Modesty in the Real World
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 18 ноя 2019
- Practicing the virtue of modesty in the real world means being modest not just in the way you dress, but also in your speech and conduct. The Church says modesty is a virtue, and while some popes have given guidelines on how to dress modestly, their guidelines are suggestions of discipline and not Church doctrine.
Jackie points out that the Church can’t have a modesty code because it’s universal, and every culture has different standards of modesty. Furthermore, a husband and wife can be totally naked before each other and still be modest because, as Pope St. John Paul II says in Love and Responsibility, “Love swallows up shame.”
On the other hand, it’s easy to dismiss the Church’s advice regarding modesty, and claim that immodest dress or behavior is just a person exercising their freedom of expression. However, Scripture and the Catechism explain very well the reasons why we should be modest, and it goes much deeper than a list of rules to follow. It’s about seeing ourselves the way God does.
Galatians 2:20 says, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Romans 12:1-2 states, “I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, St. Paul writes, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”
Here’s the excerpt on modesty from the Catechism Jackie mentions:
“Purity requires modesty, an integral part of temperance. Modesty protects the intimate center of the person. It means refusing to unveil what should remain hidden. It is ordered to chastity to whose sensitivity it bears witness. It guides how one looks at others and behaves toward them in conformity with the dignity of persons and their solidarity.
Modesty protects the mystery of persons and their love. It encourages patience and moderation in loving relationships; it requires that the conditions for the definitive giving and commitment of man and woman to one another be fulfilled. Modesty is decency. It inspires one's choice of clothing. It keeps silence or reserve where there is evident risk of unhealthy curiosity. It is discreet.
There is a modesty of the feelings as well as of the body. It protests, for example, against the voyeuristic explorations of the human body in certain advertisements, or against the solicitations of certain media that go too far in the exhibition of intimate things. Modesty inspires a way of life which makes it possible to resist the allurements of fashion and the pressures of prevailing ideologies.
The forms taken by modesty vary from one culture to another. Everywhere, however, modesty exists as an intuition of the spiritual dignity proper to man. It is born with the awakening consciousness of being a subject. Teaching modesty to children and adolescents means awakening in them respect for the human person” (CCC 2521-2524).
Read the entire section entitled “The Battle of Purity” for more on the Church’s teaching regarding modesty.
Glorify God with everything, including your body and how you dress.
Stay tuned for a follow-up video next week on modesty with Jackie’s friend Chica.
You can also check out these resources from Ascension on the subject of modesty and chastity:
- Articles, videos, and podcasts: media.ascensionpress.com/?s=c...
- Men, Women, and the Mystery of Love: ascensionpress.com/collection...
- Man and Woman He Created Them: A Theology of the Body: ascensionpress.com/collection...
- The Love that Satisfies: ascensionpress.com/collection...
- Freedom: 12 Lives Transformed by the Theology of the Body: ascensionpress.com/collection...
MORE FROM ASCENSION
Ascension’s main website: ascensionpress.com
Ascension Media: media.ascensionpress.com
The Great Adventure Bible: ascensionpress.com/collection...
SOCIAL MEDIA
Facebook: / ascensionpress
Twitter: / ascensionpress
LinkedIn: / ascension-press
Instagram: / ascensionpress
Subscribe: / ascensionpresents
This is authentic feminism: when you choose to stop being an object, and become a person with dignity.
I’ve actually stopped wearing trousers for the most part in my quest for feminine modesty. I love being a woman. But not everyone has to.
Lol run with the pants, I love that, I grew up forced to wear dresses for literally everything cz my family threatened that I would be in the state of mortal sin if I wore pants. I'm so happy to see Catholics that are actually Catholic
I'm from Brazil and here they teach us that obviously we can't wear tight pants, but we can wear baggy pants or any clothes that don't make us indecent and don't make others sin, we have to ask ourselves: "would our mother Mary wear this if live in our times?" It's a great question to know what to wear.
I laughed so hard at “If someone tells you it’s a sin to wear pants, then run far away, with those pants.” I agree with you. I’m not laughing at what was said it just hit funny.
What are you talking about? There have always been dress codes for mass at a bare minimum. You are also conflating the virtue of modesty with purity of heart. Two different things.
Also modesty is what the modern world needs spiritually and physically, not modesty for the modern age. Modesty is timeless and classy
I hate how modesty is always targeted at women. It is not a virtue solely for women. Can you please talk about men and modesty too?
JMJ. “Certain fashions will be introduced that will offend Our
Lord very much.” ~ Our Lady of Fatima, Ora Pro Nobis!
"Some days, Jacinta while in the hospital was very saddened by the worldliness of the visitors, the women dressed in fashionable clothes, often with low-cut dresses. 'What is it all for?' she asked Mother Godinho (her guardian). 'If they only knew what eternity is.'" -Blessed Jacinta Marto
This is soooo good!!! 💛 I am a Christian college girl and have made the decision to dress modestly, now for me it’s really about that change of heart: trying to cultivate God’s love and grace as close as possible in everything ELSE that I do.
This channel is very beneficial for the Church and the world.
this is so true .I never grew up knowing about modesty. Long story short, I left the church, and when I came back my conscience started telling me about modesty. Maybe it was a gift, I think now it was.
This was so powerfully put. Thank you so much for this Jackie.
Modesty doesn't change. We need to know what to wear depending where are going to be. Different dress "code" if we go to Church or go to the beach.
I dress with Marian Modesty. It's a cool movement, I think it helps my soul, but I agree that it can be different for others.
"Love swallows up shame" what a beautiful picture.
I loved this! I'm a member of another Christian denomination and loved how you got to the heart of modesty as an attitude and not just a dress code. Such a principle of modesty is applicable to men as much as women. Thanks for all you guys do!
I always ask myself one question: WOULD OUR MOTHER MARY WEAR THIS, IF SHE LIVED IN OUR TIMES?... I just can't imagine Her in tight jeans...That's why I try to wear pretty and modest dresses:) God bless you and may the Virgen Mary guide you!
Hello, I want to talk as a girl, a girl who hours a go had an incident, as I was walking home with my friends, a boy took advantage from me and lift up my skirt, I wasn't even wearing a tight or short skirt, but even thou I felt horrible as if my dignity was taken away, he ran away and I couldn't do anything to defend myself, I want to stan for the rights of women, women who feel abused as me like today, because we can wear normal clothes and feel happy and not abused like I felt, I want everybody to respect and love their neighbor, I hope someone can take something from my story.