Editing Modesty (section)

===Christianity===
[[File:Martin Luther Preaching to Faithful (1561).jpg|thumb|A painting of the Lutheran [[Divine Service (Lutheran)|Divine Service]] shows women wearing a [[Christian headcovering|headcovering]]. ]]
[[File:Te_Deum_Elizarovo_Guslitsa_8484.jpg|thumb|Women seen in modest dress outside a [[Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church|Russian Orthodox Christian, Old-Rite]] church]]
[[File:Women converted to Christianity.jpg|thumb|An engraving of Christian women in [[India]] (1869)]]

There are verses in the Christian Bible that discuss the issue of modesty.<ref name="Arnold2022"/> Before the [[fall of man]], "Nakedness was 'very good' from the beginning, but its innocence was corrupted by the fall", a concept taught in {{Bibleverse|Genesis|1:31|KJV}} and {{Bibleverse|Genesis|2:25|KJV}}.<ref name="Arnold2022"/> {{Bibleverse|Genesis|3:8-10|KJV}}, {{Bibleverse|Revelation|3:18|KJV}} and {{Bibleverse|Revelation|16:15|KJV}} discuss that after the fall of man, "publicly exposed nakedness is a symbol of the shame of sin."<ref name="Arnold2022"/> In {{Bibleverse|Genesis|3:7|KJV}}, [[Adam and Eve]] tried to cover their nakedness, though their attempt was inadequate for God and so God properly clothed humans in {{Bibleverse|Genesis|3:21|KJV}}.<ref name="Anderson2019">{{cite book |last1=Anderson |first1=Cory|last2=Anderson |first2=Jennifer|title=Fitted to Holiness: How Modesty is Achieved and Compromised among the Plain People |date=2019 |publisher=Acorn Publishing |location=[[Millersburg, Ohio|Millersburg]]|page=8}}</ref><ref name="Arnold2022"/> {{Bibleverse|Exodus|20:26|KJV}} and {{Bibleverse|Exodus|28:42-43|KJV}} explicate that God instructed humans to cover their torso and thighs.<ref name="Arnold2022">{{cite web |last1=Arnold |first1=Johnathan |title=A Simple Outline for Teaching on Modest Clothing |url=https://holyjoys.org/outline-modest-clothing |publisher=Holy Joys |access-date=24 January 2022 |date=21 January 2022}}</ref> {{Bibleverse|1 Timothy|2:9-10|KJV}} instructs Christians to dress in "modest apparel" rather than to adorn themselves; in the same vein, [[Saint Peter]] wrote to Christians that "Your adornment should not be an external one: braiding the hair, wearing gold jewelry, or dressing in fine clothes, but rather the hidden character of the heart, expressed in the imperishable beauty of a gentle and calm disposition, which is precious in the sight of God" ({{Bibleverse|1 Peter|3:3-4|KJV}}).<ref name="Winger1919">{{cite book |last1=Winger |first1=Otho |title=History and Doctrines of the Church of the Brethren |date=1919 |publisher=Brethren Publishing House |page=218 |language=English|quote=I. We examined prayerfully the scriptural grounds of Christian attire, and found that Jesus and the apostles taught modesty and simplicity of life and modesty in dress and manners. The scriptures bearing on the subject of dress and adornment are of several classes: First. Jesus condemned anxious thought for raiment (Matt. 6: 25-33; Luke 12:22-31). Second. The direct teachings, such as 1 Tim. 2:9, 10; 1 Peter 3:3-5. Third. Teachings on nonconformity to the world in general, and that apply to dress on general principles, such as Romans 12:1, 2; 1 Cor. 10:31; 1 Peter 1:14-15; 1 John 2:15-17. II. Investigation shows that the early church fathers and our own church fathers taught strongly and uniformly against pride and superfluity in dress, and constantly in favor of gospel plainness.}}</ref>

Historically, female communicants of traditional Christian denominations (including [[Anglican]],<ref name="Muir2005">{{cite book|last=Muir|first=Edward|title=Ritual in Early Modern Europe|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zlULqJ70bDUC&pg=PA31|access-date=13 November 2012|date=18 August 2005|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9780521841535|page=31|quote=In England radical Protestants, known in the seventeenth century as Puritans, were especially ardent in resisting the churching of women and the requirement that women wear a head covering or veil during the ceremony. The Book of Common Prayer, which became the ritual handbook of the Anglican Church, retained the ceremony in a modified form, but as one Puritan tract put it, the 'churching of women after childbirth smelleth of Jewish purification.'"}}</ref> [[Baptist]],<ref name="USA2012">{{cite book|title=Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches 2012|url=https://archive.org/details/yearbookofameric0000unse_l2p3|url-access=registration|access-date=13 November 2012|date=2012-04-01|publisher=Abingdon Press|isbn=9781426746666|page=[https://archive.org/details/yearbookofameric0000unse_l2p3/page/131 131]|quote=The holy kiss is practiced and women wear head coverings during prayer and worship.}}</ref> [[Eastern Orthodox]],<ref name="Dehejia2005">{{cite book|last=Dehejia|first=Harsha V.|title=A Celebration of Love: The Romantic Heroine in the Indian Arts|year=2005|publisher=Lustre Press|language=en|isbn=9788174363022|page=102}}</ref> [[Lutheran]],<ref>{{cite book|title=The Milwaukee Lutheran, Volumes 26-27|year=1973|publisher=Lutherans of Wisconsin|language=en|page=62}}</ref> [[Methodist]],<ref name="Morgan2010">{{cite book|last=Morgan|first=Sue|title=Women, Gender and Religious Cultures in Britain, 1800–1940|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JybdfeRKuFcC&pg=PA102|access-date=13 November 2012|date=2010-06-23|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=9780415231152|page=102|quote=Several ardent Methodist women wrote to him, asking for his permission to speak. Mar Bosanquet (1739–1815) suggested that if Paul had instructed women to cover their heads when they spoke (1. Cor. 11:5) then he was surely giving direction on how women should conduct themselves when they preached.}}</ref> [[Moravian Church|Moravian]], [[Oriental Orthodox]],<ref>{{cite web|title=Veiling in Other Religious Traditions|publisher=Duke-UNC Consortium for Middle East Studies|website=ncmideast.org|url=https://ncmideast.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/1065/2011/07/Veiling-in-Other-Religious-Traditions.pdf|accessdate=October 24, 2021}}</ref> [[Reformed tradition|Reformed]],<ref name="Snodgrass2015">{{cite book|last=Snodgrass|first=Mary Ellen|title=World Clothing and Fashion: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and Social Influence|date=17 March 2015|publisher=Taylor & Francis|language=en|isbn=9781317451662|page=1548}}</ref> and [[Roman Catholic]])<ref name="Henold2008">{{cite book|last=Henold|first=Mary J.|title=Catholic and Feminist: The Surprising History of the American Catholic Feminist Movement|year=2008|publisher=UNC Press Books|language=en|isbn=9780807859476|page=1968|quote=Catholic women who came of age at midcentury no doubt recall the hasty search for a tissue or even a handy parish bulletin to pin to their heads once they discovered they had left home without their regular head covering.}}</ref> wore a [[Christian headcovering|headcovering]] while praying at home and worshipping in the church, or all the time as with [[Anabaptists]] such as the [[Mennonites]] and the [[Bruderhof]], in keeping with their interpretation of {{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|11:2-16|NRSV}}, which has been practiced since the time of the [[early Church]].<ref name="Bercot1992">{{cite book |last1=Bercot |first1=David W. |title=Common Sense: A New Approach to Understanding Scripture |date=1992 |publisher=Scroll Publishing Co. |isbn=978-0-924722-06-6 |page=68 |language=English|quote=Hippolytus, a leader in the church in Rome around the year 200, compiled a record of the various customs and practices in that church from the generations that preceded him. His ''Apostolic Tradition'' contains this statement: "And let all the women have their heads covered with an opaque cloth, not with a veil of thin linen, for this is not a true covering." This written evidence of the course of performance of the early Christians is corroborated by the archaeological record. The pictures we have from the second and third centuries from the catacombs and other places depict Christian women praying with a cloth veil on their heads. So the historical record is crystal clear. It reveals that the early generation of believers understood the head covering to be a cloth veil—not long hair.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Veil |url=http://www.earlychristiandictionary.com/Veil.html |publisher=Early Christian Dictionary |access-date=7 September 2021 |language=English}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Earle|first1=Alice Morse|title=Two Centuries of Costume in America, Vol. 2 (1620–1820)|date=1903|publisher=The Macmillan Company|page=582|quote="One singular thing may be noted in this history, – that with all the vagaries of fashion, woman has never violated the Biblical law that bade her cover her head. She has never gone to church services bareheaded."}}</ref> [[Apostolic Tradition]] commands: "let all the women have their heads covered with an opaque cloth, not with a veil of thin linen, for this is not a true covering."<ref name="Bercot1992"/><ref name="Classical2012"/> [[John Chrysostom]] ({{circa|347}}{{snd}}407) delineated Saint Paul's teaching on the wearing of headcoverings by Christian women, continually:<ref name="OCIC">{{cite web |title=On Account of the Angels: Why I Cover My Head |url=http://orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/headcoverings.aspx |publisher=Orthodox Christian Information Center |access-date=8 April 2022 |quote=St. John Chrysostom thought that Paul, in admonishing women to wear a covering "because of the angels," meant it "not at the time of prayer only, but also continually, she ought to be covered." Fr. Rhodes agrees: "The veil can be the constant symbol of the true woman of God … a way of life … a testimony of faith and of the salvation of God, not only before men, but angels as well."}}</ref><ref name="Schaff1889"/> 
{{blockquote|Well then: the man he compelleth not to be always uncovered, but only when he prays. "For every man," saith he, "praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head." But the woman he commands to be at all times covered. Wherefore also having said, "Every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head unveiled, dishonoureth her head," he stayed not at this point only, but also proceeded to say, "for it is one and the same thing as if she were shaven." But if to be shaven is always dishonourable, it is plain too that being uncovered is always a reproach. And not even with this only was he content, but he added again, saying, "The woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head, because of the angels." He signifies that not at the time of prayer only but also continually, she ought to be covered. But with regard to the man, it is no longer about covering but about wearing long hair, that he so forms his discourse. To be covered he then only forbids, when a man is praying; but the wearing of long hair he discourages at all times.<ref name="Schaff1889">{{cite book |last1=Schaff |first1=Philip |title=A Select Library of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church: St. Chrysostom: Homilies on the Epistles of Paul to the Corinthians |date=1889 |publisher=The Christian Literature Company |page=152 |language=English}}</ref><ref name="OCIC"/>}}
These ancient Christian practices regarding modesty continue to be normative among Christians in regions such as in Eastern Europe and in South Asia, though they have waned in the Western world starting in the 1960s.<ref name="Flinn2014">{{cite book|last=Flinn|first=Isabella|title=Pinpricks in the Curtain: India Through the Eyes of an Unlikely Missionary|date=1 May 2014|publisher=WestBow Press|language=en|isbn=9781490834313|page=234}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Gordon |first1=Greg |title=Are Head Coverings Really for Today? |url=https://evangelicalfocus.com/yourblog/929/Are-Head-Coverings-Really-for-Today- |publisher=Evangelical Focus |access-date=2 May 2022 |language=English |date=31 August 2015 |quote=One of the most questioned practices in the New Testament in the modern day Western Church is the practice of Head Coverings for women. Yet to get perspective we need to look over the panoply of God's Church for 2000 years and see that this is not something new but old—and has been practiced diligently over the ages. It is hard to imagine but since the 1960s the Church almost entirely practiced this tradition. The influence of secular reasoning, feminism and liberal theology have led to the questioning and, ultimately, the casting aside of this practice in the Church at large in the evangelical world.}}</ref> Many Trinitarian Christians consider modesty extremely important,<ref>See, e.g., [http://www.christianaction.org.za/articles_ca/2004-3-ModestyTheUndressingOfOurYouth.htm Modesty: The Undressing of Our Youth] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070503213045/http://www.christianaction.org.za/articles_ca/2004-3-ModestyTheUndressingOfOurYouth.htm |date=2007-05-03 }}, by Lenora Hammond.</ref> though considerable differences of opinion exist about its requirements and purposes.<ref>[http://www.therebelution.com/modestysurvey/ The Modesty Survey] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090129185312/http://www.therebelution.com/modestysurvey/ |date=2009-01-29 }}: An anonymous discussion among Christians concerning various aspects of modesty.</ref> The [[early Church]] stressed the importance of modesty in the practice of Christianity, with early Church Father [[Clement of Alexandria]] teaching:<ref name="Winger1919"/><ref name="Classical2012">{{cite web |title=On Head Coverings |url=https://classicalchristianity.com/2012/01/11/on-head-coverings/ |publisher=Classical Christianity |access-date=25 January 2022 |language=English |date=11 January 2012}}</ref>
{{blockquote|Woman and man are to go to church decently attired, with natural step, embracing silence, possessing unfeigned love, pure in body, pure in heart, fit to pray to God. Let the woman observe this, further. Let her be entirely covered, unless she happen to be at home. For that style of dress is grave, and protects from being gazed at. And she will never fall, who puts before her eyes modesty, and her shawl; nor will she invite another to fall into sin by uncovering her face. For this is the wish of the Word, since it is becoming for her to pray veiled. (''[[Paedagogus|The Instructor]]'' 3.11)<ref name="Classical2012"/>}}
The early Christian manual [[Paedagogus]] (198 [[Anno Domini|AD]]) teaches that clothing worn by faithful Christians should extend beyond the knees and warns against the wearing of expensive clothing, in addition to forbidding the excesses of jewelry:<ref name="Steinberg2020">{{cite book |last1=Steinberg |first1=Aliza |title=Weaving in Stones: Garments and Their Accessories in the Mosaic Art of Eretz Israel in Late Antiquity |date=7 February 2020 |publisher=Archaeopress Publishing Ltd |isbn=978-1-78969-322-5 |page=197 |language=English}}</ref>
{{blockquote|As, then, in the fashioning of our clothes, we must keep clear of all strangeness, so in the use of them we must beware of extravagance. For neither is it seemly for the clothes to be above the knee, as they say was the case with the Lacedaemonian virgins; nor is it becoming for any part of a woman to be exposed. Though you may with great propriety use the language addressed to him who said, "Your arm is beautiful; yes, but it is not for the public gaze. Your thighs are beautiful but, was the reply, for my husband alone. And your face is comely. Yes; but only for him who has married me." But I do not wish chaste women to afford cause for such praises to those who, by praises, hunt after grounds of censure; and not only because it is prohibited to expose the ankle, but because it has been enjoined that the head should be veiled and the face covered; for it is a wicked thing for beauty to be a snare to men.<ref name="Alexandria">{{cite book |title=Clement of Alexandria Collection [3 Books] |publisher=Aeterna Press |language=English}}</ref>}}
Early ecclesiastical writer [[Tertullian]] echoed the same teachings regarding modesty in his ''On the Apparel of Women'', also including a prohibition on Christian men and women [[dyeing]] their hair.<ref name="Knight">{{cite web |title=On the Apparel of Women |url=https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0402.htm |publisher=New Advent |access-date=25 February 2022 |language=English}}</ref> Rather than to ostentatiously display the hair, Tertullian said that Christian women are to wear a [[Christian headcovering|headcovering]] in public.<ref name="Knight"/> He taught that Christians should be able to be easily distinguished from non-Christians by their wearing of modest clothing.<ref name="Knight"/>

====Anabaptists====
[[File:Niagara Falls - panoramio (69).jpg|thumb|An [[Anabaptist Christian]] lady wearing a [[cape dress]] and [[Christian headcovering|headcovering]] ]]
{{Main|Anabaptist theology#Modesty and woman's veiling}}
{{Further|Plain people}}
Many Christians belonging to the [[Conservative Anabaptist]] and [[Old Order Anabaptist]] traditions (including the [[Amish]], [[Conservative Mennonites]], [[Old Order Mennonite]]s, [[Hutterites]], [[Apostolic Christian Church|Apostolic Christians]], [[Charity Christian Fellowship|Charity Christians]], [[Bruderhof Communities|Bruderhof]], [[River Brethren]] and [[Schwarzenau Brethren]]) have [[plain dress]] prescriptions designed to achieve modesty and create a sense of church identity, as Petrovich writes: "Their dress standard is not only intended to specify a pattern which all members agree to be a modest covering for the human form but must also correspond to their vision of Jesus as meek and humble, dressed as a simple peasant from a common village. Since an established dress standard promotes uniformity, it also provides a sense of shared purpose."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Petrovich|first=Christopher|date=2013|title=Spiritual Theology in an Amish Key: Theology, Scripture, and Praxis|journal=Journal of Spiritual Formation & Soul Care|volume=6|issue=2|pages=250|doi=10.1177/193979091300600206|s2cid=171605201}}</ref> These requirements are either written in denominational or congregational statements<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Raber|first1=Dan|last2=Sheets|first2=Gregory|last3=Anderson|first3=Cory|date=2019|title=<em>Ordnungs Briefen</em> of 1865, 1917, and 1939: English Translations of Important Old Amish Church Orders|url=https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/amishstudies/vol7/iss2/3/|journal=Journal of Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies|volume=7|issue=2|pages=109–114|doi=10.62192/japas.v07i2n03 |doi-access=free}}</ref> or are understood and reinforced through informal pressure and ministerial reminders.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Scott|first=Stephen|title=Why Do They Dress That Way?|publisher=Good Books.|year=1997|isbn=9780934672184|location=Intercourse, PA}}</ref>

Requirements vary across churches and denominations; however, all conservative Anabaptist women wear [[Christian headcovering]]s and a skirt or dress, and all men wear long trousers.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last1=Anderson|first1=Cory|url=https://acornpublishing.info/|title=Fitted to Holiness: How Modesty Is Achieved and Compromised among the Plain People|last2=Anderson|first2=Jennifer|publisher=Acorn Publishing|year=2019|isbn=978-1-7322864-1-2|location=Millersburg, OH|access-date=2020-05-07|archive-date=2020-08-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804050807/https://acornpublishing.info/|url-status=dead}}</ref> From there, considerable variation exists in men's, women's, and children's styles. Anabaptist adherents read a church group's relative strictness, distance from popular culture, and even religious ideas by their appearance and the speed of dress changes. Accordingly, the extent to which popular fashion elements show up in an Anabaptist person's dress often depends on the social distance of that church from popular culture.<ref name=":1" /> For example, women's headcoverings have numerous subtle design elements that distinguish church association, age, and attitude toward modest dress.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Enninger|first=Werner|title=Multimedia Communication I|publisher=Gunter Narr|year=1982|editor-last=Hess-Lüttich|editor-first=Ernest|location=Tübingen, Germany|pages=86–123|chapter=The Semiotic Structure of Amish Folk Costume: Its Function in the Organization of Face-to-Face Interaction}}</ref> Women in more fashion-conscious groups, especially among some Conservative Mennonites as well as young adults among some Old Order Amish, may wear a lacy doily that fits a stylized appearance, whereas groups and individuals holding to a distinctive form of modesty wear a fixed-style [[kapp (headcovering)|kapp]] with a back part that covers the hair bun and is pleated to a front part that vertically encircles the head.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Anderson|first=Cory|title=The Ornament of a Spirit: Exploring the Reasons Covering Styles Change|publisher=Ridgeway Publishers|year=2013|isbn=978-0984098514|location=Lyndonville, NY}}</ref>

Churches vary in how much members may experiment with modesty and fashion in dress. Some groups, for example, may be less inclined to censure tight dresses so long as the church's distinctive style is maintained<ref>{{Cite book|last=Boynton|first=Linda|title=The Plain People: An Ethnography of the Holdeman Mennonites.|publisher=Sheffield Publishing Company.|year=1986|location=Salem, WI}}</ref> or to censure popular swimwear worn while swimming in groups or in public;<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Hamilton|first1=Jean|title=Religion, Dress, and the Body|last2=Hawley|first2=Jana|publisher=Berg|year=1999|editor-last=Lazaridis|editor-first=Gabriella|location=New York|pages=31–51|chapter=Sacred Dress, Public Worlds: Amish and Mormon Experience and Commitment}}</ref> others carefully observe and embrace their church's pattern for modest, distinct dress on all non-private occasions.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Graybill|first=Beth|title=Strangers at Home: Amish and Mennonite Women in History|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|year=2002|editor=Kimberly D. Schmidt |editor2=Diane Zimmerman Umble |editor3=Steven D. Reschly|location=Baltimore, MD|pages=53–77|chapter='To Remind Us of Who We Are': Multiple Meanings of Conservative Women's Dress}}</ref>

====Catholicism====
[[File:Dress code sign Even the body has its own language, Cathedral of Lecce, 2010.jpg|thumb|A placard "Dress with dignity and respect the sacred place" informs visitors about the minimum dress standards required to enter the [[Lecce Cathedral]] in Italy.]]
Saint [[Thomas Aquinas]] defined modesty as "[[humility]], studiousness, [[temperance (virtue)|temperance]] in outward movements and in apparel."<ref>[[Summa Theologiae|S. Th.]] II-II, q. 160, a. 2. As quoted in {{Cite journal|author1=John-Mark Miravalle|date=2017-06-01|title=Resisting the Less Important: Aquinas on Modesty|journal=[[Journal of Moral Theology]]|volume=6|issue=2|pp=166–174|language=en-US|access-date=2025-01-20|url=https://jmt.scholasticahq.com/article/11361-resisting-the-less-important-aquinas-on-modesty|OCLC=10168859715|ISSN=2166-2851}}</ref>

The [[Catechism of the Catholic Church]] points out that "Modesty is decency. It inspires one's choice of clothing" (CCC, 2522)."<ref name="Pivarunas1996"/>

The wearing of a [[Christian headcovering|veil]] (headcovering) for women while praying at home and while worshipping at [[Mass (liturgy)|Mass]] has been practiced by Christian women since the time of the early Church.<ref name="Bercot1992"/><ref name="Fisher2019">{{cite web |last1=Fisher |first1=Simcha |title=The types of women who veil at Mass |url=https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2019/12/03/types-women-who-veil-mass |publisher=[[America Magazine]] |access-date=15 November 2020 |language=en |date=3 December 2019}}</ref><ref name="Sciba2018">{{cite web |last1=Sciba |first1=Katie |title=Beneath the Veil: How Unusual Practice Becomes Beloved Prayer |url=https://blessedisshe.net/blog/beneath-veil/ |publisher=Blessed Is She |access-date=18 April 2021 |language=English |date=14 May 2018}}</ref> The wearing of headcoverings during the celebration of the liturgy was mandated as a universal rule for the [[Latin Church]] by the [[Canon law (Catholic Church)#Codification|Code of Canon Law of 1917]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jgray.org/codes/cic17lat.html |title=1917 Codex Iuris Canonici |work=Canon 1262, Section 2 |access-date=2011-01-19 |archive-date=2020-09-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200908053112/http://www.jgray.org/codes/cic17lat.html |url-status=dead }} (Latin)</ref> abrogated by the [[1983 Code of Canon Law|Code of Canon Law of 1983]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P2.HTM |title=Canon 6 §1 of the Code of Canon Law }}</ref>

The standards issued by [[Pope Pius XI]] declared that "women who wear immodest dress shall be denied [[Holy Communion]], and shall not be admitted as a godmother at [[Baptism]] or as a sponsor at [[Confirmation]]".<ref name="Joselit2014">{{cite book |last1=Joselit |first1=Jenna Weissman |title=A Perfect Fit: Clothes, Character, and the Promise of America |date=2014 |publisher=Henry Holt and Company |isbn=978-1-4668-6984-4 |language=English}}</ref><ref name="Pivarunas1996">{{cite web |author1=[[Mark Pivarunas]] |title=Modesty in Dress |url=https://cmri.org/articles-on-the-traditional-catholic-faith/modesty-in-dress/ |publisher=[[Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen]] |access-date=27 March 2021 |language=English |date=21 June 1996}}</ref> They further stated "Nuns, in accordance with the Letter of 23 August 1928, of the Sacred Congregation of Religious, shall not admit to their colleges, schools, oratories, or amusement centers, nor allow to remain there any girls who do not observe Christian modesty in dress; and in the education of their charges they shall take special care to sow deeply in their hearts a love of chastity and Christian modesty.

Pope Pius XI also issued the standard of decent dress, declaring that "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."

Between 1933 and 1980, the [[Catholic Legion of Decency]] was active in monitoring morally objectionable content in films. It condemned a number of films, including several on account of the clothing worn. For example, [[list of films condemned by the Legion of Decency|the Legion has condemned]] the display of [[cleavage (breasts)|cleavage]] in ''[[The Outlaw]]'' (1941) and in ''[[The French Line]]'' (1954).

In 1944 on the feast of the [[Immaculate Conception]], the so-called "Marylike Crusade" (formally known as the "Purity Crusade of Mary Immaculate") was initiated by Rev. Bernard Kunkel to codify [[Pope Pius XII|Pope Pius' XII]] directives on the Catholic standards of dress, known as "Marylike modesty".<ref name="Evans2012">{{cite book |last1=Evans |first1=Rachel Held |title=A Year of Biblical Womanhood: How a Liberated Woman Found Herself Sitting on Her Roof, Covering Her Head, and Calling Her Husband "master" |date=2012 |publisher=[[Thomas Nelson (publisher)|Thomas Nelson]] |isbn=978-1-59555-367-6 |page=126 |language=English}}</ref> It seeks for Christians to emulate the [[Blessed Virgin Mary]] under the title "Mother Most Chaste" as the model for modesty.<ref name="MSGH2017"/> Mary-like Modesty includes for women, wearing sleeves "extending at least to the elbows" and "skirts reaching below the knees", as well as having a neckline no more than two inches with the rest of the bodice fully covered.<ref>Kunkel, Rev. Bernard. [https://ecatholic2000.com/life/prayer143.shtml ''My Life in Prayer Book''], Book Two, Chapter III: The Marylike Standards for Modesty in Dress</ref><ref name="Evans2012"/> The Marylike Crusade promotes a vow for Catholics to take: "While I am determined always to dress with Marylike modesty, both at home and in public, I intend to be specially careful to do so when visiting any place dedicated to God."<ref name="O'Toole2018">{{cite book |last1=O'Toole |first1=James M. |title=Habits of Devotion: Catholic Religious Practice in Twentieth-Century America |date=5 July 2018 |publisher=[[Cornell University Press]] |isbn=978-1-5017-2666-8 |page=105 |language=English}}</ref> The Marylike Crusade received an [[Apostolic Blessing]] from Pope Pius XII on 14 July 1954 and on 11 May 1955, Pope Pius XII extended this "to the members, to their Directors and Moderators, to their families and loved ones, and to all who further their laudable movement for modesty in dress and behaviour."<ref name="MSGH2017">{{cite journal |title=The Pope of Fatima, Pius XII, Puts His Seal on Our Lady of Fatima's Request for Modesty |journal=Behold Thy Mother |date=2017 |volume=19 |issue=56 |page=22 |publisher=Missionary Sisters of the Holy Ghost |language=English}}</ref> The standards of Mary-like Modesty established by the Purity Crusade of Mary Immaculate continue to be promoted by Traditionalist Catholics as normative.<ref name="CMRI">{{cite web |title=Dress Code |date=14 August 2016 |url=https://cmri.org/cmri-directory-of-traditional-latin-masses/dress-code-for-cmri-churches/ |publisher=[[Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen]] |access-date=27 March 2021 |language=English}}</ref>

In 2004 [[Cardinal Anthony Okogie]] sent letters to the priests in the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos]] and asked them to prohibit "fashions promoting lust and immorality" within churches.<ref name="Blunt2004">{{cite news |last1=Blunt |first1=Elizabeth |title=Nigerian Catholics told to be modest |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3549210.stm |access-date=8 April 2022 |language=English |date=9 August 2004|quote=In his latest circular letter to parishes, the Archbishop of Lagos, Cardinal Anthony Okogie, under the heading "nudity", calls on priests not to allow in church what he calls "fashions promoting lust and immorality". He says that any of the faithful wearing "clothes which reveal sensitive parts of the body such as the bust, chest, belly, or upper arms, transparent clothing or dresses with slits above the knees" should be "quietly asked to worship outside". As for boys, it says there should be no "jerry curls [long curly hair], tight jeans or earrings". A Sunday morning visit to the Church of the Assumption, in the Ikoyi district of Lagos, showed the Archbishop's recommendations were being well observed. … Everyone I spoke to had heard of the Archbishop's campaign for modest dressing, and said they were wholly in agreement. … I heard outspoken condemnation of people who come to the house of God half-naked, diatribes against tight trousers, skimpy tops and "spaghetti straps". Several women said they believed they should imitate the Holy Mother, Mary, and cover their heads, since she always appears in images with a veil.}}</ref> Under this rubric, people wearing "clothes which reveal sensitive parts of the body such as the bust, chest, belly, or upper arms, transparent clothing or dresses with slits above the knees" are forbidden to attend [[Mass (liturgy)|Mass]] inside the church.<ref name="Blunt2004"/> The faithful Catholics in the Archdiocese have been wholly supportive of the dictum concerning modesty, with many women practicing [[Christian headcovering]] with the Virgin Mary as their model.<ref name="Blunt2004"/>

Some Catholics have attempted to form cohesive theories of modesty. Sometimes this is from a sociological perspective,<ref name="autogenerated2">[http://www.theuniversityconcourse.com/article/1819.html Modesty and beauty - the lost connection] by Regina Schmiedicke</ref> while at other times it takes a more systematic, [[Thomism|Thomistic]] approach, combined with the writings of the [[Church Fathers]].<ref>[http://gorpub.freeshell.org/books.html#modesty The Modesty Handbook] (describing the nature of modesty from a Catholic perspective, based on St. Thomas Aquinas and the Church Fathers).</ref> Approaches arguing primarily from traditional practices and traditional authorities, such as the saints, can also be found.<ref>See, e.g., [http://sicutincaelo.org/b03_twsg.html Those Who Serve God Should Not Follow the Fashions] by Robert T. Hart (2004).</ref> In various localities, from time to time the church hierarchy have given opinions on various matters regarding dressing and modesty of the faithful.<ref>See all the following citations, which all expound at least partly upon such guidelines.</ref> While [[Pope Nicholas I|Nicholas the Great]] wrote to the first Christian ruler of Bulgaria, Boris I, in the 9th century, that it was acceptable for the Bulgarian women to continue to wear trousers, [[Giuseppe Siri|Giuseppe Cardinal Siri]] stated in 1960 that [[Trousers as women's clothing|trousers were unacceptable dress for women]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20030323162109/http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Rhodes/3543/nodress.htm Notification Concerning Men's Dress Worn by Women] by Giuseppe Cardinal Siri (1960)</ref> Many traditional Catholics have attempted to further expand on this latter standard.<ref>See G. K. Chesterton, [http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=39813 ''What's Wrong with the World''], Part III, Chap. V, for an early attempt (1910); see also [http://gorpub.freeshell.org/cr.html#praise In Praise of the Skirt] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924093659/http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=39813#praise |date=2015-09-24 }}, for a more contemporary one (2006)</ref> Around 1913, it became fashionable for dresses to be worn with a modest round or V-shaped neckline. In the [[German Empire]], for example, all [[Roman Catholic]] bishops joined in issuing a pastoral letter attacking the new fashions.<ref>Gernsheim, Alison. ''Victorian and Edwardian Fashion. A Photographic Survey''. Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications, 1981. Reprint of 1963 edition. {{ISBN|0-486-24205-6}}, p. 94</ref>

====Methodists====
[[File:Girls at Methodist camp.png|350px|right|thumb|[[AWMC|Wesleyan Methodist]] girls enter the [[tabernacle (Methodist)|tabernacle]] at a [[camp meeting]]. ]]
{{Further|Outward holiness}}
Methodists belonging to the [[conservative holiness movement]], such as the [[Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection]] and [[Evangelical Wesleyan Church]], have guidelines on modest apparel in accordance with the [[Wesleyan-Arminian]] doctrine of [[outward holiness]].<ref name="AWMC">{{cite book|title=Discipline of the Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection|publisher=[[Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection]]|language=en|chapter=I. The Church|quote=Should we insist on plain and modest dress? Certainly. We should not on any account spend what the Lord has put into our hands as stewards, to be used for His glory, in expensive wearing apparel, when thousands are suffering for food and raiment, and millions are perishing for the Word of life. Let the dress of every member of every Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Church be plain and modest. Let the strictest carefulness and economy be used in these respects.}}</ref><ref name="Scott2008">{{cite book|last=Scott|first=Stephen|title=Why Do They Dress That Way?|date=1 September 2008|publisher=Good Books|language=en|isbn=9781680992786|page=53}}</ref> The [[Fellowship of Independent Methodist Churches]], which continues to observe the [[ordinance (Christianity)|ordinance]] of [[Christian head covering|women's headcovering]], stipulates "renouncing all vain pomp and glory" and "adorning oneself with modest attire."<ref>{{cite web |title=Brief Description |url=http://fimc.org.uk/about_us.htm |publisher=[[Fellowship of Independent Methodist Churches]] |access-date=3 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220126234944/http://fimc.org.uk/about_us.htm |archive-date=26 January 2022 |language=English |date=26 January 2022}}</ref> Their interpretation of {{Bibleverse|Exodus|20:26|KJV}} and {{Bibleverse|Exodus|28:42-43|KJV}} is seen as forbidding the exposure of the body from torso to thighs,<ref name="Arnold2022"/><ref name="BMCC2018">{{cite book |title=Discipline of the Bible Methodist Connection of Churches |date=2018 |publisher=[[Bible Methodist Connection of Churches]] |page=37 |url=https://www.biblemethodist.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2018-Bible-Methodist-Discipline-rev.-2.pdf |language=English |quote=71. Scripture uniformly regards the exposure of one's nakedness to other persons, except in the context of marriage, to be shameful and requires that it be covered.<sup>1</sup> One of God's first actions on behalf of fallen man was to clothe his nakedness.<sup>2</sup> We understand the biblical term “nakedness” to refer at the least to the area of the body from the knees to the neck.<sup>3</sup> … <sup>1</sup>Hosea 2:9 “Therefore I will return and take away My grain in its time And My new wine in its season, And will take back My wool and My linen, Given to cover her nakedness”; cf. Isa. 47:3; Rev. 3:18. <sup>2</sup>Genesis 3:21 “Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made coats of skin, and clothed them”; cf. Gen. 3:7, 11. <sup>3</sup>Exod. 20:26; 28:42; Job 30:18; Ezek. 16:7. … God created men and women to be distinct yet complementary reflections of His image.<sup>1</sup> God's concern for gender-distinction is evident throughout Scripture in the gender-distinctions He requires in the church,<sup>2</sup> marriage,<sup>3</sup> and men's and women's clothing.<sup>4</sup> We understand Scripture to teach that men should not wear women's clothing and women should not wear men's clothing; therefore, our people should avoid wearing clothing that confuses the sexes.<sup>5</sup> Recognizing the call of Scripture for men's hair to be short and women's hair to be long, we admonish our men to cut their hair short enough to be distinctly masculine and our ladies to abstain from cutting the hair as taught in 1 Corinthians 11.<sup>6</sup> … <sup>1</sup>Genesis 1:26-27 “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them”; cf. 1 Cor. 11:7-9. <sup>2</sup>1 Cor. 11:2-16; 14:29-35; 1 Tim. 2:11-15. <sup>3</sup>Eph. 5:22-33. <sup>4</sup>Deuteronomy 22:5 “A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman's garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the LORD your God.” <sup>5</sup>Deut. 22:5. <sup>6</sup>1 Cor. 11:5-6, 14-15.}}</ref> while {{Bibleverse|Deuteronomy|22:5|KJV}} is interpreted as God mandating gender-distinct clothing.<ref name="BMCC2018"/> The 2015 ''Discipline of the Evangelical Wesleyan Church'', for example, states:<ref name="EWC2015"/> "We require our women to appear in public with dresses of modest length, sleeves of modest length, modest necklines and modest hose; the wearing of split skirts, slacks, jeans, artificial flowers or feathers is forbidden." It goes on:

{{blockquote|Moreover, we require our men to conform to the scriptural standards of decent and modest attire; we require that when they appear in public they wear shirts with sleeves of modest length. We require that all our people appear in public with sleeves below the elbows. Women's hemlines are to be modestly below the knees. Our people are forbidden to appear in public with transparent or immodest apparel, including shorts or bathing suits. Parents are required to dress their children modestly in conformity with our general principles of Christian attire. We further prohibit our people from participating in the practices of body-piercing, tattooing or body art.<ref name="EWC2015">{{cite book|title=The Discipline of the Evangelical Wesleyan Church |year=2015|publisher=[[Evangelical Wesleyan Church]]|language=en|pages=41, 57–58}}</ref>|author=|title=|source=}}

====Pentecostals====
[[File:CCB - Foto histórica em Guaianases.jpg|thumb|Pentecostal worshippers of the [[Christian Congregation (Pentecostal)|Christian Congregation]], with women wearing headcoverings and dresses]]
[[Holiness Pentecostalism]], the original trunk of Pentecostal Christianity, historically affirms the doctrine of [[outward holiness]], which is reflected in the wearing of modest clothing.<ref name="Scott2006">{{cite web |last1=Scott |first1=Rebekah |title=Murrysville Bible school produces teachers, preachers, prophets and apostles |url=https://www.post-gazette.com/local/westmoreland/2006/01/05/Murrysville-Bible-school-produces-teachers-preachers-prophets-and-apostles/stories/200601050316 |publisher=[[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]] |access-date=17 June 2022 |language=English |date=5 January 2006}}</ref> Holiness Pentecostals have historically taught a distinction between the male sex and female sex with respect to [[Trousers as women's clothing#Religion|gender distinct clothing]]; they do not wear adornment, such as jewelry and makeup.<ref name="Scott2006"/> The [[Apostolic Faith Church]] and the [[Free Gospel Church]], for example, subscribe to these Holiness Pentecostal standards;<ref name="Scott2006"/> in addition to these, the Ukrainian Pentecostal Church adheres to the [[ordinance (Christianity)|ordinance]] of [[Christian head covering|women's headcovering]] (cf. {{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|11:4-13|NRSV}}).<ref>{{cite web |title=Headcoverings |url=http://www.visitupc.org/headcoverings |publisher=Ukrainian Pentecostal Church |access-date=9 April 2022 |language=English |quote=1 Corinthians 11 We interpret 1 Corinthians 11 quite literally. "4 Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonors his head. 5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, for that is one and the same as if her head were shaved." Why don't you interpret hair as being the covering? We do not interpret hair as being the covering because if hair is the covering the Bible is referring to then that must mean that men are not allowed to have hair or he dishonors his head. If a distinction is made between long hair as being the covering (in contrast to short hair) then in that case this piece of scripture must mean that women must have long hair as their covering. What is the purpose of headcovering? Some believe that the headcovering is an extension of other modesty guidelines found in the Bible. We believe that wearing the headcovering is about more than just modesty for women. Women are to cover their heads for angel's sake (1 Corinthians 11:10). "Through head coverings our women show all present that their position as a woman is also redeemed. No longer are they at war usurping and longing for the man's position of authority (Gen 3:16). Instead they're content in the role God ordained for them in Genesis 2."}}</ref>

[[Oneness Pentecostalism]], another branch of Pentecostal Christianity, teaches the wearing of modest clothing.<ref name="Dawn2017">{{cite web |last1=Dawn |first1=Eden |title=One of Oregon's Most Successful Designers Makes Modesty Garb in La Grande |url=https://www.pdxmonthly.com/news-and-city-life/2017/03/one-of-oregon-s-most-successful-designers-makes-modesty-garb-in-la-grande |publisher=[[Portland Monthly]] |accessdate=6 November 2020 |language=English |date=20 March 2017}}</ref> Oneness Pentecostal denominations, such as the [[United Pentecostal Church International]], maintain the teaching of gender distinctions, including a belief that men should have short hair and women should not cut their hair (cf. {{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|11:14-15|NRSV}}).<ref name="Miller2015">{{cite web |last1=Miller |first1=Emily McFarlan |title=What's an Apostolic Christian and why is Kim Davis' hair so long? |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/09/09/splainer-whats-apostolic-christian-and-why-kim-davis-hair-so-long/71947018/ |publisher=[[USA Today]] |accessdate=6 November 2020 |language=English |date=9 September 2015}}</ref> While at the beach, women wear [[swimming dress]]es rather than what adherents would consider revealing bathing suits.<ref name="Dawn2017"/> Oneness Pentecostals do not adorn themselves with cosmetics or jewelry.<ref name="Miller2015"/> Additionally, certain Oneness Pentecostal denominations, such as the [[Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith]], observe the wearing of [[Christian head covering|headcoverings]] by Christian women (cf. {{Bibleverse|1 Corinthians|11:4-13|NRSV}}).<ref name="Brereton2002">{{cite book |last1=Bendroth |first1=Margaret Lamberts |last2=Brereton |first2=Virginia Lieson |title=Women and Twentieth-century Protestantism |date=2002 |publisher=University of Illinois Press |isbn=978-0-252-06998-7 |page=29 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Luke2016">{{cite web |last1=Luke |first1=Shelton |title=Statement of Apostolic Policy |url=https://apostolic-faith.org/ |publisher=The Church of the Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith |date=2016 |quote=You are cordially invited to The Church of the Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith regardless of race, creed, color or place of national origin. We ask however, that you abide by our Apostolic rules and the women have head covering and not wear pants.}}</ref>

====Quakers====
[[Conservative Friends]] and [[Central Yearly Meeting of Friends|Holiness-Orthodox Friends]], two associations of Quaker Christians, wear [[plain dress]] as part of their [[testimony of simplicity]].<ref name="CYMF2018">{{cite book |title=Manual of Faith and Practice of Central Yearly Meeting of Friends |date=2018 |publisher=Central Yearly Meeting of Friends |pages=107–110 |language=en}}</ref>

====Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints====
{{See also|Law of chastity}}
[[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (LDS Church) has issued official statements on modest dress for its members. Clothing such as "short shorts and short skirts, shirts that do not cover the stomach, and clothing that does not cover the shoulders or is low-cut in the front or the back"<ref name="lds_modesty_guidelines">[https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/for-the-strength-of-youth/dress-and-appearance?lang=eng "Dress and Appearance"], ''[[For the Strength of Youth (pamphlet)|For the Strength of Youth]]''.</ref> are discouraged. Men and women are also encouraged to avoid extremes in clothing or hairstyles. Rules on modesty also include women being asked to wear no more than one pair of earrings.<ref name="lds_modesty_guidelines" /> Women are generally expected to wear skirts or dresses for church services. Most LDS members do not wear sleeveless shirts or shorts that do not reach the knee.

The church-funded university, [[Brigham Young University]] (BYU), requires students and tenants of BYU housing to sign an agreement to live according to these standards of modesty.<ref>[http://honorcode.byu.edu The Brigham Young University Honor Code], which includes "Dress and Grooming Standards," agreement to which is required for application.</ref>