Dancing is not especially popular among Christian Men in North America. It seems to me that wedding dances and ceremonies are the only real occasions for ritual dance such as it is, and it’s with some reluctance that married men journey to the dance floor.

Until very recently there were no male ‘dance stars’ on television and that's because historically it’s not part of Western Culture. I'd submmit that it's not part of Western Culture because there are no male ‘dance stars’ in the Holy Bible.

Although the television phenominon ‘Dancing with the Stars’ has changed our society’s perception of men dancing, its still hard to get males to register and attend a dance class even though the single women outnumber the single men three to one on average at these places. The simple act of dancing is actually a rather controversial subject among Christians. Some denominations forbid it entirely, and that modern story is immortalized in a popular Kevin Bacon dance movie, Footlose. That movie helped us all appreciate men dancin too. Other denominations include sacred dance as part of their worship services. But in general, most men don’t like dancing very much.

Our culture suffers today because men didn’t dance in The Bible

I can think of only one occasion where a man danced alone in tribute to God; King David danced in worship and celebration before the Lord. It happened right after he brought the Ark of the Covenant back to Jerusalem after more than twenty years on the road. He got so frenzied in his dancing that his clothes dropped off to the horror of his wife, Michal. See 1 Samuel 6:14-23., Matthew 11:16-17, and Luke 7:32 – there are three references to this event!  I like the photo above because you can actually see someone watching from the window in the background. Click the pic - it expands!

The derisive phrase “the tabernacle of David” which I perceive as being rather derogatory is often is used when referring to this event. The phrase “tabernacle of David” (KJV) or “tent of David” (NIV) is mentioned in Acts 15. On this occasion, “David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the Lord with all his might, while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets. As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart. They brought the ark of the Lord and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and David sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before the Lord” (2 Samuel 6:14-17).

Dancing before the Lord didn’t come off very well for King David.

This same event is recorded later in the Bible, using almost the exact same words: “As the ark of the covenant of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David dancing and celebrating, she despised him in her heart” (1 Chronicles 15:29). So we have two references to one occasion where a man danced – perhaps it was because a lot of people brought the Ark to Jerusalem but only David danced?

Either way you look at it, King David set a bad precedent and now men don’t dance in Western Culture like they do in Eastern Culture and other male dominated aboriginal rituals like pow wows and rain dances etc. something to think about next time you attend an event and see men dancing, or not dancing, as the case may be.