In Essentials, Unity; In Nonessentials, Liberty; In All Things, Love.
In August of this year, delegates from around the world met for the Unity Synod in Jamaica. Unity Synod meets once every seven years as the governing body of the worldwide Moravian Church. Over the next several issues, we will be discussing a variety of the actions taken by Unity Synod. To begin the series, […]
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not […]
Visitors to First Moravian Church in York, Pennsylvania, on a September Sunday afternoon, gathered to learn more about one of their illustrious pastors and to join in the launch of a new book, Re-Inventing the Wheel, The Incredible Story of S. Morgan Smith, Minister, Inventor, Industrialist. Three members of First Moravian collaborated to produce this […]
As an elementary school teacher, I have many opportunities to help my students and fulfill their needs. Between tying shoes, giving permission to use the bathroom, offering small group instruction and learning about students’ home lives, I hope that I make some small difference in their lives. For Moravians, mission is the goal of fulfilling […]
Following the outline established by the 2005 Jesus Still Lead On study guide, we are sharing different aspects of The Ground of the Unity, one of the worldwide Moravian Church’s key doctrinal statement, in each 2016 issue of The Moravian. This month, we’ll discuss Ecumenism, Opposition to Discrimination, The Church as a Community Service and […]
Every four years, the Moravian Music Foundation (MMF) sponsors a week-long music festival to celebrate Moravian music, explore the history of Moravian music, to teach and share, and to explore new avenues and directions in music. Next summer, July 23–29, 2017, the 25th Moravian Music Festival will attract hundreds of musicians to Winston-Salem, N.C., and be […]
Prayer Watch The Moravian Church has experienced spiritual renewal and strength through a covenant of prayer. In 1727, the church in Herrnhut, Germany, covenanted for an “Hourly Intercession” which continued for 100 years with a great blessing to the entire Moravian Church. The Unity Prayer Watch established in 1957 (the quincentenary of the Unitas Fratrum) […]
Brother David A. Schattschneider died in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, September 29, 2016 at age 77. Born March 30, 1939 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he was the son of Allen W. and Naomi (Wartman) Schattschneider. Brother Schattschneider received a Bachelor of Arts from Moravian College in 1960, a Master of Divinity from Yale University in 1964, and a […]
Brother Joseph A. LaFortune died in Fargo, North Dakota, October 29, 2016, at age 87. Born April 21, 1929 in Chicago, Illinois, he was the son of Amia J. and Mabel (Ledgerwood) LaFortune. Brother LaFortune attended the University of Wisconsin and received a Bachelor of Arts from Moravian College in 1956 and a Bachelor of […]
At the Moravian Church of Lebanon, we designated a Sunday in April as “Take a Friend to Church Sunday” where members could invite their friends who were not associated with a church to come and worship with them. As part of the day, the evangelism committee thought it would be a good idea to have […]
Just imagine the Carolina Colony in 1753. In England, Bishop Spangenberg, Count Zinzendorf and the Moravians had purchased around 100,000 acres of land in the backwoods of the colony from Lord Granville, one of the Eight Lords Proprietors of the English Colony. On this land settlements would be built. First, there was Bethabara, then Bethania, […]
As a new school year approaches, so does the need to buy new clothes, supplies and shoes. However, many families are unable to afford new shoes for the start of classes each year. For more than 700 kindergartners through fifth-graders, new school shoes became a reality, thanks to a program developed at Dover First Moravian […]
—Ed. Note: This month, I invited Sue Kiefner, the IBOC communication assistant who joined us in March, to share her thoughts on her first run through the process of developing the Moravian Daily Texts. Please join me in wishing Sue continued success in her work with the IBOC. God’s plan is bigger than what my […]
Following the outline established by the 2005 Jesus Still Lead On study guide, we are sharing different aspects of The Ground of the Unity, one of the worldwide Moravian Church’s key doctrinal statement, in each 2016 issue of The Moravian. This month, we’ll discuss Continual Search for Sound Doctrine and Divine Mysteries. Thanks to Dr. […]
The Moravian Magazine, Sept/Oct 2016. In this issue: A festival for children; congregations and communities; Keeping Time; and more!
About six years ago I began searching for Moravians in and around Greenville, South Carolina. I was raised and confirmed in the Moravian faith in Wisconsin, attending the Freedom Moravian Church in Appleton with my parents, brother and two sisters. However, after graduating high school I left the area and lost touch with the Moravians. […]
If you lived in Winston-Salem this summer, you could hardly ignore the fact that Salem was celebrating its 250th Anniversary. With so much going on in “Old Salem,” the challenge for the Children and Family Ministry Team of the Board of Cooperative Ministries was to plan a unique provincial event for Moravian children—one that stayed […]
When most folks were planning their summer vacations earlier this year, the Connections Ministry members at New Philadelphia Moravian Church were making plans of a different sort. The second year of 12 Days of Service, a December project that would touch hundreds of lives in the Winston Salem area, was being plotted even though the […]
Prayer Day for Children On a Sunday in October, congregations of the Northern and Southern Provinces are invited to join with thousands of other congregations across the nation in the national observance of Children’s Sabbath. Endorsement of the Children’s Sabbath was made by the Provincial Elders’ Conferences in January 1994. Prayer Day for World Mission, […]
A review by Deborah Appler, Professor of Old Testament/Hebrew Bible and Director of MATS Program at Moravian Theological Seminary In Keeping Time, Dances to the Beat of a Different Drummer, Brian Dixon’s comfort with the spiritual dance floor is reflected in the deep wisdom and faithful love that pours out through the songs, poems, parables […]
Sister Geraldine (Paules) Eichman died at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, September 20, 2016 at age 90. She was born March 12, 1926 at Vera Cruz, Pennsylvania, a daughter of Curtis and Miriam (Miller) Paules. Sister Eichman graduated from Emmaus High School, Emmaus, Pa., in 1944. She was united in marriage to Brother Charles W. Eichman on June […]
Brother John David Christman, died Sunday, August 14, 2016 at the Brian Center of Eden, in Eden, N.C. He was 71 years old. John was born in Easton, Pa. on June 9, 1945, a son of John Lincoln and Dorothy Sandt Christman. He graduated from Elizabethtown College in 1967 and Moravian Theological Seminary in 1970. […]
In this issue: Eastern and Canadian District Synods, speech therapy at Star Mountain, an update from Sierra Leone, and more!
Five years ago, Star Mountain Rehabilitation Center in Palestine, an undertaking of the worldwide Moravian Church under the European Province, identified a need for speech therapy services in addition to its work helping mentally challenged children near Ramallah on the West Bank. Today, those services are available and thriving thanks to their connections to Moravians in the U.S. and Canada. Ghada Naser, director of Star Mountain, shares the story of how this much needed outreach came to be.
With a memorable line from a favorite hymn as their theme–“To us, to us, this task is given”–136 Eastern District Moravians made their 2016 Synod one like no other. While most Moravian Synods focus on learning about the church’s activities and helping to plan for the future (this Synod did those things as well), the […]
On a beautiful weekend in May, delegates from Canadian District congregations and guests from across the Northern Province came together at Camp Van-Es for the 2016 Canadian District Synod.
Discussing the Ground of the Unity’s “Continual Search for Sound Doctrine” and “Divine Mystery” sections.
Donna Hurt, a member of Home Church and someone with close ties to the Moravian work supported by North American Moravians in Sierra Leone, offered this update on the work in this African country. With the passing of the ebola tragedy in Sierra Leone, I was able to take my fourth trip to that small West […]
As part of the mission component of the Eastern District 2016 Synod, 17 youth from around the District joined Synod delegates on their experiences in their communities. Responding to Facebook invitations and flyers in their congregations, these young people appeared as a “Mission Mob” on the Thursday morning of Synod to be a part of the gathering’s outreach.