Some females are without shame and have no sense of Christian propriety, common decency, and biblical principles.

Sharon Hodde Miller, a doctoral student at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, said, “A woman’s breasts and buttocks and thighs all proclaim the glory of the Lord.” Yes, we are fearfully and wonderfully made but God did not expect this “glory of the Lord” to be observed by everyone everywhere, especially in church.

She said, “Modesty is an orientation of the heart, first and foremost. It begins with putting God first.”  In that, she is correct; however, if God is first in one’s life, he or she will seek to do all to the glory of God.  A woman is very unchristian if she uses her bouncing breasts, swaying buttocks, or exposed flesh to influence any man other than her husband. It is also a blasphemous use of the female body.

Nutty, shameless feminists in Fort Collins, Colorado, have contended that male and female breasts are identical!  Women brandished their bare bouncing breasts along with signs proclaiming, “My breasts are no more sexual than my mouth or my hands,” “Honk for gender equality,” and “Free the NIP.”

This is not your father’s world!

My deceased philosopher father, with a sixth-grade education, would say, “This world is nuttier than a fruitcake.”  And he would have found it incredible that professing Christians would defend immodest dress.

Some Evangelical and Fundamentalist youth wear shirts declaring “Modest is Hottest” or the reverse, although I can’t imagine Christians wearing something like that.  Whatever one’s definition of “hottest,” it obviously has a sexual connotation.  Why send the wrong message to others?  I wonder what parents are doing in the parenting department.

Are Christians to be “hot”?  That kind of sexual suggestion is not conducive to the body being the Temple of the Holy Spirit.  However, non-thinkers tell us never to correct our children since it might stunt their development, and they might even throw a hissy.  Can’t have that.  They also may think they are unloved.

Christians are not to draw attention to self but to Christ.  In Matthew 23:5, Christ rebuked the scribes and Pharisees saying, “But all their works they do for to be seen of men…and enlarge their borders.”  Enlarge borders refers to Jews who wore fringes on their robes as commanded in Numbers 15:38-39 to remind them to keep the Commandments.  However, some Jews went beyond God’s command and enlarged the borders to draw attention to themselves.  Likewise, people dress outrageously and do strange things to their bodies to attract attention to themselves.

I have often wondered why a beautiful young woman would put metal in her face. For sure, while it will attract people’s attention, it is not attractive. Principled people should know why they believe and practice certain things and not make decisions without reasonable thought.

Paul’s command in Philippians 2:5 to have the mind of Christ will eliminate seductive clothing, inappropriate clothing, piercings, tattoos, expensive jewelry, green hair, Mohawk haircuts, and pants drooping below the 38th parallel.  Christians are not to draw attention to self but to Christ. Believers were called Christians in Antioch because they reminded people of Christ.  Many modern Christians remind me of circus performers.  Shocking, shameful, and salacious dress (or activity) should be unacceptable to decent people.

A Texas public school district announced that any tattoos must be covered, and only ear piercings would be accepted!  Are any churches teaching such honorable standards to their members?  Of course, visitors should be welcomed whatever they wear as long as it meets a minimum standard of decency.

Church of God in Christ is a formal Pentecostal denomination where ushers wear white gloves, and their denominational handbook says, “dressing in a sensually provocative manner produces inclinations to evil desires.”

I agree with this Church of God in Christ statement, although I am not a Pentecostal.

Even Catholic churches are battling this problem of undress. I saw this scores of times on my tours to the Middle East, especially in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Nazareth. Tourists are asked to be modest when visiting famous historical and biblical church sites.

Often, Evangelicals and Fundamentalists are very careless, even indecent, in what they wear to church.  However, I contend that the concern should not only be on Sunday, but everyday indecent dress in public is always unacceptable, ungodly, and unnecessary.

Modesty should be a byproduct of genuine Christianity, although critics confuse modesty with prudery.  Prudery is as abnormal as exhibitionism is at the other extreme.  Modesty is Christian, common, and commendable.  Modest people have respect for their bodies (made in the image of God), respect for social norms, and respect for other people.

Both genders should consider proper dress as a sign of elegance, education, and erudition.  A silent statement is made by immodestly dressed people, male and female: “I don’t think much of myself, and I don’t expect you to value or respect me either.”

In many churches on Sunday morning, it is almost a Sunday Morning Slutwalk with bouncing boobs, cavernous cleavage, gyrating hips, skintight pants (male and female), and skirts slit front, back, and both sides.  It seems tempting, tantalizing, and taunting are parts of some modern women’s arsenal.

Feminists and others seek to remove all responsibility from women for the reactions they get from men because of seductive clothing, while most lusting men put the responsibility for their temptation totally upon the women!  However, smearing honey all over yourself and then strolling through bear country does invite attack by bears!

If the way women dress is not an invitation to men, then why do prostitutes dress the way they do? A good woman will dress to be modest and attractive, instead of modern and alluring. Street walking prostitutes feel a need to dress in salacious clothing to compete with other women.

Exposing the female body and doing the “come on” bit will also attract predator men. Immodest girls are like pigs rolling around in the mud and shouldn’t be surprised when men treat them like pigs.

Many women refuse to admit that their clothing sends a message to others. If they dress like a harlot, they will be perceived as a harlot even when it is not true. Proverbs 7:10 makes clear that dress is associated with prostitution: “And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart.”

All women who dress provocatively are not trying to attract men; some are simply careless, thoughtless, or trying to be relevant. However, it is wrong, and their husbands should remind them of the danger of advertising without trying to do so. Proverbs 11:22 says, “As a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion.” Principled women will seek to be appropriate, wise, and thoughtful of how they are perceived.

It is normal for men to react to exposed breasts and other parts of the female body.  That is the way God made them.  It would be abnormal if they did not react to the exposed female body.  However, men are responsible for their own impure, illegal, and iniquitous thoughts and actions.  Moreover, mere attraction is not lust, but it often leads to lust.

Normal men like to see female skin, but how much skin is permitted?  Some Muslim women are forced to cover their entire bodies except the eyes and hands; others even hide their eyes!  That would be considered going far past modesty to prudery.

The absence of modesty among females is an egregious problem, but I must emphatically state that however wickedly women dress, it does not justify lecherous men’s abusive actions.  While lust is natural, it is naturally sinful.  It dehumanizes the female when a man takes her for himself (even mentally), often to prove superiority over her as well as to satisfy unpermitted personal cravings.

Decent people should ask themselves not only what is acceptable but also what is appropriate for each occasion.  It is a joy to meet a person with a happy smile, pure heart, and noble intentions who is modest, kind, humble, and genuine.  Not many out there!

I’ll be considered naïve and self-righteous for even suggesting they should be out there!

Young boys used to look at National Geographic for naked bodies, strange piercings, and tattoos. In this day, it is easy to see about anything everywhere, even observing leading members of some Evangelical and Fundamentalist churches.

(Dr. Don Boys is a former member of the Indiana House of Representatives who ran a large Christian school in Indianapolis and wrote columns for USA Today for 8 years. Boys authored 20 books, the most recent, Reflections of a Lifetime Fundamentalist: No Reserves, No Retreats, No Regrets! The eBook is available at Amazon.com for $4.99. Other titles at www.cstnews.com. Follow him on Facebook at Don  Boys, Ph.D., and visit his blog. Send a request to DBoysphd@aol.com for a free subscription to his articles and click here to support  his work with a donation.)

“You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.”  John Bunyan, Baptist Preacher

A common belief among sailors during the Middle Ages that a pierced ear would greatly improve one’s long-distance vision led to a single pierced ear. Sailors also believed that their bodies would get a “Christian” burial if washed up on shore with an earring that would finance their funeral.

The Aztec and Mayan people pierced their tongues. The Mayans pierced their tongues with thorns permitting the blood to fall on bark which they presented as an offering to their pagan gods.

Lip piercing was done in African and American tribes and the Africans went into lip stretching resulting in women with vast lips and ears stretched into grotesque appendages.

The holder of the world record of permanent piercings is held by a woman in Scotland. The Daily Telegraph reported in February of 2009 that she now has 6,005 piercings throughout her body! About 200 piercings are on her face! How do you kiss a woman like that? Who would want to kiss a woman like that? How does she wash her face? The world’s most pierced man has 209 permanent piercings with 175 on his face! Such people are desperate for attention.

Piercings and body mutilation were practiced, publicized and promoted by homosexuals and rock groups in recent years. The young and impressed wanting to identify with “celebrities” went to the places of piercings and paid for the privilege of getting additional holes in their head and body.

I asked an acquaintance why he had silver rings in his ears, eyebrows, and nose. I told him it was his business why he did so but I couldn’t understand why anyone would pay to be pierced. It didn’t make any sense to me. He looked at me blankly and sought for an answer. Finally, I suggested that maybe it was because so many professional athletes and entertainment jerks did it so he wanted to identify with them. He hesitatingly agreed that that was his reason. That is insane!

One young lady wrote: “I go to a church in Indiana where most of the Church attenders have tattoos, stretched ears, piercings, and colorfully dyed hair. I believe it isn’t what is on the outside of a Christian, but what is on the inside. If God is in you, that’s all that matters.” OK but when I see you with your tattoos, pierced ears, stretched ears, and colorfully dyed hair, how can I concentrate on what you say when you look so weird? What is on the inside is most important but what is on the outside is much louder than your inner voice.

Christians are supposed to be peculiar, not odd. We are not to endorse pagan activity around us. We are told in Lev. 19:28, “Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.” That verse should satisfy any Christian except those who are looking for a way to emulate the world and fit in with the crowd.

We are to avoid the very appearance of evil. Herodotus observed that the Arabs shaved their hair round, in honor of the pagan god Bacchus, whom they said, had his hair cut in that way. Moses commanded the Jews not to wear their hair in such a way that would give any credibility to paganism. Neither should Christians today. Piercings and paganism go together.

In I Kings 18:28 the pagan prophets of Baal, during their challenge from Elijah, cut themselves as was their custom. Cuttings and piercings have always been a peculiarity of the heathen. How can it be any clearer? It is wrong as Deuteronomy 14:2 commands: “For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth.”

We are not to harm our body in any way and tattooing and piercings are harmful in many ways. It is expensive, faddish, unnecessary, and dangerous. It takes about a year for some piercings to heal and infections are frequent. There is danger of bleeding, swelling, and excessive scarring with very real danger of infection with HIV, hepatitis B and C. The hepatitis virus can live for months on dirty needles and other equipment. Navel piercings can take up to a year to heal and genital piercings can be disastrous. Even upper ear piercing can be very dangerous requiring surgery.

Christian women should even refuse to have their ears pierced in obedience to the Bible command! After all, if you can justify one hole in your head, you can easily justify two, three, or more!

Oh my!

http://bit.ly/1iMLVfY Watch these 8 minute videos of my lecture at the University of North Dakota: “A Christian Challenges New Atheists to Put Up or Shut Up!”

There is ample evidence that humans have marked their bodies with tattoos for thousands of years. These permanent markings have been prompted by various motives such as status symbols, religious beliefs, proof of ownership, declarations of love as seen in ostentatious “Mother” tattoos. Or, like the Hollywood couple who had their names tattooed on each other’s rear but broke up before they got to the marriage altar!

The discovery of the “Iceman” (who had 61 tattoos) from the area of the Italian-Austrian border in 1991 has convinced experts that tattoos are even older than first thought, going back 5,200 years. Tattoos on women as displayed on figurines go back to about 4,000 B.C.

It has been long believed that only prostitutes were tattooed and were designated as “dancing girls” but many of the “dancing girls” were buried where the elite were buried. Others think tattoos protected women during childbirth because of the location of the markings.

The Greek historian Herodotus (“Father of History”) died 425 B.C., stated that among the Scythians and Thracians “tattoos were a mark of nobility, and not to have them was testimony of low birth.”
Accounts of the ancient Britons likewise suggest they too were tattooed as a mark of high status, and with “divers shapes of beasts” tattooed on their bodies, the Romans named one northern tribe “Picti,” literally “the painted people.”

Ptolemy IV who ruled Egypt from 221-205 B.C. was tattooed with ivy leaves to symbolize his dedication to the Greek god of wine. This was adopted by Roman soldiers and spread across the Roman Empire until the appearance of Christianity. With Christianity tattoos were thought to “disfigure that made in God’s image” and were banned by Emperor Constantine.

Many experts in theology and history, such as Charles Erdman, James Freeman, and Naves Topical Bible, reveal that both cutting and tattooing were done by the heathen, and so God forbade His people from doing so in imitation of them. God has always demanded there be a difference in His people and everyone else, but it seems there is not much difference in this day.

Evidence for tattooing is also found among some of the ancient mummies dated to about 1200 B.C. found in China’s Taklamakan Desert, although a thousand years later it seems that only criminals were tattooed. It was also an ancient Japanese tradition to tattoo convicted criminals.

In some parts of Britain, before Christ, adulterers and other “bad characters” were punished with tattoos. Some military branded troublemakers and deserters and later tattooed them with a “D.”

The National Geographic News reported that 15% of all Americans have tattoos and the Alliance of Professional Tattooists (APT) estimates over 39 million Americans have a tattoo.

My immediate question is why would anyone want to put markings, even “beautiful” marks on their flesh and a 2003 survey in the U.S. among females said they “feel sexier” (34%), and overall “feel more rebellious” (29%).

One man in a photo has tattoos covering his whole body from his neck down. Many years ago that might be seen in a circus but not in normal life. The word “freak” comes to mind. One preacher even had his body covered with Bible verses. What a perversion of the normal Christian life.

The motives for getting tattoos are many: some do so because they are followers and it happens to be trendy to have a tattoo. Some think it is manly or womanly. While others want to draw attention to themselves because of insecurity. Still others are doing it to express their rebellion. It is no surprise that 75% of prisoners have tattoos. The Bible teaches that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft.

My big objection is that tattoos have always been associated with magic, death, demons, witches, and the underworld. The demon-possessed man in Mark 5 was wild, naked, and had cut himself but when he came to Christ, he was dressed, calm, and “in his right mind.”

One thing tattoos are not and that is biblical. Lev. 19:28 reveals “Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.” That’s reason number one.

Famous witch and author Laurie Cabot writes of tattoos: “The origins of tattooing came from ancient magical practices. . . “

Rolling Stone Magazine says of Paul Booth, famous tattoo artist, that his work is for those who
“. . . love death, perversion, blasphemy and torture” (Rolling Stone, March 28, 2002, p. 39). The article says that during his artistry he allows “his clients’ demons to help guide the needle.” Booth’s website boasts of his mission: “Spewed from the depth of Hell, Paul’s mission has been to reconfigure human hides and spread divine declarations of Blasphemy.” That should be reason enough to eschew tattoos. That’s reason number two.

Death and darkness have always been a major tattoo theme specializing in skulls, snakes, demons, dragons, etc. Christians must specialize in light, life, and love, not darkness, demons, and death.

Tattoos can be an indication of major emotional problems as reported by two psychiatrists. Drs. Robert F. Raspa and John Cusack who dealt with tattoos in their Psychiatric Implications of Tattoos declared that the mere presence of a tattoo (not its message) is evidence that “correlates with certain diagnoses.” They add that any tattoo can be viewed as a warning sign that an attending physician should consider in making a medical diagnosis of mental disorders. They reported “a strong association in males between tattoos and homosexual orientation, sexual sadomasochism, bondage or fetishism.”

Drs. Timothy A. Roberts and Sheryl A. Ryan wrote “Tattooing and High-Risk Behavior in Adolescents,” in Pediatrics, in which they reported, “Tattooing in adolescents was significantly associated with sexual intercourse, substance use, violence and school problems….” Dr. Roberts has a tattoo and did the study to prove that people with tattoos are being stereotyped. His research changed his mind! He said, “I was more than a little surprised at the result.” That’s reason number three.

According to research published in the Journal of School Health, 70 percent of 642 adolescents surveyed in a study reported hemorrhaging while being tattooed. That’s reason number four.

Underneath that “harmless” tattoo is a very serious risk of acquiring a deadly blood-borne disease such as AIDS, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, tetanus, syphilis, tuberculosis and other blood-borne diseases. An alarming research study published by Dr. Bob Haley and Dr. Paul Fischer at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas revealed that the “innocent” commercial tattoo may be the number one distributor of hepatitis C!

According to the American Society of Dermatological Surgery (ASDS), over 50% of everyone receiving a tattoo wants it removed. So, don’t get one.

That colorful, silky butterfly on your breast may be attractive at age 20 but by age 70 it just may look like a sick buzzard.

http://bit.ly/1iMLVfY Watch these 8 minute videos of my lecture at the University of North Dakota: “A Christian Challenges New Atheists to Put Up or Shut Up!”