A Thought for August 13

August 13, 1727, Berthelsdorf, Germany, the Renewed Moravian Church was born. The Spirit descended in the midst of Holy Communion and they were changed. The people responded at the end of the day,

"We learned to love!" 



The Moravian motto has been

In essentials, unity;
In non-essentials, liberty;
In all things, love.

 Perhaps then, LOVE is the #1 essential? After all, God IS love and we remember that God so LOVED the world... Yet, too often, we hate and divide. We judge, blame, point fingers, seek to build ourselves at the expense of others.

How then, in an age of division, can we again learn what it means to love? Ah, but love attracts less attention than attacking. No one gets hurt, no great headlines can be written, no "Film at 11:00!" because love is much deeper. Everyone gets hurt when we hate- and it makes for good ratings.

How do we love when all around us there are calls to yell, get angry, shake the hateful fist, retaliate?

How do we stand for the work of the Holy Spirit when the Spirit and the Word have been undermined by a culture of division where those who are different are an enemy?

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

“We Learned to Love”: August 13, 1727

The events of August 13, 1727, when at the conclusion of a Holy Communion service in Berthelsdorf the residents of Herrnhut united into the Renewed Brethren’s Church, are traditionally considered the spiritual birthday of the Moravian Church. - Moravian Archives

It was 290 years ago today. The Renewed Moravian Church was empowered through the Holy Spirit working on the refugees from the historic Moravian Church- The Unitas Fratrum. From that moment everything changed and they moved into a different world than they had been living in. They were never able to describe what happened in that service that was so powerful. They only knew that they had "learned to love." They discovered that they had a calling from God. They weren't sure what that would mean, but they were willing to begin the journey.

As a result of that one day, factions dissolved and, in but a few years, they were sending the first Protestant missionaries around the world. They started a rich musical heritage second to none. They had an important impact on the life and faith of John Wesley, founder of the Methodist Church. They started a 100-year long continuous prayer watch.

The world-wide Moravian Unity is still witnessing to the power of God to use all who follow to do amazing things. We have shown over and over that it does not need to be the large and famous churches that do the great things. It is in faithfulness and commitment that the Holy Spirit works.

Our motto continues to move and direct us:
In essentials, unity;
In non-essentials, liberty;
In all things, love.