Clothing Optional Beaches

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The Puritans have really influenced American culture in many subtitle and not so subtitle ways.
Freudian slip, BobObob?

😃

(This thread might be about French beaches, but it is typed in English… and since this forum doesn’t really require translation, I think you really meant ā€œsubtle.ā€)
 
It is interesting to note that Jesus didn’t condemn Peter for being naked in public in John 21:7. He was not naked…
Actually, he was. Just look at the original text.

Looking at the original words from checking the lexicon at blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Jhn&c=21&v=1&t=KJV#top, it becomes clear he was naked. John 21:7 says, ā€œĪ³Ī¬Ļ ἦν Ī³Ļ…Ī¼Ī½ĻŒĻ‚ā€, which transliterated to our alphabet is ā€œgar ēn gymnosā€, which translated to English is ā€œfor he was naked.ā€ The word ā€œgymnosā€, which is where the word ā€œgymā€ came from, means ā€œnakedā€.

It’s also interesting to note that St. Francis stripped naked in public in front of his bishop. This was in front of a crowd that presumably had women in it. He did that to make the point that he’s throwing off the riches of this word that he would inherit from his father (by throwing off the clothes that his father gave him). The bishop approved of his actions.
 
BobObob;6812576:
The Puritans have really influenced American culture in many subtitle and not so subtitle ways.
Freudian slip, BobObob?

😃
I tend to make many silly mistakes like that when I write quickly. I tend to be the type of person who needs to carefully proofread every paper before handing it to the professor. If I do that, I’ll usually get a good grade. I’m a better researcher than writer.
 
Actually, he was. Just look at the original text.

Looking at the original words from checking the lexicon at blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Jhn&c=21&v=1&t=KJV#top, it becomes clear he was naked. John 21:7 says, ā€œĪ³Ī¬Ļ ἦν Ī³Ļ…Ī¼Ī½ĻŒĻ‚ā€, which transliterated to our alphabet is ā€œgar ēn gymnosā€, which translated to English is ā€œfor he was naked.ā€ The word ā€œgymnosā€, which is where the word ā€œgymā€ came from, means ā€œnakedā€.

It’s also interesting to note that St. Francis stripped naked in public in front of his bishop. This was in front of a crowd that presumably had women in it. He did that to make the point that he’s throwing off the riches of this word that he would inherit from his father (by throwing off the clothes that his father gave him). The bishop approved of his actions.
He was stripped for work (see RSV CE) … such as the outer garments of the day that would get in the way in that kind of work…not stripped naked in the full sense used here…

And Francis was stripping off the clothes his father had given him…

It need not have been everything…(one source even mentions his hair shirt he was still wearing…so one would imagine he was not naked )

Neither Peter nor Francis would approve people running around naked at the beach…
 
My point with all this is that nudity, even in public, isn’t always evil. It depends.
He was stripped for work (see RSV CE) … such as the outer garments of the day that would get in the way in that kind of work…not stripped naked in the full sense used here…
The word ā€œgymnosā€ typically refers to full nudity, althouh it may sometimes refer to partial nudity. Also, most fisherman at that time worked in the nude, although not always (historywiz.com/galleries/fisherman.htm). Thus, it’s likely he was working in the nude in public when you look at the original text and consider historical context.
And Francis was stripping off the clothes his father had given him…

It need not have been everything…(one source even mentions his hair shirt he was still wearing…so one would imagine he was not naked )
It’s generally held that he stripped off all of his clothes since all of his clothes belonged to his father. It’s what tour guides at the Vatican museum tell people, and it’s what I’ve heard from professors at the Franciscan University of Steubenville say. I’d hope those Franciscans (TORs) teaching college classes would know their own history. It’s also generally held that the bishop put his cloak around him afterward to symbolize the acceptance of Christ of his giving up of earthy riches.
Neither Peter nor Francis would approve people running around naked at the beach…
How do you know that? You might be right, but you might be wrong. It’s very easy for one to assume what opinions on various issues historical figures would have. I’m tempted to make such assumptions, but I try not to assume.

BTW, what about Jesus appearantly, for a moment, being naked while changing in front of the apostles before washing their feet (John 13:4)? Isiah was appearently asked by God to strip naked, taking his sockloth off of his lions (Isiah 20:2-4).

Here’s a very interesting article:

(short version) pastordavidrn.homestead.com/files/rebuilding-links.html
(long version) pastordavidrn.homestead.com/files/nakedness.html
 
Note: when I said ā€œI’d hope those Franciscans (TORs) teaching college classes would know their own historyā€, I wasn’t just referring to the history of the order itself from the order’s founding onward, which was founded well after St. Francis died, but also to the history of what led up to the founding of the TORs.
 
It is good to have opinions but we should watch out against confusing them with dogmas and doctrine of the Church. Considering our western society, it is most likely that public nudity would have wicked motivations so for people to avoid clothing optional beaches and consider them sinful it is understandable. But it is an other matter to consider that public nudity is sinful.

Chesterton was wise in his saying:
ā€œIdolatry is committed, not merely by setting up false gods, but also by setting up false devils; by making men afraid of war or alcohol, or economic law, when they should be afraid of spiritual corruption and cowardice.ā€
As Jesus said we need to clean up the inside so that the outside also might get cleaned.

I am not advocating nudism. In fact, I think nudism as well as pure nudist beaches are of heretical fondementalism, there is a twisted sense of freedom and extremist attitute in imposing nudity… Like Chesterton pointed out, I just believe that we need to find out what is really sinful and what is not. It has serious effects on our souls even when we consider good things bad. Ask people who thought the Catholic Church was the Whore/Beast…

God bless
 
I’m confused. I’ve lived in Europe for half of my adult life and we’ve always just taken clothing-optional/topless beaches for granted.
Have I been sinning all this time? 🤷
The fact that you took these things for granted may have lessened the ā€œtemptation to sinā€ to some degree.
While strictly speaking from a sin standpoint a clothing optional beach is fairly neutral, one must admit to there being plenty of opportunities for sin at the beach given the state of undress even of those who are ā€œdressedā€.
To determine this you would need to do an examination of conscience. For instance:
  1. Did you have lustful thoughts about anyone you saw? (this can apply regardless of dress)
  2. Did you think or make unkind remarks about someone?
  3. Did you personally participate in immodesty knowing that such immodesty could lead others to sin?
These and other questions, asked in the light of Love and the commandments can help you determine if you committed any sins.

Peace
James
 
My point with all this is that nudity, even in public, isn’t always evil. It depends.

The word ā€œgymnosā€ typically refers to full nudity, althouh it may sometimes refer to partial nudity. Also, most fisherman at that time worked in the nude, although not always (historywiz.com/galleries/fisherman.htm). Thus, it’s likely he was working in the nude in public when you look at the original text and consider historical context.

Nope…see RSV CE…he was stripped for work…not working nude…

It’s generally held that he stripped off all of his clothes since all of his clothes belonged to his father. It’s what tour guides at the Vatican museum tell people, and it’s what I’ve heard from professors at the Franciscan University of Steubenville say. I’d hope those Franciscans (TORs) teaching college classes would know their own history. It’s also generally held that the bishop put his cloak around him afterward to symbolize the acceptance of Christ of his giving up of earthy riches.

On this one …It still works if he stripped down to his undergarments…in any case…I leave the history to those who are the experts (The Univerisity you mention is my Alma Mater)…but it would certainly be a radical move for the son of a person who was well off in society to be removing all of his clothes …even if he kept his undergarments on and his hair shirt…and in any case it is a principle that many things the Canonized Saints do are ā€œNot imitableā€ā€¦and not even sure women would have been present…and such an act of a young man who was radically seeking God is a far cry from going to the said beaches

BTW, what about Jesus appearantly, for a moment, being naked while changing in front of the apostles before washing their feet (John 13:4)?

Again Jesus removed his outer garments…only…he was not naked…
 
Let’s not get too hung up on what might have been considered proper back in the day. It’s prettty obvious that things were different in biblical times.

After all circumcision, the ā€œsignā€ of the Old covenent, was ā€œdisplayedā€ on the most intimate part of the male form.

Peace
James
 
My point with all this is to show that nudity isn’t evil per se, and that it serves many different purposes, meanings, and effects in different contexts. Research has confirmed by research (versita.metapress.com/content/4j44hx8381p50437/fulltext.pdf ). Even today, it seems that allowing nudity in various places in Europe hasn’t been a problem for them. I’m betting that if nudity was more accepted in the US, the largest consumer nation of porn in the world, mere nudity would be less sexualized (it’s mostly the US that sexualizes nudity), and over time fewer people will have problems with porn and lust. It may sound like it contradicts common sense (saying that more acceptance of nudity would lead to less lust), but I heard things in the past that seem to support this, I did research, and I changed my opinion (from disagreeing to agreeing). It is for this reason that I think that having clothes-optional beaches is a good idea. If individuals would struggle with lust in going there, they can just stay home.

BTW, I’m a senior at FUS who is majoring in theology (accelerated) and mental health. I’m also minoring in history and philosophy. In some ways, this discussion touches on all of those. Perhaps the effects of nudity could make an interesting psychology thesis.
Nope…see RSV CE…he was stripped for work…not working nude…
I read both the RSV CE and the original text. One must be careful to not treat a certain translation as infallible, but should, if doing a concentrated study of a particular passage, look at the original language. For this I recommend www.blueletterbible.org, because there you can see the original words, their general meaning, and other places in the Bible where those same words are used.

Even if the RVS CE was infallible, saying ā€œhe was stripped for workā€ is NOT contradictory to ā€œworking nudeā€. Sometimes being stripped for work is the same as being nude, since certain things like fishing were often done in the nude (as far as I’m aware of the habits of that period).

This, plus the historical context, plus the fact that ā€œgymnosā€ usually referred to full nudity, mean that it is reasonable to hold that he was fully naked, but not strictly provable.
Again Jesus removed his outer garments…only…he was not naked…
John 13:4 said that he took off his garments, then girded a towel around his waist. I don’t think he would have used a towel to replace the outer garment. If he was putting a towel around his waist, then he was probably briefly uncovered in that area. I could be wrong, but it’s a reasonable interpretation.

But what about Isiah 20:2-4?
 
My point with all this is to show that nudity isn’t evil per se, and that it serves many different purposes, meanings, and effects in different contexts.

Of course…but these contexts are restricted by the virtue of modesty etc

BTW, I’m a senior at FUS who is majoring in theology (accelerated) and mental health. I’m also minoring in history and philosophy. In some ways, this discussion touches on all of those. Perhaps the effects of nudity could make an interesting psychology thesis.

My degree from FUS is in Theology…I also majored for some time in Psychology but dropped it for more Theology and Philosophy

I read both the RSV CE and the original text. One must be careful to not treat a certain translation as infallible

of course not…but it is very good…and more literal for English…

, but should, if doing a concentrated study of a particular passage, look at the original language. For this I recommend www.blueletterbible.org, because there you can see the original words, their general meaning, and other places in the Bible where those same words are used.

one must also understand it in context…and how the Church has understood it…Peter was not naked…he was stripped for work…he put on his outer garments and jumped in

Even if the RVS CE was infallible, saying ā€œhe was stripped for workā€ is NOT contradictory to ā€œworking nudeā€. Sometimes being stripped for work is the same as being nude, since certain things like fishing were often done in the nude (as far as I’m aware of the habits of that period).

I doubt that…the understanding has been he was stripped of his outer garments…

This, plus the historical context, plus the fact that ā€œgymnosā€ usually referred to full nudity, mean that it is reasonable to hold that he was fully naked, but not strictly provable.

he was stripped for work…not totally naked…lots of greek words can be understood in differing senses…

John 13:4 said that he took off his garments, then girded a towel around his waist. I don’t think he would have used a towel to replace the outer garment. If he was putting a towel around his waist, then he was probably briefly uncovered in that area. I could be wrong, but it’s a reasonable interpretation.

I would think He removed his outer garments…like a slave or servant…and washed their feet…not naked …the towel was a ā€œfunctionalā€ item that was wrapped around what he was wearing under the garments that he removed…it was functional for the purpose was then about

But what about Isiah 20:2-4?

you may be correct on this last one…but again this was a culture far far away…which differed greatly than ours…God met them where they were at…(just as he did in a lot of things that are different now) and later moved them upward…things normal at that time would not be permitted after the fullness of revelation …etc

In any case any examples from Scripture (really the OT) are not then making it ok to have such beaches…

And you think that Europeans are not tempted to lust…or do not lust on such beaches???

The Church is very clear on the need for the virtue of Modesty…do you think that she would go to such efforts as she does to promote it …and talk about the importance of the choice of clothing! and protecting the intimate aspects of persons…and then say ā€œoh…well at the beach you can just bare it all…cause it is the beach!ā€ ???

Europe has a good deal of secularism that has taken grip (and I imagine paganism and hedonism like the rest of the west) and there is a great need of the New Evangelization…the Church wants us to evangelize problematic culture …not join it. (Now I know you are well intentioned…and your thinking these things out…and yes the human body is good…and there is a place even in some art for its form to be displayed…but not persons on beaches etc…you really need to think again about these ideas)
 
521 Purity requires modesty, an integral part of temperance. Modesty protects the intimate center of the person. It means **refusing to unveil **what should remain hidden. It is ordered to chastity to whose sensitivity it bears witness. It guides how one looks at others and behaves toward them in conformity with the dignity of persons and their solidarity.

2522 Modesty protects the mystery of persons and their love. It encourages patience and moderation in loving relationships; it requires that the conditions for the definitive giving and commitment of man and woman to one another be fulfilled. Modesty is decency. It inspires one’s choice of clothing. It keeps silence or reserve where there is evident risk of unhealthy curiosity. It is discreet.

2523 There is a modesty of the feelings as well as of the body. It protests, for example, against the voyeuristic explorations of the human body in certain advertisements, or against the solicitations of certain media that go too far in the exhibition of intimate things. Modesty inspires a way of life which makes it possible to resist the allurements of fashion and the pressures of prevailing ideologies.

2524 The forms taken by modesty vary from one culture to another. Everywhere, however, modesty exists as an intuition of the spiritual dignity proper to man. It is born with the awakening consciousness of being a subject. Teaching modesty to children and adolescents means awakening in them respect for the human person.

2525 Christian purity requires a purification of the social climate. It requires of the communications media that their presentations show concern for respect and restraint. Purity of heart brings freedom from widespread eroticism and avoids entertainment inclined to voyeurism and illusion.

2526 So called moral permissiveness rests on an erroneous conception of human freedom; the necessary precondition for the development of true freedom is to let oneself be educated in the moral law. Those in charge of education can reasonably be expected to give young people instruction respectful of the truth, the qualities of the heart, and the moral and spiritual dignity of man.

2527 "The Good News of Christ continually renews the life and culture of fallen man; it combats and removes the error and evil which flow from the ever-present attraction of sin. It never ceases to purify and elevate the morality of peoples. It takes the spiritual qualities and endowments of every age and nation, and with supernatural riches it causes them to blossom, as it were, from within; it fortifies, completes, and restores them in Christ."315
 
My point with all this is to show that nudity isn’t evil per se, and that it serves many different purposes, meanings, and effects in different contexts.

Of course…but these contexts are restricted by the virtue of modesty etc

BTW, I’m a senior at FUS who is majoring in theology (accelerated) and mental health. I’m also minoring in history and philosophy. In some ways, this discussion touches on all of those. Perhaps the effects of nudity could make an interesting psychology thesis.

My degree from FUS is in Theology…I also majored for some time in Psychology but dropped it for more Theology and Philosophy

I read both the RSV CE and the original text. One must be careful to not treat a certain translation as infallible

of course not…but it is very good…and more literal for English…

, but should, if doing a concentrated study of a particular passage, look at the original language. For this I recommend www.blueletterbible.org, because there you can see the original words, their general meaning, and other places in the Bible where those same words are used.

one must also understand it in context…and how the Church has understood it…Peter was not naked…he was stripped for work…he put on his outer garments and jumped in

Even if the RVS CE was infallible, saying ā€œhe was stripped for workā€ is NOT contradictory to ā€œworking nudeā€. Sometimes being stripped for work is the same as being nude, since certain things like fishing were often done in the nude (as far as I’m aware of the habits of that period).

I doubt that…the understanding has been he was stripped of his outer garments…

This, plus the historical context, plus the fact that ā€œgymnosā€ usually referred to full nudity, mean that it is reasonable to hold that he was fully naked, but not strictly provable.

he was stripped for work…not totally naked…lots of greek words can be understood in differing senses…

John 13:4 said that he took off his garments, then girded a towel around his waist. I don’t think he would have used a towel to replace the outer garment. If he was putting a towel around his waist, then he was probably briefly uncovered in that area. I could be wrong, but it’s a reasonable interpretation.

I would think He removed his outer garments…like a slave or servant…and washed their feet…not naked …the towel was a ā€œfunctionalā€ item that was wrapped around what he was wearing under the garments that he removed…it was functional for the purpose was then about

But what about Isiah 20:2-4?

you may be correct on this last one…but again this was a culture far far away…which differed greatly than ours…God met them where they were at…(just as he did in a lot of things that are different now) and later moved them upward…things normal at that time would not be permitted after the fullness of revelation …etc

In any case any examples from Scripture (really the OT) are not then making it ok to have such beaches…

And you think that Europeans are not tempted to lust…or do not lust on such beaches???

The Church is very clear on the need for the virtue of Modesty…do you think that she would go to such efforts as she does to promote it …and talk about the importance of the choice of clothing! and protecting the intimate aspects of persons…saying that modesty ā€œmeans refusing to unveil what should remain hiddenā€ and then say ā€œoh…well at the beach you can just bare it all…cause it is the beach!ā€ ???

Europe has a good deal of secularism that has taken grip (and I imagine paganism and hedonism like the rest of the west) and there is a great need of the New Evangelization…the Church wants us to evangelize problematic culture …not join it. (Now I know you are well intentioned…and your thinking these things out…and yes the human body is good…and there is a place even in some art for its form to be displayed…but not persons on beaches etc…you really need to think again about these ideas)
 
Orchard’s commentary…'A Catholic Commmentary on Holy Scripture" the one Jimmy Akin likes… (Dom Bernard Orchard) notes regarding Peter: ā€œHis undress meant that he was clothed only in a sort of overall (without tunic)ā€¦ā€ (a kind of working garment)

Lagrange (pg 299) notes that Peter merely clothed in a kind of shirt for fishing…that he tied his on his gridle so the fishing garment would not float on the water…

Regarding Jesus…Lagrange (the Gospel of Jesus Christ pg 200) notes: he ā€œput off his upper garmentsā€

I imagine one can find all sorts of other sources…both on the context and on the Greek that will show that they were not ā€œnakedā€ in any complete sense…but were clothed in some sort of garment…without the upper garments that were worn in day to day life…(hence Peter could be said to be ā€œnakedā€ in this restricted sense and in context but not ā€œnakedā€ as in running around naked…he still had a form of clothing on but was freer to work)

they did this for work…etc but not to work naked but without the burdensome garments of day to day life that would be an interference with the work…(but one could say that Peter was naked in that he had stripped off his outer garments…)
 
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BobObob;6815757:
My point with all this is to show that nudity isn’t evil per se
, and that it serves many different purposes, meanings, and effects in different contexts.

Of course…but these contexts are restricted by the virtue of modesty etc
Actually, it’s (somewhat) the other way around IMHO. There are moral principles one must abide by regarding dress, such as don’t dress in a way that stimulates lust or degrades the body, but the applications of these principles depend on the context. Contexts determine the morality of dress, and the virtue of modesty is the virtue by which one dresses appropriately and respects the body. It entails hiding what should remain hidden (CCC 2521) and inspires one’s choice of clothing (CCC 2522). Note: the Catholic Church has never officially said that any particular parts of the body should always and everywhere remain hidden. It takes prudence to discern what should not be revealed in a given situation.

I think JPII said it well regarding the virtue of modesty when he said:

"Because God created it, the human body can remain nude and and uncovered and preserve intact its splendor and its beauty…Nakedness as such is not to be equated with physical shamelessness…Immodesty is present only when nakedness plays a negative role with regard to the value of the person…The human body is not in itself shameful …Shamelessness [just like shame and modesty] is a function of the interior of a person.ā€ (emphasis added)

I think this quote by JPII is solid because he concisely laid down principles regarding dress, while viewing nudity as such as not violating these principles (although it may be depending on intent).
My point with all this is to show that nudity isn’t evil per se, and that it serves many different purposes, meanings, and effects in different contexts.

one must also understand it in context…and how the Church has understood it…Peter was not naked…he was stripped for work…he put on his outer garments and jumped in

The Catholic Church has NOT, to my knowledge, offered any authoritative interpretation of this passage. Individual Catholic theologians and translators, even those hired by the Vatican, may have strong opinions on the matter, but they aren’t dogmatic by any stretch of the imagination. If you find any official interpretation of this by the Catholic Church I’d like to know.

Do you have evidence that he was not naked. The word ā€œgymnosā€ could mean partially naked (although usually it mean fully naked), but considering that most fisherman at that time I think worked in the nude, it’s reasonable to interpret it that way.

Plus, I’m not an expert on the original language, but I can’t see any phrase where the ā€œfor he was stripped for workā€ phrase in the original text.
Bookcat;6815886:
I doubt that…the understanding has been he was stripped of his outer garments…
If that has been the consensus interpretation, then I disagree with the consensus interpretation.
BobObob;6815757:
John 13:4 said that he took off his garments, then girded a towel around his waist. I don’t think he would have used a towel to replace the outer garment. If he was putting a towel around his waist, then he was probably briefly uncovered in that area. I could be wrong, but it’s a reasonable interpretation.
I would think He removed his outer garments…like a slave or servant…and washed their feet…not naked …the towel was a ā€œfunctionalā€ item that was wrapped around what he was wearing under the garments that he removed…it was functional for the purpose was then about

Both this interpretation and mine are plausible but unprovable. I’m going to stick to my interpretation because (I think) it was common for slaves to wear one piece of clothing (an undergarment) while working, like it seems may be what Exod 22:26-27 is referring to.
 
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In any case any examples from Scripture (really the OT) are not then making it ok to have such beaches…
They do show that God did not indicate that nudity was sinful, especially since He commanded Isiah to strip (presumably in public). I’ve seen places in the Bible where nudity was shameful in some contexts, but I’ve never seen anything from scripture which indicates that public nudity itself is sinful. I’ve never actually seen any authoritative teachings of the Catholic Church which indicate that public nudity is itself sinful.
And you think that Europeans are not tempted to lust…or do not lust on such beaches???
I think that people in all cultures are tempted to lust, but some more than others. I also think that in other cultures, nudity itself isn’t viewed as such a sexual thing as it is here in the US, and that this makes the exposure to the human body in those places a lot less likely to incite lust.

I think Americans have a LOT more problems with lust than most of the world does. Sexual sins are committed in every culture on planet Earth, but the US is hand-down the largest consumer of porn in the world (crisisconnectioninc.org/pdf/Porn.pdf), and also the culture that probably has the least exposure to the human body.
The Church is very clear on the need for the virtue of Modesty…do you think that she would go to such efforts as she does to promote it …and talk about the importance of the choice of clothing! and protecting the intimate aspects of persons…and then say ā€œoh…well at the beach you can just bare it all…cause it is the beach!ā€ ???
The Church teaches principles regarding modesty, but does not say, ā€œIn situation ā€œAā€, you have to have ā€œXā€ and ā€œYā€ covered, but in situation ā€œBā€, you may reveal ā€œXā€ but not ā€œYā€ā€¦ā€

The applications of the official Catholic Church’s teaching on modesty isn’t something straighforward and uniform across the board.

Can you cite any CC doctrine which indicates that one may never be naked at a public beach? I know you’ve cited CCC 2521-2527, but this doesn’t indicate that it is always immoral to be naked at a public beach. You seem to think it does though.
Europe has a good deal of secularism that has taken grip (and I imagine paganism and hedonism like the rest of the west) and there is a great need of the New Evangelization
This may be true, but other very Catholic cultures have been accepting of nudity in the past. The professor for my ā€œhuman and spiritual integrationā€ class indicated that a few centuries ago in strong, Catholic, areas of the world, it wasn’t all that uncommon for people to be naked in public squares to make a point about something.
Europe has a good deal of secularism that has taken grip (and I imagine paganism and hedonism like the rest of the west) and there is a great need of the New Evangelization…the Church wants us to evangelize problematic culture …not join it.
The Catholic Church has in the past tried to integrate with the good aspects and traditions of cultures it evangelizes, and only throw out the bad stuff. It seems like St. Paul did this (ā€œTo the Jews I became a Jew, to win the Jews.ā€ 1 Cor 9:20). Pagan traditions have influenced Christmas and Easter. Although some may think this was the wrong thing for the CC to do in the past, it seemed to have worked.
(Now I know you are well intentioned…and your thinking these things out…and yes the human body is good…and there is a place even in some art for its form to be displayed…but not persons on beaches etc…you really need to think again about these ideas)
From what I’ve studied of social sciences by doing my own research, I came to the opinion that more exposure of the human body in society, even on public beaches, will lead to less problems with porn and lust, while never showing the human body may have the opposite effect (as America seems to show). How do you think nurses and doctors, who often have to see bodies of people of the opposite sex, remain professional as opposed to filled with lust? From what my father’s childhood best friend, who is now an MD, said, he’s seen so many bodies that it’s just a casual everyday thing that doesn’t effect him much.

Also, the fact that women in the Middle East, where women must cover all of their body, from what I’ve heard, can’t be left unattended without being raped, seems to be evidence of this. Note: I do understand that that may have a lot to do with their culture and their laws, which makes it virtually impossible for a rapist to be convicted (if the rapist is convicted, the women is executed for being ā€œimpureā€).

Keep in mind that a few years ago I had more or less the same view on this subject that you do now. After seeing that things such as clothes-optional beach are not necessarily contrary to what the CC teaches (although they may be, depending on situation and intent), and seeing that greater acceptance of clothes-optional beaches would likely lowed problems with lust in future generations, that I changed my position.
 
It is interesting to note that Jesus didn’t condemn Peter for being naked in public in John 21:7.

Also, many of the early Christians were baptized naked.

Nudity as such I hasn’t really been viewed as such an evil thing in the past as it is today.
John 21:7 said Peter had taken off his outer garment and plunged into the sea, he could of been wearing an inner garment. Also, it said he covered himself with his outer garment when he saw Jesus.
 
John 21:7 said Peter had taken off his outer garment and plunged into the sea, he could of been wearing an inner garment. Also, it said he covered himself with his outer garment when he saw Jesus.
You were probably looking at a translation of the Bible that is slightly less literal. The exact meaning of the words in John 21:7 is debatable.

John 21:7, with the original words, approximate meaning of those words, and the other places in the Bible where those same words appear, can be seen at blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Jhn&c=21&v=1&t=KJV#top. Click on ā€œCā€ for the original words. The exact meaning is debatable.

The word which indicates that Peter was naked (my interpretation) or that he was only wearing inner garments, is ā€œgymnosā€. This word appears in Matt 25:36-44 (ā€œyou found me naked and you clothed meā€¦ā€), Mark 14:51-52 (man fleeing naked from Gethsemane, which it uses ā€œgymnosā€ to describe his body before and after he lost the only cloth he was wearing (see various translations of this passage to see what I mean)), Acts 19:16 (possessed man), 1 Cor 15:37, 2 Cor 5:3, Hebrews 4:13, James 2:15, Rev 3:17, Rev 16:15, and Rev 17:16.

I recommend looking at these for context and forming your own opinion.
 
You were probably looking at a translation of the Bible that is slightly less literal. The exact meaning of the words in John 21:7 is debatable.

John 21:7, with the original words, approximate meaning of those words, and the other places in the Bible where those same words appear, can be seen at blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Jhn&c=21&v=1&t=KJV#top. Click on ā€œCā€ for the original words. The exact meaning is debatable.

The word which indicates that Peter was naked (my interpretation) or that he was only wearing inner garments, is ā€œgymnosā€. This word appears in Matt 25:36-44 (ā€œyou found me naked and you clothed meā€¦ā€), Mark 14:51-52 (man fleeing naked from Gethsemane, which it uses ā€œgymnosā€ to describe his body before and after he lost the only cloth he was wearing), Acts 19:16 (possessed man), 1 Cor 15:37, 2 Cor 5:3, Hebrews 4:13, James 2:15, Rev 3:17, Rev 16:15, and Rev 17:16.

I recommend looking at these for context and forming your own opinion.
 
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