Dear Amanda, Thank you once again for your openness and candid questions. Whoever seeks the truth finds it, and you are very good at seeking it, even though I have already given you some pretty demanding answers! I admire your perseverance. I’m also glad your mother liked my previous letters. Please pass on my regards to her. Your questions now invite me to give some specific answers that some may find controversial. That’s fine. It is good to have a healthy debate on these questions. I will endeavour, however, to back up my point of view with some solid reasoning and quotes from others so that you can see it is not just my personal opinion. Women and Trousers Tight-fitting trousers, both for men and for women, are obviously immodest for the reasons already mentioned. But what if they are loose-fitting? This is certainly better, but is it sufficient? If you read any of the literature on this subject among those who promote modesty in dress, you already know that there is quite a lot of debate going on as to whether or not it is fitting for women to wear trousers. There are many virtuous women who wear trousers habitually and see no issue with it at all. I will attempt here to give a fair answer to this question, but it is not easy to do so without appearing to be harsh or judgmental, so I ask you to bear patiently with me as I try to explain this as I see it. Two very important realities undergird the entire question of whether or 8 December 2023 Immaculate Conception of Our Lady Clothing that cannot conceal the shape of the body is no more a covering. For such clothing, falling close to the body, takes its form more easily. . . As a result, the whole make of the body is visible to spectators, although they cannot see the body itself. Clement of Alexandria 71
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTI3ODI1