From: eje@irenaeus.mlo.dec.com (Eric James Ewanco)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian
Subject: Re: Night Club Dancing
Date: 17 Dec 92 04:38:29 GMT
Reply-To: ewanco@kalvin.enet.dec.com
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation

In article <Dec.11.01.46.19.1992.12727@athos.rutgers.edu>, julian@sfu.ca (Julian Shillcock) writes:

> Eric adds:

> >ounce of its being at the thought of dancing.  I could not get my mind off
> >the music that was being played (secular pop music) and its message.  I
> >felt almost adulterous because I was used to dancing and moving to praise
> >and worship songs for the Lord.  Now I was doing the same thing for secular
> >songs with the wrong message.  I just could not bring myself to do it for
> >long.

> I have puzzled about this one. Why is it dancing and nightclubs that people
> have a problem with, and notr cinemas, bookshops, the planetarium,
> restaurants, in fact any other social activity where you might meet
> non-christians? I recognise that in a place for dancing meeting people is a
> large factor in being there, and hence one may not want to be "picked up" or
> be "picking up". But if one goes in a group to dance to music and enjoy
> dancing, I do not see the difference between dancing to secular music and
> eating food prepared by a secular restaurant.  

The difference for me is that in nightclubs, generally people who go there are
specifically interested in picking up people to go home and have sex with.  I
suspect -- I am not sure, but this is the impression I get from our culture--
that if you go to a nightclub and meet someone, it is likely that that person
will have expectations that you are interested in going to bed with them.
Naturally such attitudes are not present in cinemas, bookshops, etc.  I fear
meeting someone in a nightclub because I feel I will be put into an awkward
position meeting someone and then being expected to go home and have sex with
them.

The difference between dancing to secular music and eating food prepared by
a secular restaurant is that food is not filled with erotic imagery and sexual
temptation.  It's one thing to dance to instrumental jazz; another to dance
to "I Want Your Sex."

> I have heard the argument that the lifestyles of secular artists are not the
> ones christians should be encouraging.

Specifically less their lifestyles than the lyrics in their songs.

> But really, to buy a record or dance to music produced by a person whose
> lifestyle we disapprove of is no different than reading a book published by
> a company, most of whose workers are probably non-christian.  I dislike this
> distinction between "dancing and praising the Lord" and other dancing or
> enjoyment in movement. Is there a set of Holy actions and a set of secular
> ones? Or are there just a set of human actions that may be used for good or
> for evil? I think it is more the motivation and purpose of actions that
> allows us to do them or prevents us, not whether they are labelled
> "christian" or "secular".

That's precisely my point -- I have little regard for those who simply say
"All dancing is evil" without regard to intent and situation.  I am speci-
fically talking about dancing to erotic music filled with sexual imagery and
innuendo.  It's a lot different from doing the Tango or whatever.

Most popular dance music today is unavoidably music filled with sexual
imagery and explicit language.  I'm uncomfortable enough LISTENING to such
music, let alone dancing to it.  This is precisely the kind of music played
in nightclubs.  They don't play Lawrence Welk music.

> Didn't Jesus go a wedding with alcohol and (probably) dancing? he told
> a parable about children dancing.

Yep, but he didn't dance to "Wild Thing."

> julian

--
/===========================================================================\
| Eric Ewanco - Software Engineer   For the rash and outrageous opinions ex-|
| Digital Equipment, Maynard MA     pressed herein I alone am responsible;  |
| ewanco@kalvin.enet.dec.com        they do not belong to DIGITAL(TM).      |
\==========================- 2 Th 2:15 -====================================/
    "...[T]he greatest and most ancient Church known to all, founded and
    organized at Rome by [] Peter and Paul, [is] that Church which has the
    tradition and faith which comes down to us after having been announced
    to men by the Apostles.  For with this Church, because of its superior
    origin, all Churches must agree ...  and it is in her that the
    faithful everywhere have maintained the Apostolic tradition."
       -- St. Irenaeus, Against Heresies, c. 180 A.D., 3,3,3.