Modesty in dress is a topic I have noticed appearing more frequently in Catholic and other Christian articles and commentary. Intrinsically coming from that theme is the discussion of dress for church, proper clothing for worship, reverent modest attire, etc. These and all related subject matter have been extensively pondered, opinioned, and written about, particularly in the last few years.
Various articles written just this week concerning modest/immodest dress focus on the assorted concerns about the type of provocative garb, the social stigma accompanying refusal to follow the latest trends (no matter how odious), and the increasing broad age range of the offenders – from very young to senior!
Despite how much I personally agree with all the recent communications about the matter at hand, I believe they are all missing a newer, sub-focused key to the issue. Most all concerns for Catholic/Christian modesty on dress still center primarily on women. Modestly dressed woman remains a great concern and should always be. But we now find ourselves in a culture where men have to be just as mindful. In the profane nature of contemporary Western culture, immodesty is an equal opportunity offense and one that needs to be better addressed!
As with many things in this world, bad effects often are either ignored or apathetically allowed to appear in the erroneous belief that unfortunate consequences are always an inescapable result when enacting a greater good. It was such with the Women’s Movement ("Women’s Lib" when I was a child). One example of the positives is the awareness and correcting of such matters as equal opportunity and pay in the workplace. But the drawback is that in women wanting to emulate many aspects of what was deemed as a "male world," they adapted many of men’s bad behaviors. Casual and promiscuous sex and non-committed relationships are some of the many examples. What should have been happening at the same time is that men, when "busted" on this bad behavior, should have been called to conversion. Women brought themselves down instead of men bringing themselves up. A lot of men shamefully encourage and perpetuate this “equal opportunity” in the false notion of being enlightened or "evolved."
In the spirit of this bad conduct, we now see little in the current modesty of men acting in what often appears to be attempts for the non-stop attraction and tempting of women. Just as it is for women, men that knowingly tempt women in their acquired bad behavior is also the sin of scandal. Most assuredly, there are those who will roll their eyes in bewildered amusement – let them. I prefer to keep in mind the words of one who was graced to be spiritually wise well beyond her incredible youth:
Fashions will much offend Our Lord. People who serve God should not follow fashions. The Church has no fashions. - Blessed Jacinta Marto
to be continued...
No comments:
Post a Comment