Christian Talk Show Hosts on 'The Real' Discuss Whether It's OK to Show Skin in Church (Video)
The ladies of the daytime TV show "The Real" weighed in on the topic of modest dressing in church.
The co-hosts of "The Real" are all professing Christians so when they came across an article about appropriate dressing in the church on Friday, they decided to openly share from their experiences. The article gave two opposing arguments — "God doesn't care what I wear, He's more concerned about my heart" and "Modesty is the best policy."
Hosts Adrienne Bailon-Houghton and Tamera Mowry revealed that they grew up in strict Pentecostal churches that required them to be clothed with long dresses and hats, a tradition they have since departed from.
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"I knew this at a very young age, I wasn't the person that judged someone in church. I was just grateful they were there in the first place," Mowry said.
The actress turned TV personality maintained that she was always uncomfortable when she heard others in the church judging others.
Israel Houghton's wife, Bailon-Houghton, commented, "The whole purpose of church is to actually reach those who don't know Jesus. If we're already saved, we're good. I think the whole idea is actually taking the church outside of the four walls of the church and actually touching and reaching people. They come in anyway. The Bible says, 'Come as you are.'"
The newlywed host believes people who attend church and people who lead in church should have different standards concerning dress code.
Loni Love interjected and said she went straight to the Bible on this topic. After sharing that Christians should bypass the Old Testament's laws and look in the New Testament, she quoted 1 Timothy 2:9.
The scripture reads, "I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes."
Mowry brought the argument home by claiming that some people might just dress inappropriately to church in ignorance.
"Some people just don't know. We don't know their motive," the "Sister Sister" star maintained. "Now if your motive is, to dress all like this to get a man at church, no, no!"
Host Jeannie Mai ended the debate with her own testimony of being a fashion model who attends church.
"When I started going to church, I dressed like this," she explained while pointing to her trendy outfit. "I had someone walk over to me and tell me, 'You need to cover up.' It was an older woman too, so you're respectful but you get scared. She said, 'You need to cover up because the way you dress, you can make someone else stumble.'"
"I love the Christian community, I am a Christian myself. My relationship with God ... teaches me to dress in such a way that I'm going to dress for Him. So I get excited about the way I look for Him," Mai noted.
The clip concluded with her response to the lady who approached her about her clothes.
"I should never feel responsible for someone else's misbehavior, ever! We're all adults; you have to control yourself," Mai closed.
You can watch the full discussion below: