Re: Public Nudity: Innocent or Sin?

On Mar 3, 11:22 am, Anna <[email protected]> wrote:
> Here is what  a blogger says on this issue. Not saying I necessarily
> agree with him but I thought it might be interesting to throw this
> into the general discussion. As it is a blog you can comment there as
> well as here.
>
> http://www.ronniewrogers.com/2008/07/29/public-nudity-innocent-or-sin/
>
> http://tinyurl.com/bckash
>
> Recently, I was asked what the Bible says about public nudity. As you
> well know, many believe that the taboo of public nudity is merely
> social, and that apart from societal mores, there is nothing immoral
> about public nudity. What does the Bible say?
>
> First let me be clear. I draw a distinction between task nudity and
> social or sexual nudity. Task nudity refers to a person being nude for
> such things as taking a shower at the gym. Therefore, this article
> does not refer to task nudity but rather whether it is moral to be
> nude in public, in mixed company other than with one’s spouse, and/or
> for the purpose of being nude, disrobed etc., for either sexual or
> social nudity.
>
> Nudity is beautiful prior to the fall: There is nothing inherently
> evil about nudity. For example, Genesis 2:25 says concerning man and
> woman before the fall, “And the man and his wife were both naked and
> were not ashamed.“ Further, God declared all that He created to be
> “very good” (Genesis 1:31). Consequently, the naked body as created by
> God is beautiful; however, this was before the fall of mankind. Before
> the fall, the nudity of man and woman did not provoke temptation, but
> sin introduced distortion into the created order that did not
> previously exist. This distortion can be seen by comparing Genesis
> 2:25, which says prior to the fall that Adam and Eve were naked and
> “were not ashamed to (Genesis 3:7) whereas immediately after the
> introduction of sin into the world Scripture describes their attempt
> to hide their nakedness with clothing. More importantly, God clothed
> their nakedness: “The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his
> wife, and clothed them.“(Genesis 3:21)
>
> One commentator lucidly notes the change, “Their bodies were
> sanctified by the spirit, which animated them. Shame entered first
> with sin, which destroyed the normal relation of the spirit to the
> body, exciting tendencies and lusts which warred against the soul, and
> turning the sacred ordinance of God into sensual impulses and the lust
> of the flesh.”1
>
> Consequently, Christians should be clear: the body was created by God
> as “very good” and clothing was not necessary or even suggested in the
> Garden prior to the fall. We should be equally clear that immediately
> after the fall, God clothed Adam and Eve. God is the one who started
> the clothing of the human body; therefore, in our present fallen
> state, clothing is not an option, a mere status symbol to be discarded
> in one’s quest for freedom, or a mere social construct, but rather a
> blessing and provision of God.
>
> The origin of dress is associated with a changed state brought about
> by sin, resulting in nakedness being seductive, provocative, and
> potentiating shame and further allurement away from God and His plan
> for humans.
>
> Therefore, prior to the fall of man into sin, Adam and Eve were naked
> without shame. Immediately after the fall, they were ashamed and
> sought to cover themselves, which God did as well. Today those who
> express their shamelessness about public nudity fail to realize that
> shamelessness in the garden was because of the purity of the creation
> whereas after the fall any sense of shamelessness is due to the
> hardness of the heart from sin “…the unjust knows no shame” (Zephaniah
> 3:5).
>
> Nudity is beautiful between a husband and wife: Contrary to social
> Darwinism, which sees man as an animal, different only from all other
> animals in degree rather than kind, man is created in the image of
> God, and is therefore categorically different than animals. Thus, the
> argument that animals do not wear clothing is no argument or
> determiner of what humans should or should not do. Biblically, the
> body and marriage are sacred and marriage is the proper context for
> sex, and social or sexual nudity.  The beliver’s body is not only
> sacred because it was created by God but also because it is a temple
> of the Holy Spirit, (1 Corinthians 3:16). Therefore, public nudity is
> wrong because it desacralizes marriage, sex, and the temple of the
> Holy Spirit.
>
> Public nudity is sin: Public nudity is sin and should evoke shame.
> That some are not ashamed reveals more about their spiritual
> deprivation than about whether public nudity is sin or not. Zephaniah
> said, “…the unjust knows no shame” (Zephaniah 3:5). Public nudity is
> humanity at the sensual level, and draws us away from God’s way and
> elicits lust, jeopardizes marriage, and potentiates adultery,
> fornication…..
>
> Gen 19:22-25 associates shame with exposure of the nakedness of Noah.
> Leviticus 18 prescribed several specifics about regulating nudity and
> appears to use nudity as a euphemism for sex as well. We live in a
> very sensual culture, and the further we move from being a culture
> influenced by biblical principles, the more public nudity and scanty
> dressing will become tokens of liberation from so-called cultural
> taboos.
>
> Christians do see nudity and sex as beautiful gifts from God, and
> they, like every other blessing of life, are to be used according to
> God’s plan. “Christians hold that worldly gifts are subordinate to the
> gifts of grace and that the new spirit of divine life consecrates
> these goods from selfish to pious uses…early Christians conformed
> their dress to a modest and sober taste, giving no indulgence to a
> vain spirit.”2
>
> The Scriptures remind us, “For those who are according to the flesh
> set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are
> according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit“(Romans 8:5).
> Therefore, we are commanded, “Set your mind on the things above, not
> on the things that are on earth“(Colossians 3:2) and this command is
> in light of the warning “Whose end is destruction, whose god is their
> appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on
> earthly things“(Philippians 3:19).
>
> Nudity and sex have no real connection: In one way or another, those
> who promote public nudity as “innocent” or “social and not sexual”
> seek to distinguish and disassociate sex from nudity. Those who
> support the notion and like to frequent nudist clubs, etc. say that
> walking around nude with other families, children, and those of the
> opposite sex has nothing to do with sex. In other words, there is no
> organic relationship between nudity and sex or nudity and sin.
>
> First, as already shown, non-task nudity outside the confines of
> marriage is sin in this fallen world. Second, while nudity is not
> sufficient for sex, it is necessary. Their attempt to totally
> disassociate sex from nudity is laughable. First, the Scripture makes
> the clear connection between sex and nudity with all of the
> regulations regarding nudity, as well as using nudity as a euphemism
> for sex. Also, it seems that the pornographers understand the
> connection since they make millions by either selling nude photos or
> photos that cause lust that can only be satiated by sex.
>
> It seems that men understand the connection since they are by every
> known rational mind to be visual. Lastly, it seems that if honesty
> prevails, both men and women understand there is an inextricable
> connection between nudity and sex, or else the move toward more
> intimacy by men and women would be to put on another layer of clothing
> with each flirtatious encounter and the most sensual dress would be
> multilayer thick burlap.
>
> Christians should show forth the glory of God by covering what He
> intended to be covered recognizing the insatiable appetite of fallen
> man to desacralize everything, including himself, and live at the
> basest level of human existence; thereby allowing sensory pleasure to
> reign supreme with no shame.

Anna...exactly what i have been saying and this is the first eloquent
portrayal i have read or heard of explaining my position....i wish i
had said it that way.....the unjust knows no shame.....perfect for rec
nude....jz