Why are Muslim Women so much more Modest than Christian Women?

[Trevor]

Let me add my two cents. I will agree that there likely is some element of fear involved. But that doesn't detract from the fact that even out of these societies, away from the fear of retribution, Muslim women still are decidedly more sexually moral and modest than their counterparts. That's a fact that cannot be denied. So it's not all fear, it's their abiding in their religious beliefs. Muslims here wear the same modest clothing. I'm not saying women should cover from head to toe, I'm saying they recognize it is ungodly to dress like women dress today. And here they have absolutely no fear that if they don't they'll be harmed. It's not fear that keeps them dressed like that, it's their religion, beliefs and faith. False as it is, it still is really the determining factor.

A perfect example is what's in the news lately about this 16 year old girl that was shot in the head by the Taliban years ago for wanting to go to school and have more rights for women. She and her whole family live in England now and they have accepted all the modern lifestyle changes. But she and her family in England still wear modest clothing, and she and her mother have publicly said the only thing that shocks her and her family (negatively) was the way the women in the West/Europe cavort around shamelessly in tight or very little clothing, and that they had no intention of following suit. It's not fear that keeps her clothed modestly, it's the faith in her religion, moral values and her training of what is respectful and modest for women to wear. I agree with what others who have posted have said. Both the Church and Christian women are being influenced by society, rather than faith in God's word. Christian training today has failed miserably.

Proverbs 22:6
"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it."
 
This is Godly training that this country once would abide by, and passed down to their children, but which is now all but absent from Christian homes and Churches. My problem is, there is no outcry against it. No preacher standing up and preaching a sermon on it.  John says they'll lose their people. And that may be true. But I don't even hear Christians in general having a problem with it, or parents for that matter. Coming to this forum was the first I've heard about it by anyone in years.

[Dryfus]

A question that has been puzzling me for some time now is, why are Muslim women so much more modest (Godly speaking) and respectful of their men than Christian women today are?

The simple answer is, Muslim women have more faith. Hard to believe, but true.

 Luke 16:8 And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.

[Melanie]

A question that has been puzzling me for some time now is, why are Muslim women so much more modest (Godly speaking) and respectful of their men than Christian women today are?

The simple answer is, Muslim women have more faith. Hard to believe, but true.

I agree it is a type of faith, but that kind of faith is worthless. Moral dress code and all.

 Jamess 2:10
 "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law."

So if you wear a modest clothing, but then don't know Christ, what good is it to wear modest clothing? None. You might as well eat, drink and be merry, because tomorrow you die.

[Cecil]

To remain Kingdom citizens, we need not only to know God’s standards but also to love them. Many citizens of human governments say that they agree with the laws and standards of the country in which they live. However, when they find a requirement to be inconvenient and feel that nobody is looking, they break the law. Often, these people are “men pleasers.” (Col. 3:22) Kingdom citizens live by a higher standard. We gladly obey God’s laws, even when no other human is looking. Why? Because we love the Lawmaker.—Isa. 33:22; read Luke 10:27.
 How can you know whether you truly love God’s laws? Examine the way you react when you receive counsel about what you feel is a personal preference—for example, on the matter of dress and grooming. Before becoming a Kingdom citizen, you may have preferred to dress sloppily or provocatively. As your love for God grew, you learned to dress in a way that honors him.  A foundation law of God’s Kingdom is that all citizens imitate Christ. (1 Pet. 2:21) Regarding Jesus’ example, the apostle Paul wrote: “Let each of us please his neighbor in what is good for his upbuilding. For even the Christ did not please himself.” (Rom. 15:2, 3) For the sake of peace in the congregation, a mature Christian is willing to yield without resentment to the consciences of others.—Rom. 14:19-21.

[Arnold]

I have a question. Not that anyone will answer it. But why do Christian women wear their pants and sweaters so tight. I mean skin tight. Like they need a shoe horn to get in them.  It's an honest question.
 :anyone:

[aquatic]

Arnold it's the same for any woman. It has to be for attention from others or to make themselves feel good, because it sure isn't for comfort. 

[Melanie]

I have a question. Not that anyone will answer it. But why do Christian women wear their pants and sweaters so tight. I mean skin tight. Like they need a shoe horn to get in them.  It's an honest question.
 :anyone:

Actually, it's not an honest question. It's an assumption. I have a better question. Why do "some" Christians generalize so much in saying Christian women wear tight clothes? Notice I said "some" while you said "Christian women?" You were generalizing, I am not. Because there are lots of Christian women who don't wear skin tight clothing. You can't lump all Christian women into the same basket. That's like saying why are Jews cheap, why do Irish people drink, why are Polish people dumb or why do blacks have rhythm? When you make such generalizing statements, you weaken your argument because it's not true.

When you ask why do Christian women wear their pants and sweaters so tight, that's not a true statement. My Christian parents have never worn skin tight clothing. I'm sure some people do, but they can't be used as a representative of all Christian women. Also, just because they call themselves Christian, doesn't make it so.

[Maurice]

Notice I said "some" while you said "Christian women?" You were generalizing, I am not. Because there are lots of Christian women who don't wear skin tight clothing.

And where are these christian women? I've never seen them, unless you are talking about the Quakers, The Amish or the Pennsylvania Dutch. Other than that, Christian women wear tight clothes. You might find one here or there, but basically they do wear tight, hip-hugging, revealing, low-cut, sexy clothing. Just like everyone else. Let's not be hypocritical.

You can't lump all Christian women into the same basket. That's like saying why are Jews cheap, why do Irish people drink, why are Polish people dumb or why do blacks have rhythm? When you make such generalizing statements, you weaken your argument because it's not true.

None of that is true?  :Say_what:

[Reformed Baptist]

So if you wear a modest clothing, but then don't know Christ, what good is it to wear modest clothing? None. You might as well eat, drink and be merry, because tomorrow you die.

Melanie,
  I just realized that you were the only woman to comment in this thread, and not really to condemn immodest clothing. Does that not say it all? Women in general just love dressing immodestly because it gets them attention. That may not be politically correct to say, but I believe it to be the truth. Women avoid issues of modesty like it was a disease.

[Arnold]

That's Harsh! 

[Betty]

 :ditto: Well here's the second woman to speak up in this thread, and I doubt you'll like what I'm going to say either. Maybe women aren't addressing this issue because of men like you. You mistake legalism for modesty and you seem to blame women for your (men) own salacious, lecherous and lustful thoughts. If you have lusts when you look at woman's clothing, isn't that's on you?

Luke 6:41 "And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but perceivest not the beam that is in thine own eye?"

 :Fighting: There certainly are a lot of male chauvinists in the world, and some of them on this forum. I reject out of hand the idea that women are immodest today. Define immodest. A short dress or low cut blouse tastefully worn is not immodest. Yoga pants are not immodest. Without a doubt, a lot of Christian men are misogynist and contribute to this widespread contempt for women.

[Tra Millwood]

With all due respect Betty, you don't count. We're looking for women who hold the Bible as the authority, who honor its words and who accept God's word concerning morality. If we don't accept God's word as authority, then that puts us in another religion, not of the living Word.  The Word is alive, it's not dead like the law. It lives in our heart. If you are going to contradict it, then how is it the religion of Christ?

"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.  John 1:12-14"

God's Word made flesh and dying that it might live in us, not die in us.

[Sojourner]

I think that anyone who can't see that Muslim women are more outwardly moral have their heads stuck in the sand. Of course that's not all encompassing, but in general they are. Even when they migrate to other countries, to a large degree they retain that modesty. Unlike most other religions where the women seem to change to fit the social (immoral) norms of the countries they enter into. That's my observation and opinion of this issue.

On the other hand, there are also a lot more hypocrites as they're watching porn, gambling, drinking, ready to murder someone who doesn't agree with their views, etc., and then praying every morning about the wicked society they live in. It's like the Priests and Pharisees of old who were outwardly modest and pious too, but Christ taught that inwardly they were farther away from God than the Prostitutes.

It seems like it may be that the Muslim religion doesn't attempt to modernize or change as much as religions like Christianity, they keep their roots (so to speak). Modern Christianity changes its laws constantly where almost everything becomes debatable and no judgment should be made. It's like going from one extreme in one religion to another in Christianity where there are no absolutes. The Muslim religion has retained most of the past moral values of women, but not morality in general. By contrast, western culture has gone in the toilet, and western values and morals of women have gone right along with it. As I said before, progress and modernization isn't always a good thing.

But it's not about who is being more moral, it's about who has Christ as Savior. So all the social morality in the world isn't a big help. It's a cultural thing and I believe their religious leaders have done a much better job of teaching and maintaining standards than the Christian church has. They still evangelize and proselytize, while the Christian church does not. At least not on the scale that this religion does. Instead of teaching, we want to feed hungry people, get involved in politics and give money to Israel. They work harder at doctrinal evangelizing. So in a nutshell, that is why Muslim women are (generally) so much more modest than Christian women? It comes down to teaching, something the Christian church doesn't do anymore.  They're too busy learning compromise from the world.

 Pr 22:6  Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

[Reformer]

You mean giving up on teaching kids what not to wear and why they shouldn't wear it is hypocritical? Especially when you go to work in the same sexy clothes? Or giving up on telling children they have to abstain from sex before marriage because they don't listen anyway? This is not a good Christian attitude?  I guess you can tell I'm being sarcastic. Does it seem to you that Christians are defeated before they even get up in the morning?

I get what you mean. But it's so much more enriching and rewarding to contemporary Christians to argue endlessly over the imperfect tense in Greek showing continuous duration of existence in the past and continuing into the future when John says the Word was made flesh. It's embarrassing witnessing and boring making disciples, so let's just enrich ourselves? (another eye roll).  Not that there's anything wrong with personal growth, but we were comissioned to make disciples of men. Somewhere, we've lost that talent.

Yes I agree, we've failed as preachers, as parents and as a church. As I see it, the problem is it's too late now. It's like a cancer that you saw the symptoms of and did nothing and now it's too far gone to stop now. It reminds me of the passage in Jeremiah.

 Jer 23:20 The anger of the LORD shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it perfectly.
 21 I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.
 22 But if they had stood in my counsel, and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.

How prophetic to our times. If they had, but they didn't. And because of that, the immorality of the world is rampant in the church. You could no more effectively tell christian woman today to stop wearing suggestive clothes as you could tell them to stop walking. Contemporary style is ingrained in them. Nor can you stop men from their lust because it's like telling them to stop breathing. Because it's so everywhere today, it seems normal and impossible to beat. I notice that anyone condemning these things appear archaic, judgmental and loveless to most Christians.  Muslim women in general just don't have that type peer pressure to conform to the immoral dress norms that Americans do. In most Muslim countries they're living in a time capsule type society where modesty in dress is expected. We live in a country where it's just the opposite and immodest dress is expected. If a woman wears a long dress here (and by long I don't mean down to the ground), she's made fun of in most places. We are a decadent country.

[Erik Diamond]

Immodesty simple means dressing to draw attention to the BODY instead of the HEART or SPIRIT.  Christian women (as well as men) are responsible for what they wear that is supposed to reflect their relationship with God AND the decision to have sex with someone, other than spouse, as a result. Her body is reserved for God AND her Christian husband, is a distraction to the Christian community if she does not dress properly.

The women forgot that their body is a TEMPLE that belongs to God, therefore, should be treated with respect if they receive what Scripture says instead of protesting with feminism and cultural lies. There is NO POINT of pointing the finger at either men or women. Immodesty can, and does go BOTH ways.

Erik