Read complete books and articles on: Moravian Church

Moravian Church - Renewed Church of the Brethren, or Unitas Fratrumyoonēˈtäs fräˈtroom, an evangelical Christian communion whose adherents are sometimes called United Brethren or Herrnhuters. It originated (1457) near Kunwald, Bohemia, among some of the followers of John Huss and was originally known as the Church of the Brotherhood. A break between the new brotherhood and the Roman Church occurred in 1467, and persecution drove many of the Brethren out of Bohemia and Moravia into Poland, Austria, and elsewhere in Eastern Europe. The Moravians established excellent schools and printing presses, but by the end of the Thirty Years War (1648), only a remnant of the original movement remained.

In 1722 a company of those still faithful to the teachings of the Brethren took refuge in Saxony, where they built a town, Herrnhut, reviving the elements of the original church and founding the Renewed Moravian Church (1727). The church's missionary endeavors soon extended to the West Indies, North and South America, Africa, and Asia, chiefly under the direction of August Gottlieb Spangenberg, who later became (1735) the founder of the Moravian Church in America. Bethlehem, Nazareth, and Lititz, Pa., were founded (c.1740) as Moravian settlements, and missionary work among Native Americans and white settlers was actively carried on.

In 1999 the U.S. church joined with several others in establishing full communion with the country's largest Lutheran denomination. During the late 20th cent. the church experienced increasing growth outside of its well-established communities. By 2000 church membership was about 50,000 in the United States and 700,000 worldwide, with about half of the worldwide total in Tanzania.

The Moravians emphasize conduct rather than doctrine, and their church is governed by provincial synods, the bishops having only spiritual and administrative authority. The music in Moravian churches is famous, especially the part-singing of the congregations.

See historical studies by E. Langton (1956) and J. T. Hamilton (1989); E. A. Sawyer, All about the Moravians (1990).

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11 of the Best Books and Articles on: Moravian Church

as selected by Questia librarians

1.

History of the Moravian Church: The Story of the First International Protestant Church » Read Now
by Edward Langton. 173 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Entire Library

...HISTORY OF THE MORAVIAN CHURCH -2- By Courtesy of the Trustees...Schweinitz 1885 History of the Moravian Church THE STORY OF THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL...The story of the...
2.

The Moravian Church in England, 1728-1760 » Read Now
by Colin Podmore. 332 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Entire Library

The effects of the great Evangelical Revival in eighteenth-century England were felt throughout the world, not least in America. It has long been accepted that the Revival owed much of its initial impetus to the Moravian Church, but previous accounts of the Moravians' role have been inadequate and...
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The effects of the great Evangelical Revival in eighteenth-century England were felt throughout the world, not least in America. It has long been accepted that the Revival owed much of its initial impetus to the Moravian Church, but previous accounts of the Moravians' role have been inadequate and overly dependent on Wesleyan sources. Colin Podmore uses original material, from German as well as British archives to dispel common misunderstandings about the Moravians, and to reveal that their influence was much greater than has previously been acknowledged. Dr Podmore discusses what motivated people to join the Church, analyses the Moravians' changing relationships with John Wesley and George Whitefield, and shows how Anglican bishops responded to the Moravians' successive ecumenical stategies. His analysis of the successful campaign to secure state recognition (granted in 1749) sheds light on the inner workings of the Hanoverian parliament. In conclusion, he examines how acclaim quickly turned to ridicule in a crisis of unpopularity which was to affect the Moravian Church for a generation.
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3.

German and Scandinavian Protestantism, 1700-1918 ("A Mix of Enlightened and Moravian Charity" begins on p. 403) » Read Now
by Nicholas Hope. 685 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Entire Library

This book is the first history in English of the Lutheran Church in Germany and Scandinavia from 1700 to the end of the First World War. Hope details how the social and political upheaval of the period challenged the structure and ethos of the Reformation churches, and how Protestantism evolved to meet these profound challenges.
4.

Hopeful Journeys: German Immigration, Settlement, and Political Culture in Colonial America, 1717-1775 ("The Case of the Moravians" begins on p. 107) » Read Now
by Aaron Fogleman Spencer. 260 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library

...The Role of the Church 86...The Case of the Moravians 107...Reformed and Lutheran Churches in Greater...104 4.3 Moravian Immigration into...Reformed Churches Established...
5.

The Pennsylvania Dutch (Chap. VI "The Moravians") » Read Now
by Fredric Klees. 453 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library

...of Protestantism, then the Moravian Church is the most ancient among Protestant...and eight Reformed ones to two Moravian churches. Even the Pennsylvania Dutch...churches...
6.

America's Communal Utopias ("Moravian Brethren" begins on p. 27) » Read Now
by Donald E. Pitzer. 538 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library

"Brings into sharp focus a hitherto ill-mapped stretch of American social-history terrain. "From The Foreword By Paul Boyer
A comprehensive look at the religious and secular movements that produced America's most noted communal utopias
From the Shakers to the Branch Davidians, America's communal...
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"Brings into sharp focus a hitherto ill-mapped stretch of American social-history terrain. "From The Foreword By Paul Boyer
A comprehensive look at the religious and secular movements that produced America's most noted communal utopias
From the Shakers to the Branch Davidians, America's communal utopians have captured the popular imagination. Seventeen original essays here demonstrate the relevance of such groups to the mainstream of American social, religious, and economic life. The contributors examine the beliefs and practices of the most prominent utopian communities founded before 1965, including the long-overlooked Catholic monastic communities and Jewish agricultural colonies. Also featured are the Ephrata Baptists, Moravians, Shakers, Harmonists, Hutterites, Inspirationists of Amana, Mormons, Owenites, Fourierists, Icarians, Janssonists, Theosophists, Cyrus Teed's Koreshans, and Father Divine's Peace Mission.
Based on a new conceptual framework known as developmental communalism, the book examines these utopian movements throughout the course of their development -- before, during, and after their communal period. Each chapter includes a brief chronology, giving basic information about the group discussed. An appendix presents the most complete list of American utopian communities ever published.
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7.

Blackcoats among the Delaware: David Zeisberger on the Ohio Frontier » Read Now
by Earl P. Olmstead. 286 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, History, Entire Library

...in 1771. Courtesy of the Moravian Church Archives . Blackcoats among...through the courtesy of the Moravian Church Archives, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania...Tuscarawas County --...
8.

Sleeping in the Arms of Christ: Sanctifying Sexuality in the Eighteenth-Century Moravian Church, in Journal of the History of Sexuality » Read Now
by Craig D. Atwood. 27 pgs.

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...Sexuality in the Eighteenth-Century Moravian Church CRAIG D. ATWOOD Department...College INTRODUCTION THE MORAVIAN CHURCH (or Brudergemeine ), like many...sexuality. During...
9.

The Empty Lot: Spiritual Contact in Lenape and Moravian Religious Beliefs, in American Indian Quarterly » Read Now
by Christopher P. Gavaler. 14 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Entire Library

...divine will. In 1465, the Moravian church justified its division from...affirmative lot appeared, the Moravians agreed to establish a new church ( Wallace 1958 :8)...
10.

The Moravians in Georgia: 1735-1740 » Read Now
by Adelaide L. Fries. 252 pgs.

Collections: Religious Studies, Entire Library
11.

Franks, Moravians, and Magyars: The Struggle for the Middle Danube, 788-907 » Read Now
by Charles R. Bowlus. 420 pgs.

Collections: History, Entire Library