Modesty
I have read some very interesting things lately, provoking my thoughts on the subject of modesty. It has come to my attention that there are flagrant violations of God’s commandments concerning modesty everywhere, even among the Christian community. And yet while this is true, there are also the caring Christians who take this to the other end of the spectrum in their fervent desire to stay away from the “edge of the cliff,” as the division between sin and a faithful walk with Christ is often termed.
I Timothy 2
v 8) I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting;
v 9) in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing,
v 10) but, which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works.
These are the verses most often referred to on the subject of modesty, written by Paul to Timothy sometime during the years 62-67 AD, as near as Biblical scholars can pinpoint. While researching the topic, I was really blown away by the thought of how amazingly the Bible has been preserved and how detailed it is in describing the customs of the times – whether in condemning them or commanding them.
The Greek and Roman forms of dress, particularly women’s dress, were very similar – long, draped clothing in layers. Women’s dresses were all very much alike, embroidery and the stola (the Roman symbol of a woman’s marriage and limited to be worn only by those who were married) being the few things to set their clothing apart from others. Since they were only permitted to distinguish themselves by their “elegance, finery, and beautiful clothes” (Full quote: “Women cannot partake of magistracies, priesthoods, triumphs, badges of office, gifts, or spoils of war; elegance, finery, and beautiful clothes are women's badges, in these they find joy and take pride, this our forebears called the women's world.” - Livy, History of Rome 34.5), they adorned themselves with extremely elaborate hairstyles and jewelry. I found these two sites particularly helpful:
Roman Clothing: http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/clothing2.html
Greek Clothing: http://www.richeast.org/htwm/Greeks/costume/costume.html
Places like Corinth and Thessalonica were of Roman rule, where Ephesus and Philippi were under Greek power.
The dress of the times being known, we then look at the verses themselves. Paul begins the sentence with v 8 – “I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting;” – and continues in v 9 with a phrase concerning women – “in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing,”.
The verse under current examination would be verse 9 - “in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing,”.
The women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation. I want to stop and look at the meaning of these words a moment.
According to Merriam-Webster, the word propriety is defined by four options, two of which are obsolete.
1) obsolete : true nature
2) obsolete : a special characteristic : peculiarity
3) : the quality or state of being proper : appropriateness
4) a : conformity to what is socially acceptable in conduct or speech b : fear of offending against conventional rules of behavior especially between the sexes c plural : the customs and manners of polite society
I think Paul’s meaning of this word propriety is easily narrowed down to 3 and/or 4)a, more likely 3. “The quality or state of being proper : appropriateness.” We can see what was usually worn by both cultures of the day is extremely dissimilar to anything like that which we wear in these times. So what are we to do concerning this “desire” that Paul requested of the Corinthians in our own daily lives? I would say it is a matter, indeed, of propriety. What is APPROPRIATE? Does it relate to where we live, the society we grew up in, the places we go, the things we do?
In Las Vegas, an outfit exposing midriff, the entire length of the legs, and as much cleavage as possible is considered appropriate. Would I wear such a thing? No. Some places in India require women to dress in long lengths of cloth shrouding their entire forms and veils to hide their hair and faces. Would I wear something like that? No. There are no specifications given to us as to what is and what is not considered appropriate. It is left to the conscience and our God-given knowledge of right and wrong. In my personal life, I choose to avoid exposure of my womanly body parts and to still wear what I like. My clothing choices usually include things that induce odd responses from other people; I prefer everything to be in black, Victorian stylized, fishnets, corsets, heels or platforms on my shoes, and extremes in my makeup. I have pale skin and dark hair and people may say I look evil and joke with me about Vampirism. This does not mean I am immodest in my dress, nor does it mean I am seeking attention; it is simply beyond what society considers "normal".
I myself do not wish to tell anyone what is or is not appropriate; I leave that to the determination of the reader and his or her conscience; but I do believe we all could dwell a moment on this subject.
I Timothy 2
v 8) I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting;
v 9) in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing,
v 10) but, which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works.
These are the verses most often referred to on the subject of modesty, written by Paul to Timothy sometime during the years 62-67 AD, as near as Biblical scholars can pinpoint. While researching the topic, I was really blown away by the thought of how amazingly the Bible has been preserved and how detailed it is in describing the customs of the times – whether in condemning them or commanding them.
The Greek and Roman forms of dress, particularly women’s dress, were very similar – long, draped clothing in layers. Women’s dresses were all very much alike, embroidery and the stola (the Roman symbol of a woman’s marriage and limited to be worn only by those who were married) being the few things to set their clothing apart from others. Since they were only permitted to distinguish themselves by their “elegance, finery, and beautiful clothes” (Full quote: “Women cannot partake of magistracies, priesthoods, triumphs, badges of office, gifts, or spoils of war; elegance, finery, and beautiful clothes are women's badges, in these they find joy and take pride, this our forebears called the women's world.” - Livy, History of Rome 34.5), they adorned themselves with extremely elaborate hairstyles and jewelry. I found these two sites particularly helpful:
Roman Clothing: http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/clothing2.html
Greek Clothing: http://www.richeast.org/htwm/Greeks/costume/costume.html
Places like Corinth and Thessalonica were of Roman rule, where Ephesus and Philippi were under Greek power.
The dress of the times being known, we then look at the verses themselves. Paul begins the sentence with v 8 – “I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting;” – and continues in v 9 with a phrase concerning women – “in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing,”.
The verse under current examination would be verse 9 - “in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing,”.
The women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation. I want to stop and look at the meaning of these words a moment.
According to Merriam-Webster, the word propriety is defined by four options, two of which are obsolete.
1) obsolete : true nature
2) obsolete : a special characteristic : peculiarity
3) : the quality or state of being proper : appropriateness
4) a : conformity to what is socially acceptable in conduct or speech b : fear of offending against conventional rules of behavior especially between the sexes c plural : the customs and manners of polite society
I think Paul’s meaning of this word propriety is easily narrowed down to 3 and/or 4)a, more likely 3. “The quality or state of being proper : appropriateness.” We can see what was usually worn by both cultures of the day is extremely dissimilar to anything like that which we wear in these times. So what are we to do concerning this “desire” that Paul requested of the Corinthians in our own daily lives? I would say it is a matter, indeed, of propriety. What is APPROPRIATE? Does it relate to where we live, the society we grew up in, the places we go, the things we do?
In Las Vegas, an outfit exposing midriff, the entire length of the legs, and as much cleavage as possible is considered appropriate. Would I wear such a thing? No. Some places in India require women to dress in long lengths of cloth shrouding their entire forms and veils to hide their hair and faces. Would I wear something like that? No. There are no specifications given to us as to what is and what is not considered appropriate. It is left to the conscience and our God-given knowledge of right and wrong. In my personal life, I choose to avoid exposure of my womanly body parts and to still wear what I like. My clothing choices usually include things that induce odd responses from other people; I prefer everything to be in black, Victorian stylized, fishnets, corsets, heels or platforms on my shoes, and extremes in my makeup. I have pale skin and dark hair and people may say I look evil and joke with me about Vampirism. This does not mean I am immodest in my dress, nor does it mean I am seeking attention; it is simply beyond what society considers "normal".
I myself do not wish to tell anyone what is or is not appropriate; I leave that to the determination of the reader and his or her conscience; but I do believe we all could dwell a moment on this subject.
Labels: appropriate, bible, biblical, christian, clothing, corinthians, discrimination, dress, greek, history, modesty, propriety, roman
Hey Ashley... haven't been to your blog in a while. I like the way you think about things, you write them out so well. How long does it take you to do that?
Anyway though, a post you had way back somewhere about messangers... how often are you on? I've got yahoo messanger, I don't know how much I'm on cause I don't really have many people I talk to on there who talk back.. :P
If you might want to talk to me sometimes, maybe message me on myspace so I can send my yahoo ID? I'd rather not put it in a public place.. :)
You're a good artist.
Posted by
Anonymous |
12:59 PM