Yes, I'm a closet nudist

[NudeDude92]

New here, NudeDude92. I'm a God fearing christian, and I'm a home nudist. My wife I and both are. I'm looking for sound biblical support against this nagging feeling that I am wrong for wanting to be public about it. I have skinny dipped once last summer, but in the state I live in there are no legal nude beaches, and public nudism is actually outlawed. What makes this hard for me (other than my very conservative upbringing) is the fact that the nearest legal nude beach is 600+ miles away. I guess you could say I'm over-thinking this. Help would be appreciated. I have read many posts on this site so far, but I'm still not 100% on board. If there is anything y'all have that I haven't seen or heard before, I'd like to have it!

[Englishman]

Hiya NudeDude92,

Welcome to the village; good to have you here with us. There is a fair bit around the site & in the minds of some of the villagers which should help you find an answer to your questions & doubts.

As a quick response... I spent a good deal of time looking at the Bible when I started to wonder if social nudity was OK. So far, I haven't found anything that says it's a bad thing per se. Most of the arguements against being naked spring from churchy Canteen Culture; what everyone tells you is done or not done sometimes with no biblical support at all, just the weight of personality, & that's not always a bad thing, which makes one think, 'If he/she says that, it must be true'.

Personally, my doubts are resolved & my relationship with God & my fellow beings is better for it. But that's just what I think... Go ahead & ask us your questions, we'd love to hear more from you & we're a fairly reasonable bunch.

[Lionheart]

I have totally been where you are now. I personally found David Hatton’s book Meeting at the River: A Tale of Naked Truth to be the best source of biblical information from a pastor. I highly recommend it. He also has a website, but the book has all the references and info in it. Anyone here would happily share their experiences, me included. Welcome here.

https://www.amazon.com/Meeting-River-Tale-Naked-Truth/dp/1490386653

[JimShedd112]

Welcome to the village NudeDude and your wife, if she should choose to participate. We’d sure be glad to have both of you join the conversations here. Many others have been where you are now. I’m basically agnostic, not religious at all, but I had my own doubts about social nudity until I tried it. It is strictly non-sexual and totally liberating to enjoy naked freedom with other likeminded folks.

Jim

[naturaldon]

It is strictly non-sexual and totally liberating to enjoy naked freedom with other likeminded folks.

Ditto. What Jim said.
Welcome to the Village, NudeDude. Hope to hear more from you and your walk of faith. I'm an associate pastor in a very conservative church. Resolved this a long time ago, though I don't live naturism as a full-time lifestyle. It's therapeutic, relaxing, peaceful, and I've not found anything against it in the Bible. Oh sure, there's plenty about sinful behavior involving the body, clothed or not, but like Jim said, naturism is non-sexual. I'm glad you and your wife are open to it. Let's hear more. And please, join in any of the talk strips here.

[OzTech]

Hey NudeDude, welcome to the the site and all that.

If you're located somewhere that being naked is illegal then it's going to be hard to become too involved in that kind of activity or meet others of a similar mind. It might come down to working out what is practical for your situation and how best God may use you in your present location.

Having said that I think we in this forum can probably assure you that, in scripture, there is nothing much that indicates being naked in company is sinful. In Jewish society, up to the time of Christ and the New Testament, it seems (to me, anyway) pretty much that nakedness was acceptable (and quite practical) under certain circumstances (such as when Peter went off fishing) or when prophesying a message from God. I tend to think that they were pretty pragmatic about it. If you were going to be out working (or prophesying) some place then it would not make much sense to be wearing (and possibly damaging) clothes that could be worth a months (or more) wage. It could have been a source of shame or embarrassment if the person was too destitute to be able to afford clothing or if they had been taken captive and were now in slavery.

Sin has a lot to do with motivations. I tend to equate sin with selfishness. If someone chooses to act selfishly rather than to act with care for others then they have sinned against them. I think that it is selfishness that would isolate a man from God and, in the end, it is God's compassion that He would let that person be with themselves... alone... forever... and with whatever other torments might be present in sheol.

The only caution I would make is that if someone is absolutely convinced that being naked in company is sinful then they probably should not engage in that activity. For them it would probably be so. It's like that situation where Paul said that there is nothing wrong with eating meat offered to idols but it's best not to do so if in company with others who believed it to be sinful or it may cause them to stumble (1 Cor 10:28).

Of course... there may be others here who have better understanding of this stuff than I.

[NudeDude92]

If you're located somewhere that being naked is illegal then it's going to be hard to become too involved in that kind of activity or meet others of a similar mind. It might come down to working out what is practical for your situation and how best God may use you in your present location.

Yup, that about sums up most of my problems. This being said, the truth of the matter is the law in question may itself be lawfully invalid. I live in the state of Arkansas, and according to naturistaction.org the state law says:

§ 5-68-204 - Nudism.

(a) As used in this section, "nudism" means the act or acts of a person or persons congregating or gathering with his, her, or their private parts exposed in the presence of one (1) or more persons of the opposite sex as a form of social practice.

(b) The provisions of this section do not apply to the enumerated acts if:

(1) The purpose of the person committing the act or acts is to render medical or surgical treatment or to determine the need for medical or surgical treatment or to cleanse such sexual part, and the person committing the act:

(A) Is a licensed physician, as defined by § 17-80-101, or any such physician of a sister state making a professional call into Arkansas;

(B) Committed the act under the professional direction of any physician described in subdivision (b)(1)(A) of this section; or

(C) Is a nurse duly registered or licensed by the Arkansas State Board of Nursing; or

(2) The persons are married legally one to another.

(c) It is unlawful for any:

(1) Person, club, camp, corporation, partnership, association, or organization to advocate, demonstrate, or promote nudism; or

(2) Person to rent, lease, or otherwise permit his or her land, premises, or buildings to be used for the purpose of advocating, demonstrating, or promoting nudism.

(d) Any person, club, camp, corporation, partnership, association, or organization violating any provision of this section is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor for each offense.

(e) This section does not repeal any existing laws of the State of Arkansas except those in direct conflict with this section but this section is cumulative to the existing laws of the State of Arkansas.

source: http://naturistaction.org/StatesFrames/ ... ation.html

The source of this law according to things I have read is that a nudist group in east central arkansas was caught sometime in the late 50's early 60's. Views on nudity then being what they were then, the state issued this law to prevent this from ever happening again. But personal views aside, note that the law makes illegal the ability to simply [i]advocate[i] for nudism, essentially nuking freedom of speech among other things.
This among other things makes it difficult to even try. So even if I come to the final conclusion that it's not a problem to be nude in public, where I currently live is problematic. In my next post, I will tell y'all a little more about myself, and my beliefs on the matter.

[Ramblinman]

New here, NudeDude92. I'm a God fearing christian, and I'm a home nudist. My wife I and both are. I'm looking for sound biblical support against this nagging feeling that I am wrong for wanting to be public about it. I have skinny dipped once last summer, but in the state I live in there are no legal nude beaches, and public nudism is actually outlawed. What makes this hard for me (other than my very conservative upbringing) is the fact that the nearest legal nude beach is 600+ miles away. I guess you could say I'm over-thinking this. Help would be appreciated. I have read many posts on this site so far, but I'm still not 100% on board. If there is anything y'all have that I haven't seen or heard before, I'd like to have it!

NudeDude92,
Greetings!
Perhaps you could clarify exactly what it is you wish to be public about, particularly with your interactions among fellow Christians.
What we call nudism has as its foundation, some assumptions about the body and nudity that were part of first century Christianity.

Ideas are in themselves not illegal.
Although Arkansas comes close to it, thought crime is still confined to George Orwell's novel 1984.

Let's be practical: I do not tell irresponsible people, even church people, things about myself that could be used to slander me or things that are confidential in other ways. I am much more candid with trusted friends.

Naturism (nudism if you prefer) is a rather different topic than whether I participate in social nudity myself.
I feel that Christianity in America has widespread problems stemming from body issues such as body image problems, the perception that the human body is inherently indecent, judging others based upon outward bodily appearance, shame about nudity even when divorced from any hint of sexual misconduct, shame about sex in private between a husband and wife, unnatural obsession with nudity that takes the form of prudishness, but is just as bad as pornography and other issues. The Christian naturist has a duty to guide people away from these false doctrines. This guidance would almost always NOT require that you tell people about your level of participation (if any) in nudist social groups.

The Apostle Paul's admonition not to eat meat sacrificed to idols in the presence of the weak is often used to forbid Christians from participating in many things, including naturism.
But think about it: Paul was actually quite open in his public letters to the churches about the goodness of all meats that people have asked God's blessing on. God's blessing purifies our food from any taint of paganism and I pray over every meal. So for all these warnings about not offending the weak minded with eating meats of pagan origin, Paul was very careful to teach the purity of meat that has been blessed by God, regardless of origin and he did so in a very open fashion, not hiding a thing.

Likewise, we should openly teach doctrines that may be misunderstood by immature Christians. We must offer the meatier doctrinal truths to those in the body of Christ who are mature enough to understand it, lest we leave them in a state of perpetual babyhood spiritually speaking.

Two of my favorite writers on the subject of Christian naturism are Matthew Neal and Pastor Jeff Bowman. I also highly recommend Pastor David Hatton's practical advise (previously recommended by Lionheart).

Matthew Neal's blog, The Biblical Naturist is great!

The Writings of Pastor Jeff Bowman will be well worth your consideration, as well.

Lastly, you will enjoy the archive of FigLeafForum It has a series of thought-provoking articles on naturism and Christianity.

I hope you will continue to visit here and discuss your thoughts and concerns with us.

God bless you and your family!

[Maverick]

Howdy and welcome from Texas, NudeDude92! There is a wealth of information already here in the Village, so browse around, use the search feature, and ask questions or start new topics if you want (and are able, given that you have racked up enough posts).

Everything everyone else has said is great so I'll just briefly add my 2¢.

I'm looking for sound biblical support against this nagging feeling that I am wrong for wanting to be public about it.

Check out the links that Ramblinman provided, as well as David Hatton's book Meeting at the River that Lionheart linked. If you enjoy MATR, you might also like Hatton's more theological book about nudity called Who Said You Were Naked?. The Kindle version is here.

I have skinny dipped once last summer, but in the state I live in there are no legal nude beaches, and public nudism is actually outlawed.

As Ramblinman noted, that does sound like Arkansas. Any naturist resorts or "secret" clothing-optional places nearer to you?

I guess you could say I'm over-thinking this. Help would be appreciated. I have read many posts on this site so far, but I'm still not 100% on board. If there is anything y'all have that I haven't seen or heard before, I'd like to have it!

I would encourage you to do a study on nudity in the Bible. Go to a site like BibleHub, type in "Genesis 2:25", click on Interlinear or Hebrew, and start by learning about the Hebrew word for "naked" used there, using the built-in Strong's and Brown-Driver-Briggs. See where else that word is used, and in what contexts. Are there other words in the Hebrew that mean or are translated as "naked" or "nude"? What about in the New Testament (Greek)?

Just some questions to get you thinking and hopefully help you on your way. A naked Bible study on nudity would be a great thing that you and your wife could do together! As someone who's "been there, done that," I empathize with you. The search for truth was tough and trying at times, but the rewards were so worth it. May the Lord bless you in your investigation!

[nudie66]

Hello from South Jersey! Welcome to the Village. Hope to interact with you soon.

[RMOlson]

Welcome from NW GA. I have looked at almost all the resources listed below, enjoy! I look forward to hearing more from you.
Randy

[NudeDude92]

NudeDude92,
Greetings!
Perhaps you could clarify exactly what it is you wish to be public about, particularly with your interactions among fellow Christians.
What we call nudism has as its foundation, some assumptions about the body and nudity that were part of first century Christianity.

Ideas are in themselves not illegal.
Although Arkansas comes close to it, thought crime is still confined to George Orwell's novel 1984.

Let's be practical: I do not tell irresponsible people, even church people, things about myself that could be used to slander me or things that are confidential in other ways. I am much more candid with trusted friends.

Absolutely. That being said, none of even my closest of friends know about this. For me, it's not that I wish to broadcast my interest in nudism (I certainly don't), it's more the internal conflict in me about just say, visiting a nude or clothing optional beach. It's just being nude in public that still makes me uncomfy. I have been discussing the matter to length only with my wife. See, I come from a large family that you could say was extremely conservative. No one saw the other nude except by accident or prank. It was an unspoken rule in the home that the nude body was only to be seen by ones spouse.

What it ultimately boils down to for me is this: In history past, God granted desires to his people, then left them with leanness in their souls. My examples mainly have to do with OT Israel.
First: "We want meat, not just manna!"
God: "Okay, but here's a plague on you for not being satisfied in my provision"

2nd: "We want a king"
God: "Okay, but he will enslave you"

Now to:
Me: "I want to be nude"
Nagging feeling: "Okay, here's the shame of keeping a secret like that, because you know nobody that trustworthy."


My biggest conflict, the one that haunts me about this is that I feel like I'm rebelling against my upbringing, and as a result, it's almost like there's this response to my desires like God gave to Israel. Maybe I'm again over thinking this, and I should just shut up and try it. Thoughts? Does any of this make sense to you?

[Ramblinman]

I have one more resource for you: https://www.unconstitutionalarkansas.org/

Lest we assume that this is confined to Arkansas's problem with nudism, as NudeDude92 reminds us, it "nukes" freedom of speech and the right to privacy.
And not just for Arkansas; it sets legal precedent for every other state in the union and perhaps even other countries.

As a Christian, I comply with every law to the fullest extent possible, but there may come a time when those who feel led by the Holy Spirit, may feel the need to petition for a change in the law.
Can Arkansas repeal the 13th amendment outlawing slavery across the nation?
Can Arkansas repeal any amendment to the US Constitution?
It would appear so unless they are challenged on this issue, any state can pass any law that violates the Constitution and as legal precedent, opens the door to anarchy nationwide.

Folks, this is worth fighting for. I am not drafting anyone into the war, but those who hear the call to arms may need to prayerfully consider their personal involvement to fight with pen, keyboard and even boots on the courthouse steps.

[Bare_Truth]

Nudedude92
I do not know if you got the PM I sent but just in case I will repeat the gist of it here and it may benefit other readers as well. Given how far you noted previously that you are from a nude beach (600 miles I think you said), I am guessing that you are in the northern half of Arkansas, and that will put you somewhat closer to the northern border with Missouri. If you will look at a Missouri map, in the south central part of the state you will see the city of Salem. That is along the most likely escape route for nudist refugees fleeing Arkansas; and Salem is fairly close to where MoNatureMan has his 112 Acres of secluded land on the south flank of a mountain where we have held our Missouri Ozarks Mountain Naturist meetups/campouts. There are 2 mountain streams and ponds and the streams originate from springs higher up on the mountain and the bulk of the unforested fraction of the land lies in a bit of a valley between the streams. There is a huge grassy field (put some horses in it and we could call it a pasture ) which can accomodate a large number of campers. Or, crossing the first stream puts one at MoNatureMan's mountain cabin and barn near his small and large ponds, My 20 acre place is a bit to the west along the I-44 corrdor and I have had the pleasure of hosting a few campers on the way to the meetup at MoNatureMan's (folks coming from the west who thought it better to not try to find MoNaturMan's place late in the day or evening). So far we have been able to have these events at no charge to those attending and likely will be able to keep it that way. So basically it comes down to your transportation costs and that can get down quite low cost if you camp in a tent.

For those who have not seen them before there is a bunch of detail commentary and pictures of our last meetup to be found at the page on this site at: http://www.cnvillage.org/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=4220&start=150

The pages before and after that one may also be of some interest as they have discussion leading and following the actual event.

[NudeDude92]

I might consider it. Once I figure out my final position on this matter. BTW, I can't yet send PM's. Just registered and all. Soon enough though.