Some Early Moravian History

It has been a while since I posted anything about the Moravian Church. Here is a little more of our early history.

    Long before Count Zinzendorf and the German pietistic movement defined the Renewed Moravian Church, it was followers of Jan Hus in Bohemia that defined the early reformers. In 1415 Hus, standing before the Council of Constance, had refused to "recant," admit errors, in his teachings and writings. Caught in the politico-religious struggles of his time and place, Hus was a threat to the establishment. People liked him for his preaching and reading the Bible in the vernacular. He believed that it was possible to pray directly to God- no human mediator was needed. He felt that communion in both kinds was important for all believers. He even had people singing in church.

    When you bucked the establishment in those days, things got really rough. Even the king's promise of safe passage was overcome by the threat to the king of losing his place in heaven. Hus was burned at the stake on July 6, 1415.

    In 1457, in the midst of the ongoing Hussite wars, one of the groups of Hus's followers gathered in Kunwald to form their own community. The Unitas Fratrum was the Latin name they chose- the Unity of the Brethren.

    The chalice became one of their symbols- communion in both elements. Music was an important part of their worship and they produced the first "Protestant" hymnal. They wanted to be a community and sang "join we all with one accord, praise we all our common Lord."

    Later they would get the nickname "Moravians" because of their original homeland.

    Later they would face persecution and be led into exile in the 1600s by their bishop Jan Amos Comenius, a father of modern education.

    Later they would find renewal in Germany and come to America to be missionaries to the Native Americans.

    But they started in those years before Martin Luther as an oppressed persecuted minority seeking only to be faithful to their Lord and the Word He has left all of us. They would simply seek to be disciples.

    There aren't a lot of Moravians in the world. Only about one million worldwide, mostly in Africa. Many never heard of us. The missionary heritage has kept us small even in our homelands. It was more important in those days to send the workers to the ends of the earth. It still is, although I have a hunch that today those "ends of the earth" may be just down the street.