Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Liturgical Dance. How Very Awesome.


The best thing about liturgical dance is its awesomeness, you think. But not so fast! What does the Church say? Team LSP has been hard at work, bringing you the truth.

Oh Yeah.

Here's what the Vatican has to say, in Dance in the Liturgy:

For that reason it cannot be introduced into liturgical celebrations of any kind whatever: That would be to inject into the liturgy one of the most desacralized and desacralizing elements, and so it would be equivalent to creating an atmosphere of profaneness which would easily recall to those present and to the participants in the celebration worldly places and situations.

Tanking

And again, "psuedo-ballet" is also condemned, in case you wondered:
Neither can acceptance be had of the proposal to introduce into the liturgy the so-called artistic ballet because there would be presentation here also of a spectacle at which [only] one would assist, while in the liturgy one of the norms from which one cannot prescind is that of participation [by all].
Thanks, Congregation for Sacraments and Divine Worship.

Disaster

Now, let's see that enforced, please. Go on, don't be shy, you'll get some numbers back.

Carry on,

LSP

15 comments:

jenny said...

trouble is, they're missing parasols and goldfish. ergo, this cannot possibly glorify God.
Almost positive that's what the Vatican was trying to say.

LL said...

There is a time and a place for dancing. I've never thought of a religious service as the time and place for it, though.

For some reason I've always associated dancing during a church service as something that a cult would do. If you're at a solstice celebration in Austin you're likely to see that sort of thing.

Maybe I'm simply old fashioned.

LSP said...

Nothing quite like a bit if liturgical dance to start the day, Jenny.

LSP said...

I think you're right, LL. If you're hanging out in Austin, or San Francisco, maybe Greenwich Village, chances are you'll see some dancing to bring in the Solstice.

Let's not see it in church, please.

Borepatch said...

I'm reminded of a story of a bunch of church men who visited Japan in the 1950s and saw and spoke with some Shinto priests. The churchmen said that they didn't understand the Shinto theology.

It's said that the Shinto priests though about this for a bit and then replied "We don't have a theology. We dance."

Looks like that theology has been internalized over here.

LSP said...

I'd say that was right on the money, Borepatch. Didn't we ban certain aspects of Shinto after the war?

LL said...

Kabuki theater is appropriate for a kabuki theater, not for worship.

LSP said...

Ain't that the truth.

Anonymous said...

Almost as bad as the clown mass...

Arimathean said...

Eastern Orthodox clergy are prohibited from dancing. They are not even supposed to be present at parties (including wedding receptions) where dancing occurs!

Eastern Orthodox clergy are also prohibited from owning weapons . . .

LSP said...

I didn't know about the dancing, Arimathean.

Seems that RC clergy in Arizona now have permission to defend themselves with firearms.

I shoot for sport, obviously.

lukeya said...

I like the idea of getting the Catholic Samoans in for some liturgical 'dance' - or Rugby perhaps.

LSP said...

Hmmm -- there could be "liturgical dance wars", lukeya. My money's on the Maoris.

LSP said...

Hmmm -- there could be "liturgical dance wars", lukeya. My money's on the Maoris.

Arimathean said...

I would bet on the Native Americans. My part-Cherokee colleague used to do rain dances in order to rain out volleyball games when we were short-handed - and it worked! We never had to forfeit a game, thanks to the efficacy of Cherokee dance/prayer.