MODESTY-MEN and WOMEN From Our Lady of the Rosary Library

[Dawn Marie]

J.M.J.

I know that there is a Catholic standard of modesty in dress for
women. But is there also a standard of dress for men?

Absolutely there is, for exactly the same principles apply for men as
for women.

Modesty is a moral virtue, and a part of the virtue of temperance, by
which a person brings moderation to his outward and inward actions
(inasmuch as they can be reflected by certain exterior signs), in
order to keep them under the control of right reason (Summa
Theologica, IIa IIae Q.160, a.2). Saint Thomas Aquinas lists four
kinds of modesty in ordinary matters, that are obligatory for
everybody:

- One is the movement of the mind towards some excellence, and this
is moderated by humility.

- The second is the desire of things pertaining to knowledge, and
this is moderated by studiousness which is opposed to curiosity.

- The third regards bodily movements and actions (including words),
which require to be done becomingly and honestly, whether we act
seriously or in play.

- The fourth regards outward show, for instance in dress and the
like. (Ibid.)

If all four aspects of modesty are equally important, there remains
no doubt that the last two, which have no special name, are most
commonly understood by the term modesty. Moreover, it is most
especially the last that is referred to by modesty, on account of the
disorder of fallen human nature, which is most easily overcome by a
disordered attraction to the last kind of immodesty.

Clearly men have an equal duty as women to avoid provocative words or
actions and to avoid any kind of dress that might show off their
person or their body, leading to vanity. Like women, they are hence
forbidden to display their bodies in public in an unseemly manner, or
in a way that might produce a disordered attraction in the opposite
sex. Men should always wear a shirt for gymnastics, and shorts should
not be worn in public, but only be used for athletics, and should not
be too brief or too tight. Likewise, men should dress modestly for
Sunday Mass, with shirt, tie, jacket, trousers, all of which
symbolize a man's sense of responsibility, leading his family by the
orderly self-discipline of modest dress, and doing his duty in the
true worship of God.

However, there are two important differences in the application of
these principles to men, as compared to women, and which are the
reason why the Church's documents on the subject refer to modesty in
women. The first is that the nature of a woman makes her much more
prone to the temptation of vanity, to show off her body, and the
nature of a man makes him much more tempted by seeing this.
Consequently, the gravest and most dangerous offenses against
modesty, understood in its fourth and most restricted meaning, namely
as against purity, are by women.

It is for this reason that the Church has been so much more adamant
about women's dress, as in the following quote from a decree of the
Sacred Congregation of the Council of January 18, 1930:

His Holiness, Pius XI, has never ceased to inculcate in word and
writing that precept of Saint Paul (I Tim 2:5, 10) -"Women also in
decent apparel; adorning themselves with modesty and sobriety, as it
becometh women professing godliness with good works."

And on many occasions the same Supreme Pontiff has reproved and
sharply condemned the immodesty in dress which today is everywhere in
vogue; even among women and girls who are Catholics; a practice which
does grave injury to the crowning virtue and glory of women, and
moreover unfortunately leads not merely to their temporal
disadvantage, but, what is worse, to their eternal ruin and that of
other souls.

It is no wonder, then, that Bishops and other Ordinaries of places,
as becomes ministers of Christ, have in their respective diocese
unanimously resisted in every way this licentious and shameless
fashion and in doing so
have cheerfully and courageously borne the derision and ridicule
sometimes directed at them by the ill-disposed..

There is a second reason why modesty of dress is especially
applicable to women over men. It is that there is a special form of
immodesty that is characteristic of our modern times, and it is the
immodesty of women wearing men's clothes, most notably pants and
shorts. This undermines a woman's psychological perception of
herself, and of her difference from a man, which in turn de-feminizes
her, erodes natural respect between men and women, removes the defense
to over-familiarity, and eventually degrades the relationships between
men and women to the level of sensuality. It is this form of immodesty
which is ultimately by far the most destructive of human relationships
and of the virtue of purity.

If, therefore, there is certainly a standard of modesty for men, it
must always be remembered that the battle for women's modesty is both
much more crucial and much more difficult to win.

Real men will, however, teach and lead by their example. If they have
a difficult time insisting on the modesty of their wife or daughters,
they will remember to practice very precisely all the four kinds of
modesty mentioned above, and their admonitions will bear fruit.

[Q&A from the Angelus - December 1999: http://www.angelusonline.org/]


More articles on the virtue of modesty are available on our website
at http://www.olrl.org/virtues/.
The article "Requirements for Modesty in Dress"
(http://olrl.org/virtues/modesty.shtml) is also available in our
Store for 5 cents ea.

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Sincerely in Christ,
Our Lady of the Rosary Library
"Pray and work for souls"
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