a tight mini skirt and high heels simply don't go together unless your objective is to make a woman pretty much stay put :laugh: I love to see those idjits try to walk far or climb lots of steep stairs :D
I think it can be difficult at times for young women to dress in style and be attractive, yet avoid being inappropriate. I personally think high heels can be okay depending on the outfit; some formal attire looks best with a heel. If you are short like me, heels add desperately needed height:)
I would personally try to be careful to avoid wearing a skirt or dress that was really short or a top that was low cut. I also think the setting makes a difference. If you are dressing for church you should be more low key than when you are going to a party or wedding. In the end, I think it all boils down to trying to avoid putting a stumbling block before others. I also agree with earlier posts, that modesty includes more than just the outfit. A woman can be dressed very conservatively, yet project a desire for attention.
When dressing modestly.....should fashion be major influence? modesty can be discussed in ways other than clothes but this thread is about clothes.........what happened to simplicity in the way we dress both guys and girls? Why is fashion so important that our scriptures take a backseat to fashion and sex appeal and fitting in?
If you NEED to dress fashionably you are a slave to it, if you REALLY NEED to dress fashionably you worship it.
And it's really stupid showing as much skin as possible and then expecting no one to leer at you or worse. That's like going to play with lions and then being surprised when they eventually try to eat you.
I wasn't implying that fashion comes before modesty. I was merely stating that there is a fine line between dressing nicely and being immodest. Sometimes that can be difficult. Obviously, a Christian woman should chose to be chaste over being in style. However, not everyone agrees on what is acceptable or inappropriate. Current styles do have a huge impact and it isn't just that women are slaves to fashion. Our concept of what is modest dressing changes with time and culture is also a factor. What you might consider to be modest, might have been considered inappropriate or revealing a few centuries ago. I think the best approach is to understand the culture at the time the New Testament was written and try to understand what was the intent and spirit of what the apostles wrote.
In the time the new testament was written, Roman women never went in public without wearing a full veil. It wasn't just Christian or Jewish women who practiced that custom. It was considered revealing and inappropriate for a women to have her face/head uncovered in a public setting. That is why Paul in Corinthians addresses the need for Christian women to be covered in church. I think we can gather from that, that Christianity brought more liberty to women in general and they were becoming too relaxed. Obviously, if the secular society considers something inappropriate, Christians should be extra careful not to create offense.
Peter admonishes women to be chaste as well. (1 Peter 3:3-4). I recently read some Roman history that shed light on this. A sign of wealth and status amongst Roman women was ornate, lavish hairstyles. Rich Roman women would have their slaves spend hours using hot iron rods and olive oil to create braided, curly, updos. These hairstyles weren't just a simple braid or ponytail. They required hours and skilled servants. They also wore excessive amounts of cosmetics and had expensive garments, etc. I don't believe Peter is saying that a women can never braid her hair or look nice. He is addressing the lavish and expensive dressing routine of the time.
Back to the point about fashion. If a woman is consumed with her appearance and spending lots of money and time on looking perfect, than that would be contrary to how a Christian women should conduct herself.
ABSOLUTELY, it exists! Modesty is my favorite "fashion accessory" to wear! (oy, that was WAAAY too dang girly and hurt to say. Bleh! *scrubs my tongue* Wont do that again, psh! LoL) ^__^
But seriously, modesty comes at a point where a woman realizes "yes, i do have a figure that is favorable, but i don't have to flash it here and there to get attention". When her self respect means more to her than being seen or called pretty, that is when modesty has a chance to set in.
I do not understand why some females feel the need to dress that way for "fashion" purposes. There is SO much more to this life than what you clothe yourself in. If a woman spends more time, money, and effort on how she looks on the outside, and not even half as much effort shaping who she is on the inside, then that probably isn't the kind of woman a biblical man would be after. :}
Father already told us, He'd take care of what we eat and what we are clothed in, for He feeds the birds and clothes the flowers just fine, and how much more does He love and adore us over them. Lol It's fine to want to take CARE of your temple, to tend to the body Father has blessed you with, but when you step over into a more unGodly mindset, doing it for show and glamour, to glorify your own beauty..is when it's taking a step a weee bit too far. :[
Ladies ......do you consider modesty relative or absolute? Do you think that modesty (clothing) shouod be the same regardless of the generation we are in or that it depends on the time and place? Please use scriptures to justify your position.
I feel that modesty can be both. I don't agree with mini skirts, and plunging necklines, but I don't agree with covered to the ankles and wearing long sleeves and always wearing a hat. Yes it changes with the times but what if next century all women are only wearing bikinis everywhere and that would be considered "modest" and the ones who are immodest are wearing pasties and a g-string as their normal clothing? It is relative but also there is absolute modest as well.
