Modesty Is More Than Clothing Choices

On Sunday, we had a fascinating discussion in Relief Society. 

Since we are studying the Old Testament in Gospel Doctrine, the Relief Society presidency has decided to focus on the "Women of the Old Testament" for their 1st Sunday Presidency lessons. 

This Sunday we studied Vashti.  She only has one small chapter in the entire Bible, but what she did was impressive and worth our time and study.  She is found in the first chapter of the book of Esther.  The king is having a HUGE party with all the other royals.  The queen is hosting a similar party for all the wives.  The king and guest get slobbering drunk and then call for the queen to come and "perform" for them.  The queen refuses!  The other royals counsil with the king to get rid of her because they are afraid that their wives will no longer obey and they'll have too much trouble on their hands.  So the queen is dismissed.  We don't know if she is killed or just banished.  As the queen, she must have known her husband and must have known the dangers of refusal.  And yet she did not compromise her standards. 

She knew that entertaining the men in that situation would compromise her values. 

This lesson really highlited for me that modesty is not just what you wear...it's how you act!