Heavenly Bodies and The Catholic Imagination |
For the majority of marginalised folk who have faced trauma and discrimination at the hands of oppressors, the act of reappropriating otherwise negative associated lanaguge and symbols is a powerful tool. Powerful in reempowrring, and taking ownership of something that has been used negatively against them and reclaiming the use of such labels and symbols to use themselves. If you're unapologetically labelling yourself with words that might have used to shame you, you've stripped oppressors the power to shame you via these labels and symbols. It's yours.
If your experience in the Catholic Church was anything like mine (and I actually looooved Catholic school), you might associate Catholicism with the constant reminder that we are evil sinners facing death and the firey pits of hell, or is it the sadistic, human-shaped judgements, villifying anyone who has experienced thoughts and feelingss of sexual desire? (Belfield, 2022)
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girlish bows are a Catholic Core staple! |
Apart from the fact that genuine Christian teaching is built around a benevolent God who encourages us to be full of hope with the good news that Jesus loves us sooo much that he died for our sins already!!.. Catholicism possesses an unfortunate histroic reputation of being all fire and brimstone; eventually pushing disgruntled people away from faith all together. And of course, if your only exposure to the Church has been one of fear and shame, then why would you want to stick to it...
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| i like the confidence, hate the crop |
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if i wore this to Church I would be like a widow stood on a porch wrapping her XXL cardigan around her waist trying to cover up this sacreligious little tee shirt
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This might explain the rise in ex-Catholic girlies, rebelling against purity culture, in the interest of self-expression and individualism. Donning a crucifix, sporting a cropped tee with 'GOD's FAVOURITE' emblazzoned across the tits, knee high socks with Mary Jane shoes and bows in their hair: it’s Catholic style but make it sexy. The provocative and confrontational language used in this counter-Catholic aesthetic is desperate to declare that 'I no longer belong to you, God! I'm in control of my life now!' A visual FU to the years of shame and fear-mongering surrounding sexual identity, and desire to stand out as an individual. How better to piss off the Church that surpressed you for decades than to dress as a sexified version of the quintessential Catholic gurl.
Rebellion and Individualism:
In a secular post-modern time, we are increasingly driven by individualism. In the Western world at least, we are ruled by neo-liberal principles that encourage the individual to solely rely and focus on themself, and not work as part of a collective (Blakeley, 2021) We are surrounded by products that promise to maximise individual potential; from the myriad of self-help books, individual's reliance of on 'manifestation' to obtain desires and goals, body enhancements and beauty products, to our ruthless obession with fame, power and climbing to the top of the career ladder (Heintz, 2017).
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TikTok is the light calorie alternative to the equally trust worthy (and scrumptits) fortune cookie xx
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Just look at how far we are straying from collectivism: the decline in religious community (with a drastic jump from 75% Britons believing in God in 1981, to less than half in 2022) evidencing how Gen Z are the least religious generation compared to their predecessors (Kings College London, 2023). Or perhaps, the crumbling of the welfare state (from relentless cuts to the NHS, leaving dementia suffers to their own devices and the closure of youth inititives to name a few). And most recently, the neglect of elderly lives during COVID-19, to the current discussion of the End of Life Bill, we are a drifting society.
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Some dubious about the proposed End of Life Bill are concerned that it could be used non-ethically against the disabled, elderly, homeless and improvished |
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| just reminicsing... addison rae getting cancelled for her 'father son and the holy spirit' bikini |
Significantly, we notice that the majority of images and aesthetics associated with Catholic girl Core are hyper sexualised and ultra feminine. Think Lana Del Rey, Sabrina Carpenter and the glamour of the hyper-femme 2000s lacey, Coquette, girlish but sexy, diamente-cross drenched celebrities like Victoria Beckham and Paris Hilton. |
| that's hot! |
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| mum and dad in the 90s |
A visual protest against something that once symbolised repression and fear, turned into individualism and bold self-expression. It just so helps that the gold, glitzy, hyper-femme Catholic aesthetic is so fashion-coded, and popularised by celebs whose style we love and replicate. A secular society has replaced its idolisation of God, with the new-age idolisation of celebrity and the aesthetic.
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| colourised footage of the Virgin Mary being a MUA |
But is this all a sign of craving religion?
Humans are hard-wired to crave a sense of belonging... call that evolutionary survival tactics or call it a sign that we were made in the image of a higher creator.. A creator who craves a deep and personal relationship with us so much that He did something about it! And sent His son to Earth so that we could know and live through him. Before having a personal relationship with Jesus, I thought religion was just an excuse to control and fear-monger a society into submission and order. I had never considered that there was Jesus at the centre... which sounds odd considering every morning began with a prayer and I was Year 6's longest reigning Prayer Table Monitor . But hey! whatver floats your fishing boat!
There's a nostalgia in digging out your old Catholic memrobillia, and with nostalgia comes a deep sense of comfort. But what if this comfort is a sign of God drawing us deeper to Him? What if wearing a cross goes further than aesthetics... and deep down, we know there's a profound spirital meaning behind the cross. A cross that represents a God that loves and saves.
And whilst we cling onto the popular (and varryingly comforting), man-made soul searching techniques of meditation, crystal girlies and human-focused spirituality, we are never too far from the next existental crisis. The big whats, whos and whys about life, our purpose and our existence. And surely only an all-knowing, all-loving, all-powerful God has those answers... So next time you're on Depop about to send a shockingly lowball offer on that pink diamente 'genuine 2000s, worn by Lindsey Lohan' cross necklace, why not be open to getting to know the God who created that cross because he la la la la la loves you.
