Those Shameful Thoughts and What They Really Say about You
I have an outfit which would be perfect for dressing up as a nun on Purim, but I feel funny going to synagogue on Purim dressed as a nun! Is there any problem in Jewish law with it?
Actually, there is. The Torah forbids imitating the practices and dress of the non-Jews (based on Leviticus 18:3: “…and do not follow their traditions”). Based on this, we may not dress in the distinctive religious dress of another religion. Thus, we may not dress up as a priest, nun, monk, bishop, buddha, etc. – even if we are not doing so to antagonize or ridicule others (which would anyway be offensive). Now in terms of Santa Claus – which has always been a common Purim getup – there might be room to argue that it’s just a silly, imaginary figure and not really a religious symbol. However, in practice since Santa is so closely associated with Christianity, we should not dress like him either. Sorry!
See also here for a longer discussion on the significance of dressing up on Purim.
(Sources: Shulchan Aruch Y.D. 178:1; Piskei Shmuot 175, citing R’ Elyashiv; Ashrei Ish (R’ Elyashiv) III 48:6.)
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