Yet, another type (or reason for dancing) is that done in honor of (or respect/reverence to) an idol god. This type of dancing includes the ritual dancing practiced within innumerable ancient tribal religions in honor of gods of wood, stone, and even in worship of nature, forest animals, and the spirits of dead loved ones. However, this idolatrous form of dancing is not only practiced by tribal peoples. Those of Western Society, who consider themselves of the cultural intellectual elite, many times attend their elaborate operas and plays in the great halls of metropolitan centers which depict ancient mythological gods and goddesses in extravagant dance productions. Whether or not this dancing has been practiced for centuries or even millennia by a given culture, we cannot become so fearful of being called a cultural bigot that we fail to declare that the only true God is the God of the Bible; and, we should only worship and honor, and give respect unto him. Take this passage to heart Mark 12:29&30: "And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment."

Now let us turn to some scriptures to gain some additional insight into dancing as it is done by holy people within the Bible.

The first question one might ask is: "Who should dance?" The simple answer to this question is that all are invited to dance - or rather, all people of God desiring to praise Him are invited to dance. I know that select musicians and groups of singers were commissioned and employed for the temple worship. Unlike singing choruses and temple orchestras, the following scriptures show that the praise of dancing was open to all to participate: old and young, male and female, all who are happy in the Lord.

Jeremiah 31:13
Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, both young men and old together: for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their sorrow.

Psalm 149:3
Let them praise his name in the dance...

Psalm 150:4
Praise him with the timbrel and dance...

One of the first big mistakes that I see practiced in "Praise Dancing" is that it seems to restrict the praise of dancing to those who are physically attractive, or those who have an athletic build, and those who are not passed a certain age. In my experience in the Christian faith I have seen saints young and old rejoicing together praising God; not worrying about whether they were attractive enough, or athletic enough, or young enough. When our dancing of praise becomes measured by visual attractiveness we forget who we are dancing unto.

Another grave mistake made in Praise Dancing is that so much emphasis is placed on executing dance moves that are contrived to impress people with the style, technique, and gracefulness of the dancer. If you think the point of dancing unto to God is to show off our stylishness, I believe you have missed the point of the dance. One of the most famous instances of someone dancing in the Bible was King David dancing before the Lord with all his might as the Israelites brought the Ark of God to the City of David (see 2 Samuel 6:14 ).
 

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