I also want women to dress modestly, with
decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive
clothes, but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God.
(I Timothy 2:9-10)
If
yesterday’s politics was not enough, today’s topic is women’s behavior. This
passage is one of the big reasons some people reject Paul, and even
Christianity. How dare Paul or anyone else tell women how to dress or to be
quiet and submissive? How dare anyone say that a woman isn’t just as able to
teach as a man? How dare I defend this misogynist? Doing so makes me one of
those sorts who believes women should be barefoot, pregnant and in the kitchen,
doesn’t it? Where’s my hajib?
Histrionics
aside, let’s look at what is actually said. Women are to dress modestly, with
decency and propriety. What is the alternative? To dress immodestly, indecently
and improperly. I can’t say that the alternative is dressing like a prostitute,
because it seems to me that dressing like a hooker is everyday attire for lots
of women. They claim they aren’t ashamed of their bodies, and to prove it, they
dress like the “before” pictures from the show, “What Not To Wear.”
Of
course, it’s not all about clothes. There are all the accessories. Paul says we’re
not to dress with braided hair and jewelry. A quick check on the Internet says
that an average updo costs $50-60. That’s three or four hours at a $15.00 per
hour wage. Tanning can cost $20 per session unless you have the time to go lie
out. Tattoos tend to cost at least $75 per hour to create. Fake nails can cost
almost as much. Don’t even ask about jewelry. I sold it for three years. I had
customers who thought nothing of spending thousands of dollars. They had rings
for every finger and thumb, and they weren’t dainty rings, and multiple
earrings for each ear. They wanted the biggest, boldest, brightest necklaces
and bracelets. It cost them thousands of dollars.
That’s just the money.
Consider how much time it takes to keep up this appearance? Then there’s make up.
I have friends who work wonders with makeup. They’re true artists, but it costs
a fortune and takes a long time to work that magic. What else could be done with
the money or time? To make matters worse, how practical is all of that stuff?
When you are all done up, how active can you be? I’ve seem women trying to
function with the nails. It’s funny.
The whole point of all this expense and
time is to look good – better than the next woman. “Look at me! Respond to me! Approve
of me. Appreciate me. Make me feel special!” it says, but we can’t because you’re
hidden behind all the stuff. It’s all
about looking like you don’t have to work for a living, which means that for
most of us, it’s all about lying.
Now,
I use makeup and nail polish. My hair is getting long enough that braids and
putting it up are not only possible, but necessary. I prefer to not to look as
if I am an advertisement, a product for sale, or a resident of a dumpster. In other words, I prefer to look like a respectable,
decent human being who thinks more about looking good to God than she does about
manipulating other people.
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