Should Dancing be Banned in Orthodox Halls/Festivals?
This is a question that was brought up in a world Orthodoxy forum and I think that it is a good one. Should dancing be allowed, banned, or regulated in Orthodox Halls and/or at Orthodox festivals or celebrations etc? Or should only "dirty dancing" be banned? And if so, how do we define "dirty dancing" and how do we enforce whatever policy we decide on?
My thoughts as a 17 year old male is that all forms of dancing--whether ethnic, "dirty", or "clean"--are inevitably going to arouse passions within a male. There is no denying it. A woman can be wearing a space-suit and if she's moving rapidly then men will feel tempted. We're pigs; it's as simple as that. On the other hand, I don't think it's right to spoil everyone's fun just because of our piggery. I think that a compromise needs to be made, that forms of dancing that are inherently or especially "dirty" or provocative should be banned, but modest dancing can be allowed.
But then that raises the question, how do we define what "dirty dancing" is or isn't? In my opinion, most people can obviously tell if they use honest common sense and decency. However, common sense and decency often goes out the window when alcohol consumption sneers its ugly head in, which, is common at these events. Likewise, I think that many people often try to hide dirty dancing behind the veil of "culture." One common example is many of the Middle Eastern Orthodox jurisdictions such as the Antiochians/Alexandrians often sponsoring belly-dancing at these events. I find this very shameful and uncalled for. I hate to be explicit, but you may as well have got a woman to dance on a pole. As a male, belly-dancing is VERY provocative--the body movements, the exoticness of it, the clothing which is often very revealing. It's literally something so provocative that I don't think belongs anywhere other than the bed chamber between a married man and woman, and even then, it may be pushing the limits of what's allowed between a husband and wife. I really hope that if I ever get married someday, my wife can belly-dance for me like that. Er, anyway, getting back on topic, profanity is profanity regardless of culture. Profanity is the universal human language that all cultures share in common and have incorporated in their own unique ways. Regardless of that, it's still profane and inappropriate.
So, should we allow dancing of all forms, only prohibit certain forms of dancing, or ban it outrightly altogether?
I'm genuinely trying to respect women more and be a good, godly man to them and control my passions, especially since I'm hoping with all my heart to get married soon, but, there does come a point where I think a woman should use prudence and not explicitly try to seduce a man. Certain forms of dancing--modern or ancient--I think would fall under that category. Running with the example of belly-dancing I used earlier, I don't think it is appropriate to do around a man who isn't your husband. I'm not sure you realize how provocative that form of dancing is to a man, well, at least to me.