By: John C. Maierhauser
When I was 9 years old I was a wounded military medic. Dried blood and grit covered my forehead and my neck. A shredded white tee shirt clung around me and my break-away athletic pants. Adidas tennis shoes completed the outfit. Our little rabble ran from house to house answering, “And who are YOU supposed to be?”; very politely with our heads bowed we respond, “a medic ; a power ranger; a ninja,” and memorably we laughed at a pal dressed up in an electric blue shell yelling, “An M&M!” After combing the neighborhood for goods and with bulging pillow cases in tote, the troupe marched to an undisclosed location for further trading and consumption.

A few more Halloweens passed. This time I was 19 years old. I was an air force pilot. I had a military pilot’s fatigues, leather combat boots, and silver aviators on. Now a man, I was groomed and smoking a cigar. Me and the guys went from house to house answering, “And who are YOU supposed to be?” very loudly and with full chests we cried, “a pilot; a hillbilly; a hobo,” and snickered at a buddy’s shouting, “a pimp!” After combing the streets for later and later last calls, the gang slumped into undisclosed beds outdone by their own consumption.

The more things change the more they stay the same. As we get older we do the same stuff in different ways. What’s changed about Halloween? I doubt that many young people dress up and carry pillow cases around and ask for a snickers or laffy-taffy after they are thirteen or fourteen. That reality surely is different. Isn’t it?

No! We all love to dress up. Ladies- granted while you obviously receive more fluorescent light exposure refracted off a thousand tiny little mirrors. Guys – however, love to groom as well. What is not so apparent is the amount of energy we put into looking like we are not groomed. Believe me – do enough nonchalant by standing and the hair pastes and axe-bombs will soon necessitate evacuation. When these habits are pointed toward dressing up for Halloween sometimes the result can be “cute” but revealing choice of clothing.

Unfortunately, like children becoming sick on candy we often become sick on our romantic hook ups.  Halloween is not followed by stomachache so much as heartache. For women there is an almost irresistible longing to look attractive. On Halloween the usual social norms are forgone in the spirit of “dressing up.” The bottom line is that girls become the new eye candy for the same boys carousing looking to fill up their bags.

Few of us still have the manic disposition of children toward candy. However, candy as the philosophical and human principle of pleasure seeking is still alive and well! Our stomachs have stayed the same but our eyes have widened with newer appetites.

From many guys’ perspectives, it’s a sad state of affairs.

Rule - The more I can see the more I can look at ; The more candy I have the more I will eat ; The more I eat the more I will get sick.

I would strongly encourage each woman reading this to consider the natural gift of beauty inherent with you. You as a woman are truly mesmerizing by the sober fact that you are female and not a male like we men. This is amazing! If all a man was to see were but your eyes he would love you for being a woman. I cannot answer where the “line” is for appropriate Halloween costumes for you women. But I don’t think it matters if you accept this vision of yourself and truly feel it in your heart. It would be a self-guiding knowledge.

If we are honest we know that the greatest delight is found in another person. There is nothing more exciting or thrilling than finding love in this life. Reading the subtle signs of romantic interest is as electrifying as the excitement and power of a thunderstorm suddenly rolling toward us. We touch this sweetness in the kindness of words and the steadiness of gazes which blaze like a roaring fire. We desire to love and be loved! It is this end that both men and women long for. Let’s not fall for something so cheap when we can love so much more deeply!

I once spent many days camping in the backwoods near my college town. I hiked and climbed over 25 miles in some of the most pristine forests and drank from running streams. The sunsets were unforgettable and the stars innumerable. However, it was one fleeting encounter that left me most deeply happy: through the trees on a nearby trail, the smile and wave of a young woman.

Dear sisters,

To be honest, I have been disappointed with the state of the current dating culture. I see women everyday who are settling for less and less from their men. It is now common place for women to offer their boyfriends intimacies meant for their future husbands. They give everything and receive little of value in return. These women offer us more and more, and require less and less- and men like it. Where did all the virtuous men go you ask? It got easy and they got lazy. (Don't worry though- there are still a few good men out there).

Through your actions, you can call us to be better. If you don’t believe me, believe this man:
“When a man loves a woman, he has to become worthy of her. The higher her virtue, the more noble her character, the more devoted she is to truth, justice, goodness, the more a man has to aspire to be worthy of her. The history of civilization could actually be written in terms of the level of its women.”
-          Fulton J. Sheen, Servant of God

Sisters, be that woman! If you want to attract a man who is truly virtuous, you must begin by being a woman of virtue yourself.

I understand that there is some pressure in our culture currently to dress inappropriately for Halloween. I ask you today to reject this option. If you want to find that man who would suffer pain to maintain your dignity- who would fight for you and care deeply for you- dressing immodestly this Halloween, or any time, will further you from your goal. You will instead attract boys- little school boys. A man worthy of your attention will protect your innocence- and is not attracted to a woman who loses it frivolously.

I am now going to turn the tables on a commonly believed notion. Being the most scandalously dressed woman in the room is not equivalent to being the best woman in the room- or the most beautiful, or most funny, or most attractive, or loved. You do not win when you dress immodestly - not with men, not even in competition with other women.

You are beautiful- you sincerely and truly are- and you do not need to compromise your innocence or dignity in order to prove it. It has already been proven. You have an eternal lover who loves you, just as you are right now. He is your Father. He sent His Son to Earth to be tortured and beaten, to suffer shame and death, so that He could be with you. Your dignity is a result of Him. You are beautifully and wonderfully made. So be confident and secure in yourself- and start by dressing modestly.

You deserve the best from your future husband! Hands down! So please, go for it, and dress modestly this Halloween!

By: Anonymous Guy
When thinking about Halloween – what is the purpose of it? As a kid, it was to dress up as your favorite superhero, fictional character, or idol and go trick-or-treating for candy. And as a kid, that was awesome, but now that we are in college or older, what is the purpose of Halloween for us? Well, in my opinion, it is still a night for us to dress up in costumes and enjoy ourselves. Yet, instead of getting candy, the emphasis of Halloween is about being creative with our costumes and getting a chance to do something different from our daily routine.

So where does modesty play into the equation? It usually doesn’t on a college campus. For example, I overheard a conversation the other night between two girls talking about their costume ideas. They were debating whether or not a costume was too “slutty.” A little while later, one of their guy friends came up, and they asked him what they should do for their costume.   He only half-jokingly replied, “Make it as slutty as possible.”

Now ladies, is the purpose of Halloween to dress up for guys? I don’t think so! To me, the only reason a woman would dress in an immodest costume is because she is trying to attract the attention of guys and have the excuse of Halloween to do so. The purpose of dressing up is to show off your creative spirit and how clever you can be with your costume, no matter how simple it is. Even if you can’t think of a clever costume, a modest costume of the typical nurse in scrubs or a black cat is better than a revealing one. It shows you are not willing to sacrifice your self-dignity for attention. This brings me to my next point…

Halloween is not an excuse to dress immodestly, especially for the girls who normally don’t. It’s important to remember that we are always trying to live out our faith. It doesn’t matter the day, event, or circumstance, we should always be striving towards holiness. Dressing modestly is protecting the beauty and dignity of the female body, which is a gift given to you by God. This is hard to do all the time, especially when showing a little bit more skin or making the outfit a little bit tighter is all you would need to get that cute guy’s attention. Ultimately, however, that guy is not going to like you for who you are, but for your body. And if you are not going to give that to him, his attention is going to go elsewhere. You’ve attracted him for the wrong reasons! So if you are trying to grab a guy’s attention with your Halloween costume, you would be more successful with a well thought-out costume that has the guy admiring your creativity, something he’ll remember. When he comes to talk to you, he will be generally interested in you or impressed, and not be distracted by sexual impulses.

Hence, when thinking about your costume this year, remember the purpose of Halloween. It is a chance to change things around a little bit and dress up in a costume that shows off your personality or creativity. It’s a time to have fun and enjoy yourself, but not compromising your modesty. A time to be that child who was dressing up in admiration of her superhero. And a time to continue to be a daughter of Christ.