Dear Father, I cannot thank you enough for the time you have taken to provide such clear answers to my questions. I am especially grateful for the detail you went into explaining Original Sin and concupiscence and how it is always going to rear its ugly head. It gave me so much to think about. However, I hope you do not mind, Father, but I had some more specific questions that I could perhaps address to others, but I thought it best to ask you, given you have been helping me understand this so much in detail. Father, one of the arguments I always hear when modesty comes up is how important it is to view modesty in its cultural context. I think what people mean by that is that modesty can actually take on different forms in different cultures. If this is true, does this mean that it is OK to wear certain things because it is widespread today? I already sort of know the answer to this question, because of my last letter to you. Even though most of the girls were dressed immodestly, I still guessed instinctively it wasn’t right. Furthermore, if that culture thing is true, then it must be fine to wear a bikini to the beach as so many women do, but I wouldn’t be seen dead in one of those! And I know there are even nudist beaches where people have no clothing at all (as shocking as that sounds!); so if the culture context theory is right, it would be OK to be naked on those beaches!? But that can’t be right. I think I sense the answer, but I just can’t 2 July 2023 Feast of the Visitation of Our Lady Be not conformed to this world. Romans 12:2 Third Correspondence Modesty in the Context of Modern Culture 52
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