Clothes Do Not MAKE the Man (or Woman)

Further protest to my penultimate post:

Celebrities are never good examples of modesty. The virtue of modesty is not displayed merely when it coincides with a certain fashion, or individual taste. Virtue, itself, transcends the disordered fallen inclinations to only self and is evident by consistency of its exercise, as virtue is a habit. Habits have consistency, and tastes change.

There is probably not a single pop celebrity that is an example of this virtue of modesty. Since the virtue is what should be celebrated and not merely the coincidental choice of something that is somewhat modest garb, I made a mistake by emphasizing the clothing style of a pop artist in comparison to the "norm" of pop artists. I protest: Clothes do NOT make the man (or woman). We should be celebrating the elevation of the human condition, not the degradation by suggesting the human spirit is to be celebrated when it glorifies its self inclinations and whims. The practice of virtue is at the root of what elevates the human condition, both on the level of the individual and of the society.

While I may point to a few specific clothing styles or items, the point then would be to encourage and inspire those who wish to grow in the virtue of modesty. Fashion, itself, is not a virtue, although it is frequently hailed throughout the ages as if it is something to be vyed and longed for even to the obscurity of virtue. Fashion, when sought for its own sake, quickly denigrades to promoting the vice of lust, predominately fallen into by men, and vanity, predominately fallen into by women. Even when one of these vices are subtly employed through ones presentation the inevitable result is, at best, a miscommunication, at worse it presents a lie. This lie is either on the level of what is received, or by the cheapening of the human dignity by the presenter. As a final result, vice is considered on par with virtue: inciting lust or advertising vanity are seen often as a display of one's personal power, when actually, such a lie comes from the Father of Lies, where disorder all began.

I have, therefore, decided to refine my approach with this blog, and make it more of a resource to women (and later on, perhaps also men) who are wanting to know where to find affordable, modest clothing. Also, I will continue to include editorial comments on current matters relating to the virtue of modesty.

Also, modesty can be used to mean a reasonable, or even small quantity, such as "she owns a modest amount of clothing". Please note, that by no means am I meaning to imply that people should be so interested in modest clothing that they should own a different outfit for each day of the month, or even of the week. My intent is not to promote clothing gluttony. Actually, even my caption for the blog title is meant to be taken tongue in cheek, as with the purpose of the blog being "(to change the world) one outfit at a time." What has been my own experience, however, is that most of the clothing being sold nowadays is of cheap fabric and quality in general, and therefore does not last more than a year or two at best (I guess that depends, too, on how often a piece is worn).

That brings us also to the issue of the exploitation of laborers in the predominate countries where most clothing fabrics now originate. Countries like China especially fall into this category, as they do not pay their workers enough to even support themselves let alone a family. (Please read: Quadragesimo Anno and Rerum Novarum.) I will try to also consider this in my posts, since the promotion of one virtue cannot be valid if it acts as an end to itself, as the true execution of virtue promotes all the other virtues. Here, the social concsious cannot be ignored in the areas of justice and charity. Therefore, I will include specific alternatives and other suggestions which will also take this concern into account as well.