David Ward: Dance!

"Dance"

It is generally true that every culture has its dance. And this goes back to ancient times. Today, many cultural dances are making a seeming come back, such as Irish dance. Yet, in the church dance is still a controversial issue.

To some dance is just too sensual to be allowed. To them there is no acceptable dance. Moreover, to the extreme minority dance is sin, and anyone participating is sinning. To them, dancing in church would be akin to heresy.

However, the Bible has several examples of people dancing and scriptures that support dancing. For example, Miriam and other women danced joyously after God delivered the Hebrew children through the Red Sea. Likewise, King David danced before the Ark of the Covenant as it was returned to Jerusalem. The Psalms are replete with verses that not only support dancing but also call for dance as a method of praise, e.g., Psalm 149:3 and 150:4 not only support dancing but also call for dance as a method of praise.

Furthermore, the lack of dance in church may be associated with the fact that, as a culture, there is no American dance. For instance, there is Hebrew dance, Russian dance, Irish dance, Greek dance, a host of African dances, Spanish dance, but generally speaking, there is no singular dance associated with Americans. That is to say, there is no common dance Americans share when they come together.

Yet, some churches today have adopted Hebrew dance since Christianity was founded by a Jew and is largely dependent upon Hebrews scriptures. These churches use Hebrew dance as part of their worship and a way to live out scripture. They teach the specific steps of the various dances and the meanings behind the different gestures and postures.

Some churches have adopted a sort of split system of dance. For instance, in one church I attended it was all right for children to dance but not adults. In other churches dance is somewhat accepted so long as it done at the back of the sanctuary, not at the front or in the aisles. Then in some churches it is acceptable for women to dance but never the men.

Of course, there is the age-old fear of "looking stupid" when one dances. I am convinced this is what keeps most people, especially men, from dancing, whether in or out of church. Apparently, King David did not suffer from this anxiety, as he danced in what amounted to his underwear before his subjects.

Whatever the reason, Christians are greatly divided when it comes to dance. Some may take a class in ballroom dance but never consider dancing in church. Still others may freely dance in church during worship but never dance outside of church. In any case, I believe the Bible prescribes dance as a legitimate form of worship, so long as the center of worship remains Jesus Christ!