Part 2

Dancing, so far from being a means of Grace, is a part of a counter system of means; devised by the God-forgetting, pleasure-seeking multitude, to exclude their Maker from their minds and from his own world. Their chief desire is to banish all serious thoughts of their sinfulness, guilt and danger; of their obligations and duties to their Creator; and of death, judgment and eternity. To escape reflection they flee to the excitements of the dance and of the revel; where art exhausts its skill and music lavishes its power to divert and engross the attention. Amid scenes of delusive splendor, which, to the youthful imagination, appear as enchanting as the creations of poetic fancy, they contrive for a brief season to lose the pang of remorse, and to snatch a draught of feverish and unsatisfactory joy. True happiness and solid peace are perpetual strangers in the artificial gayeties, and gaudy splendors of fashionable circles; where too often the honied words of flattery disguise a hollow heart; and the studied smile, and merry laugh, are assumed to conceal the sting of envy, jealousy and chagrin. The bright illusions by which the young are spell-bound, gradually fade away before the light of experience. And it is no uncommon thing in these resorts of worldly pleasure, to find the utmost gayety of manner in unnatural union with sadness of soul, produced by the discovery of the selfish passions, covertly working beneath the surface in all minds present; or by the sudden and irresistible conviction of its folly as an occupation for an immortal being. Especially on the return of the votaries of pleasure to the solitude of their chamber, have they been overwhelmed with remorse and the keen upbraidings of conscience.

But in all this sadness there is no religion; for it is only the sorrow of the world. It has no higher claim to approbation than the regrets of the wilful and deliberate murderer. It cannot atone for the wrong which it has committed; and it does not terminate in the purpose to renounce the sin in which it originates. Hence if any spiritual good grows out of these melancholy emotions it is by accident.

In vain, therefore, will the advocates of Dancing attempt to escape the dilemma in which they are involved. The practice of this amusement is altogether a worldly matter. Its obvious tendency is to keep dying sinners from thinking of the salvation of their souls; by pre-occupying their time and attention with earthly delights, and by tempting them to cast off fear and to restrain prayer. Its natural result is to incite infatuated youth to ridicule serious Christians and faithful Ministers of the Gospel, as fanatical, gloomy and righteous over much. It confirms them in a spirit of levity and thoughtlessness, emboldening them to mock at sin, to trifle with the most awful truths, and to go down gaily to the gates of eternal death.

No other measure is needed on the part of the God of this world, than to keep the votaries of pleasure engaged in such vain amusements, to insure their destruction in Hell. The more alluring this tempting bait is to their carnal taste, the more certainly will they become a prey to the great enemy of souls. They are condemned already because they believe not; and they need commit no other sin than to neglect the great salvation to perish under the withering curse of the Almighty. There is but a step between them and death. The next hour spent by them in such frivolous enjoyments may be their last. For aught that they know the very ground on which they revel, may cleave beneath their feet, and entomb their immortal spirits in eternal woe. To run the giddy round of the amusements of the fashionable world, under these hazardous circumstances, is as great a madness as to sport with arrows, fire-brands and death.

To each individual, therefore, I must say by Divine authority, in reference to this particular pleasure, see to it, that you "Be not conformed to this world." In opposing this message, you do not quarrel with the speaker, but with God. Your Sovereign commands; and at the judgment seat He will exact obedience at your hands.

To every professing Christian, who has joined in the Dance, I am in duty bound to say, without qualification or reserve, that he has broken his covenant with God; by which he pledged himself to withdraw his affections from the world and to renounce its pomp and vanities forever. That act is a violation of the promise, as obligatory as an oath, because uttered before high Heaven; to be governed by the example of Christ, to live for the salvation of souls, and to labor for the Glory of God. It is an infraction of the vow of self-consecration, voluntarily, deliberately, and prayerfully assumed; under all the circumstances which could impart sacredness to the verbal declarations of dying men, to forsake all for Christ, and to be crucified to sin and to the world. It would be just, it would be no more than you might expect, that God would do unto you as you have done unto Him; that as you have broken the contract between yourself and Him by neglecting your engagements, that He should decline to perform those stipulations which are dependent on its conditions, leaving you to perish in the paths of transgression in which you have delighted to wander.

The Dancing professor of religion, not only destroys himself but does immense injury to the souls of unconverted men. He encourages all who live without hope and without God in the world to persevere in their neglect of religion, and to go on securely in the entire round of fashionable amusements. They will naturally suppose that if it is consistent with preparation for Heaven, for him to venture so far within the enchanted circle of worldly gratifications, that there can be no harm in their proceeding a few steps further.

It is true, _all_ of the unconverted may not reason in this manner, because their own consciences will testify that the misconduct of others is not the rule of duty, but there are many who will--the young, the ignorant, and the inexperienced, the weak in moral principle, the vacillating in purpose, and the strongly tempted; all of whom, will be led by the ignis fatuus light of your inconsistent and pernicious example, away from the path of piety and peace, into the slippery and downward course of sin, remorse, and eternal death. And at the judgment-seat of Christ, you will appear with the blood of lost souls on the skirts of your garments.

The Dancing professor of religion _gives offence to his brethren in the Church_. The fact that among this number, some of the weaker members may be found is no excuse for the deed. At the same time we think it a point of great moment, that the most eminent and exemplary Christians, and the most zealous and intelligent ministers of the Gospel, of all denominations, have put on it their seal of condemnation. They maintain that they cannot discover any sanction for this art, in the example of the blessed Saviour or of his holy Apostles. They contend that it unfits them for prayer and for communion with God; and that they cannot pass from the dissipating excitement of the crowded and noisy ball-room to the throne of grace, and do their duty there with comfort or profit. They say that they cannot ask God's blessing on the employments of an evening so spent; and that the next time they attempt to warn unconverted men of the dangers to which they are exposed in the world, that they feel rebuked by the remembrance of their own conduct to that degree that they are afraid and ashamed to open their mouths on the subject.

For these obvious reasons the Ecclesiastical bodies of several religious denominations in our country, have expressed their deliberate opinion of its inconsistency; and have recorded their protest against it by a formal vote. And for the same reasons, the most active, self-denying and benevolent friends of the Redeemer in every community, never give their presence to the ball-room, and are deeply grieved with those nominal Church-members who do.

Under these circumstances what is duty? What would Paul do? Such was his anxiety for the salvation of others, that on this account, things lawful, and therefore much more unlawful he would resign. The tenderness of his concern for the spiritual welfare of others exceeded so far all selfish considerations that he declared--"If meat make my brother to offend, I will eat no meat while the world standeth; lest I make my brother to offend." "It is good neither to eat flesh nor to drink wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak." This is the Bible rule. And against those who disregard it, a fearful malediction has been uttered by the Great Head of the Church. "Whoso shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it were better for him that a mill-stone were hanged about his neck and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea."

The dancing professor of religion, by his inconsistent example, paralyzes the energies of the Church. He is a _false_ witness against Christ and his cause. He does not recommend but disgraces the Christian name.

The people of the world do not esteem him more highly on account of his conformity to their peculiar practices; on the contrary they do not believe that he is _any better_ than themselves. They have no confidence in _such_ members of the Church; they look upon them as hypocrites or mere professors of religion; they do not believe that they are converted and refer to their example only by way of excuse. They may applaud their beauty, they may admire their wit, they may emulate their accomplishments, they may envy their wealth, they may copy their manners, and they may imitate their style of dress--but they never speak respectfully of their religion. Not unfrequently they make their inconsistencies a subject of satirical remark. "See, that Church member!" say they, "to-day he is the star of fashion, and the leader of the midnight dance--to-morrow he occupies the chief seat in the sanctuary, and is in appearance a most devout and humble worshipper."

Experience and the word of God, teach but one method by which the gay, frivolous, wicked and proud world, can be won over to the service of the Redeemer; and that is to hold up to its view the truth, through the medium of an irreproachable example; on the one hand rebuking its follies and sins, and on the other, showing it a more excellent way.

It cannot be denied, that the people of the world are often strongly tempted to skepticism by the conduct of the Dancing professor of religion. They are led to inquire--is there any _reality_ in the work of the Holy Spirit? Here is a man that asserts that he has been born again, but where is the evidence? What does he do more than others? With his lips he declares that God is his portion; that religion is his chief concern, and that Heaven is his home. But by his actions he says more plainly than words can indicate, that his supreme happiness lies in the world, that Christ is a hard task-master, and that his anticipations of religious comfort have been disappointed.

It is no wonder, that unconverted men with such stumbling-blocks in their pathway, turn a deaf ear to the Gospel. Amid the perplexity of mind too often produced by the glaring inconsistencies apparent between Gods truth, and Gods professed people; nothing short of the Almighty power of the Holy Spirit, can persuade unconverted men to believe, "that godliness is profitable for all things." On these carnal members of the Church, must rest, therefore, the larger portion of the guilt incurred in a congregation by grieving the Spirit of God, and by infecting the minds of sinners with an uncontrollable degree of levity. To their worldliness must be attributed in a great measure, the check which is given to the progress of the glorious Gospel in converting perishing souls from Satan unto God. And it is a question which they must settle with their consciences, "how can they meet these charges at the bar of the Final Judge?"

The dancing professor of religion robs the Church of the benefit of his services. His moral influence in the community where he resides and is known, is destroyed. Like Samson shorn of his locks, he is destitute of strength. He has not only lost the spirit of prayer, but he has no power at a throne of grace, "The prayer of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord." His approaches to the Mercy Seat become lifeless and heartless. And it is no marvel, that eventually he deserts the closet, the social meeting for Prayer, and the House of God.

Such a professor of religion is a contrast to the prevailing spirit of the age, which is characterized by efforts to enlarge the borders of the Kingdom of God in the conversion of sinners. He lives devoid of spiritual consolation himself, and by exciting prejudices against vital piety, keeps others away from the fountain of life. He leads thoughtless sinners down to Hell, whilst he tells them that he is conducting them to Heaven. With one hand he pulls down the kingdom of Christ, and with the other he builds up the kingdom of Satan. He betrays his Master with a kiss. He grieves the souls of all the well wishers of Zion. He brings down the displeasure of a righteous God on his holy heritage. He is far worse than an open enemy, for he strews the path that leads to perdition with tempting flowers, and he whispers peace in the ears of sinners who are walking in the ways of death. He is a traitor among the soldiers of the cross. He is an Achan in the camp of Israel.

And the same inconsistency and guilt which are chargeable on the dancing professor of religion, rest in a great measure on those members of the Church, who, although they do not indulge in this gay pleasure themselves, yet grant permission to their children to attend this kind of assemblies. The danger, whatever it is, certainly is as great for the members of the household, as for its head. And the word of God lays down the principle, that it is the duty of Parents, to use their authority to prevent their offspring from following any amusement in which they think it would be wrong to engage themselves. Fathers and Mothers, therefore, who consent that their children shall learn and practice this art, are sadly neglecting their parental duties, and are to no inconsiderable extent partakers of this sin of their sons and daughters.

It is an act of cold blooded cruelty to the souls of those whom they ought to love most tenderly. And we would ask, how can they approach the Mercy Seat for prayer in faith, with the petition on their lips, "lead us not into temptation,"--whilst they have thrown the tender lambs of their little flock into the very jaws of the lion? They certainly are not so destitute of sensibility or understanding, that they would tempt their poor confiding little ones to dance, amid the rocking of an earthquake, or the roaring of a thunder storm, or whilst standing on the edge of a slippery precipice. How then can they with any claim to the feelings of common humanity, cast their children into the vortex of worldly pleasures, where they are momentarily exposed to the infinitely greater evil of having body and soul dashed to pieces on the rocks of eternal damnation?

In view of such considerations, every Christian parent ought to come to the unalterable determination of bringing up his family with the understanding that they are neither to know nor practice this fashionable amusement.

The just application of the principles introduced into this discourse, destroys this worldly pleasure root and branch. Their true interpretation is the language of total abstinence,--"touch not, taste not, handle not." They allow no compromise with this social evil. And in cases which admit of doubt, and where it is hard to draw the line, because the impropriety is not so manifest, they utter their interdict. It is wrong, therefore, for Christian families, among themselves or with a few friends, to practice dancing as an amusement. It is their duty to refrain from it, if for no other reason, because it is one of the distinctive badges of the ungodly world; and because they are bound to make the line of demarcation between the Church and the world plain and visible. In opposition, to this sacred obligation, it is a poor excuse to alledge that it is only a family affair. The family circle needs to be enlarged, only by the addition of a few guests, to impart to the parlor much of the appearance of a ball-room. Safety, consistency and usefulness, demand that every follower of Christ should renounce it altogether.

To see the true nature and character of this amusement we must view it in the light of Eternity. Let us contrast the merriment and folly of one of these gay and trifling assemblages, with the pure, earnest and solemn worship of the glorious intelligences gathered around the throne of the infinite God. How evanescent are their joys in contrast with the eternal blessedness of that bright circle of seraphic intelligences! How different is their estimate of sin, from that which is formed by the Holy Sovereign of the universe! They jest and laugh whilst trampling under foot his righteous laws; but He frowns on each transgression with a look of awful displeasure, and is "angry with the wicked every day."

Again, what an extreme of condition under God's moral government, does the gaiety and levity of that giddy company present to the weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, of the damned in Hell!--many of whom, in their life time indulged in the same guilty pleasures; and with whom, the principal actors of this scene might in one instant be associated forever, by a single word of an offended and neglected God.

Or who would not be shocked in turning from the contemplation of the sad spectacle of the crucifixion; the body of Jesus mangled, rent, covered with a gore of blood, his dying groans sounding in the ear!--to the levity and laughter of the ball-room, crowded by those whose sins have nailed him to the accursed tree and opened all his wounds anew.

But look forward a few years, or months only it may be; and how diverse will be circumstances of thoughtless trifles! They cannot live forever. Together with us, they are treading the path to the tomb, and there is one coming to meet them whose presence is a terror to all transgressors. Yet into its darkness they must descend, and before that Infinite Being they must shortly stand.

From the noise, splendor, and mirth of the ball-room, they must pass to the silence, gloom and grief, of the chamber of death. The giddy, vain, perhaps, scoffing circle of revellers, must be exchanged for the anxious, sorrowful, weeping company of relatives and friends. The showy finery of the ball dress, must be replaced by the winding sheet and the grave cloths. That form which under the tutoring hand of art, moved with such grace, through all the evolutions of the dance, must lie icy cold in the embrace of death.

Then they will have done with earthly things. No music with its dulcet notes will wake the echoes of the dreary caverns of the dead; no jovial companions will relieve the dullness of the grave; no dance will fill the void of slow revolving ages. The worm will feed on them sweetly there, and their souls will receive according to the deeds done in the body.

When this event arrives the votaries of pleasure will turn pale with terror. They will beg for life. The absorbing inquiry will be "What must I do to be saved?"

But then, oh! how horrible the thought--it may be too late. Unconverted sinner flee these scenes of guilty pleasures as the Gates of Perdition. Prepare without delay to meet thy God. Let the golden moments of life's short day, be consecrated to Prayer, to Repentance, and to Faith in Jesus. Then, too, mayest thou ascend at death, to that bright and better world, where the Saints forever reign, and where from before the light of God's countenance, sin, darkness and sorrow, flee away, and where the soul is filled with a joy unspeakable and full of glory.