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CFI
Guest
In Italy I saw that many little children go naked on the beach. What do you think about?
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bextah
Guest
I don’t know that Italy is a primitive cultureObviously it must be culturally acceptable. People of many primitive cultures run around naked all of the time yet do not decent into sexual debauchery because of it. One must view nudity through the lense of culture and maintain a godly respect for sexuality.
Children are innocents, their nakedness is not of a sexual nature and it is of obvious concern if an adult is viewing them that way (not that I am suggesting any posters to this forum view children as such)
Many children used to run around naked at the beach here in Australia too and it was just part of the casual nature of people, nothing deviant about it- now they are head to toe in SPF 100 sun gear because of the skin cancer rates
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Irish_Becca
Guest
I wouldn’t let my kids go naked, but you know we Americans are such prudes. 
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Bluegoat
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Nakedness and when and where it is appropriate is largely culturally determined. In Italy kids go naked on the beach. In some places parents do too. In some places no one wears any clothes.
Such places have no more sexual sin or sex crimes than places where people cover from head to toe.
Such places have no more sexual sin or sex crimes than places where people cover from head to toe.
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johngh
Guest
And that somehow makes it ok? Did we forget that the first thing Adam and Eve did after eating the fruit was to cover themselves up?
And how is saying things are “culturally acceptable” an excuse for sins? There are a lot of things that are culturally acceptable that are blatantly wrong. You cannot judge morality based on our culture, you must base it on the will of God. And that will states that the body should be covered, plain and simple.
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teachccd
Guest
Actually you stated that it was the will of God that we should be naked. Our sinfulness required us to be clothed since at that time shame was exposed. Nakedness, in and of itself, is not sinful…teachccd
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Bluegoat
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Well, the Catholic Church makes it pretty clear in their teachings that nakedness in itself is not a problem, and that what is considered appropriate or modest varies widely by culture.
You haven’t actually shown that nakedness is a sin, so I am not making an excuse for sin at all. FWIW, I don’t think the Catholic Church is making an excuse for sin either.
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bextah
Guest
I wouldn’t let my kids go naked, but you know we Americans are such prudes.
yes you are quite the shy retiring wallflowers!
yes I wouldn’t at the beach, but maybe in the backyard for a little bit - gotta watch the sun!
It’s just so sweet to see the little babes toddling around, I find my little ones to be such beautiful miracles - it’s such an innocent time and it’s a little bit of freedom that they only get in those first couple of years.
I don’t think there is sin in a child’s nakedness - lust, shame, pride, vanity are the result of exposure of the adult form, children are not generally afflicted with those feelings at that young age as their ego is still developing
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CFI
Guest
Where do you find that God want that the body should be covered?
Adam and Eve covered themselves up by shame not by a God’s order.
I never found in the Bible that God forbade nudity. On the contrary “The Lord gave a warning through Isaiah, the son of Amoz: Go and take off the sackcloth from your waist, and remove the sandals from your feet. This he did, walking naked and barefoot” (Isaiah 20:2).
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HNA444
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I agree!!! I was kind of confused when everyone was saying it was OK because it was a culture thing. But, you are right… it should not be an excuse.
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BobCatholic
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I wouldn’t let my kids run around naked outside. Too many pedophiles out there looking for victims. No need to risk the kids.
Its like placing a juicy steak outside on a plate, and expecting nobody to come by and eat it.
Its like parking a car with keys in ignition and doors unlocked overnight, and expecting nobody to steal it.
Its like placing a juicy steak outside on a plate, and expecting nobody to come by and eat it.
Its like parking a car with keys in ignition and doors unlocked overnight, and expecting nobody to steal it.
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CFI
Guest
I disagree! Where the local culture doesn’t require that body is covered, there is nothing wrong that people go naked.
It was wrong that missionaries imposed clothing to many peoples, producing body shame.
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Bluegoat
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Do people bother to read what the CCC says about modesty? Modesty is about respect for the body, which is a thing created by God and good. Actual clothing styles are morally neutral - it is the reasoning behind them that are significant. Covering the body can sometimes be about respect for it. On the other hand, it can also be about disrespect - seeing it as evil or unclean. One sees both things in various times and places. A lot of customs regarding clothing have no moral reason at all - they are neutral. They relate to available local materials, climate, wealth, technology, and perhaps historical accidents.
It used to be much more common for small kids to be naked a lot of the time, throughout Christian Europe. The CC has never had a problem with it.
There is also no evidence that having naked kids around leads to more pedophilia or crimes by pedophiles.
It used to be much more common for small kids to be naked a lot of the time, throughout Christian Europe. The CC has never had a problem with it.
There is also no evidence that having naked kids around leads to more pedophilia or crimes by pedophiles.
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Gerard_Nadal
Guest
When my children were babies, they tore their clothes off and ran naked in the yard and in the house. I was more concerned with outdoors, precisely because of the pedophilia concerns mentioned above. I never really concerned myself with the modesty issue until they were two years old. They were only naked before us, the same parents that bathed them (naked).
I also agree with those who cite the beauty of their innocence at that age. For people who would chastise me, my response was that if they were still doing this at sixteen, we would need to have a talk
I also agree with those who cite the beauty of their innocence at that age. For people who would chastise me, my response was that if they were still doing this at sixteen, we would need to have a talk
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CFI
Guest
It seems to me that you confuse different things. To have sex out of the marriage is a sin. To be naked is not a sin.
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Bluegoat
Guest
To say that some practices only represent morally neutral cultural difference does not logically imply that all differences in cultural practices are morally neutral. Nor does it mean that all are morally significant.
The Catholic Church says that clothing itself is neutral. What is not always neutral is why we wear it.
If I insist women go around in thongs and pasties because I see them only as sexual objects, that is immoral.
If I insist women cover their bodies because they are sexual objects and nothing more, and tainted, that is immoral.
If I wear clothing that is meant to highlight my sexuality in an inappropriate way, or because I percieve myself only sexually, that is immoral.
If I go to the public baths where people are naked together, with no intention of seeing the body as anything but a part of God’s creation, that is ok.
If I live in the jungle and no one wears clothes normally and never has, and have a proper respect for the body, that is ok too.
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