Unfortunately, for better or worse, as the channels of communication and technology have connected the world, the fashion industry has evolved too. Designers now compete to be first to bring forth the freshest ideas and get the most media coverage to increase their ratings and sales, thus, creating the most outrageous outfits that not only uncover the body but degrade women. As time has passed and in small increments, women have been defaced and given an androgynous, dark, faceless beauty which has distorted women’s true God-given beauty. This heavenly beauty has been corrupted to the point of pushing many to hate their bodies and their true selves.
This was not always the case. In the early and mid-1900’s, the fashion industry practiced their faith in God. People in the garment industry then were faithful believers and had fear of and reverence to God. They actually honored St. Catherine as their patron saint. In jubilee, every November 25th everyone would take the day off. Making garments was a trade of house wives. Women of all social classes wore modest attire, but most of all emanated true modesty. That practice is no more.
A Turn for the Worst
In the 1960’s everything drastically changed. People took an active role in demanding their rights to freely express who they were. This defiant behavior eventually led people, especially young women, to refuse to comply with Church norms and follow virtues such as modesty. Every insubordination became a ripple effect that finally led to the inappropriate uncovering of the body. In their ambition to make a statement and earn good money, designers have forgotten that the human body is the temple of God. Paul, in a letter to the Corinthians, clearly states:
“Know you not, that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? But if any man violates the temple of God, him shall God destroy. For the temple of God is holy, which you are.” ~ 1 Corinthians 3:16-17
The public nudity of the body is an offence to the virtue of Modesty that “disrupts” not only the body but also God’s dwelling in us. Through our immodest behavior, we have expelled the Lord from within us—from His temple—and any sign of purity has been sabotaged. Women are no longer seen as pure beautiful human beings. Their denigrated image has pushed men to see them as sexual objects.
Fighting for False Freedom
Sadly, women’s feminism at the turn of the 21st century did not liberate women. On the contrary, the more women demanded for that freedom and protested through their attires, the more enslaved they became. In taking a look at the depiction of women in today’s media—not taking in to account pornography—you can see that we are almost always projected as sexual objects. During TV shows, music videos, news programs, and commercials, women are always wearing sexy, revealing outfits to attract the male audience. Ironically, women have lost their true freedom as they have grown farther from God. Now, they lack “…the fruits of the Spirit…[such as] charity, joy, peace, patience, benignity, goodness, longanimity, mildness, faith, modesty, continency, chastity.” The lack of all these virtues hinders women to reach true happiness.
Most women, though successful, are often unhappy because they lack the essence of all human souls—God’s love and dignity. In Japan, for example, women are expected to study and work hard to be successful entrepreneurs. They work so hard that they neglect their love life. They end up single virgins with high paying jobs. Because their busy lives do not allow for love and since God is not the center of their lives, out of peer pressure they pay strange men to take their virginity away. No woman who has the Holy Spirit within them would turn to such drastic measures, but sadly, many women do. Others have even lost all sense of human dignity and worth—all thanks to society lacking the guidance of the Holy Spirit and His virtues.
Shine Like the Sun
I don’t write these things to point out women’s bad behavior or bad fashion choices. It is actually a reality check of where you are today. It is a wakeup call to promote modesty in our Church and community. Beauty is no longer in the eye of the beholder, but rather in the eye of the beheld. You can put more effort in the way you dress to be role models for your friends, family, and community. As Padre Pio once said, “[be]… the magnificent picture of Christian perfection…[You with such virtue]…will shine in the world as the sun in the heavens.” So radiate true modesty!