Immodesty Satan's Virtue

[Pax Vobiscum]

PART TWO:

Questions, Concerns, Practical Tips…

 

CHAPTER SIX (Part 1):

What Me, Sew?

 

     Now, practically speaking when I began to wear dresses seven years ago, it meant changing not only my own wardrobe but also that of my three daughters! This was no simple task, but I was determined to change. As with many families, money does not float freely in our home, so I had to find an inexpensive way of making the change. What I hope to share with you here are practical tips on how you can make the transition, simply.

     First, there are some wonderful companies dedicated to sewing modest clothing for women. These places are listed in the Resources at the back of this book. At the time of the first printing of this book, all the companies listed were non-Catholic. There are now two Catholic sources! Perhaps there are others who are interested in starting a Catholic Sewing business dedicated to modesty. There is tremendous potential in it I am told. Please let us know if you do!

     For those who are looking for a less expensive way to change their wardrobes, I hope these tips are helpful.

     Some common-sense rules for modesty may not need to mentioned here, but I thought I would include them in hopes of making this book as complete as possible for those who are sincerely searching for some truth and guidance in this subject.

     One cannot help but think of the practical reasons for dressing modestly today. A wonderful lady with amazing perception told me this with the increase in immodesty and the naturalness of impurity today, we will never know just how many errors are being caused by our behavior and dress. When people’s lives are surrounded by sin and they are ruled by their passions, how much is their mind really on their work? For youth, this can mean missed grades and poor learning as they worry if their ‘beau’ is being faithful. For adults caught in this same trap, it can lead to errors at work with a variety of consequences for all of us. If this person’s work happens to be a typing, she may make errors in type. A surgeon perhaps they will miss a very important detail during surgery. Someone working on an assembly line for cars, may miss a bolt or two. An aircraft mechanic, may make the littlest error and bring down a plane! How many work-related accidents today are caused by people’s attachment to impurity, to the distraction of their imagination. We may never know, but it is a thought to be pondered.

     Something I want to mention is unisex dressing. The Prophecy of St. Nilus from the fifth century tells us, “After the year 1900, toward the middle of the 20th century, the people of that time will become unrecognizable…People’s appearances will change, and it will be impossible to distinguish men from women due to their shamelessness in dress and style of hair.” We are all familiar with the kind of clothing that seems to be for men, but seems to be for women too. Many of us, perhaps, are so used to it that we don’t even think of it. These kinds of clothing should be avoided as much as possible. It is important that clothing should reflect the differences between men and women. Boys and girls. In other words, girls clothing should look at least somewhat feminine, not necessarily all frilly, but plain and simply ladylike. Wearing a full skirt or dress that is plain will be feminine enough. This brings us to another common trend today that is part of this ‘unisex mentality’ and that is girls and women having short hair. Often today we see men with long hair walking beside women with short hair! I often think how ludicrous this is! I know many families may not necessarily agree with me, but I do think it is a simple thing to instill in children the fact that boys and girls are different.

     How beautiful and feminine long hair can be. We need to rediscover all the hairstyles for girls that make use of the generous amount of hair, always known to be proper for girls and women. Now I am not advocating extraordinarily long hair, but I think there should be a limit to how short it should be. Our girls always had hair very long, below their waists, if it would grow that long. As the years went on, I always said that the limit that I would trim their hair was no shorter than their armpits. I felt that this would leave their hair just long enough to be long and not short. At this length they could still make use of some variety of hairstyles whereas anything shorter would severely limit these. Our girls also never had layers put into their hair (which I feel de-feminizes their hair) nor did they have bangs (until our second oldest daughter cut her own when she was three!). But I think these are acceptable. Now, these are just my thoughts, but I would stress that girls’ hairstyles should reflect femininity by trying to keep the length below the shoulder even if they do have bangs.

YOUNG BOYS…

 

     Boys, of course, should have short hair that is neatly cut. Clothing for boys is not nearly as difficult as girls so I will limit myself here to a few recommendations and go on to girls clothing. In general boys clothing should fit properly and avoid the extreme that is popular today: extra baggy. This trend of overly large clothes is not only unbecoming, but also offends against modesty by looking sloppy. Therefore, avoid trendy styles in jeans that have extra wide pant bottoms. Go for classic styles that are simple and plain. Avoid also, sleeveless shirts or tanks shirts which are inappropriate for young boys as well as men, as well as any clothing with slogans. This doesn’t mean that boys cannot wear casual clothing, but it is simple enough to dress them in a pair of jeans and plain t-shirt with sleeves.

     Another trend for boys is dressing them in shorts. As young boys tumble around in shorts, even if adequately baggy and long, they will nevertheless reveal their underclothing. I think that this is a minor offence against modesty even though the boys don’t realize it and I think it would be best to train your boys don’t realize it and I think it would be best to train your boys from a young age not to wear shorts. Whatever they become used to wearing as a child they will be accustomed to wear as an adult.

     Some may feel I am being too extreme here, but form personal experience, I have seen this on our eldest boy. Boys, to become men in the true sense, should be trained from a young age to be able to withstand the rigors of weather and discomfort. This includes the discomforts of wearing pants when it is very warm. We want our boys to grow up to the become men who are strong, courageous and impervious to discomforts. How awful it is to see men, not having been ‘toughened’ in their youth, constantly complaining. My recommendations is don’t pamper your boys. Dress them in long pants regardless of the weather, using constantly complaining. My recommendations is don’t pamper your boys. Dress them in long pants regardless of the weather, using shorts only for swimming that may be done in the privacy of your home. Give them the examples of our good priests from long ago (or the few priests left today) who wear full length black wool cassocks in blazing heat with no mention of the discomfort.