MORAVIAN CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.
(1) Founding and Characteristics. This church was known as the United Brcthren before the term Moravian Church came into vogue. The latter appellation is derived from the land in which the church in question was formerly the chief representative of the evangelical faith, and from which refugees came to Saxony in 1722, to accomplish its resuscitation after it had been al most extirpated by persecution. Evangelical loy alty to the essentials of the Christian faith, com bined with an unwillingness to bind men's con sciences to the exact phraseology of a humanly constructed creed in reference to mysteries of the truth, and an exaltation of the value of devout Christian life above professed adherence to sym bols apprehended by the intellect. have heen char acteristic of the NIoravian Church from the first, and, since 1732, it has realized that its special call ing is to carry the gospel to the neglected hea then, whilst in home lands its members fraternize with all who love the Lord Jesus in sincerity.
In accordance with these characteristics and purposes the Moravian Church has consistently shunned every effort at proselytism in Christian lands, though it has freely expended men and means to foster vital religion within state churches in Europe, without seeking to withdraw members from fellowship in those churches.
Founded by spiritual descendants of John Hus in Bohemia in 1457, the Moravian Church was almost extirpated in consequence of the Thirty Years' War, although it had previously spread widely throughout Bohemia, Moravia, Poland and Prussia.
Providentially resuscitated in Saxony during the years from 1722 to 1727 by refugees who were harbored on the estates of Count Zinzendorf, him self destined to become identified with it as a future bishop, its attcntion was turned to America by two causes. Persecutions at home suggested the wisdom of securing an asylum where religious liberty might be enjoyed; the possibility of inau gurating missions amongst the Indians and the negro slaves became a call of duty. "From the trus tees of Georgia Lount Zinzendorf obtained a grant of soo acres of land on the Ogeeche River, and Spangenberg another of fifty acres, forming part of the present site of Savannah. In the spring of 1735, the latter began a settlement, on his tract, with a number of Moravians." (Moravian Man ual, pp. 38, 39.) This settlement proved a failure, largely owing to the war between England and Spain. The remnant of the Moravian colonists in Georgia, in 174o, came to Philadelphia as pas sengers in George Whitefield's sloop. "At the
invitation of Whitefield they proceeded in May to the Forks of the Delaware, the present Northamp ton County, where he had purchased a domain of 5,000 acres, embracing what is now Upper Naz areth Township, and began to build a large house destined to be a school for negro children. Ere long, however, doctrinal differences, fostered by the inhabitants of the Scotch-lrish settlements, produced an open rupture betwcen the Moravians and Whitefield. who ordered them to leave his land forthwith. In this extremity Bishop Nitsch mann came from Europe commissioned to begin a settlement in Pennsylvania. Ten miles to the south of Whitefield's domain, he purchased an extensive tract, on the Lehigh River." (Mora vian Manual, p. 4o.) The settlement founded here was named Bethlehem. "It was originally in tended as a center for the Indian Mission"—be gun in 174o at Shekomeko near the Stissik Moun tains, between New York and Connecticut. "But other immigrants having arrived from Germany, a church settlement was organized, June 25, 1742, strictly on the plan of those established by Zin zendorf in his native land, with all their appliances of exclusivism." (Moravian Manual, p. 4o.) In addition to maintaining an Indian mission, which spread in New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and later in Ohio, an extensive itineracy was un dertaken amongst white settlers—Germans,Swedes and English, as well as amongst the negro slaves; but no effort was made to extend the Moravian Church as such amongst those who had not been identified with it in Europe. Rather vvere appli cants for admission to fellowship discouraged, it being the aim of the Moravian evangelists to pro mote Vital Christianity and not to build up a sect. Just here the Moravians failed to recognize the difference between the religious characteristics of this land free from the trammels of a state church and their old conditions of operation in Europe; and this feature largely accounts for the numerical weakness of the Moravian Church in America to-day. Between the years 1742 and 1748 the Mo ravians in Pennsylvania devoted themselves, aside from their mission amongst the Indians, to an ef fort to bring about an organic union amongst the German-speaking Christians of the colony, no German denomination having as yet effected act ual organization. But this laudable effort failed.