The Cure of Ars on dancing

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Sailor_Kenshin said:
What are we, the Taliban? No dancing, no singing, no music, no playing cards? What next, burkas?
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Would you have us refrain from learning from the greatest of saints in fear of appearing like the Taliban?

Remember who told us “whoever is ashamed of me, I too will be ashamed of him before my Father.”
 
Gabriella_San_S said:
This is wisdom! Welcome back (from your lapsing), friend:) God bless you!
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Thank you Gabriella. I’m 68 years old and I was raised in a Catholic broken home. Very very confused about life, religion and Catholicism. Now I know life in good perspective. May God bless you also.
 
Danny_OC said:
Would you have us refrain from learning from the greatest of saints in fear of appearing like the Taliban?

Remember who told us “whoever is ashamed of me, I too will be ashamed of him before my Father.”
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What on earth does that have to do with repressing normal human activities, just as the Taliban does?

The Catholics of my youth would have laughed at the suggestions in this thread. And yet the world was a far, far better place, and they were good, solid citizens who would have fallen over in shock at what passes for ‘normal’ now. Murdering the unborn was illegal. We seem to have lost our collective common sense, if not our minds.

I’d be a lot more fearful of this current regime’s war on the unborn, the aged, and the infirm than whether dancing is a sin.
 
Sailor_Kenshin said:
What on earth does that have to do with repressing normal human activities, just as the Taliban does?

The Catholics of my youth would have laughed at the suggestions in this thread. And yet the world was a far, far better place, and they were good, solid citizens who would have fallen over in shock at what passes for ‘normal’ now. Murdering the unborn was illegal. We seem to have lost our collective common sense, if not our minds.

I’d be a lot more fearful of this current regime’s war on the unborn, the aged, and the infirm than whether dancing is a sin.
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Trust me, I place no small value on our nation’s war on the unborn. I spend hours a week picketing outside Planned Parenthoods. But I have recently come to realize how much the devil loves to make us focus on a cause; ANY cause, even a great one, as long as it makes us decrease focus on our own personal holiness.

Make no mistake, only saints will save this world.
 
Danny_OC said:
Trust me, I place no small value on our nation’s war on the unborn. I spend hours a week picketing outside Planned Parenthoods. But I have recently come to realize how much the devil loves to make us focus on a cause; ANY cause, even a great one, as long as it makes us decrease focus on our own personal holiness.

Make no mistake, only saints will save this world.
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Excellent insight!! In order to “fight evil with good” we must always be in a state of sanctification. This is one of the greatest “tools” of evangelization: “Preach the Gospel, use words if necessary…” (Saint Francis of Assisi)
 
Sailor_Kenshin said:
What on earth does that have to do with repressing normal human activities, just as the Taliban does?

The Catholics of my youth would have laughed at the suggestions in this thread. And yet the world was a far, far better place, and they were good, solid citizens who would have fallen over in shock at what passes for ‘normal’ now. Murdering the unborn was illegal. We seem to have lost our collective common sense, if not our minds.

I’d be a lot more fearful of this current regime’s war on the unborn, the aged, and the infirm than whether dancing is a sin.
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Didn’t John Calvin outlaw dancing when his “Taliban” took over in Geneva? My Protestant ancestors in Scotland & America were profoundly affected by his kind of repressive philosophy.
The Cure of Ars was responding to a particular problem in a particular place & time. It doesn’t necessarily translate to every dance & every occasion.Being Catholic means being able to take joy in music, song, dance & art.Matter is not evil nor are our bodies.We are not Calvinists.
 
Amen. And we have suffered so long under the repression of ‘multiculturalism’ and political correctness that not a lick of common sense remains.
 
Cracker_Mom said:
Being Catholic means being able to take joy in music, song, dance & art.Matter is not evil nor are our bodies.We are not Calvinists.
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I think we are talking about club-style dancing which is definately not something a pious, chaste Catholic should be involved in.

Things like Irish step dance, ballet, ordinary ballroom dance, swing, or country/folk dances should all be acceptable to a Catholic.

There are very different definitions/styles of dance out there in the world. My personal pet peeve is the style of dance that many high school dance teams and show choirs are doing. It’s really not appropriate for teen girls to be performing that way in front of all their family and friends!

Thankfully at our highschool there is a ‘vocal jazz’ choir, but no show choir. We usually head out to the concessions while the dance team is performing at half-time!😉
 
Sr_Sally said:
I think we are talking about club-style dancing which is definately not something a pious, chaste Catholic should be involved in.

Things like Irish step dance, ballet, ordinary ballroom dance, swing, or country/folk dances should all be acceptable to a Catholic.

There are very different definitions/styles of dance out there in the world. My personal pet peeve is the style of dance that many high school dance teams and show choirs are doing. It’s really not appropriate for teen girls to be performing that way in front of all their family and friends!

Thankfully at our highschool there is a ‘vocal jazz’ choir, but no show choir. We usually head out to the concessions while the dance team is performing at half-time!😉
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Agreed.We saw some 6th Grade cheerleaders doing what amounted to a “bump & grind” during a middleschool “pep rally.” Really embarrassing.And sad. But that doesn’t mean Catholics should ban cheerleading.Or dance.Just keep it clean.And use common sense.
 
P.S. Saw an odd announcement on a local Presbyterian church marquee on my way home:“John Calvin Celebration!”
Now what kind of celebrating would that be?😉
 
The Bible does not forbid it. The Church has not made a pronouncement on dancing. This is not a question of Church doctrine. Therefore, if can only be a question of prudence and opinion. Since these questions can only be considered in the context of an individual and his circumstances, the best source of advice is not Church saints but an individual confessor or spirtual director.

Anything else reminds me too much of the problem Paul faced during his ministry of those who wanted to keep Christianity a sect of Judaism and answerable to the Mosaic law. In light of yesterday’s Solemnity, the readings fro Galatians told of how Paul sought and obtained permission that no greater burden be laid on Gentiles converts, except that they remember charity to the poor. Likewise, in light of Christian freedom of conscience, no Catholic should lay an extra burden above what Holy Mother Church has defined. Danicing is not forbidden or listed as a sin.
 
pnewton said:
The Bible does not forbid it. The Church has not made a pronouncement on dancing. This is not a question of Church doctrine. Therefore, if can only be a question of prudence and opinion. Since these questions can only be considered in the context of an individual and his circumstances, the best source of advice is not Church saints but an individual confessor or spirtual director.

Anything else reminds me too much of the problem Paul faced during his ministry of those who wanted to keep Christianity a sect of Judaism and answerable to the Mosaic law. In light of yesterday’s Solemnity, the readings fro Galatians told of how Paul sought and obtained permission that no greater burden be laid on Gentiles converts, except that they remember charity to the poor. Likewise, in light of Christian freedom of conscience, no Catholic should lay an extra burden above what Holy Mother Church has defined. Danicing is not forbidden or listed as a sin.
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I like that word “Prudence.”👍
 
pnewton said:
Since these questions can only be considered in the context of an*** individual and his circumstances***, the best source of advice is not Church saints but*** an individual confessor or spiritual director.***
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The holy Cure of Ars was the confessor, spiritual director and pastor of the small parish that he was assigned to, which was morally impoverished at the time when he arrived.
(Dancing happened to be only one of the vices that were putting his “sheep” in moral peril).
By the time he died, Saint John Marie Vianney had so transformed not only his beloved flock, but a good part of Europe, so much so, that it was necessary to build a railroad station into Ars (a very remote village in France) to transport the multitudes of people seeking his spiritual guidance. I believe his “take” on dancing-at least the type that he denounced-is worthy of our taking note.
 
Gabriella_San_S said:
The holy Cure of Ars was the confessor, spiritual director and pastor of the small parish that he was assigned to, which was morally impoverished at the time when he arrived.
(Dancing happened to be only one of the vices that were putting his “sheep” in moral peril).
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This is why we need to listen to the Church. Unless we were in his parish, then his advice is not for us. All we can say is that in at least one point in time and at this place, more drastic measures were needed. However, the Catholic Church has not seen a need to incorporate this disciplince into its doctrine or apply the teaching of the Cure or St. Vianney into either its doctrine or disciplinary practice. This should give us pause when asking others to do more than the Church asks of them.
 
Gabriella_San_S said:
The holy Cure of Ars was the confessor, spiritual director and pastor of the small parish that he was assigned to, which was morally impoverished at the time when he arrived.
(Dancing happened to be only one of the vices that were putting his “sheep” in moral peril).
By the time he died, Saint John Marie Vianney had so transformed not only his beloved flock, but a good part of Europe, so much so, that it was necessary to build a railroad station into Ars (a very remote village in France) to transport the multitudes of people seeking his spiritual guidance. I believe his “take” on dancing-at least the type that he denounced-is worthy of our taking note.
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“St John Vianney suggests that dancing is inherently sinful.” If the Cure is correct, then everyone in my family, every maiden aunt who danced the waltz at a family wedding, my parents who danced with each other at my wedding (and theirs), all my relatives, everyone I went to high schoool with (who danced at our nun-supervised senior prom), are all in hell. That’s quite a lot to bear.
 
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