May your church be


filled with


By John S. Munday


Monica Mohn, a dance instructor (left), helps Fran and Jack Munday get into proper position during dance classes at Our Saviour Lutheran Church, East Bethel, Minn.


dancing I


28 The Lutheran • www.thelutheran.org


Brian Fragodt, one of our pastors, had fun announcing the classes at worship, pretending to be shocked about dancing in church. But a prec- edent had been set. Our Saviour hosts a prom attended by more than 90 ninth- through 12th-graders from the community, including six with no church connection. But this time, the dancers were older. Our classes were held in the narthex, causing others who were meet- ing at church to break into smiles. At times our laughter almost drowned out our instructor.


t started out as a way to meet others in our church who like to dance. My wife, Fran, and I arranged for dance lessons at Our Saviour Lutheran Church, East Bethel, Minn. We found an evening when space was


available and secured an instructor, Monica Mohn, a three-time USA Dance National champion and daughter of a Lutheran pastor. Nineteen members came for six two-hour lessons, learning the basics of the single step swing, triple step swing and nightclub two step.


Munday is a lawyer who lives in Isanti County, Minn., with his wife Fran. He serves on the ELCA Church Council. For more information on starting dance classes at your church, contact him at mustpatent@ aol.com.


For us, dancing turned out to be both biblical and a ministry. A woman from the community came to the lesson only months after her daughter had died in a car accident. For her, Psalm 30:11 came alive: “You have turned my mourning into dancing; you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.” For two hours, her mourning did turn into dancing. She has taken a positive step toward healing, and the church gave her that opportunity. And the teaching paid off for the rest of us, especially when we took


a field trip one Saturday night to a country club. Ten from the class and five other church friends sat at tables we pulled together. Good music, good friends, dancing. Because of this, we continue to meet new friends and dance.


Dan Nordin, another of our pastors, has had the most experience


dancing, having been in four classes at prior parishes. But in most cases, participants were beginners—assuring each other they’d learn together. The joy of observing the group dancing together was most uplifting, Nordin said.


“Blessed is the church that is invited to dance,” he said. “I’ve come to the conclusion that the church and the gospel itself would be well served if we as a community learned to dance together.” 


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