Pastor Brian Sauvé’s tweet on modesty on Monday, Feb. 7, caused the phrase “Dear Brian” to trend on Twitter and drew strong criticism from both Christians and non-Christians—as well as praise from some.
“Dear Ladies,” wrote Sauvé, “There is no reason whatsoever for you to post pictures of yourself in low cut shirts, bikinis, bra and underwear, or anything similar—ever. Not to show your weight loss journey. Not to show your newborn baby. Not to document your birth story. -Your Brothers.”
Sauvé is a pastor at Refuge Church in Ogden, Utah. His original tweet has over 5,500 likes and 19,000 quote tweets as of this writing. Readers should be advised that one of the comments responding to Sauvé’s tweet contains nudity.
‘Dear Brian’ Trends on Twitter
Because the tweet went viral, it drew attention from a broad audience on Twitter. A number of people, particularly women, told the pastor to “f*** off,” said they had the right to do what they wanted with their bodies, and posted revealing pictures in the comments. As might be expected, many of the responses to Sauvé’s tweet were sarcastic.
So, it’s totally ok for me to start telling men to never post pictures of themselves in suits because it’s just too tempting for me?
— Rebekah is doing her best (@BeknJ) February 9, 2022
Dear Brian,
There is no reason whatsoever for you to try and control how women express themselves. You also don’t speak on behalf of men. If hot women on your feed is too much for you to handle, delete your account and put parental controls on your browser kiddo.
-A Sane Person
— Ahmed Baba (@AhmedBaba_) February 8, 2022
The First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstruous Regiment of Women Who Take Sensual Childbirth Photos and Post Them on Instagram
— Sassiterian (@sassiterian) February 9, 2022
Quite a few people from Christian circles took issue with the implication that women posting pictures of themselves with their newborn babies was sexual.
“Oh my gosh I didn’t realize me lying on a hospital bed…holding [my] baby with a makeup + tear streaked face and frizzy hair from the sweat of 2+ hours of pushing, all while marveling at the miracle of new life was so sexy,” responded one woman.
Some responded by telling Sauvé that his tweet revealed a problem with lust and that he and other men need to “pluck out their own eyes” per Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 5.
“Dear Brian, Learn self-control,” said user Paul Chambers. “Seek help if you can’t see a woman without sexualizing her into some tawdry self-fulfilling scenario. Your Brother Twice Removed.”
Asian American Christian Collaborative president Raymond Chang tweeted, “Dear ladies, There is no reason whatsoever for you to take responsibility for the sin issues of men who have no self control. It is not your fault that we objectify you and treat you with less dignity than you deserve. We will take responsibility for our sin. – Your brothers.”
“Dear Ladies,” tweeted Christian theologian and preacher Kyle J. Howard, “if you post pictures of yourself in a low cut shirt, bikini, bra, underwear, or something similar; if I happen to come across it on my feed I’m committed to not sexualizing you as I scroll past but to see you as a human being whose body is not mine. -A brother.”
In a later comment on that tweet, Howard said, “We are talking about a man choosing to get up on twitter & in self-righteousness dictate to women what they can and cannot wear as if he Pope…It is not inconsistent to believe this dude is acting like a jerk AND to believe in modesty.”