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McWilliams Chloe McWilliams Ed Austin Dance 261 January 20, 2014 An Examination of the Words of Latter-Day Prophets As members

of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we have an innate and

inherent responsibility to relate gospel principles to all aspects of our lives. Our religion and faith is not just a casual belief system, but rather a way of life. As students at Brigham Young University, young adults have the opportunity to see the gospel intermixed with aspects of college life and secular subjects. Dance majors study dance, forms of artistry and movement, and the body in their specific field. The words of past of present Latter-Day prophets can be applied to all areas of life, and can be specifically applied to dance. Newell Dayley gave a talk specifically about the arts entitled, Centering the Arts in Christ. Elder Dayley discuss that the arts are an important part of human life and experience. He specifically quoted saying, The arts embody a unique learning process that awakens the very core of ones being to lifes meaning and beauty (Dayley). Arts forms such as music, visual art, and dance help us feel emotions and understand lifes experiences with greater sensitivity. Dance combines several art forms into one using both music and movement. The arts can facilitate a spiritual experience as it manifests the spirit of Christ through its specific medium. Dance uses the body, our greatest gift from God, to celebrate the talents we have been given. Elder Dayley lists characteristics of art forms that are centered in Christ. These arts are virtuous, inspire, and persuade men to believe in Christ.

McWilliams Another Latter-Day Saint leader, Elder Neal A. Maxwell, gave a talk entitled, Creativity. In his talk, he discussed that creativity helps us have an abundant life, and is celebrating Gods talents and gifts to us (Maxwell). We know that creativity is divine quality

because God himself is called the great Creator. The idea of creativity being a Godly pursuit can be directly applied to dance. Dancers use their bodies, music, rhythm, time and space to create choreography. This can be a divine and personal experience for a dancer as he or she expands their creative abilities to invent new art and choreography using their body, the greatest tool on Earth. In his talk, That We May Always Have His Spirit To Be With Us, apostle David A. Bednar discusses the importance of having the Lords spirit with us at all times. The spirit guides us to make righteous choices and we must do all in our power to keep this spirit with us to direct us. The Spirit speaks to us in different ways. Dance is a way we can keep Gods spirit close to us. Dance can be a spiritual experience a way a dancer can express a feeling, emotion, or a revelation of some kind. Movement and art can be used to inspire others. However, Elder Bednar cautions that this type of entertainment can only be spiritual when used in the right way: Entertainment that draws away from the spirit is not for us.If something we do, see, hear, or think is drawing us away from the spirit, we should stop doing, seeing, hearing, or thinking that thing (Bednar). We should be focused on centering the arts in Christ, as Elder Dayley stated, in order to always have his spirit to be with us. Russell M. Nelson declared, We are dual beings. Each soul is comprised of body and spirit, both of which emanate from God (Nelson). Our bodies are wonderful gifts from our Heavenly Father and we are created in his image as his literal children. We are divine, and our bodies are comparable to temples, the most sacred of Gods structures on the Earth. Elder Nelson

McWilliams discusses how we need to take care of our bodies through proper eating, exercise and fitness. This concept is applicable to dance since it is a great form of exercise and fitness. Dance works every part of the body simultaneous and keeps our bodies healthy and strong. Dance is also a celebration of the belief that our bodies and spirits come from God. Dance honors the spirit through the physical means of the body. Another talk from a Latter-Day apostle that can be applied to the disciple of dance is N. Eldon Tanners talk, Integrity. Elder Tanner talks about the importance of being more honest

and dependable in our everyday lives. It is a Christ-like attribute, he says, that can be practiced in the home as well as in our educational settings. One may ask how this could possibly relate to the dance world, but it does in so many ways. For one, we need to have integrity in our movement. We need to know that our movement is coming from the right place. We need to have integrity in our motivation to dance. Are we dancing for honest and true reasons? Are we working to inspire and uplift others? It is also critical we are honest when it comes to the technical aspects of dance, such as where we got choreography from, etc. Elder Bednar gave another talk he called, Be Honest. In this talk he made the distinction between honesty and integrity. He discussed the idea that honesty is more than simply not lying, but it is truth-telling, and truth-living, etc. These are qualities that improve our character. Dancers do not just dance. Dance is a part of their life and makes up who they are. By searching for truth and striving to tell and live this truth, dancers are better prepared to incorporate these doctrines into their art form, and are better enable to uplift and show others true meaning of life and dance. What is this truth and where can one find it? President Dieter F. Uchtdorf gives us the answers in his talk, What Is Truth? President Uchtdorf makes the claim that often truth is

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rejected because it is not consistent with previous experiences. We need to trust the Lords truth, but we still have an obligation to find out for ourselves. How do these principles relate to our dancing? The modern world of dance is changing so quickly and so rapidly. New methods of teaching are coming into existence, as well as new strengthening exercises, and diets. Every dancer is different, with a different style and a different body type. It is not safe to say that there is a one-method-fits-all when it comes to teaching and choreographic styles, or dieting and fitness regimens. Dancers need to use their curiosity and thirst for exploration and discover to determine what is truth when it comes to their dancing. In turn, they need to learn how to express this truth to others. Sometimes in our training, it is hard for us to accept a correction or a new way of doing something because it feels different than something we have ever done before. This is the point of dance learning, growing, developing, thinking, expressing, motivating, inspiring all while giving the grace back to our Lord.

McWilliams Works Cited Bednar, David A. Be Honest. Brigham Young University Idaho. Rexburg, ID. September 10, 2002. Devotional address. Bednar, David A. That We May Always Have His Spirit To Be With Us. LDS General Conference. Salt Lake City, UT. April 2006. Dayley, Newell K. Centering the Arts in Christ. Brigham Young University. Provo, UT. March 1, 2006. Devotional address. Maxwell, Neal A. Creativity. New Era Magazine. August 1982. Nelson, Russell M. We Are Children of God. LDS General Conference. Salt Lake City, UT. October 1998. Tanner, N. Eldon. Integrity. LDS General Conference. Salt Lake City UT. April 1977.

Uchtdorf, Dieter F. What is Truth? CES Fireside Broadcast. January 2013. Devotional address.

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