{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_36667/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_36667","id":"gutenberg_36667","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/36667","summary":null,"tags":["Antidance Literature","Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches","Category: History - Modern (1750+)","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Dance -- Moral and ethical aspects","Sermons, American -- 19th century"],"text":"</pre>\n\n\n\nProduced by Gerard Arthus, Matthew Wheaton and the Online\nDistributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n                   A DISCOURSE ON THE EVILS OF DANCING\n\n\n                        DELIVERED MARCH 8, 1846,\n\n                        BEFORE THE CONGREGATION\n\n                                   OF\n\n                    THE GERMAN REFORMED SALEM CHURCH\n\n                                   OF\n\n                            HARRISBURG, PA.,\n\n                 By the Pastor, the Rev. John F. Mesick,\n\n                        PUBLISHED BY THE VESTRY.\n\n                              HARRISBURG:\n\n                         THEO: FENN, PRINTER.\n\n                                 1846.\n\n\n                                   HARRISBURG, March 11, A. D. 1846.\n    REV. JOHN F. MESICK--_Dear Sir:_ On last Sabbath evening, 8th\n    inst., you preached a sermon to our congregation on \"_The Evils\n    of Dancing_.\" As this is a custom which is in much practise even\n    by those who consider themselves patterns in society, and, who\n    generally comprise the youth, and say that it is an innocent\n    amusement. We would esteem it as a favor if you would furnish us\n    with a copy thereof for publication that it may be circulated in\n    our Sabbath Schools, among the votaries of dancing, the parents\n    and friends of those who have been assenting to it, in the hope\n    that they may read it and learn its evil consequences, and\n    abstain from its practice hereafter, and be satisfied that its\n    use is not in character with the present age, whatever may have\n    seemingly commended it in former days.\n\n                               JOHN C. BUCHER,\n                               GEO. P. WIESTLING,\n                               GEORGE ZINN,\n                               DANIEL W. GROSS,\n                               ELIAS ZOLLINGER,\n                               JACOB SHELL,\n                               LUTHER REILEY,\n                               GEORGE BEATTY,\n                               RUDOLPH F. KELKER,\n                               SAMUEL B. KEYSER,\n                               VALENTINE EGLE,\n                               GEORGE L. KUNKEL.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n                                         HARRISBURG, March 11, 1846.\n    _To the Vestry of the German Reformed Salem Church:_\n    DEAR BRETHREN: Although the Discourse preached on Sabbath\n    evening last, was prepared during the preceding week as a\n    regular duty, without a thought in reference to a request of\n    this kind; yet as you have been pleased to express a wish to see\n    it in print, in the hope of extending its usefulness, the\n    manuscript is at your service.\n                      With sincere esteem and affection, yours, &c.,\n                                                     JOHN F. MESICK.\n\n\n\n\nTHE EVILS OF DANCING.\n\nROMANS, XII. 3.--\"BE NOT CONFORMED TO THIS WORLD.\"\n\n\nThe Bible is the only rule for all who wish to be saved. The professed\nChristian, not only, but every unconverted man, must bow to its\nprecepts, if he would gain the favor of God. There is but one way, and\nbut one gate of entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven, for saint and for\nsinner. Whatever, therefore, shall be acknowledged to be the duty of the\ncovenanted follower of the Lamb, is equally the duty of every individual\nwho stands disconnected with the visible Church.\n\nIt is a doctrine of revelation that, both classes of persons will be\njudged by the same law, and will be tried with equal impartiality and\nrigor. We are taught that, what Divine justice shall demand from the\none, it will demand from the other; and that there is no respect of\npersons with God. The human race, as dependent and accountable agents,\nare placed on the same moral level in his sight. Each commandment of his\nword is addressed to every hearer of the Gospel. And all are under\nobligation to obey its injunctions, as they value the eternal welfare of\ntheir immortal spirits.\n\nIt is on this incontrovertible principle that I shall proceed to speak\nfrom the text: \"Be not conformed to this world,\"--assuming it as an\nundeniable truth that, what God requires of his children, he also exacts\nfrom the people of the world; and that whatever is inconsistent with the\nreputation or character of a good church member, is no less inconsistent\nwith the eternal salvation of those persons who have not made a public\nprofession of religion.\n\nWe take our ground boldly on this portion of scripture, and assert that\nthe fashionable amusement of Dancing, is contrary to the _spirit_ and\n_aim_ of the Gospel, and, therefore, is opposed to the revealed will of\nGod. Your attention is invited to two points:\n\nFIRST--To the necessity of non-conformity to the world; and\n\nSECONDLY--To the facts proving that Dancing is an act of conformity to\nthe world.\n\nI. We begin with _the necessity of non-conformity to the world_.\n\nThe Scripture sense of the term, _world_, is that collection of\nidolaters, unbelievers, and wicked men who constitute the great bulk of\nthe inhabitants of our globe; in short all persons who do not belong to\nthe Kingdom of God.\n\n_This definition_ corresponds with the declarations of Christ: \"My\nkingdom is not of this world;\" \"Ye are not of the world, even as I am\nnot of the world;\" \"If ye were of the world, the world would love his\nown, but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of\nthe world, therefore the world hateth you.\"\n\nThe sentiment of the text is not the voice of a solitary passage, but is\namply sustained by other portions of the word of God. There are many\nsimilar precepts addressed to believers: \"Arise ye and depart, for this\nis not your rest; because it is polluted, it shall destroy you, even\nwith a sore destruction;\" \"Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye\nseparate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing.\" \"Love not\nthe world, neither the things that are in the world; if any man love the\nworld, the love of the Father is not in him.\" \"Know ye not that the\nfriendship of the world is enmity with God?\" \"Ye cannot serve God and\nMammon.\" \"Choose ye this day whom ye will serve.\" \"If the Lord be God,\nfollow him; but if Baal, follow him.\"\n\nThese commandments of our Heavenly Father, are not _hard sayings_ to the\nsoul that has been delivered from this present evil world through faith\nin Jesus; for it has acquired through the work of the Spirit, a holy\nresignation to every intimation of the Divine will, and supreme delight\nin God as infinitely lovely, which causes every other source of pleasure\nor of happiness to become tasteless and insipid. To carnal minds, we\nadmit, that they will sound like tyrannical edicts, because they seem to\nthem to take away their natural liberty; shutting them up from the\npursuit of that kind of enjoyment for which they pant, which they know\nnot where to find, and in search of which they wander \"through earth,\nits gay pleasures to trace.\"\n\nBut to souls renewed by Divine Grace, the yoke of Christ is easy and his\nburden light. True Christians, the heirs of glory, are separated from\nthe world, not only by profession, not only by external badges, but what\nis of higher moment, by their character and spirit. They are essentially\na peculiar people; singular in their opinions and practices, and created\nunto good works. They are distinguished by a conversation in Heaven.\nThey move through society as pilgrims and strangers on the earth. They\nkeep themselves unspotted from the world, as temples of the Holy Ghost.\nThey seek in Heaven an inheritance which is incorruptible, undefiled,\nand that fadeth not away, as heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus\nChrist. And they reflect the love and holiness of Jesus, as those who\nbear the Saviour's image.\n\n_A wide and unalterable distinction exists, therefore_, between the\nservants of God and the people of the world, a distinction as\nperceptible as that which divides the night from the day, and the\ndarkness from the light. \"The one are born from above, the other from\nbeneath. The one are quickened by Divine grace; the other are dead in\ntrespasses and sins. The one are governed by the Spirit of God, and the\nother are under the dominion of Satan. The one consult the glory of God,\nand cheerfully resign all for Christ; the other make self the centre\naround which they move.\"\n\nSuch irreconcilable discordance in the primary elements of their\ncharacter forbids the thought of their amalgamation. We might as\nreasonably expect that oil and water would commingle and become one\nfluid, as that true Christians should blend their hopes and interests\nwith those of the world. The natural and ardent opposition, growing out\nof their respective principles and aims, renders a separation between\nthem inevitable, absolutely necessary, necessary at least for the\nsafety, comfort, consistency, and usefulness of believers.\n\nThere is no need of further exposition, to show that the injunction of\nthe text is deep-laid in the very constitution of things--and is the\nnatural result of the incompatible differences between submission to the\nwill of God and rebellion against his moral government. The followers of\nChrist can never consent to a compromise involving these principles,\nunless they are willing to sacrifice his cause. Allegiance to Heaven\ndemands that true Christians should never shrink in the hour of trial\nfrom the ignominy or suffering of the cross. If they would be holy, they\nmust possess the courage to dare to be singular, and to meet the world's\nderisive laugh on account of the tenderness of their consciences, or\ntheir inexperience in the vanities and customs of fashionable life. They\nshould receive as an honor its scorn and ridicule, when heaped upon them\nbecause they continue faithful to Christ; because they implicitly follow\nthe directions of his humbling doctrines before men; and because they\nsteadily maintain the line of separation between the church and the\nworld.\n\nNo man deserves the name of Christian, no man can indulge a good hope of\nsalvation, unless his faith in Christ is productive of non-conformity to\nthe world; a stand which is indispensable to his separation from a\nperishing race and his incorporation into the Kingdom of Heaven.\n\nII. In the second place we proceed _to adduce the facts proving that\nDancing is an act of conformity to the world_.\n\n1. Even if could be shown that it is a _healthful amusement_, the\nposition assumed by the text, would exclude it from the recreations of\nthose who love and obey God, imposing on them the obligation to refrain\nfrom it, and to resort to other means of exercise, to which no valid\nobjection could be made.\n\nNo apology, we are sure, can be offered for Dancing, as usually\nconducted, _more weak_ than the common one, that it promotes the health\nof the body. Some thing doubtless might be accomplished by it for the\nattainment of this object, if it were practised in the day-time and in\nthe open air. But usually, in obedience to the arbitrary decree of\nfashion, _the most unseasonable hour, and the most unfavorable\ncircumstances are chosen_.\n\nMany an untimely death has been the dreadful penalty incurred by\nexposure on such occasions; and the fearful blow has generally fallen\namong the ranks of lovely woman. Follow the fragile, venturesome forms\nof our delicate, modernly dressed ladies to the ball room. They pass\nfrom their habitations, arrayed in a garb whose style and materials\nwould render it a fit garment to be worn only at mid-summer; covered\nwith a light wrapper, lest the decorations of the toilet should be\nderanged, and protected from the snow or frozen pavement only by thin\nsoled shoes. They spend several hours together under the excitement of\nlively strains of music, and of the glittering array of beauty and\nfashion, in a chamber brilliant with a multitude of dazzling lights, and\ncrowded with guests to the destruction of the vital properties of the\natmosphere; and in physical exertions to which they have been\nunaccustomed, and which open all the pores of the skin. The system is\nalso deranged by loading the stomach with indigestible food, and by\nencroaching on the ordinary and necessary hours of repose. Then with\nheated and wearied frames, in that state peculiarly exposed to the\ninjurious action of the cold, they suddenly exchange the warm\ntemperature of the assembly chamber for the chilliness of the damp night\nair--the tropic of the ball room for the Siberia of the street. Alas!\nwhat a perilous price to pay for the admiration of the fashionable\nthrong, or for the fleeting gratification of the hour. In that wintry\nblast consumption smites his smiling victims, and fills up the weekly\ncalendar of his fearful ravages. In our large cities, where this insane\ncontempt of health and life is sanctioned by the uniform practice of the\nGod-forgetting multitude, this fell destroyer snatches his prey from the\nranks of fashion by scores, and scourges them more fatally than the\npestilence.\n\nAnd yet individuals can be found in the midst of our community, so\ndevoid of wisdom and foresight as to advocate the introduction of this\npernicious amusement into our social circles. We trust that if they\ncannot be reached by any higher motives, that a regard for the health\nand lives which will be sacrificed to this modern idol, will induce them\nto pause, and to consider well the way of their steps.\n\n2. The position assumed by the text, would exclude Dancing from the list\nof Christian diversions, even if it could be shown _that it is innocent\nin itself_.\n\nThis, however, is a point which the worldling labors in vain to prove by\nthe most skilful use of religious sophistry.\n\nPersons on whose judgment we rely with great confidence in matters of\nthis sort, have abandoned the idea which they, in common with others,\nonce entertained, that Dancing, if properly regulated, might be\nharmless. It is their settled opinion, founded on considerable personal\nexperience and on observation, \"that the nature of the amusement itself,\neven in its least exceptionable forms and in limited exercise, is\nsuch--that it has a tendency to inflame passion, to poison virtue, to\nendanger purity, and to lead on to gross and deadly evils.\"\n\nModern dancing, as generally practised, is a gay and guilty pleasure. It\nreceives no warrant from the Bible. The only kind of Dances recorded in\nthe Sacred Scriptures, are religious Dances, forming part of the worship\nof God: \"with the exception of that of the vain fellows devoid of shame,\nof the irreligious families described by Job, and of Herodias\"--which\nare no more an example for us because they are recorded in the sacred\nnarrative, than the treachery of Judas Iscariot, in betraying his master\nwith a kiss.\n\nBut then we must remember the fact that the Religious Dance was\npractised only on joyful occasions; that it was performed in the day\ntime, in the open air, and only by one of the sexes at a time. There is\nnot a historical notice in the word of God, of _promiscuous dancing_\neither as an act of worship or amusement.\n\nAnd those persons were reckoned among the vilest of mankind who\nperverted Dancing from a sacred use to mere purposes of amusement.\n\nAt the present time, as we cast our eyes over the map of the world, we\ndiscover that dancing is still practised as an important part of\nreligious worship by the inhabitants of all heathen countries; by the\nIndians of our own Western forests; by the superstitious natives of\nAfrica, and by the effeminate and luxurious Asiatics. But as employed\namong the ceremonies of idolatry in Southern Asia, it has been changed\nfrom the slow measured movements, practised by the ancient Greeks and\nRomans, to a style, which one Missionary remarks, \"would not be\ntolerated on the boards of the lowest theatre in Europe, or in America.\"\nDancing girls, arrayed in the most costly ornaments of dress, and quite\nequal in skill to some of the modern exhibitors of that art in the\ntheatres of civilized lands, are invariably connected with heathen\ntemples in the East Indies, as their constant attendants.\n\nLet us turn our attention from these regions of idolatry, and inquire\namong what nations of Christendom this amusement is most popular, that\nwe may trace it throughout its various existing associations. At the\nhead of what are usually denominated civilized countries, we must place\nFrance, Italy and Spain, where on the Sabbath it is deemed entirely\nconsistent with the claims of Christianity to go to the house of God in\nthe morning, and to a bull-fight and a dance in the public gardens in\nthe afternoon. And it might be an instructive commentary as to the evil\neffects of this amusement on the morals of those nations, to go more\ninto particulars, were it not that the facts concerning the virtue,\npurity and chastity of the fashionable circles of France and Italy,\ndisclosed by travellers, are too appalling to be repeated.\n\nIn England the chief patrons of the dance are their card-playing,\ntheatre-going, and horse-racing aristocracy; who are indebted to their\npurse and to their title for their standing in society; who are too\nindolent generally to cultivate their minds; and who are seldom capable\nof gaining distinction, except by extravagance and debauchery. In these\n_higher_ circles no man is deemed respectable who cannot \"trip it on the\nlight fantastic toe.\" And that person is scouted as a mawkish prude or a\nhypocritical fanatic, who scruples to go the whole round of these\n_elegant_ amusements. Says a writer of this class: \"He must be a\ndesperate gnat-strainer who gives and goes to dances and yet objects to\ncards. The strictest Pharisee in the land, indeed, _could find no\nargument against it_.\" This is a modest assumption which we have no time\nto notice. In commenting on this quotation, it is sufficient for our\npresent purpose to remark that the opinions and practices of the\nfashionable world, compel us to class these recreations in the same\ncategory.\n\nLet us now look at the _introduction_ of this fashionable amusement into\nthe United States. It comes from the gay saloons of Paris and of London,\nand it is an imitation of the corrupt and ruinous fashions of the old\nworld. It is the entering wedge of luxury and licentiousness, the fatal\nantagonists to the purity and simplicity of our republican institutions\nand manners.\n\nLook again at the _tutors_ of this art, to whom fond parents entrust\ntheir beloved children, to enable them to acquire this agreeable\nindulgence, and you will generally find that they are the very refuse of\nforeign cities; men destitute of either stability or principle; who, on\naccount of their profession, are not esteemed worthy of an introduction\ninto the social circle of the families by whom they are employed. Every\njudicious person must acknowledge that there is great danger that the\ntender and susceptible minds of youth will be contaminated by such\nassociates. There is not a family in our land, so high or well governed,\nbut that its children are more or less exposed to temptation and\ndestruction; and we cannot, therefore, with too great jealousy or care\nguard against the beginnings of evils.\n\nLook, also, at the style and character of those modern dances, which are\nmost admired and most fashionable; and you will perceive at a glance\nthat their movements, attitudes and evolutions are repugnant to a\nnatural sense of propriety, and inconsistent with that unsullied purity\nof mind which we consider inseparable from the individual to whom we\nwould yield the homage of our hearts. The soul that commands the love of\nthe virtuous, must be spotless as the unfallen snow. Genuine attachment\ncan be based only on esteem. In all honesty, therefore, we must strike\nthat from the list of innocent amusements, which, from its very nature,\ninvolves such a perilous trial of moral principles; that contact with it\nalmost inevitably inflicts a loss of mental refinement, if not positive\npollution, by opening the doors to a licentious imagination.\n\nThere are other evils of great magnitude, which strip off the mask of\ninnocency from this frivolous and sinful amusement. It occasions a loss\nof precious time, which God has given for nobler objects. It produces\ndissipation of mind, disqualifying it for the ordinary and serious\nduties of life. It wastes money, which some cannot well afford to give\naway, or which might be much better employed in furnishing the means of\nintellectual improvement, or in works of benevolence. It encourages\nextravagance in dress; inflating the mind with intolerable vanity and\npride, and training up our sons and daughters to become reckless\nspendthrifts, despising honest industry and commendable economy. It is\nordinarily connected with the use of wine and of strong drinks, casting\ndown unwary youth from the path of sobriety, into the depth of poverty\nand drunkenness. Finally, it indisposes the soul to _religion_, exciting\nfolly, levity, and kindred corruptions of the human heart, and begetting\ndisgust for the worship and service of God.\n\nMiss Beecher, who ranks with the most distinguished ladies of our\ncountry, and who owes her reputation to those circumstances only, which\nshould command esteem under our democratic institutions, to her\nintelligence, refinement, and virtue, speaks of this art in the\nstrongest terms of disapprobation. \"In the fifteen years during which\nshe had the care of young ladies, she affirms she has _never known any\ncase_ where learning this art, and following the amusement, did not have\na _bad effect_, either on the habits, the intellect, the feelings or the\nhealth.\" A testimony so respectable, ought certainly to satisfy every\nmind, which is governed by truth and reason, as to the evils of Dancing.\n\n3. But a higher consideration, why dancing should be discountenanced,\nand that indeed which decides the course of duty, is, _that it is an\namusement by which the world is distinguished from the kingdom of Jesus\nChrist_.\n\nIt is part and parcel of an _education for the world_. Its object is the\nacquisition of a graceful carriage, an easy movement, and elegant\nmanners. Its aim is to prepare an individual for introduction into\nsociety with advantage. And its design does not extend beyond the\nsuccess of his worldly prospects.\n\nNo one has ever had the hardihood to maintain that fashionable dancing\nis a medium of Divine blessings to the soul; that it secures the\ninfluences of the Holy Spirit; or that it prepares the mind for the\nhallowed exercises of the closet. No one ever yet adopted the absurd\nidea that it was a substitute for Faith and Repentance; that it was a\nmeans of recommendation to God; or that it was an accomplishment for the\nemployments of Heaven. No one ever yet expected that a revival of\nreligion would commence in a ball room; or that thoughtless sinners\nwould be converted by going to a cotillion. These significant facts\nplainly show on which side of the dividing line, between the church and\nthe world it is to be placed. They forbid mistake.\n\nDancing, so far from being a means of Grace, is a part of a counter\nsystem of means; devised by the God-forgetting, pleasure-seeking\nmultitude, to exclude their Maker from their minds and from his own\nworld. Their chief desire is to banish all serious thoughts of their\nsinfulness, guilt and danger; of their obligations and duties to their\nCreator; and of death, judgment and eternity. To escape reflection they\nflee to the excitements of the dance and of the revel; where art\nexhausts its skill and music lavishes its power to divert and engross\nthe attention. Amid scenes of delusive splendor, which, to the youthful\nimagination, appear as enchanting as the creations of poetic fancy, they\ncontrive for a brief season to lose the pang of remorse, and to snatch a\ndraught of feverish and unsatisfactory joy. True happiness and solid\npeace are perpetual strangers in the artificial gayeties, and gaudy\nsplendors of fashionable circles; where too often the honied words of\nflattery disguise a hollow heart; and the studied smile, and merry\nlaugh, are assumed to conceal the sting of envy, jealousy and chagrin.\nThe bright illusions by which the young are spell-bound, gradually fade\naway before the light of experience. And it is no uncommon thing in\nthese resorts of worldly pleasure, to find the utmost gayety of manner\nin unnatural union with sadness of soul, produced by the discovery of\nthe selfish passions, covertly working beneath the surface in all minds\npresent; or by the sudden and irresistible conviction of its folly as an\noccupation for an immortal being. Especially on the return of the\nvotaries of pleasure to the solitude of their chamber, have they been\noverwhelmed with remorse and the keen upbraidings of conscience.\n\nBut in all this sadness there is no religion; for it is only the sorrow\nof the world. It has no higher claim to approbation than the regrets of\nthe wilful and deliberate murderer. It cannot atone for the wrong which\nit has committed; and it does not terminate in the purpose to renounce\nthe sin in which it originates. Hence if any spiritual good grows out of\nthese melancholy emotions it is by accident.\n\nIn vain, therefore, will the advocates of Dancing attempt to escape the\ndilemma in which they are involved. The practice of this amusement is\naltogether a worldly matter. Its obvious tendency is to keep dying\nsinners from thinking of the salvation of their souls; by pre-occupying\ntheir time and attention with earthly delights, and by tempting them to\ncast off fear and to restrain prayer. Its natural result is to incite\ninfatuated youth to ridicule serious Christians and faithful Ministers\nof the Gospel, as fanatical, gloomy and righteous over much. It confirms\nthem in a spirit of levity and thoughtlessness, emboldening them to mock\nat sin, to trifle with the most awful truths, and to go down gaily to\nthe gates of eternal death.\n\nNo other measure is needed on the part of the God of this world, than to\nkeep the votaries of pleasure engaged in such vain amusements, to insure\ntheir destruction in Hell. The more alluring this tempting bait is to\ntheir carnal taste, the more certainly will they become a prey to the\ngreat enemy of souls. They are condemned already because they believe\nnot; and they need commit no other sin than to neglect the great\nsalvation to perish under the withering curse of the Almighty. There is\nbut a step between them and death. The next hour spent by them in such\nfrivolous enjoyments may be their last. For aught that they know the\nvery ground on which they revel, may cleave beneath their feet, and\nentomb their immortal spirits in eternal woe. To run the giddy round of\nthe amusements of the fashionable world, under these hazardous\ncircumstances, is as great a madness as to sport with arrows,\nfire-brands and death.\n\nTo each individual, therefore, I must say by Divine authority, in\nreference to this particular pleasure, see to it, that you \"Be not\nconformed to this world.\" In opposing this message, you do not quarrel\nwith the speaker, but with God. Your Sovereign commands; and at the\njudgment seat He will exact obedience at your hands.\n\nTo every professing Christian, who has joined in the Dance, I am in duty\nbound to say, without qualification or reserve, that he has broken his\ncovenant with God; by which he pledged himself to withdraw his\naffections from the world and to renounce its pomp and vanities forever.\nThat act is a violation of the promise, as obligatory as an oath,\nbecause uttered before high Heaven; to be governed by the example of\nChrist, to live for the salvation of souls, and to labor for the Glory\nof God. It is an infraction of the vow of self-consecration,\nvoluntarily, deliberately, and prayerfully assumed; under all the\ncircumstances which could impart sacredness to the verbal declarations\nof dying men, to forsake all for Christ, and to be crucified to sin and\nto the world. It would be just, it would be no more than you might\nexpect, that God would do unto you as you have done unto Him; that as\nyou have broken the contract between yourself and Him by neglecting your\nengagements, that He should decline to perform those stipulations which\nare dependent on its conditions, leaving you to perish in the paths of\ntransgression in which you have delighted to wander.\n\nThe Dancing professor of religion, not only destroys himself but does\nimmense injury to the souls of unconverted men. He encourages all who\nlive without hope and without God in the world to persevere in their\nneglect of religion, and to go on securely in the entire round of\nfashionable amusements. They will naturally suppose that if it is\nconsistent with preparation for Heaven, for him to venture so far within\nthe enchanted circle of worldly gratifications, that there can be no\nharm in their proceeding a few steps further.\n\nIt is true, _all_ of the unconverted may not reason in this manner,\nbecause their own consciences will testify that the misconduct of others\nis not the rule of duty, but there are many who will--the young, the\nignorant, and the inexperienced, the weak in moral principle, the\nvacillating in purpose, and the strongly tempted; all of whom, will be\nled by the ignis fatuus light of your inconsistent and pernicious\nexample, away from the path of piety and peace, into the slippery and\ndownward course of sin, remorse, and eternal death. And at the\njudgment-seat of Christ, you will appear with the blood of lost souls\non the skirts of your garments.\n\nThe Dancing professor of religion _gives offence to his brethren in the\nChurch_. The fact that among this number, some of the weaker members may\nbe found is no excuse for the deed. At the same time we think it a point\nof great moment, that the most eminent and exemplary Christians, and the\nmost zealous and intelligent ministers of the Gospel, of all\ndenominations, have put on it their seal of condemnation. They maintain\nthat they cannot discover any sanction for this art, in the example of\nthe blessed Saviour or of his holy Apostles. They contend that it unfits\nthem for prayer and for communion with God; and that they cannot pass\nfrom the dissipating excitement of the crowded and noisy ball-room to\nthe throne of grace, and do their duty there with comfort or profit.\nThey say that they cannot ask God's blessing on the employments of an\nevening so spent; and that the next time they attempt to warn\nunconverted men of the dangers to which they are exposed in the world,\nthat they feel rebuked by the remembrance of their own conduct to that\ndegree that they are afraid and ashamed to open their mouths on the\nsubject.\n\nFor these obvious reasons the Ecclesiastical bodies of several religious\ndenominations in our country, have expressed their deliberate opinion of\nits inconsistency; and have recorded their protest against it by a\nformal vote. And for the same reasons, the most active, self-denying and\nbenevolent friends of the Redeemer in every community, never give their\npresence to the ball-room, and are deeply grieved with those nominal\nChurch-members who do.\n\nUnder these circumstances what is duty? What would Paul do? Such was his\nanxiety for the salvation of others, that on this account, things\nlawful, and therefore much more unlawful he would resign. The tenderness\nof his concern for the spiritual welfare of others exceeded so far all\nselfish considerations that he declared--\"If meat make my brother to\noffend, I will eat no meat while the world standeth; lest I make my\nbrother to offend.\" \"It is good neither to eat flesh nor to drink wine,\nnor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made\nweak.\" This is the Bible rule. And against those who disregard it, a\nfearful malediction has been uttered by the Great Head of the Church.\n\"Whoso shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it were\nbetter for him that a mill-stone were hanged about his neck and that he\nwere drowned in the depth of the sea.\"\n\nThe dancing professor of religion, by his inconsistent example,\nparalyzes the energies of the Church. He is a _false_ witness against\nChrist and his cause. He does not recommend but disgraces the Christian\nname.\n\nThe people of the world do not esteem him more highly on account of his\nconformity to their peculiar practices; on the contrary they do not\nbelieve that he is _any better_ than themselves. They have no\nconfidence in _such_ members of the Church; they look upon them as\nhypocrites or mere professors of religion; they do not believe that they\nare converted and refer to their example only by way of excuse. They may\napplaud their beauty, they may admire their wit, they may emulate their\naccomplishments, they may envy their wealth, they may copy their\nmanners, and they may imitate their style of dress--but they never speak\nrespectfully of their religion. Not unfrequently they make their\ninconsistencies a subject of satirical remark. \"See, that Church\nmember!\" say they, \"to-day he is the star of fashion, and the leader of\nthe midnight dance--to-morrow he occupies the chief seat in the\nsanctuary, and is in appearance a most devout and humble worshipper.\"\n\nExperience and the word of God, teach but one method by which the gay,\nfrivolous, wicked and proud world, can be won over to the service of the\nRedeemer; and that is to hold up to its view the truth, through the\nmedium of an irreproachable example; on the one hand rebuking its\nfollies and sins, and on the other, showing it a more excellent way.\n\nIt cannot be denied, that the people of the world are often strongly\ntempted to skepticism by the conduct of the Dancing professor of\nreligion. They are led to inquire--is there any _reality_ in the work of\nthe Holy Spirit? Here is a man that asserts that he has been born again,\nbut where is the evidence? What does he do more than others? With his\nlips he declares that God is his portion; that religion is his chief\nconcern, and that Heaven is his home. But by his actions he says more\nplainly than words can indicate, that his supreme happiness lies in the\nworld, that Christ is a hard task-master, and that his anticipations of\nreligious comfort have been disappointed.\n\nIt is no wonder, that unconverted men with such stumbling-blocks in\ntheir pathway, turn a deaf ear to the Gospel. Amid the perplexity of\nmind too often produced by the glaring inconsistencies apparent between\nGods truth, and Gods professed people; nothing short of the Almighty\npower of the Holy Spirit, can persuade unconverted men to believe, \"that\ngodliness is profitable for all things.\" On these carnal members of the\nChurch, must rest, therefore, the larger portion of the guilt incurred\nin a congregation by grieving the Spirit of God, and by infecting the\nminds of sinners with an uncontrollable degree of levity. To their\nworldliness must be attributed in a great measure, the check which is\ngiven to the progress of the glorious Gospel in converting perishing\nsouls from Satan unto God. And it is a question which they must settle\nwith their consciences, \"how can they meet these charges at the bar of\nthe Final Judge?\"\n\nThe dancing professor of religion robs the Church of the benefit of his\nservices. His moral influence in the community where he resides and is\nknown, is destroyed. Like Samson shorn of his locks, he is destitute of\nstrength. He has not only lost the spirit of prayer, but he has no power\nat a throne of grace, \"The prayer of the wicked is an abomination to\nthe Lord.\" His approaches to the Mercy Seat become lifeless and\nheartless. And it is no marvel, that eventually he deserts the closet,\nthe social meeting for Prayer, and the House of God.\n\nSuch a professor of religion is a contrast to the prevailing spirit of\nthe age, which is characterized by efforts to enlarge the borders of the\nKingdom of God in the conversion of sinners. He lives devoid of\nspiritual consolation himself, and by exciting prejudices against vital\npiety, keeps others away from the fountain of life. He leads thoughtless\nsinners down to Hell, whilst he tells them that he is conducting them to\nHeaven. With one hand he pulls down the kingdom of Christ, and with the\nother he builds up the kingdom of Satan. He betrays his Master with a\nkiss. He grieves the souls of all the well wishers of Zion. He brings\ndown the displeasure of a righteous God on his holy heritage. He is far\nworse than an open enemy, for he strews the path that leads to perdition\nwith tempting flowers, and he whispers peace in the ears of sinners who\nare walking in the ways of death. He is a traitor among the soldiers of\nthe cross. He is an Achan in the camp of Israel.\n\nAnd the same inconsistency and guilt which are chargeable on the dancing\nprofessor of religion, rest in a great measure on those members of the\nChurch, who, although they do not indulge in this gay pleasure\nthemselves, yet grant permission to their children to attend this kind\nof assemblies. The danger, whatever it is, certainly is as great for the\nmembers of the household, as for its head. And the word of God lays down\nthe principle, that it is the duty of Parents, to use their authority to\nprevent their offspring from following any amusement in which they think\nit would be wrong to engage themselves. Fathers and Mothers, therefore,\nwho consent that their children shall learn and practice this art, are\nsadly neglecting their parental duties, and are to no inconsiderable\nextent partakers of this sin of their sons and daughters.\n\nIt is an act of cold blooded cruelty to the souls of those whom they\nought to love most tenderly. And we would ask, how can they approach the\nMercy Seat for prayer in faith, with the petition on their lips, \"lead\nus not into temptation,\"--whilst they have thrown the tender lambs of\ntheir little flock into the very jaws of the lion? They certainly are\nnot so destitute of sensibility or understanding, that they would tempt\ntheir poor confiding little ones to dance, amid the rocking of an\nearthquake, or the roaring of a thunder storm, or whilst standing on the\nedge of a slippery precipice. How then can they with any claim to the\nfeelings of common humanity, cast their children into the vortex of\nworldly pleasures, where they are momentarily exposed to the infinitely\ngreater evil of having body and soul dashed to pieces on the rocks of\neternal damnation?\n\nIn view of such considerations, every Christian parent ought to come to\nthe unalterable determination of bringing up his family with the\nunderstanding that they are neither to know nor practice this\nfashionable amusement.\n\nThe just application of the principles introduced into this discourse,\ndestroys this worldly pleasure root and branch. Their true\ninterpretation is the language of total abstinence,--\"touch not, taste\nnot, handle not.\" They allow no compromise with this social evil. And in\ncases which admit of doubt, and where it is hard to draw the line,\nbecause the impropriety is not so manifest, they utter their interdict.\nIt is wrong, therefore, for Christian families, among themselves or with\na few friends, to practice dancing as an amusement. It is their duty to\nrefrain from it, if for no other reason, because it is one of the\ndistinctive badges of the ungodly world; and because they are bound to\nmake the line of demarcation between the Church and the world plain and\nvisible. In opposition, to this sacred obligation, it is a poor excuse\nto alledge that it is only a family affair. The family circle needs to\nbe enlarged, only by the addition of a few guests, to impart to the\nparlor much of the appearance of a ball-room. Safety, consistency and\nusefulness, demand that every follower of Christ should renounce it\naltogether.\n\nTo see the true nature and character of this amusement we must view it\nin the light of Eternity. Let us contrast the merriment and folly of one\nof these gay and trifling assemblages, with the pure, earnest and solemn\nworship of the glorious intelligences gathered around the throne of the\ninfinite God. How evanescent are their joys in contrast with the eternal\nblessedness of that bright circle of seraphic intelligences! How\ndifferent is their estimate of sin, from that which is formed by the\nHoly Sovereign of the universe! They jest and laugh whilst trampling\nunder foot his righteous laws; but He frowns on each transgression with\na look of awful displeasure, and is \"angry with the wicked every day.\"\n\nAgain, what an extreme of condition under God's moral government, does\nthe gaiety and levity of that giddy company present to the weeping, and\nwailing, and gnashing of teeth, of the damned in Hell!--many of whom, in\ntheir life time indulged in the same guilty pleasures; and with whom,\nthe principal actors of this scene might in one instant be associated\nforever, by a single word of an offended and neglected God.\n\nOr who would not be shocked in turning from the contemplation of the sad\nspectacle of the crucifixion; the body of Jesus mangled, rent, covered\nwith a gore of blood, his dying groans sounding in the ear!--to the\nlevity and laughter of the ball-room, crowded by those whose sins have\nnailed him to the accursed tree and opened all his wounds anew.\n\nBut look forward a few years, or months only it may be; and how diverse\nwill be circumstances of thoughtless trifles! They cannot live forever.\nTogether with us, they are treading the path to the tomb, and there is\none coming to meet them whose presence is a terror to all transgressors.\nYet into its darkness they must descend, and before that Infinite Being\nthey must shortly stand.\n\nFrom the noise, splendor, and mirth of the ball-room, they must pass to\nthe silence, gloom and grief, of the chamber of death. The giddy, vain,\nperhaps, scoffing circle of revellers, must be exchanged for the\nanxious, sorrowful, weeping company of relatives and friends. The showy\nfinery of the ball dress, must be replaced by the winding sheet and the\ngrave cloths. That form which under the tutoring hand of art, moved with\nsuch grace, through all the evolutions of the dance, must lie icy cold\nin the embrace of death.\n\nThen they will have done with earthly things. No music with its dulcet\nnotes will wake the echoes of the dreary caverns of the dead; no jovial\ncompanions will relieve the dullness of the grave; no dance will fill\nthe void of slow revolving ages. The worm will feed on them sweetly\nthere, and their souls will receive according to the deeds done in the\nbody.\n\nWhen this event arrives the votaries of pleasure will turn pale with\nterror. They will beg for life. The absorbing inquiry will be \"What must\nI do to be saved?\"\n\nBut then, oh! how horrible the thought--it may be too late. Unconverted\nsinner flee these scenes of guilty pleasures as the Gates of Perdition.\nPrepare without delay to meet thy God. Let the golden moments of life's\nshort day, be consecrated to Prayer, to Repentance, and to Faith in\nJesus. Then, too, mayest thou ascend at death, to that bright and better\nworld, where the Saints forever reign, and where from before the light\nof God's countenance, sin, darkness and sorrow, flee away, and where the\nsoul is filled with a joy unspeakable and full of glory.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<pre id=\"pg-footer\">","title":"A Discourse on the Evils of Dancing","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":7251}