Purity & Modesty

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the Morality module in 6th grade is to identify a few of the ways in which we may be conformed to this world and learn ways to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. We conform to this world when we follow others. We are transformed by the renewing of our minds when we take a stand for what we know is right.

MEMORY VERSE

Memory Verse: "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind..." (Romans 12:2)

INTRODUCTION & HOOK - 5 Minutes

Begin by discussing what it means to be pure. (Write "pure" on the board.)
What does pure mean? (Allow students to answer.)
Pure means "not contaminated, not mixed with any other substance."

Demonstration:

Say: I have a demonstration to help you understand purity a little better. I have here an unopened bottle of water. (Show the kids that the seal is still intact on the bottle.) This is pure water and is safe and good for me to drink. (Open the water bottle and take a drink. Before saying anything else, take out a clear cup of sand and add a few spoonfuls of sand to the water bottle. Put the lid back on and give it a good shake.) Is the water safe and good for me to drink now? Of course not. The water is no longer pure. It has been contaminated by sand. This contaminated bottle of water is like our hearts when we fill our lives with things other than God.

So a pure heart is one that is focused on God, and not filled up with the thoughts and desires of the world. (On the board next to "pure," write "focused only on God.")

Today, we have a great example of purity and modesty from one of the Orthodox books of the Bible (deuterocanonical). In Daniel 13, we have the story of the beautiful and righteous Susanna who was put in a compromising position meant to test her purity and her trust in God. Susanna was given an opportunity to either be conformed to the world and keep her life or be transformed through her trust in God.

HOLY SCRIPTURE - 7 Minutes

(NOTE: Students should already be familiar with this story from the Old Testament Module, but it is recommended to re-read it to emphasize key points. If needed, clarify that in this lesson, the points covered are different than those in the Old Testament Module.)

Let's read Susanna's story in Daniel 13:7-27, 31-32

7 When the people departed at noon, Susanna would go into her husband's garden to walk. 8 The two elders used to see her every day, going in and walking about, and they began to desire her. 9 And they perverted their minds and turned away their eyes from looking to Heaven or remembering righteous judgments. 10 Both were overwhelmed with passion for her, but they did not tell each other of their distress, 11 for they were ashamed to disclose their lustful desire to possess her. 12 And they watched eagerly, day after day, to see her.
13 They said to each other, "Let us go home, for it is mealtime." 14 And when they went out, they parted from each other. But turning back, they met again; and when each pressed the other for the reason, they confessed their lust. And then together they arranged for a time when they could find her alone.
15 Once, while they were watching for an opportune day, she went in as before with only two maids, and wished to bathe in the garden, for it was very hot. 16 And no one was there except the two elders, who had hid themselves and were watching her. 17 She said to her maids, "Bring me oil and ointments, and shut the garden doors so that I may bathe." 18 They did as she said, shut the garden doors, and went out by the side doors to bring what they had been commanded; and they did not see the elders, because they were hidden.
19 When the maids had gone out, the two elders rose and ran to her, and said: 20 "Look, the garden doors are shut, no one sees us, and we are in love with you; so give your consent, and lie with us. 21 If you refuse, we will testify against you that a young man was with you, and this was why you sent your maids away."
22 Susanna sighed deeply, and said, "I am hemmed in on every side. For if I do this thing, it is death for me; and if I do not, I shall not escape your hands. 23 I choose not to do it and to fall into your hands, rather than to sin in the sight of the Lord."
24 Then Susanna cried out with a loud voice, and the two elders shouted against her. 25 And one of them ran and opened the garden doors. 26 When the household servants heard the shouting in the garden, they rushed in at the side door to see what had happened to her. 27 And when the elders told their tale, the servants were greatly ashamed, for nothing like this had ever been said about Susanna.
31 Now Susanna was a woman of great refinement, and beautiful in appearance. 32 As she was veiled, the wicked men ordered her to be unveiled, that they might feed upon her beauty.

CONTENT (KEY POINTS) - 10 Minutes

We're faced with the same situation as Susanna every day in different ways. While living in the world we are often confronted with decisions that will bring us closer to God or lead us away from Him. Whether it's succumbing to peer pressure or bullying others or simple decisions like how we spend our time - each of these either brings us closer to God or away from Him. If we conform to the world we don't allow God to transform our lives. In Susanna's situation, the easier decision would have been to lie and go along with the elders' plan. The easiest decision is often not the right decision. But she chose to place her trust in God and go with the honorable and truthful route.

Susanna's purity and modesty were not in behavior alone. Her purity of heart and in her thoughts, led her to want to veil her body (behavior). Her purity in heart led her to behave according to what is right in God's mind - honesty.

When we look at the definition of purity, it's focused on physical behavior in that it is freedom from sexual immorality, freedom from adulteration, freedom from contamination (these are all behaviors) but what God through Susanna shows us is that purity begins in the heart and is born through thought.

Susanna holds God's opinions of her, higher than the opinions of man. She would rather face an earthly death than a spiritual/eternal death.

DISCUSSION & LIFE APPLICATION - 20 Minutes

Ask the students: How can we be pure and modest in our thoughts, feelings and behavior? Susanna showed us that purity and modesty exist in more than just our behavior.

Pure/Modest Thoughts:

Giving people the benefit of the doubt
Not judging
Resting your thoughts on heavenly things. Notice and observe where your mind goes when it wanders. What do you think about? Do you have a to-do list? Are you thinking about other people? Are you thinking about things that happened in the past? Are you thinking about the future? Begin to redirect your attention back to the present moment focusing on God.
Feelings/heart (desires): "Anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Matthew 5:28

"But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.'" 1 Samuel 16:7

Will your desires conform you further to the world or will they bring you closer to communion with God?

What are examples of worldly desires?
- Material things: wealth, beauty, showing off
What are examples of Godly desires?
- Fruit of the spirit (love, joy, peace, kindness, longsuffering, goodness, faithfulness, self control, gentleness), building your relationship with God, communing with God

Pure/Modest Behaviors:

Being careful of what you watch, listen to, say and generally focus your senses on
How you clothe your body as the temple of the Holy Spirit. Youth should dress modestly out of respect for their bodies as the temple of the Holy Spirit, not out of guilt or shame. (While we are called to "Bear one another's burdens...," we are also to remember that "whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.") We are not to cover your body because it is dirty, bad, or wrong. Teaching this lesson without accidentally imparting erroneous information can be challenging, but it is our responsibility to not shame our children for their bodies and behavior as Christ "carried our shame" to the Cross. This will be an important distinction when sharing the lesson.

In Matthew 5:8, Jesus says, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."

So what does it mean to see God? Have you ever asked a friend if you could see their new iPhone? When I ask someone if I can see something they have, I don't mean that I want to look at it. I mean that I want to interact with it, touch it, and move it around. Or when you go to your grandparents' house for Thanksgiving, you may tell your friends that you are going to see your grandma and grandpa. You don't mean that you are going to go over to their house and stare at them across the table. You mean you are going to interact with them, talk with them and laugh with them and hug them. That is the sort of "see" that Jesus means when he says, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God." In order to see God and spend all of forever with him, we must become pure in heart and free from distraction by following Jesus.

ACTIVITY - 10 Minutes

Activity 1

Before class, have balloons available and puncture tiny holes in each balloon. Give each student one balloon. Tell them whoever blows up the balloon the fastest will win.
Leaky balloon: it's a slow fade. We think a little hole won't do anything but it's a gateway. It's easier to establish yourself as a person who doesn't do stuff, than to do something once and then have to try to prove to people that you don't want to do more.

Activity 2

Materials: 2 containers (1 marked pure thoughts, the other marked impure thoughts), 1 paddle board, 1 ping pong ball.

The purpose of this next activity is so that students can contrast between pure and secular thoughts/behaviors.

Taking turns using the paddle board, read out a pure or impure thought/behavior, and ask the student to hit the ping pong ball into the correct container. Encourage discussion after each thought.

SERVANT RESOURCES

Please read the Addendum to this Lesson.
Please read the story of St. Perpetua, the martyr whom we commemorate on March 6 (Meshir 27th), to the children or encourage them to read it at home:

St. Perpetua was born in the year 181AD in Carthage, modern day Tunisia. She was well educated and from an illustrious wealthy family. She was married to a noble and had a young child. She came to believe in Christ, and was baptized and became a Christian. A few days later, the twenty-two-year-old woman was taken to prison with her infant son. Arrested with her were her brother, and her servants, who were also catechumens.
Despite the exhortations of her father, who persistently appealed to her maternal feelings, the widowed Saint Perpetua refused to offer sacrifice to the pagan gods. Before their execution, Saints Perpetua had visions from God, which strengthened her soul. They were led from the prison into the amphitheatre. They sang a song as they were beaten with whips, considering it an honor to share in the Lord's sufferings. They were then to be exposed to various beasts. A bear mangled one of Perpetua's companions.
Saints Perpetua was then brought to the arena, and was thrown to a wild cow. The wild cow was let loose before her. It tossed St Perpetua and she was thrown on her back, tearing the tunic she was wearing. St Perpetua's first instinct, however, was to cover herself with the torn tunic, wanting to maintain her purity for her Heavenly Bridegroom, even during her most painful moments of suffering. At her death, St Perpetua was not any less concerned about her chastity than in her life.
After a series of tortures the governor ordered them beheaded and they accepted the sentence with joy.