Why we shouldn't be surprised with inmodesty

Christian women are often shocked and surprised at the level of immodesty in society today. No one should be surprised, in fact it is completely expected and its important to understand why. 

Here is one modern view:

Women choose their wardrobe based off of varying factors, including but not limited to: functionality, mobility, comfort, pattern, fabric, visual appeal (in the form of cut, style, and appearance on one's body), trends, emotional state, mental state, sexual appetite, and iconic influence. All of these aspects are okay, because they are all facets of who we are has humans. To assume we are all walking around in short shorts because we are seeking your attention is absolutely absurd. I wear short shorts in spite of external attention, because I enjoy the feeling of sunshine on my legs and the flexibility that they afford me in my active lifestyle. I don't appreciate the prying eyes, and as I am polite enough to refrain from overtly ogling the bulge your bike shorts highlight, I hold you to the same standard when it comes to my thighs. (Source)

Both men and women are much more concerned about their own feelings, desires and comforts and dress accordingly — for "themselves" with little thought of others in mind. We live in a ME society so this shouldn't come as a surprise. When you dress the way you like, you think very little of what others might think or whether you are offending someone.  In fact many young woman don't care what others think and are very quick to respond if someone comments anything about their dress. 

Some, but not all women like to push the boundaries and see what they can get away with and clothing is one way of pushing the social norms. Hollywood encourages this with many popular stars wearing almost nothing in public resulting in their photos scattered all over magazines and the internet increasing their popularity. Ordinary women use platforms like Instagram to "show" themselves off and some have quite the following. 

Comfort is all important to many women which is why we are seeing a growing trend towards leggings and yoga pants. They are comfortable and for some this outweighs what others might think. 

Younger women do not want to dress like their mothers, which they perceive as being too conservative and therefore go in quite the opposite direction and wear outfits their mothers would never wear. 

Sexiness and looking "good" are very important for many young women and they love to look and dress sexy. They see nothing wrong with this. This is supported by the growing number of plastic surgery procedures for facial and body fillers (reshaping the body to make it look trim and sexy), bob implants, botox etc..

But most of all — a quarter of the Australian population recorded "no religion" on the 2011 Census (2016 data is not yet available but the figure will be higher than the current 24%). Likewise, Canada and England/Wales also recorded a similar figure. In New Zealand it is over 35%. The USA it is around 21% (2014 General Social Survey), one in five Americans do not believe in anything, and 30% never go to church or other worship services. These people are not interested in conforming to religious "norms" and have no desire to dress to please others. 

Whether we like it or not, we have to live in a society that dresses in a way that may displease or shock. We do have to learn to live with it, it is a sad fact and we cannot lock ourselves away in our homes and never leave to avoid seeing immodesty. It doesn't mean we have to join in and dress the same, but we do need to accept that we and our families will be exposed to immodest dress on a daily basics and we can't change it. Our boys need to be trained to ignore the immodesty as many non-christian males do these days. 

There are many modern modest outfits that are very trendy that modern Christian women can wear without standing out as "different". No one needs to wear baggy shapeless outfits to look modest. Modesty is about dressing with dignity and being aware of others and their concerns. It does mean covering up so our private bits are not exposed. But doesn't mean dressing head to toe. 


Comments

  1. I dress mostly for comfort. This means pinafores (jumpers in the US) are my most used clothes. There is no need to be immodest to be comfortable 😊

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    1. I don't think you are thinking quite like a 20 year old going out in the evening to a night club!!!!

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    2. At nearly double that age, it is hard to put myself in those kind of shoes ;)

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    3. I know ladies your age that go night clubbing !!!!! However, if you are like me, I am far too lazy to get all dressed up in a short skimpy dress and stand around in the cold!!! I much prefer to be curled up on my lounge chair in my pj's with a blanket keeping me warm!!!!

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    4. Of course, I am with you, except I would be knitting too =)

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  2. I appreciate your analysis! I had not considered the "me" aspect of immodesty.

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  3. Modesty is an issue in each time.... and it has meant different things to different people. I do not expect to see modestly dressed women of the world... it doesn't happen often. It is part of living in a fallen world. I do rejoice over those who dress modestly and look nice... :)

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    1. I agree - what I think is modest someone else may not. I often am surprised when i see someone beautifully dressed and that certainly brings me joy :)

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