We are currently teaching on Christian Family at XploreNations Tulsa. I randomly found this research paper that I wrote about the Moravian Church my freshman year at the University of Illinois. I thought I would share it. After the passing of my Great - Grandfather and visiting West Salem, IL it got me thinking about my family heritage again. I hope you enjoy and learn a little bit about the oldest Protestant church still in existence. ~ Calla
The Moravian Church: A Reason for Existence
Have you ever felt
that someone wasn’t telling the whole truth about something? Has there ever been something in your life
that you loved deeply, but knew a deeper level existed? In the 15th
century a Roman Catholic priest, John Hus, began to ask these very
questions. Because of Hus’ questions a
new idea erupted and a new church eventually developed. The Moravians had a
long journey before they were considered a religion or a church separate from
the Catholic Church. During this time
they were persecuted for their beliefs, were comforted by the Holy Spirit, they
sought refuge and found a home on Count Zinzendorf’s estate, and they found a
passion to spread their good news about Jesus Christ to all people. Did these people think there was more
involved in their religion than following through with all the common practices
of the Catholic Church? A few important
people in the history of the Moravian church searched for answers.
The Moravian
church is the oldest Protestant church in existence. In the early 1400s early stages of the
Protestant Reformation began to evolve in Europe. During this time in the
Catholic church, mass was conducted in Latin, and only the priests were allowed
to read the Bible. The Catholic Church
began to be corrupt; John Hus wanted to find a solution. When the Catholic Church began to sell “the
forgiveness of sins,” John Hus, a Roman Catholic priest from Bohemia, began to
speak out. Hus began to preach the
entire “…pure gospel of Christ” and begged for the church to reform. John must
have known of Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God
is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
I believe he knew that no amount of money could be paid to save someone
from sin. According to 2 Chronicles 7:14 only God can and will forgive us for
our sins but we must do something in return. That verse states, “if my people
will humble themselves and pray, and turn from their wicked ways; I (God) will
hear from heaven and forgive their sins...”
Hus was zealous in
his study as a priest. He started
looking for answers in the scriptures, and the Bible delivered everything his
heart desired. He searched for
scriptures that would bring eternal life. “What he found renewed and sanctified
his heart”(Schweinitz 33). Because of his firmness in his beliefs that every
Christian should be able to read the Bible and interpret it on his own, Hus was
condemned by the church and burned at the stake. This act of martyrdom made more people
question the Catholic Church and the Protestant Reformation began (everyday
counselor par. 12). Something inside of
Hus must have urged him to want more than just the ideas that were already
presented before him.
The
followers of John Hus had many of the same beliefs as the first Christians in
the New Testament. “To them the
Christian faith was more than just a theological puzzle to be solved, more than
just another means of organizing society, and more than a battle to be fought,
it was a way of life laid down by the Master, Jesus Christ, himself”(everyday
par.14). The first Moravian society, or
church was formed in 1457 in Bohemia it was called The Brethren of the Law of
Christ. At first they did not intend to
separate from the Catholic Church, but Rome did not approve, thus marking the
beginning of the Protestant Reformation (par.15). If I lived during this time in history I know
I wouldn’t want to be part of something that was trying to leave out important
details, which hold the key to my salvation.
I wonder what it was like to hear of a “new” way that leads to eternal
life. When in reality that “new” path
wasn’t new at all, it was a path that had been very carefully written in the
Bible centuries before many new the truth.
But, because only few people could read at that time, and because few
Bibles were in circulation the words that laid out the key to eternal life in
heaven were in the hands of the head of the church: the Roman Catholic Priests. This group of people was passionate about
what they had discovered and wanted to let others know about this “new” path
that led to everlasting life.
Martin
Luther was another influential man in the Moravian church. Luther was a German clergyman who was able to
make more of an impact in the Protestant Reformation than John Hus. Because of the invention of the movable type,
Luther was able to make copies of his beliefs.
This made it easier for the religion to spread, because people were able
to have a copy of the Bible and some of the beliefs of John Hus and Martin
Luther (par.18).
Over time the
Moravian church spread to Germany. In
this country they were called Brüdergemeine,
a very creative international Moravian community. The following prayer called “Te Matrem”
implies the Moravian belief that the Holy Spirit is a mother-like symbol. “Lord God, now we praise you, you worthy Holy
Spirit! The church in unity honors you,
the mother of Christendom. All the
angels and the host of heaven and whoever serves the honor off the Son; also
the cherubim and seraphim, sing with a clear voice: ‘Divine majesty who
proceeds from the Father, who praises the Son as the creator and points to his
suffering.’… Daily O Mother! Whoever knows you and the Savior glorifies you
because you bring the gospel to all the world”(Atwood 886). Did the Holy Spirit bring the gospel to John
Hus? Was it the Holy Spirit that led him
to look for more answers? With the
encouragement of Count Zinzendorf this early form of the Moravian church began
to believe in the Holy Spirit as maternal imagery. For many years Zinzendorf was confused about
the reality of the Holy Spirit. He
finally came up with his theory of the “Mother” concept. This concept seemed to be the only one that
made sense. According to Atwood several
songs have been written describing the Holy Spirit as “advocate, comforter, and
intercessor, and…other titles that contain much nonsense”(890).
Zinzendorf
believed that in order for the Trinity to be complete, the family must be made
whole. Likewise, “Christ is the husband,
His Father is our Father, and the Holy Spirit must be our dear Mother”(Atwood
890) He supported his theory by quoting Old Testament and New Testament
scriptures in the Bible. In Isaiah 66:13
is says, “As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you…” and John
14:26 it says, “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send
in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have
said to you.”(891) I found this belief to be interesting; I had never heard
this perspective on the Holy Spirit. In
my opinion comparing the Holy Spirit to a mother does make sense, and at last a
female is represented!
The Holy Spirit
was mentioned many times in the Bible; yet, the early churches seemed to ignore
the fact. Yes, the church adopted the
saying, “In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,” but I don’t
think those churches allowed the “Holy Spirit” to play its role. Atwood explains that the church didn’t notice
the necessity of the Holy Spirit until the Zinzendorf era. Though not everyone
agreed with Zinzendorf’s stance of the Holy Spirit as a Mother, they didn’t
completely take it away. “Just as
Zinzendorf personally went through a developmental process to arrive at a right
understanding of the Holy Spirit, the church had to do the same
thing”(892). Ask any random Catholic, or
Protestant, “What purpose does the Holy Spirit hold? He probably won’t have an
answer. Maybe this is the same reason
John Hus questioned the beliefs of the Catholic Church.
Did Hus have a
relationship with the Holy Spirit? Did
he want other Christians to experience the same, instead of relying on the
Priests to comfort them? I believe
anyone who dedicates their life to the church must have more reason for their
work than just working for a church.
John Hus was dedicated not only to serving the church, but even more
dedicated to serving the God that created him and gave him reason for existence. I think John Hus did, in fact have a personal
relationship with Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. If this is true, it must be possible that it
was one of the reasons Hus was burned at the stake. Could Joan of Arc have believed the same as
John Hus? She was convicted of
witchcraft because she “spoke” to God.
Did Joan of Arc also have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ
through the Holy Spirit?
In the year 1727 a
great Pentecost fell on Herrnhut, much like it did in the Bible. The Moravian people began to hold regular
prayer meetings at Herrnhut. This
intense prayer led to the Holy Spirit to come upon the people, and a revival
started. The people wanted to spread the
whole Gospel and enlighten the people of the world about God’s love. I’m sure they shared the greatest love story of
all time; John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only
Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.”
During this time the Moravians became extremely passionate about their truth
and began to take on missionary work in their own country as well as all around
the world. It’s about time they did
something! Why would people, filled with
lifesaving information, sit bottled up in some country? Mark 16:15 states,
before Jesus ascended to Heaven he gave a great commission to all of his
followers: “go in to all the world and preach the good news to all creation.”
Why isn’t the
Moravian church as well known or as large as the other Protestant churches,
like the Methodists? Zinzendorf firmly
believed that the Brethren would not become a separate church; his original
intent was for it to be a community of people who wanted to have a lifestyle of
serving Christ like his disciples. Other
reasons could have prevented this church from spreading out to other countries. Like many people in the church today, some
of the Moravians may have become “burned out.” Maybe they were tired of being
rejected and persecuted for the beliefs that differed from other churches?
The Moravian
church became established in the United States in the 1700s. Several Moravian missionaries set out to
conquer the “New World” and were headed for Georgia. On the way they met with John Wesley, “father
of the Methodist church”(everyday par. 68).
“Wesley was impressed by the humility and Christ-like character of the
Moravians, but even more he was impressed by the courage of the Moravian women
and children in the midst of a terrible storm”(par. 63) The Moravian
missionaries and their families believed in the Holy Spirit, who comforted them
in times of storms. Wesley didn’t quite
agree with everything that the Moravians believed. Both Wesley and the Moravians were on a
mission to convert the “Indians” to Christianity.
Christian Henry
Rauch, one of the Moravian missionaries gave the group important instructions:
Don’t interfere with other missionaries or cause disturbance, but observe
whether the Indians had ears to receive the Word of Life. Rauch stated, “ God
must give the heathens ears to hear the gospel, and hearts to receive
it”(Thompson 278). The Moravians had to
use the Holy Spirit to help them decide if the “heathens” were even able to
hear and understand their “good news”.
Because Wesley and the Moravian missionaries believe differently about
their religions, they parted ways. Even
with all their differences the Moravians still respected Wesley and the
Methodists. They compared their
relationship to that of Paul and Barnabus, each served Christ, as they desired. I believe this is one of the main reasons
there are so many Protestant denominations in society today.
The Moravian
people found their truth about Jesus Christ.
They made it through times of great persecution and eventually would
become the oldest Protestant church in existence. They were passionate people and loved Christ
with all their hearts. Today John Hus
and Count Zinzendorf remain key people in the Moravian church. Although it is one of the oldest Protestant
churches it is by far not the largest.
Only one Moravian Church is in practice in the state of Illinois. Many of these churches exist in North
Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and California. Like many organizations, groups, and other
churches the Moravian church has compromised or changed some of their beliefs. Today they still believe most importantly that
Jesus Christ is Lord and they have always stood by their motto: “In essentials,
unity; in nonessentials, liberty; and in all things, love”(What par. 6).
This Church plays
a large role in my family’s history. The
majority of my ancestors originated from or near Germany. The Boewe family came to the United States in
the early 1800s; they were Moravian and settled in West Salem, Illinois. West Salem is the home of the only Moravian
church in Illinois. My grandfather, John
Boewe, attended the Moravian seminary in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He was an agricultural missionary sent by the
Moravian church to Honduras and Nicaragua. I have been a “Christian” all my
life, but at one point in my life I realized that many people claim a religion
because it is the same as their parents’ religion. Why do we believe the way we
do? What did my ancestors believe
in? Then I thought, through researching
the Moravian church I could learn more about my ancestors and at the same time
I could learn about the history of the Protestant churches. Or, why are there
only a few different Catholic churches and so many Protestant churches. The answer is simple: “God intended the
Moravians and the Methodists to go their separate ways, each denomination
acting in its own way for God’s good purpose”(everyday par. 74). Who has the right to say which church is
better than the other? Only God can judge.
Although my
grandfather was born into the Moravian church and attended a Moravian seminary,
as he grew older he knew something was missing in the Moravian church at that
time. It was probably the same thing
that Zinzendorf and Hus felt when they were questioning some of the beliefs of
the Catholic Church. When my
grandfather was in his fifties he became hungry to know more about the
manifestations of the Holy Spirit. He
then started to attend a non-denominational church and on his own began to
experience the gifts of the Holy Spirit like never before. Soon after, he and my Grandmother went on a
mission trip to Brazil, South America.
In Brazil they were involved in crusades of thousands of people. They saw many miracles. He believed in the
“Great Commission” like Zinzendorf; he went out the world to preach the gospel
and laid hands on the sick, and the sick were
healed. From that point on in his life
one of his greatest desires was to see the Holy Spirit in operation in the
Moravian church as it was in the beginning.
One thing that
this church doesn’t believe as much as it did during the times of Count
Zinzendorf, is the importance of a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit
and the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The Moravian Church has transformed into a
different church than it was in its early stages. The gifts of the Holy Spirit have played an
important role in the history of the Moravian Church, why does it not seem as
important to the Moravian Church today? Acts 1:8 states, “But you will receive
power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the Earth. The Holy
Spirit guided the followers of Christ in the New Testament, the Holy Spirit
encouraged John Hus to look for more answers than the Catholic Church provided,
the Holy Spirit was indeed important to Count Zinzendorf during the development
of the Moravian church, and the Holy Spirit still exists today to those that
believe.
Works
Cited
Atwood, Craig. “The Mother of God’s
People: The Adoration of the Holy Spirit in the
Eighteenth-Century…”
Church History. Vol. 68 Issue 4 (Dec 99) ; p 886-903.
Mason, J.C.S. The Moravian Church and the
Missionary Awakening in England 1760-1800.
Rochester,
New York: The Boydell Press, 2001.
The Moravian Church. Ed. Julia Davis. 20 July 2001 <
http://religiosmovements.lib.
virginia.edu/nrms/Moravian.html>.
What We Believe. Black
Box. 2001-2005. 20 October 2005
<
http://www.moravian.org/believe>.
Schweinitz,
S.T.D., Edmund De. The History of the Church Known as The Unitas Fratrum.
Bethlehem,
Pennsylvania: Moravian Publication Office, 1885.
“A Short Introduction to the
History, Customs and Practices of the Moravian Church” Everyday
Counselor.
1999. 26 October 2005
shistory.htm>.
Sommer, Elisabeth. “A Different
Kind of Freedom? Order and Discipline Among the Moravian
Brethren
in Germany and Salem, North Carolina.” Church
History Vol. 63 Issue 2
(June
1994) : 221-234.
Sommer,
Elisabeth. Serving Two Masters. Lexington, Kentucky: The University
Press of
Kentucky, 2000.
Thompson, Augustus C. Thompson, D.
D. Moravian Missions. New York: Charles Scribner’s
Sons,
1895.
