“Let your modesty be known to all men” (Phil 4:5).
Editor’s Note: On this topic, The Fatima Center exhorts you to download, read, and distribute the booklet Our Lady of Fatima Stressed Modesty in Dress, published in 2004 by Father Nicholas Gruner.
Modesty: A Gift of the Holy Ghost
The Catholic Church has always taught that through the Sacrament of Baptism, Original Sin, inherited from our first parents (Adam and Eve), is forgiven and completely washed away, along with all personal sins committed up to that moment. At the moment of our Baptism, the charity of God is poured forth in our hearts, by the Holy Ghost, “Who is given to us” (Rom. 5:5).
The Holy Ghost fills us with sanctifying grace – a participation in the divine life of the Blessed Trinity – and infuses in our souls the three theological virtues (faith, hope, and charity) as well as His seven gifts of wisdom, knowledge, understanding, counsel, fortitude, piety, and fear of the Lord.[1] As we grow and mature in the spiritual life, the Holy Ghost produces within us the fruit of the Spirit, namely, “charity, joy, peace, patience, benignity, goodness, longanimity, mildness, faith, modesty, continency, chastity” (Gal. 5:22-23).
Safeguarding modesty is a foundation of the Sixth Commandment – which requires far more than merely avoiding adultery. The Sixth Commandment, in fact, forbids all sins of impurity. The Baltimore Catechism similarly notes the all-encompassing nature of this Commandment: “The sixth Commandment forbids all unchaste freedom with another’s wife or husband; also all immodesty with ourselves or others in looks, dress, words, and actions.” On this point, the Roman Catechism, uniquely among the Church’s catechisms, explains that even in the Old Testament the Sixth Commandment was applied to a variety of sins
“But that every species of immodesty and impurity are included in this prohibition of adultery, is proved by the testimonies of St. Augustine and St. Ambrose; and that such is the meaning of the Commandment is borne out by the Old, as well as the New Testament. In the writings of Moses, besides adultery, other sins against chastity are said to have been punished. Thus the book of Genesis records the judgment of Judah against his daughter-in-law [cf. Gen. xxxviii. 14]. In Deuteronomy is found the excellent law of Moses, that there should be no harlot amongst the daughters of Israel [Dt. xxiii. 17]. Take heed to keep thyself, my son, from all fornication [Tob. iv. 13], is the exhortation of Tobias to his son; and in Ecclesiasticus we read: Be ashamed […] of looking upon a harlot [Ecclus. xli. 21, 25].”[2]
Fatima and the Great Attack Upon Modesty
We could look to St. Jacinta Marto as a patron saint for modesty. The Mother Superior at the hospital convent (where Jacinta was undergoing treatment) marveled at her wisdom, especially given her young age, yet Jacinta humbly explained that she merely repeated what Our Lady taught her. In relaying these divine insights, St. Jacinta explained:
“The sins that bring most souls to hell are sins of the flesh. Certain fashions are going to be introduced which will offend Our Lord very much. Those who serve God should not follow these fashions. The Church has no fashions; Our Lord is always the same. The sins of the world are too great. If only people knew what eternity is, they would do everything in their power to change their lives.”[3]
Saint Jacinta made these comments shortly before she died on February 20, 1920. As she accurately predicted, the revolution against God in fashion took the world by storm in the 1920s, led by Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel.[4] This was the age of flappers, speakeasies, and sexualized jazz music. The immodest Charleston dance was popularized, swimwear began to be much more revealing, and the feminist movement began to avalanche. (In the newly formed Soviet Union, state sponsored prostitution was established and abortion was legalized. Divorce was being facilitated all over the world and the Anglicans would soon say contraception was morally permissible.)
It is no coincidence that these events took place in the aftermath of The Great War, when men in the West – devastated by the sheer brutality, horror, and ravages of war – lost much of their hope in goodness, truth, and beauty. Christian civilization had been terribly besieged in the 19th century, especially by liberal freethinkers, atheists, communists, and secret sects, yet World War I clearly marked its death knell. (World War II has been likened to the final coup de grace which ushered in the ‘so-called’ post-Christian modern age.) A great number of men began to accept Nietzsche’s lie that “God is dead” and adopt Albert Camus’ nihilistic worldview that life as absurd and meaningless.
In 1917, Our Blessed Mother told the children at Fatima: “Certain fashions will be introduced that will offend Our Lord very much.” We are certainly in the midst of those terrible times. And in 1610, the same Queen of Heaven had prophesied that in the 19th and 20th centuries “there will be unbridled luxury… innocence will almost no longer be found in children, nor modesty in women. In this supreme moment of need of the Church, the one who should speak will fall silent.”[5] And again in 1634 She forewarned, “the spirit of impurity will saturate the atmosphere… like a filthy ocean it will run through the streets, squares and public places with an astonishing liberty.”[6]
Constant Standards for Modesty
As such, we who seek to follow the principles of modesty should adhere to the standards which the Holy See taught under Pope Pius XI, adapted only in minor things for our times. It is not necessary, for example, to always insist that men must wear suits and ties to Sunday Mass since these are not intrinsic to modesty. However, men must always be dressed modestly – and not just at Sunday Mass. Suit and ties are strongly recommended for the purpose of being more dignified in our dress in the presence of the majesty of Our Lord in the tabernacle.[7]
The principles of modesty center around timeless standards and are not fashion specific to any color, article of clothing, or style. For instance, on the Feast of the Holy Family (January 12, 1930), at the direction of Pope Pius XI, Donato Cardinal Sbaretti, Prefect of the Congregation of the Council, issued the following rule as to what constitutes modesty in dress. And as noted in Our Lady of Fatima Stressed…Modesty in Dress, no other Pope has changed or modified it. This statement was – and still is – binding in conscience as its principles still apply to us today:
“A dress cannot be called decent which is cut deeper than two fingers breadth under the pit of the throat; which does not cover the arms at least to the elbows; and scarcely reaches a bit beyond the knees. Furthermore, dresses of transparent materials are improper.”
These standards apply at all times outside of the home, not just in churches[8] (and at outdoor Masses, as occurred during the pandemic lockdowns). In churches, women should also veil their heads in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament.
For men, proper clothing is that which is not too tight or immodest. As also with women, t-shirts, sweatpants, sweatshirts, athletic apparel, and ripped clothing should not be worn.
It is possible to dress comfortably yet modestly even in the summer months. For much more on this, download the PDF of Our Lady of Fatima Stressed…Modesty in Dress. And remember to wear the Brown Scapular under your clothing.
The Moral Problems of Modern Fashion Design
“How great is the dignity and liberty of the woman who does not allow herself to be enslaved, even by fashion!” (Pope Pius XII)
Those who seek a deeper understanding of this issue for the modern world, should also read from the wisdom of Pope Pius XII, who in 1957 addressed the moral problems in fashion design:
“Yet, no matter how broad and changeable the relative morals of styles may be, there is always an absolute norm to be kept after having heard the admonition of conscience warning against approaching danger: style must never be a proximate occasion of sin.
“Among the objective elements that concur to make an immodest style there is, first and foremost, the evil intention of its makers. Where these seek to create unchaste ideas and sensations through their fashions, there is present a technique of disguised malice. They know, among other things, that boldness in such matters cannot be pushed beyond certain limits, but they also know that the desired effect is close to these limits, and that a clever combination of serious and artistic elements with others that are less worthy is highly suited to capturing the fancy and the senses. For they realize that a fashion thus devised will be acceptable to a client who seeks such an effect, but will not compromise, at least in their opinion, the good name of upright clients.
“Every restoration of decency to style must, therefore, begin with the intention of those who design and those who wear. In both, there must be an awakening of the conscience as to their responsibility for the tragic consequences that could result from clothing which is overly bold, especially if it is worn in public.
“More basically, the immorality of some styles depends in great part on excesses either of immodesty or luxury. An excess of immodesty in fashion involves, in practice, the cut of the garment. The garment must not be evaluated according to the estimation of a decadent or already corrupt society, but according to the aspirations of a society which prizes the dignity and seriousness of its public attire.
“It is often said almost with passive resignation that fashions reflect the customs of a people. But it would be more exact and much more useful to say that they express the decision and moral direction that a nation intends to take: either to be shipwrecked in licentiousness or maintain itself at the level to which it has been raised by religion and civilization.”
Pray, Do Penance, and Be Modest
Above all, may the intercession of Our Lady of Fatima return us to the modesty of our forefathers!
We can be sure that modesty is an essential aspect of the Message of Fatima.[9] Our Lady insisted that we must cease offending God. Each Catholic must be convicted that God is greatly offended by violations of modest Christian dress. We can also be sure that following the proper Consecration of Russia, and Our Lady effecting the conversion of Russia, that in the period of world peace there will be a great flourishing of the Catholic Church and of Christian modesty.
St. Jacinta Marto, pray for us!
ENDNOTES:
[1] For more on these topics, we invite you to view the series Our Lady’s Shocktroops. Episodes 32-34 deal with Faith, Hope, and Charity, and episodes 35-42 discuss the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost.
[2] Quoted from The Roman Catechism Explained for the Modern World.
[3] The True Story of Fatima by Fr. John de Marchi, p. 72.
[4] In popular culture, one sees this change quite dramatically in the animated film Anastasia (1997). The Russian princess is dressed modestly (though impoverished) until she reaches Paris in the 1920s when her dress and dance take a shockingly immodest turn. Sadly, this accurately reflects what was happening throughout Western Civilization.
[5] Horvat, Marian Therese, Our Lady of Good Success, Tradition in Action, Los Angeles, CA, 1999. p. 46.
[6] Ibid., p. 56.
[7] If we really believe we are in the presence of the King of kings, then who would dare not wear his ‘Sunday best’? Not dressing well for Mass fosters a lack of reverence and concurrent loss of faith in the Real Presence and that Holy Mass is the one Eternal Sacrifice of Christ.
[8] Is it hypocrisy on the part of Christians to dress modestly for church, where they shall be seen by their Christian neighbors, but dress immodestly when they are at work, at school, shopping, etc., where they shall be seen by their secular neighbors? This can indicate that one bases his standards of dress upon human respect, not upon the fear of God and true charity for one’s neighbor.
[9] Our Lord told Sister Lucia that He asks of every person the penance of keeping the Commandments and fulfilling the duties of his state of life. The 6th and 9th Commandments cover modesty for all. Every Christian also has the basic duty of living chastely according to his state of life, which is also one of the conditions for faithfully wearing the Brown Scapular. St. Louis de Montfort recommends we pray for purity as we meditate upon the 4th Joyful Mystery. Thus, we see in all these aspects of Living the Message of Fatima (Rosary, Scapular, Penance) that modesty indeed has a central role.