550th Anniversary
Southern Province Mission Lovefeast Asks, “Pass the Salt”
by Lillian Britt Shelton
“Pass the salt.” The Rt. Rev. Hopeton Clennon, Bishop of the Moravian Unity, opened his challenge to over one thousand in attendance at the 550th Anniversary Celebration Lovefeast of the worldwide Moravian Church in Wait Chapel on Sunday afternoon, November 4, in Wait Chapel on the campus of Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The event combined the 84th Anniversary of the Mission Society of the Southern Province and the 550th Anniversary of the worldwide Moravian church.
The service was preceded by a massed Moravian band of over 300
musicians, some from as far away as Maryland, representing the 57
congregations of the Southern Province. Led by Jeff Whitsett, the band
played traditional Moravian chorales in the soft autumn sunshine of
Hearn Plaza. Framed by blazing white ash trees in their fall colors and
two historic buildings, the band looked and sounded very much the best
of Moravian musical tradition.
Music from diverse Moravian cultures around the world was a special feature of the service. A steel drum band, handbells, flute, a mission choir including children, African drums and percussion, electric guitar, as well as the Moller organ dramatically displayed the depth and breadth of Moravian music. Spontaneous clapping broke out among the congregation in response to the childrens’ choir singing “Jesus is the Light of the World.”
One of the hymns, “Christ went to Calvary for Me,” was composed by workshop participants in the Moravian School of Music and Worship in Katmandu, Nepal in 2006. Tanzanian and Miskito hymns found in our Moravian Book of Worship were special highlights, as was the intriguing African percussion introduction to the closing hymn, “Sing Hallelujah, Praise the Lord.”
A special offering was presented by children in response to a special appeal from Moravian children in Nicaragua living in the aftermath of Hurricane Felix in September. Causes supported by the adult offering at the service will be: the Congregational Mission Fund of the Southern Province (a new initiative to assist congregations in their new missions), Board of World Mission HIV/AIDS, Board of World Mission Schools of Music and Worship, and missionaries supported by the Mission Society.
The Rev. Rebecca Craver, of the Edgeboro congregation of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Northern Province, brought “News from Antioch” in which she described new activity and energy of the youth in the Moravian church in North America, under the leadership of the Board of World Mission. Entitled “The Antioch Project,” young people are identified, encouraged, and mentored as they respond to the call of the Spirit to mission in the name of Christ. The Rev. Craver mentioned the names, mission locations, and anecdotal information of some of our young people who have heard the call of the Spirit. The worship service bulletin listed 26 individuals and agencies supported by the Mission Society in 2007.
Bishop Clennon, born in Jamaica and educated in the West Indies, has served Moravian congregations in Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, and currently, the one in Downey, California. Clennon challenged Christians to continue to be the salt of the earth, as Jesus characterized them in the Gospel of Matthew. He said that according to Jesus, this was a salute to the solid worth and usefulness of salt. Salt, Clennon described, is a “preservative, adds pizzazz, and it makes one thirsty.” Clennon also pointed out that when the first Protestant mission was established in St. Thomas by Moravians in 1732, it was the mid-point and post-script of Moravian history, and so logically, then 2007 is a post-post script. “We don’t need to be glorifying successes of the past or wishing for things now to be different; we already have all that we need, we need to go and be who we are.”
Following the service, the Rt. Rev. Clennon remarked that “the Moravian Church enjoys a strong bond around the world that includes a wide range of cultural, ethnic, and racial groups. It is an honor to visit Winston-Salem for this special occasion, especially considering I grew up in Jamaica, served the church in D.C. and Pennsylvania, and now in the cultural melting pot of California.” Mitzi Kimball, a former Moravian missionary in Guyana, St. Croix and St. Thomas with her husband Roger, said the worship service was “spectacular” because of the different types of music, coupled with the traditional organ. Evon Crooks, President of the Mission Society of the Southern Province, who was a worship leader, commented that this service was “a milestone in the Moravian church because we attracted young people and used so much cross-cultural music in reaching them.”
Lillian Britt Shelton serves on the Moravian 550 Leadership Team and is a member of Friedberg Moravian Church, Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Photos by Ken Bennett, Photographer, Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
