Show D ANCIN A N 0 I 1 N G v tir THE methodist preachers of montana are opposed to dancing they wont have it in their churches and they wont have the lucre mide made by dancing A district conference of the methodist episcopal church was held at bozeman Bo zeman commencing menel fig jan ath on the ath the following preamble and resolutions were discussed and unanimously adopted by the conference according to the report in the bozema bozeman n auant avant courier among the greatest hindrances t to 0 our church chure h work that we find in this new country is dant dani dancing and attendance teri teti danee dance on dancing parties it interferes materially with theopi the spiritual success of christ christianity lanley our oar discipline however is very explicit C on n this subject and can be our only rule and guide in reference to it 1 resolved therefore that we are opposed to and determined to discountenance all dancing parties in any form more any participation in them by y our membership or the linkin them to any of our church enterprises resolved that we cannot consistently receive funds gotten by such means for church purposes the preachers present are thus presented iliev rev T 0 iliff of bozeman revar rev bev mr riggin of virginia city rev mr van orsdell virginia city rev mr anderson fort peck agency rev mr bridger bozeman rev mr blay virginia virgina city mr T lockridge bannack 11 eli els elsewhere ethere in the NEWS may be folind some pertinent dissenting comments by a montana newspaper upon the above detailed action of the conference which will be worth reading by those thole who take an an interest in the subject pro or con eon some of our readers perhaps many of them who were brou brought 0 ht up with religious strictness may recollect the injunctions placed u upon p them by their religious parents or guardians against engaging in dancing or enteria entering g a room in which dancing was going on for the purpose of engaging in or witnessing such exercises es ballrooms and theatres theartres the atres being considered by such strict religious people as the tim very gates of hell the portals of perdition a abid nd to be carefully shunned accordia accordingly viv riv such e extreme views are no more abol absolutely correct than extreme views gen generally brally are area moderation is the golde goldea A ruie rule as as the apostle says fays let det let I 1 your moderation be all men mem The Manger danger from most acts is aa as regard stine alime place I 1 manner and conditions s of their performance rather than in the acts themselves there is no sin in dancing that isit is not of itself a sinful exer ecer exercise lse ise not in the least it is held to be the oldest and most universal univ ensal of the fine arts the poetry of motion no more inherently vicious than painting music or any other fine art axt dancing has been and is practised practiced as religious warlike Uni gymnastic pantomimic social I 1 solemn or festive exercise it is 11 either of these nde ade according to the intention of the actor in either instance it is very vers inspiring but in neither is Isa rily degrading things are much what they are made by the uses to which they are rat eat put T the e hebrew word for dance danco means literally to leap for joy and for the express expression lon jon of sacred joy joy and holy triumph dai daz dancing icing seems to have been engaged in on frequent occasions in biblical history many orthodox hebrews still give bata bala masques on the evening of the feast of purim an occasion of great rejoicing to commemorate me the tho triumph of esther and mordecai mordecal over haman the enemy and persecutor of their race dancing was customary as a religious fl legious bious exercise in christendom u up til I 1 tle the I 1 at h century and aud in spain until the ahe clergy dancing with the children in the churches later still in the century at limoges the pe e and clergy have danced together around the tl choir df the church of st leonard on st martiale Marti als day in early times the bishops led the dances in in christian festivities dancing danding was an important part of education in greece and was held in high honor it was the opinion of plato piato aliat th at all dancing should be of a religious character and should be carefully legislated upon as an essential to the cultivation of grace of motion on the contra rythe religion forbids both dancing and music terpsichorean exercises not being among the paradIs paradisiacal lacal pleasures promised in the koran |