Modesty Is Not “A Heart Posture”
Christian women have been heavily influenced by the wider culture when it comes to fashion. Many of whom have taken to wearing skimpy bikinis and other forms of revealing dress, while claiming “modesty”. They have “messy conversations about modesty,” rather than finding principles by which to dress. They speak of having a “modest heart posture”. In other words, you can dress inappropriately, as long as you don’t do anything inappropriate. Part of the reason why this arose is as a backlash to purity culture. A ridiculous culture that takes modesty too far and claims that spaghetti straps are immodest and your shorts have to go to your knees. But now we have gone too far in the opposite direction. Christian women now claim that intention overrides fabric. A development I explain in more detail here.
It is telling that men are never invited to take part in Christian women’s “messy conversations” about dress. Perhaps because then they would be faced with the reality that the only reason why women need to dress discreetly is because men exist. If earth only consisted of women a la Wonder Woman and her Amazons, then women would only need to wear clothing when the elements dictated and nudity would be the norm in warmer climates. If men were invited to discussions of modesty women would be told that leggings make their butts a target of the male gaze and that low cut blouses give men a nice distraction from the humdrum of daily life. It doesn’t matter if you are holding a bible, men are still staring at your butt.
Christian women who do wear more clothing are afraid of “shaming” women who don’t. Apparently, the biggest sin you can commit is hurting someone else’s feelings, even if the advice you are giving is good for them. Women who dress revealingly should be told how valuable their bodies are. When a woman dresses discreetly she is forcing the male gaze up to look her in the eye and see her heart. It doesn’t matter if you have a modest heart posture if no one can see it. Men are drawn to look at a woman’s body, because it is valuable. Because it is valuable a woman should protect her sexuality and only share it with one whom she deems worthy of it. A woman who is told this may feel shame at first, but that shame will soon be replaced with pride in her form. She will know her body’s worth and be selective about who she shares it with, because now she knows her sexuality is worth protecting.
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