Item 3 in Seven Corporal Works of Mercy

Clothe the Naked

Provide suitable clothing and protection to those who lack it.

Position
3
Form
Positive duty or instruction
Obligation
Strong duty
Wording status
Editorial paraphrase
Intended audience
Catholics and other Christians who adopt the works-of-mercy tradition
Last reviewed
28 June 2026

Names and terminology

Canonical name: Clothe the Naked

Source wording

Editorial paraphrase: Provide suitable clothing and protection to those who lack it.

Editorial paraphrase

Literal meaning

Provide suitable clothing and protection to those who lack it.

Broader interpretation

This item should be interpreted within the historical purpose, intended audience and wider structure of its parent ethical framework.

Historical context

This item belongs to Seven Corporal Works of Mercy. Biblical foundations with later Christian seven-item systematisation; Christian Europe and the wider Church.

Practical meaning

Practical application requires attention to intention, consent, evidence, rights, foreseeable effects and the needs of all persons or beings affected.

Ethical purpose

To shape conduct, judgment or character in a way consistent with the wider framework.

Exceptions and disputes

Assistance should preserve choice and dignity rather than treating recipients as objects.

Variations across schools or traditions

Wording and interpretation may vary between translations, denominations, schools and historical periods.

Modern application

Modern application should distinguish the historical formulation from present legal, social and ethical conditions.

Criticism and difficult cases

Assistance should preserve choice and dignity rather than treating recipients as objects.

Truth By Reason analysis

Truth By Reason assesses this principle through evidence, intentions, rights, foreseeable consequences, consistency and the treatment of all affected beings.

Ethical themes

  • Charity
  • Human dignity

Sources