Selected quad for the lemma: christian_n
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A00703
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A dialogue agaynst light, lewde, and lasciuious dauncing wherin are refuted all those reasons, which the common people vse to bring in defence thereof. Compiled and made by Christopher Fetherston.
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Fetherston, Christopher.
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1582
(1582)
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STC 10835; ESTC S112556
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31,329
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94
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cannot worke Whereby their maisters doe reape but small gaynes If maisters especially those which haue dauncers to their seruauntes did well consider with them selues what great discommodities doe arise vnto them by their seruauntes dauncing they woulde giue the ministrels money to hold their peace faster then the dauncers woulde giue them money to pipe and yet they shoulde be no leesers by it at the yeeres ende But nowe will I prooue in a woorde or two that dauncing is no recreation for the mynde All Philosophers do graunt this in generall y t temperatura animise quitur temperaturam corporis that the temperature of the minde doeth folow the temperature of the body Whiche wordes doe serue very much to the ouerthrowing of your position For if so bee it the bodie be made sluggish and sleepie with dauncing and altogether vnapt to doe any thing as I haue before sufficiently proued then must the minde needes bee brought into like case So that you see that whereas you saide that dauncing was a recreation both for body minde I haue proued it to be neyther a recreation for the bodie nor yet for the minde Iu. You haue made a fayre speake of it it were great pitie but you were shut vp in a Cloyster amongst Monkes you can leade such a sober life Min. If I coulde not leade a more sober life then they I might well inough daunce for truely the sins which amongst them are committed doe farre passe your dauncing and yet is it badde ynough They are not sober and holy because they seeme so to bee They doe washe the outside of the cuppe and platter but within they are full of deadly poyson They are like paynted sepulchres which on the outside doe seeme fayre and beautifull but in wardly they are full of dead mens bones and all filthines Iu. You are out of your text sir I pray you returne to it againe Will you then admitte no recreation at all for those which are labourors take great paynes all the whole weeke in their vocation Min. Yes that I will and that such a recreation as shall be acceptable in the sight of God and laudable in the sight of the godly Iu. And I pray you sir what is that Min. When a man hath kept the first part of the fourth commaundement which is this that hee must labour all the whole sixe dayes and doe all that he hath to doe let him keepe the seuenth day whiche is the Sabboath day holy vnto the Lorde That is ``let him rest from bodily labour and let him attende vnto Gods hestes let him behaue him selfe as a true Christian ought and as it becommeth him whiche will bee a good keeper and sanctifier of the Sabboth day so shall he finde recreation both for his body and also for his minde Iu. Nay not so me thinke ye cannot proue that by this eyther the bodye or minde is recreated Min. Yes truely both of them for first and foremost it is a great recreation to a wearie bodie to haue rest for as the olde prouerbe goeth Fessum quies plurimum inuat rest is no small helpe to a wearie man And truely this rest he shall haue if hee keepe the Sabboath according to gods holy will and pleasure Againe if you doe well remember I sayde euen nowe that that doeth recreate y e body which maketh it more apt and able to do that which it ought And truely rest doeth this For as we do vnbende our bowes when as they haue bin long bent to the ende they may shoote more strongly when as wee doe bende them againe so laboring meÌ„ do graÌ„t some rest to their bodies y t when meÌ„ go to worke againe they may both bee stonger to labour and also endure longer As for the mind who seeth not that it taketh great recreation by keeping the Sabboth day aright And to the ende I may better proue this to bee true let vs briefly consider what ought to bee the exercise of a Christian vpon that day wherein hee resteth from bodily labour He must repayre vnto the Church where all the faithfull are gathered together to offer vp their sacrifice euen that spirituall sacrifice which is spoken of by the prophete Dauid in the 50. Psalme Which is prayse prayer and thankesgiuing This done he must ioyne with them in prayer vnto the Lorde lifting vp cleane handes towardes the holy heauens where dwelleth God euen the father of our Lorde Iesus Christ Then must he giue eare vnto that whiche is red and taught by the minister he must heare marke and learne so much as he possiblie caÌ„ If opportunitie shall serue he must receiue the Sacramentes of the bodye and blood of our Sauiour Christ and that woorthilye and thankefully Hee muste meditate vppon that which hee hath hearde when hee returneth home againe Hee must visite the sicke he must clothe the naked hee must helpe those whiche are in neede and necessitie if hee bee able he must procure concorde where discorde hath beene finally â—ee must bewayle his sinnes and be heartily sorye for that whiche is past and hee must determine with him selfe that hee will neuer commit the same againe Who so doeth these thinges shall no doubt haue his minde wel recreated For when a man is wearied with sinne when hee seeth death destruction before his face due vnto him for his sins whereby it commeth to passe y â— he is euen swalowed vp of sorrowe what greater ioy can chaunce vnto him then to heare out of the woorde of God whiche is redde euerye Sabboath these sweete comfortes Come vnto me all yee that traueile and be heauie laden and I will refreshe you Whosoeuer shall beleue he shalbe saued Who so euer shall beleeue shall not bee confounded and many hundreth moe then these Iu. Will you then permitte those men whiche haue laboured sore all the whole weeke to haue no pastime vpon the sunday Min. Better pastime then that whiche I haue spoken of can they not vse neyther can they possiblie passe the time after a better sort for by such pastime shal they redeeme the time whiche they haue lewdly let passe Iu. Yea but wil you not permit them to vse some sport or play vpoÌ„ sundayes as dauncing bowling and such like Min. You harpe still vpon that one string which methinkes maketh no good harmonie I can in no case permit that which god hath not permitted in his law for if I should adde any therto great plagues should be added vnto me I am no pope I caÌ„not grant men licences to sin Iu. But howe doe you proue out of the commaundements that we may not daunce vpon the sundayes Min. Wee must keepe holy the Sabboath day therefore wee muste not daunce vpon the Sabboath day Iu. This agreeth as well as if I shoulde saye there is a bridge at Rochester therfore there is a barge at Billingsgate Min. Not so neyther for mine argument hangeth better together then so Iu. Howe doe you proue
and finally that shee was that boole from whence did spring all those rotten branches of diuelish detestable and damnable herisies For vnlesse you had been ignorant of Gods eternall trueth you woulde neuer haue sayde thus If you knew who it is that bringeth mariages to passe and knitteth men women together with an vndissoluble knot which is holy wedlocke you would neuer haue sayde that many men doe get their wiues by dauncing It is god alone and none but hee whiche coupleth both man and woman togeather He it is that hath determined before the foundations of the worlde were layde who those be that shall so come together He is able to bring to passe this his determination without any suche secondarie meanes as dauncing Therefore most fonde foolish and fantasticall is the opinion of those men which doe thinke that dauncing was the onely thing whereby they came by their wyues When as God did institute the firste mariage in paradice hee did not sende for a pyper or â—idler for they were at that time vnhatched to play y â— Adam might daunce and so please Euah And is not God as well able to bring marriages to passe without dauncing as he was theÌ„ His arme is not shortened neyther is his power weakened but he is able to doe as muche nowe as hee was able to doe then In his handes are the heartes of all men and hee ruleth them as he seemeth best to his godly will and pleasure Iu. I pray you sir where shall young men and may dens meete together if not at the dauncing place and playing oke Min. I count him but a foole which being destitute will goe to the dauncing place and playing oke to chuse his mate and I take her to bee but a noddie which lacking an husband will thither runne to looke for him with whom she wil match For first and formost hee for his part shal chaunce sooner to light vppon a wilde wanton then on a mylde matrone which will become rather a gadding Dina which will bee running abroade to see the Countrey then a sage Sara whiche will keepe her selfe within the doore of the tent whiche will become rather a carelesse grassehopper then a carefull amite hee shall rather chance to chuse one that will bee a pasincoine then a chast penelope he shall chaunce sooner to win an whorish Helena as did paris theÌ„ a vertuous Electra as did pylades finally hee shall chaunce rather to catche a faithlesse Clytemnestra then a faithfull philomela Salust in his Catalinario writeth y t Sempronia a certayne laciuious and wanton womaÌ„ was taught to sing dauÌ„ce more elegantly theÌ„ became an honest matron in which place he calleth these two thinges the instrumentes of lecherie Out of which woordes we may well gather this that they are neuer of the chastest sorte which do vse laciuious dauÌ„cing though I doe not altogither denie but that those whiche are nowe modest matrons may sometimes haue been dauncers in their dayes And nowe as for the women if shee chance to chuse her husbande in the place aforesaid it may bee that shee shal sooner catche a spendall then a sparer shee may sooner haue one which shall be amongst all men rather reuyled then reuerenced one which may bee rather an aduiterous Agisthus then a faithfull Vlisses Gicero in his booke of offices writeth thus that an honest and good man will not daunce in the market place though he might by that meanes come to great possessions And in his oration which hee made after his returne into the senate he coulde finde no more reprochefull name to call Aulus Gabinius his mortall enemie by thâ—n to call him Saltator Calamiâ— stratus the fine dauncer It was obiected to Lucius Aurona for a great fault because he had dauÌ„ced in Asia which thing was also cast in king deiotarus his teeth Cicero answering for Murena sayeth after this sort No man daunceth being sober vnles peraduenture he be madde neyther in the wildernes neither at a moderate and honest banquet The same Cicero vpbraydeth vnto Anthonie amonge other his vices dauncing Did the heathens thinke thus euil of dauncing and shall not Christians thinke much worse of the same Did the heathens loath it and shall Christians like it did the heathens compt it as a vice and shall Christians embrace it as a vertue Iu. I pray you sir then whether shall wee goe to looke for our wiues will you haue vs loue those on whome we did neuer looke Min. Iuuenis I will tell thee whither thou shalt go when thou art disposed to wedde Resort vnto sermons there marke her wel whoÌ„ thou shalt see most vsually resort to weekly lectures and to behaue her self most Christianlike or if thou shalt heare of any maide which shall be haue her selfe vertuously towardes all men which shall bee of sounde religion and whiche shall haue the feare of God before her eyes her chuse all other refuse her take the rest forsake For be thou well assured that such shall receiue the blessing from the Lorde shee shall bee blessed at home and in the fielde shee shall be blessed her selfe and her seede after her Iu. I thanke you sir for your good counsell but I pray you howe thinke you of this may not men daunce at bridals and vpon feast dayes Min. I will answere you briefly god willing to both partes of this questioÌ„ that answere which I shal make to the first shal not be takeÌ„ vp at my foot but I wil fet it out of y â— ancient father Chrys who in his 56. homilie vpoÌ„ Genesis wheÌ„ hee intreateth of the mariages of Iacob saith thus You haue heard saith hee of mariages but not of daunces which dances he furthermore calleth diuelish in w t homely he speaketh muche against dauncing And amongs al other he saith thus the bridegrome and the bride are corrupted by dauncing and all the whole familie is defiled And againe in his 48. hom he saith thou seest mariages but thou seest no dauncing for at that time they were not so lasciuious as they be now a dayes Furthermore hee proceedeth to speake of the dauncing of the daughter of Herodias and he sayeth At this day Christians doe deliuer to destruction not halfe their kingdome not another mans head but euen their owne soules And hee addeth that whereas is wanton dauncing there the Diuell daunceth also with them Heere maye you see what the opinion of this holy father is concerning dauncing at marriages And as for the second thing whether we may not daunce vpon feast daies I say flatly wee may not For if wee should we should be like to the Israelites who sate downe to eate and drinke againe rose vp to play whereby we should prouoke Gods wrath And indignacion agaynst vs. and for as much as it is the common custome in vbique to daunce and hoigh vpon our Idoll feast dayes let vs beware that the like plagues do not befal vs whiche befell them Iu.