|
Hi, Suzanne —
Thanks for the question.
You'll get a better response if you
use our "Ask
a question" button on knowledge
base page instead of writing us directly.
Modesty cannot be reduced to a question
of inches. Modesty is an attitude.
There are modest women villagers
in Africa who go about with their
breasts exposed because that is their
culture.
Modesty is intimately connected with
sexuality and the question of sexual
shame. Venerable John Paul the Great
touches on the subject in several
places in his books, in particular:
Edward Sri reviews some of this in
this article:
Check this out as well:
I think there are some reactionary
Catholics who go too far; who would
essentially advocate for a Catholic
burqa. The key is to base your conclusion
on Magisterial sources and not nineteenth
century American fashion. What you
need to do is, form yourself in:
- the meaning
of the body
- the dignity of the human person
- the meaning of sexuality, and
- then apply your conscience to
specific situations.
Look for studies on the Theology
of the Body (Pope St. John
Paul's work), although you should
look for digested versions,
as the work, itself, is very difficult
to understand. You need to understand
the root reasons for why things
are modest and immodest, rather
than follow with a measuring tape
a checklist of forbidden clothes.
That said, different circumstances
calling for different clothing is
not relativism.
Relativism is that idea that there
is no absolute truth. If I say that
I shouldn't wear shorts in Mass but
it's OK to wear shorts when working
out, that is not relativism.
Most
people in this century recognize
that what you wear to the beach necessarily
covers less skin than what you wear
at a wedding. What you wear at a
ball game is different from what
you wear to work, unless you're an
engineer like me. That's not to say
that modesty isn't required in each
case; it is, but the standard is
different. Anyone man who doubts
that, ask him if he would come to work
with his shirt off and if he would go
swimming with a shirt on.
I know I haven't answered your question
the way you probably wanted, but
hopefully, I've given you a direction.
Bob K.
[Related posting]
|
