DANCE MINISTRY 

Welcome to the Dance Ministry Page!

The Vision of the Beth Messiah Dance Ministry is to facilitate an environment where people can come to know the G-d of Abraham Issac and Jacob within the cultural context of Judaism through dance expression.

Regular Dance Workshops: Second and Fourth Saturday of each month, 9:00am

Come join us to learn new dances and brush up on old ones!

A BRIEF HISTORY OF MESSIANIC WORSHIP DANCE

 Instances of Worship Dance are recorded in the Bible as far back as the Exodus where Miriam and the women celibrated G-d's victory over the Egyptian Army at the Red Sea. King David is recorded as having danced before the Lord with all his might when the Ark of the Covanant was brought to Jerusalem.

During the Second Temple Period, the Mishna records dance being part of the Temple Worship during Sukkote. During this dance, the elders danced with torches within the walls of the Temple Coartyard. It was said that whoever missed this had never seen a true celibration.

After Bar Kochba, there was little dance recorded within Judism until the 1700's with the Hasidic Movement. The Baal Shem Tov considerd dance a form of worship to G-d.

Jewish folk Dance devoloped out of the Zionist Movement of the late 19th and eary 20t centuries. This dance was mostly secular in its origan, though many songs do come directly from the Bible. Development of Jewish Folk Dance accelerated in Israel after the Formation of the Jewish State in 1948, which was itself celibrated with dancing.

Worship Dance became a part of the worship in the first of the Messianic Congregations in the early 1970's. Drawing from traditional Israeli Fold Dances, Messianic Praise Dance continues to evolve.