moravian magazine january/february 2013

Moravians Around the Globe

Resources for Faith

Moravian Music & Art

And more!

J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3

“This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way it’s supposed to be.”it’s supposed to be.”it’s supposed to be.”it’s supposed to be.”it’s supposed to be.”it’s supposed to be.”it’s supposed to be.”it’s supposed to be.”it’s supposed to be.”it’s supposed to be.”

“This is the way “This is the way it’s supposed to be.”

“This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way it’s supposed to be.”



“This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way it’s supposed to be.”


“This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way “This is the way it’s supposed to be.”




“This is the way “This is the way

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Moravians Around the Globe

Resources for Faith

Moravian Music & Art

And more!

J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3

January/February 2013 3

Member, Associated Church Press

Visit our website at http://www.moravian.org. Letters to the editor, address corrections, and other correspondence may be e-mailed to the magazine at [email protected].

Christ and him crucified remain our confession of faith

In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, love

On the cover: This remarkable sunset helped ring out 2012 in preparation for a joyous new year. Photo by Mike Riess

9 30

Moravian Unity 5 Moravian Unity Board meets in Herrnhut

Moravian Youth 7 College-Age Retreat reveals “growing up is hard to do”

Moravian Music 9 Moravian music strikes a chord with concert-goers

in Greensboro, N.C.

Ministries Foundation 11 Moravian Ministries Foundation helps Moravians

“Invest Where You Believe”

Moravians in Mission 14 On the road to Gininiga 16 Joy and Lament at the Women’s Conference,

Nzega, Tanzania 24 Shining in Cuba 26 Moravians in Cuba: A growing faith

Faithful Resources 19 “Daily Prayers for Moravians” offer inspiration and prayer

on the web 23 Northern Province offers new

Healthy Congregations resource

Moravian History 28 Moravian Archives expansion project helps prepare it

for the next 35 years30 New book brings archivist’s research and words to life

In every issue 4 Ponderings: Sunrises and sunsets 33 Official Provincial Elders’ News 34 Obituary: The Rev. Dr. Cedric Sydney Rodney

While the depths of winter bring the shortest days of the year, they also offer a convenience—the ability to see sunrises without getting up too early and sunsets while still at work.

As a photographer, I am awed by the outrageous color and won-drous beauty ignited by the rising or setting sun. The west-facing win-dow of my office, combined with the open expanse of the baseball field next door, offers the perfect combination to witness (and some-times photograph) these breathtaking sights.

The remarkable sunsets during the last few weeks of Advent put a finishing touch on 2012 and offered an opportunity to reflect on a very busy year.

District Synods, communication workshops, festivals and other events took me to many parts of both Provinces. We launched a new website and an improved online store for the IBOC. We continued producing the Daily Texts and delivered the first digital versions for e-readers. We helped church agencies and congregations with com-munication challenges. And we delivered ten colorful, insightful is-sues of The Moravian Magazine.

At the same time, the bright sunrises, more visible now that the trees are bare, herald the promise of new days and signal the hope and beauty of a new year. The coming months bring opportunities to improve our communication ministry. New ways of telling our sto-ries, making better use of technology and building communication expertise on many levels all factor in to what we hope will be a suc-cessful 2013.

Thank you for reading The Moravian. I hope that in its pages you find information, insight and inspiration about our Moravian faith.

And take a moment to admire the majesty of God’s creation as your days begin and end. May you find the same inspiration and hope for bright days that these winter sunrises and sunsets bring to me.

Mike

Sunrises, sunsets

(ISSN 1041-0961 USPS 362600) January/February Vol. 44, No. 1

Publications Agreement No. 40036408 Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to: Express Messenger International, PO Box 25058, London, Ontario N6C6A8, email: [email protected]

Official Journal, The Moravian Church in North America, Northern and Southern Provinces

Published monthly, except bimonthly January-February and July-August issues, by the Interprovincial Board of Communication, 1021 Center St., Bethlehem, PA 18018.

Subscription rates: $15.00 per year, U.S.A. & Canada; $18.00 per year, all other countries.

Individual copies available for $3.00 each.

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Postmaster please send address changes to The Moravian, PO Box 1245, Bethlehem, PA 18016-1245.

Continuing The North American Moravian, The Moravian and The Wachovia Moravian.

Michael Riess, Editor

Siobhan Young, Communications Assistant

Jodi Bortz, Customer Relations/Business Assistant

Interprovincial Board of Communication Paul Knouse, Paul Peucker Chair Adam Pristas Jane Burcaw Richard Sides Jane Carmichael Valerie Wagner Lance Fox Jill Westbrook Gary Kniskern

Design by Sandy Fay, Laughing Horse Graphics, Inc.

Address all correspondence regarding articles, subscriptions, or advertising to The Moravian, PO Box 1245, Bethlehem, PA 18016-1245 FAX: 610.866.9223 Phone: 610.867.0594 800.732.0591 e-mail: [email protected] www.moravian.org

Contents © 2012, Interprovincial Board of Communications, Moravian Church in North America. All rights reserved

4 The Moravian

PONDERINGS

Moravian Unity Board meets in Herrnhut

each from North America, the Caribbean, Eu-rope and Africa.

At this year’s meeting, members elected The Rev. Robert Hopcroft of the Great Brit-

This fall, representatives from Moravian Provinces around the globe arrived in Her-rnhut, Germany for the biennial meeting of the Unity Board of the worldwide Moravian Church (Unitas Fratrum). The Rev. Dr. Eliza-beth Miller and The Rev. David Guthrie, presi-dents of the Northern and Southern Province Provincial Elders’ Conferences, travelled to Herrnhut for the occasion.

The Unity Board is the governing body of the worldwide church for the seven years between Unity Synods (the last was held in 2009). The Board currently includes 27 people from 19 countries. It meets every two years and is lead by a four-member Executive Committee, composed of one representative

Thanks to Thomas Przyluski, editor of Herrnhuter Bote (the magazine of the German Moravian Church) for the reporting and photos. Above: The Unity Board gathers in Herrnhut in November.

(continued on next page)

Northern Province PEC President Betsy Miller helps plant a tree during the Unity Board assembly.


MORAVIAN UNITY

ain and Ireland Province as its new Executive Committee Chair. Other Executive Committee members include The Rev. Nosigwe Buya of The Southwest Tanzania Province, The Rev. Dr. Cortroy Jarvis of the Eastern West Indies Province and The Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Miller of the Northern Province (America). The execu-tive committee will serve two-year terms, be-ginning in 2013.

Three New ProvincesAt the meeting, three Moravian Mission Prov-inces were formally recognized as Unity Prov-inces. The Moravian Churches in Malawi, Northern Tanzania and Tanzania, Lake Tagan-yika are now considered full Provinces of the Unitas Fratrum.

“The Unity Board appreciates the positive developments in these three regions,” said Frieder Vollprecht of the European Continen-tal Province Provincial Elders Conference. “The work there is stable and can stand on its own.”

The Unity Board also decided to hold a worldwide conference of bishops in Tanzania in 2015 (the 600th anniversary of the death of Jan Hus) in preparation for the next Unity Synod, scheduled for 2016 in Jamaica.

And in observance of Reformation Day (October 31) the Unity Board planted two lime trees in memory of two reformist move-ments important to the Moravian Church. “We remember with these two trees the im-portance of Martin Luther and Jan Hus,” said Vollprecht.

The Unity Board will meet next in May 2014 in Kigoma, Tanzania. ■

(continued from previous page)

6 The Moravian

David Guthrie, Southern Province PEC president, works with Unity Board members during a ceremonial tree-planting.

Unity Board members meet in the Herrnhut church.

Where can you sing hymns, play with crayons, and see all the stars? That’s right: at the Laurel Ridge College-Age Retreat. With the theme,

“Memo to the Church: Grow Up!” students discussed how they— and the Moravian Church—are growing up.

A mid-sized group of (mostly) Moravian col-lege students gathered in the Tise Building at Laurel Ridge Camp and Conference Center in early November to prepare for a weekend of spiritual growth, reflection and discussion.

As the weekend began, we learned that we were sitting, not in the Sunrise Room as we had thought, but in a “basement,” full of trunks and forgotten bits of childhood (complete with a strange old lamp for atmo-sphere)—the basement of the parents of the church. As we grow older, we have begun

to move out of our parents’ houses, but the church is still in the basement with a lot of junk. Some of that “junk” is useful, and some of it is ready to be let go. Over the weekend, we talked about which piece is which.

We talked about growing up and what we wanted to be when we were little. In those days, grownups would often ask us what we wanted to be when we grew up. We explored this at our retreat by using coloring books and worksheets to draw those memories and re-mind ourselves what was special about them, remembering that we wanted to be teachers or nurses or even the owner of a dragon! Thinking of those days reminded me of a very specific moment in my own child-hood. A grownup asked me what I wanted to be, and then I asked him what he had wanted to be. He laughed and said, “I don’t know yet.”

College-Age Retreat reveals “growing up is hard to do”

Emily Ford is a senior at NC State University and a member of Kernersville Moravian Church.


January/February 2013

MORAVIAN YOUTH

It is confusing for an eight-year-old to hear that a grownup is not grown up, so it stuck. Later in life, it resonated. We are constantly growing and developing ideas about our world, and at the retreat we talked about how that matters to the church, both in our impact as we grow older and in the church’s own struggles to grow.

After that discussion, we opened up one of the three trunks in our “basement.” From that trunk we chose objects that represented memories for us: a wind chime made of col-ored glass, or a wooden leg, for example. Us-ing these objects as symbols, we talked about the church we saw when we were little. A place of beauty, where people tell stories and dress up, a place of food and music: that is the church for a child.

But things packed away in trunks usu-ally don’t fit anymore. We opened the second trunk to choose objects representing times when we felt like we did not fit in church—or church did not fit us.

Finally, we talked about our hopes for what

the church might look like in the future, as it continues to grow and change. This was a particularly creative endeavor as we selected objects out of the third trunk in the basement to construct beautiful collage-style artwork that formed an image of hope for each of us.

We talked about the fact that the Moravian Church has problems and that we should not be afraid to talk about those problems. But more than that, we talked about how we should be talking about and working on them to help the church to mature and grow as we do. In a liturgy at the end of the retreat that incorporated some of these ideas and memo-ries, we prayed about them, and they reso-nated with us.

To old friends, it was so good to see you again. To new friends, I am so glad to have met you. And to our spiritual guides over this weekend, Ginny Tobiassen and Russ May, to Amy Gardin who set it all up, and to Becca Post-May who fed us: Thank you!

So, talk with the young adults in the church. Grow with them. And if you happen to see a strange, doll-shaped lamp the next time you are visiting Tise, remember the basement—and help us help the church to grow up! ■


8 The Moravian


MORAVIAN MUSIC

Moravians are well acquainted with the church’s musical heritage. And we all know our music: Timeless hymns and chorales document the Moravian year, from “Morning Star” at Christmas to “Sing Hallelujah, Praise the Lord” at Easter.

But what about the trios of Johann Dan-iel Grimm? The violin prelude of Gottfried Finger? Or any one of the nine harpsichord pieces by Christian Ignatius Latrobe?

This less-familiar side of Moravian music came alive in Greensboro, N.C. recently at a concert called “Moravian Music and More!,’’ which featured the works of Grimm, Finger and Latrobe. A crowd of about 70 heard Latrobe’s “Prelude III,’’ “Two Terzetti’’ by Grimm and Finger’s “Prelude for Violin,’’ all performed by Greensboro Early Music, a pro-fessional group of musicians and singers who specialize in music written before 1750.

Each of the featured composers was either

a member of the Moravian church or was eth-nically from Moravia. The Moravians shared the program with such Baroque-era com-posers as Joseph Boismortier and Johann Muthel, as well as with Renaissance choral music. For many in the audience—including Moravians—this music was being heard for the first time.

Moravian music strikes a chord with concert-goers in Greensboro, N.C.

Lydian Averitt is a member of First Moravian Church in Greensboro, N.C. and mom of Caroline, also a member of FMC and Girl Scout Troop 40172. Both of them play, and enjoy, Moravian music. Photo below: Dr. Nola Reed Knouse, right, shows Allison Willet (left) and Caroline Averitt some of the scores housed in the vault at the Moravian Music Foundation in Winston-Salem.


A Girl Scout conversationPlans for the concert started with a conversa-tion, not about music, but about Girl Scouts.

Caroline Averitt, a 16-year-old member of First Moravian Church and Girl Scout Troop 40172, was gathering ideas for her Gold Award project. This award, the highest in Girl Scouting, recognizes the leadership, efforts and impact that girls have had on their communities.

“Being Moravian is wonderful to me, but even though Greensboro is only about 30 minutes away from Winston-Salem, N.C., Moravian traditions are more of a novelty here,’’ Caroline explained. “They’re not as well known. But the Moravians played a very important role in North Carolina’s history, in-cluding its musical history. I wanted to focus my project on raising awareness in this area about the Moravians and their contributions.’’

One of Caroline’s community contacts was Allison Willet, a professional violinist and the artistic director of Greensboro Early Mu-sic (GEM). Willet knew about some of the Moravian composers, and was interested in putting some of their pieces on the group’s fall program.

Sheet music may be found in many places nowadays, but for these purposes, there was only one place to go for music scores: the Moravian Music Foundation in Winston-Salem.

“GEM specializes in music from before


(continued on page 13)

Left: Allison Willet, artistic director and violinist of Greensboro Early Music, introduces Caroline Averitt for a pre-concert talk about the Moravians at the Moravian Music and More concert held this fall in Greensboro.

GEM musicians perform one of J.D. Grimm’s Terzetti trios.

Left: Members of First Moravian Church’s congregation attended the concert and provided a reception. Left to right: Pastor John Rainey, Donna Rainey, Caroline Averitt, Linda Osborne, Peyton Averitt, Dot Jackson, Randy Furches (serving).

Caroline Averitt (left) discusses Moravian traditions with a concertgoer.

MINISTRIES FOUNDATION

In 2013 the Moravian Ministries Foundation (MMFA) will celebrate our fifteenth year of service to the Moravian Church in America. In preparation for our anniversary, the Foun-dation’s Board and staff have been reflecting and planning for the next phase in the MMFA’s development.

Fifteen years have passed since I was hired to start the Foundation, and I say the same thing today I said when I first walked through the doors: “I feel like I died and went to Heaven.” When asked why, I respond, “Because of the people.” I have never been touched so deeply in so many ways by so many. One day builds upon the previous and everyday I am blessed. How could I not look forward to the next day?

However, the Foundation is not about any single person; to the contrary, it is about a faith community—the two Provinces, the churches, the ministries and the role we play in connecting money with ministry.

The Foundation does this in three ways.

First, we help individual Moravians create legacy gifts to the ministries that they want to support in perpetuity. Our focus in this re-lationship is to help the individual, couple, and/or family discern their personal, finan-cial and estate goals. This work has been simply amazing.

The Foundation has helped hundreds of sisters and brothers create planned gifts and donate over $45 million to local Moravian congregations, camps, and retirement com-munities, as well as to the Music Foundation, Archives, Board of World Mission, Moravian Open Door, Sunnyside Ministries, Moravian College and Seminary, Salem Academy and College, and many others.

Moravian Ministries Foundation helps Moravians “Invest Where You Believe”

Paul McLaughlin is president of the Moravian Ministries Foundation in America (MMFA).


MMFA staff includes Chi Chi Messick, Paul McLaughlin, Laura Watson and Lee Morgan.

Let’s talk honestly about money and the church. Forever this has been a naturally complex relationship,

because God’s grace is freely given

and yet doing His work requires so much.

Love. Kindness. Action. And yes, money.

At the Moravian Ministries Foundation,

the churches, congregations, and individuals we serve understand this.

For them, letting values guide their giving is recognition of a simple, practical truth:

viable ministries need an abundance of resources to thrive.That is precisely why we serve this great church and its most generous members.

We know that ongoing Moravian service depends on ongoing Moravian stewardship.

We also know the stakes of this relationship are high:

the more assets that are available to a church, the more good that church can do in the world.

That’s why we’re always ready to talk honestly about money and the church—

from advising church leadership about savings and investments

to discussing with individuals how their faith can be transformed into a legacy.

As trusted and experienced counsel,

the Moravian Ministries Foundation is first and foremost committed to helping

safely navigate the expansive and often uneven financial terrain of the 21st century.

But while prudence and professionalism define our skills,

our sole focus on serving Moravian people and ministries is what distinguishes our mission.

Indeed, who we are is how we serve.

At the Moravian Ministries Foundation, every dollar invested,

now or over time,

strengthens our shared Moravian values.

If this sounds like a good idea to you, let’s talk about it.

Moravian Ministries Foundation in America: Invest Where You Believe

ThE MoRAVIAN MINIsTRIEs FoUNdATIoN IN AMERICA ANThEM

12 The Moravian


Second, the Moravian Common Fund, the investment and endowment management ser-vice for nearly 100 churches and affiliated ministries, now manages over $130 million. All the earnings pour back to the organizations that invest in the Common Fund, and its invest-ment returns place it among an elite group of national foundations and endowments.

Lastly, Morning Star Campaign Services aids churches in planning and undertaking successful stewardship campaigns and capi-tal fund drives. By most recent counts, over $11 million has been raised to support vital ministries and projects.

It would be easy to sit back and engage in self-congratulations, but we are called to do more—much more. So, as we thought about the work of the Foundation, we came to terms with the reality we are “the money people”, as our job is to connect financial resources with ministries.

In conjunction with our anniversary, we commissioned an Anthem (see sidebar). While it is not a musical piece, it conveys a message about our beliefs, aspirations, mis-sion, work and values. It is the Foundation’s response to Christ’s message—“Give to Cae-sar what is Caesar’s and give to the Lord what is the Lord’s.”

In 2013 the Foundation will embark on an exciting forward-looking renewal, driven by our Anthem and inspired by our common faith. This renewal will be reflected in our ads, printed material, website, and social me-dia. While our “look” may be new, our goal remains the same as it was 15 years ago: to inspire more Moravian people and ministries to “Invest where you believe.” ■

Moravian music(continued from page 10)

1750, and I thought, ‘Well, I know where a lot of that is,’” Caroline joked. “I wanted to help build a relationship between the MMF and GEM so that two groups with similar in-terests were aware of each other and could work together. That way, the connection can sustain itself, even after this concert is over.’’

Under the guidance of Dr. Nola Reed Knouse, Willet and Caroline toured the foun-dation’s archives, and Willet selected pieces from the library for the group to perform. Dr. Knouse also provided information about each composer on the program, and about Mora-vian music in general, for Caroline to use in a short, pre-concert lecture.

On Oct. 5, the concert came together, and with it, an ear-opening experience that won’t be the last the Greensboro community hears of the Moravian composers.

“These composers influenced the way music developed, not just in this area but in general,’’ Caroline said. “They brought sophis-ticated music to what was still, in the 1700s, the colonial American backwoods. They in-volved not just professionals but tradesmen and children in music-making. They wrote chamber music, choral music, hymns.

“It was so interesting, and sometimes sur-prising, to hear them .’’

Want to hear the concert? The Moravian Music and More! Concert is on YouTube. To listen, go to YouTube and search for “Mora-vian music gold project’’ to hear both the concert and an interview about Moravian music with Dr. Nola Reed Knouse, direc-tor of the Moravian Music Foundation. To find out more about the performers, visit greensboroearlymusic.blogspot.com/. ■

(continued from page 11)

MORAVIANS IN MISSION

The herd of cows in front of our jeep is mov-ing slowly; we have come to a complete stop again. Finally we move forward. We are on the road to Gininiga in Tanzania—what an experience!

There are sinkholes—places where the rains have washed the road away—unex-pected sharp turns, and sudden drops where the road disappears altogether. People are walking along the side of the road carrying heavy items on their heads: a bucket of wa-ter, huge load of firewood or a bag of rice or beans. A man is negotiating his overloaded bicycle down a deep gully in the road. We swerve to miss him.

Feeling vaguely nauseous, I sit in the back seat, crammed in between two travelling companions. I steel myself for the next drop of several meters, by hanging onto the back of the driver’s seat.

My four travelling companions are made of sterner stuff. I take comfort in knowing that they have travelled this road before and sur-vived. We are on the road to Gininiga, a small village with no electricity or running water, to meet with the local groups who are part of the HUKWAFA project.

Although I am new to these parts, my companions are well-known leaders of the HUKWAFA project. In particular, the Project Manager, Bahati Andrew, who is also our driver, is a social scientist, and is the leader of this project. Bahati has worked closely with the people in the project. Bahati tells us,

On the road to Gininiga

HUKWAFA is the acronym in Swahili for “Huduma kwa Watoto na Familia,” meaning “Serving Children and Families.” HUKWAFA is a Likewise/AIDS Ministries project working with the most vulnerable children in Gininiga and Magu, Tanzania.

Marion Perrin (right) discusses HUKWAFA progress.

January/February 2013

while she is driving, how she has worked with the Government Support Worker and the lo-cal Mamas, who volunteer their time to assist with this project.

We arrive at the village in a cloud of dust, and my carsickness subsides. After a warm welcome of handshaking and “karibu sana”, we sit down on wooden benches outside un-der the shade of a large tree. Some of the women sit on the ground, as there are not enough benches. There are approximately 85 people gathered for this meeting.

There are several purposes for our visit to Gininiga: to meet with the HUKWAFA Groups;to meet the leaders in Gininiga; to learn how the groups have utilized the start-up funds; and to hear their plans for the future.

What I am most interested in finding out is: What do these local farming men and women who are directly impacted by the HUKWAFA project think?

One by one, the leaders of each of the five groups stand up and proudly reports, in detail, how they have utilized the start-up funds—how they have loaned money to members of their group, charging interest. Their capital has grown. Some of the groups have leased a piece of land and are planning to grow rice, beans or cotton.

It is heartwarming to both see and hear the pride and purposefulness as each group shares how their start-up funds have doubled, and in some cases tripled. The conversations are energetic and through our interpreters we are able to interact with the local people and develop a personal connection to the project.

HUKWAFA is a grass-roots project. The local people have taken full ownership and have made the project successful. The re-gional politician brought greetings and en-couraged the groups to continue their good

Alice Sears is a member of the Likewise/AIDS committee of the Board of World Mission, past chair for the Canadian District Mission and a member of Rio Terrace Moravian Church in Edmonton, Alberta. In top photo, Alice (left) meets with a HUKWAFA group in Gininiga.


work. He stressed the importance of sending their children to school. The Town Adminis-trator dropped by with greetings and thanked the HUKWAFA project organizers for working here in Gininiga.

The most surprising guest speaker at this meeting was the Government Support Work-er, who had travelled out with us in the jeep. He brought large colorful posters and spoke emphatically, saying “Rape is wrong and you must report it to the police;” “Child abuse is wrong and you can speak with the Social

16 The Moravian


It is the second day of the Women’s Confer-ence at the Nzega Moravian Church, Tanza-nia. Marion Perrin and I are just arriving in Nzega, having traveled from Canada on behalf of Likewise/AIDS ministries.

We enter the conference and are invited to join the distinguished panel, which included both lay and ordained women from Tabora, Dar Es Salaam, and Mbeya. We sit facing two hundred women dressed in the varied colourful fabrics of Africa some with heads wrapped, others with shawls of contrasting colours. Marion is joyfully reacquainted with

some of the women from the 2008 Women’s Conference, and brings greetings from the Unity Women’s Desk.

My First World eyes look around the church and notice what is not here. The Nzega Mora-vian Church is a large new round brick build-ing. So new, in fact, that it still has a red dirt floor. There are no doors or windows, but large openings where the doors will be. Here at the Nzega Moravian Women’s Conference there are no microphones, no computers, no projectors and no flipcharts. In fact there is no electricity, no piano, and no organ. I quickly absorb another truth, however: what is present among the women gathered here is

Joy and Lament at The Women’s Conference, Nzega, Tanzania

Alice Sears is a member of the Likewise/AIDS committee of the Board of World Mission and a member of Rio Terrace in Edmonton, Alberta. Photos in both Tanzania stories courtesy of Alice.


a deep love for God, faith, personal strength, determination, courage and hope.

My head is still reeling from our lengthy travels as the singing begins. A single voice calls out and the others join in response. There is movement and rhythm—hands clapping, bodies moving. A baby balances trustingly on a generous swaying hip. Soon a flowing shawl wrap appears, a woman waving it as blessing as she moves among the crowd. The women were enjoying each other and this moment of singing together. I could feel their love and devotion to God through this joyful expression of faith, and I wanted to join in the dance!

Later that afternoon, something unex-pected happens. Bright sunlight is streaming in through all the openings into this beauti-ful round church. The sunlight illuminates the whole church and shines on the col-orfully dressed women, who are praying loudly, passionately, each with her own voice —separately yet in unison. Some women are weeping. Cries of lament are heard. Several fall on their knees on the red dirt floor, their eyes are closed, and tears streaming down their faces. These prayers are coming from the deepest part of their hearts and souls. The sounds of anguish and sorrow are palpable in the round church.

During these moments of intense prayer, I feel like an intruder—have I ever prayed like this—so publicly, or with this much passion? I am more comfortable with the controlled, scripted or silent prayer that we practice in my home congregation. The unrestrained de-votion to God that I witness in Tanzania deeply moves me.

Marion and I sit silently listening to the


chorus of the women passionately praying to God. We know that these sorrowful laments give voice to the tremendous loss, grief and distress long carried in the hearts of these women, whose lives have been impacted by HIV/AIDS. Many are caring for their orphaned grandchildren or their own ailing spouses or children. It is an emotional experience; one that I will never forget.

The next morning, the conference begins with all of us eating breakfast outside. The women had slept on mats on the floor in the old church. Several of the women have brought their children with them. The older ones play outside the church; the little ones are snuggly wrapped and carried on mom’s back. Some women have brought their hand-made items to sell, and several displays of dresses, tablecloths, sardines, teas and bead-work are set up just outside the church.

When it is time to reconvene in the church, each of the women carries her plastic chair back inside with her. Marion and I join in the spontaneous singing and dancing that breaks out in the middle of the church, and my heart is full. The connections made here, the rela-tionships forged among the women of Tan-zania are very important: offering a chance to share each other’s experiences, their faith, and the realities of their lives—the joy and lament.

As another day fills with dynamic present-ers, energized, rhythmic dancing, joyful aca-pella choirs, and soulful prayer, I recognize again how grateful I am for God whose spirit moves in such diverse and powerful ways, and for a church through which we can share our experiences and forge life-giving relationships. ■


(continued from page 15)

18 The Moravian

Worker.” (The social worker is a volunteer with the HUKWAFA project.) The most graphic poster was the one that stated “It is not right to sell young girls into marriage for the mon-ey.” Each poster was graphically explicit and easily understood even by those unable to read. It was a powerful presentation and held everyone’s attention.

Then Mama Upendo, the assistant project manager, gave an emotional plea to take sick children to the clinic or hospital for care, and reminding everyone to send their chil-dren to school.

International support and development can be challenging with cultural dynam-ics, project implementation challenges and even personality differences. The success of the HUKWAFA project, as a sustainable inter-vention, is built on a solid foundation and a trusting partnership that empowers the local people to be in charge of their own plans and development.

As the meeting under the tree comes to a close, I feel a deep sense of satisfaction from our visit. We have listened to their plans and we have connected with the people. This day in Gininiga has given us insight into their lives and the logistical challenges ahead—insight that cannot be found in an email or a photo.

I feel a sense of connection and renewed purpose for the HUKWAFA project and the people we are here to serve. I am more com-mitted than ever to continue this journey of hope with the people of Gininiga.

With these happy thoughts I reluctantly re-turn to my middle seat in the back of the jeep, resigned to face the long bumpy ride on the road back from Gininiga. ■

Gininiga

FAITHFUL RESOURCES

It is one of the central affirmations of the Christian faith that God wants to be in re-lationship with each of us, children of the earthly kingdom. But as in all relationships, a two-way street is the only way that this can be nurtured. We need to regularly take time to speak to God, but just as importantly, we need to take time to listen to God.

Even while the prayers of most of us Chris-tians come far too infrequently, there are many of us who have trouble coming up with a list of things to lay at the throne of grace. We all have needs, concerns, thanksgivings, and even from time to time complaints about life. But how often do we take time to listen to God?

Our Moravian Daily Texts offer us a dy-namic way to listen on a regular basis for God’s intent in our lives. Many Christians in the world (far beyond our Moravian Church) utilize these scripture texts, hymn verses, and simple prayers as a disciplined way of allow-ing the Word of God to be a lamp to our path. I have listened to many friends and family re-count to me how these words brought mean-ing and purpose into even the most ordinary

“Daily Prayers for Moravians” offer inspiration and prayer on the web

Chris Giesler is pastor of Edgeboro Moravian Church in Bethlehem, Pa. and a bishop of the Moravian Unity.


Chris Giesler at work on “Daily Prayers for Moravians” in his office in Bethlehem.


20 The Moravian

of times, let alone some of the most difficult moments of their lives.

Several years ago when my office was lo-cated in the Moravian Church Center in Beth-lehem, Pa., it occurred to me that our Daily Texts could not only guide each of our lives individually, but they could also give mean-ing to the ministries that we shared within the various offices in that building (representing various Provincial, Interprovincial and East-ern District offices).

So I began putting together a prayer form, much like our Liturgies in the Moravian Book of Worship, that would accompany the Watchword for the Week found each Sunday in the Daily Texts book. As brothers and sisters in Christ, we began meeting each day around noon to listen for God’s Word, to lift up our prayer concerns, and to encourage one another in our various ministries.

As this began to develop and as I was in-troduced to an Internet blogging service, I decided to begin posting these prayers online so that they could benefit the wider Moravian Church. These are now available to anyone who has access to the Internet.

I recommend them for use in private devo-tions as a way to expand and deepen the dis-cipline of praying the Daily Texts. These can also be used by groups within congregations who gather for either spiritual enrichment or to do the congregation’s work. For instance, I know of several people who print them out and use them at the beginning of their Board or committee meetings.

Each week (generally by Saturday after-noon), I have the prayers for the following week posted on the web site. The prayer itself remains the same throughout that week, what

changes each day are the each days’ readings which you get from using the Daily Texts. This prayer form begins with words of praise and a bidding for God’s Spirit to be present. Next the Psalm for the week is read (this is the Psalm which is listed in your Daily Text each Sunday). This is followed by a confes-sion of sin and an assurance of pardon. Then comes an opportunity to read that day’s Daily Text, and spend some time in prayer for mat-ters pertinent to the group. It then concludes with a rotating version of the Lord’s Prayer and some concluding prayer petitions.

You can access these prayers in one of two ways. You can do so directly by going to dailyprayersformoravians.wordpress.com. Once the page opens that week’s prayer will be the first thing that you see. You may also access the prayers by going to the Mora-vian Church web site at www.moravian.org. Once there, click on the “Faith and Congre-gations” tab, and then under the “For Con-gregations” column, click on “Daily Prayers for Moravians”.

For those readers who might begin to use this resource, and for those who have already been using it regularly, I would appreciate some feedback on how I might make it more effective in meeting your needs. There is an easy way to leave comments at the bottom of each prayer page.

It is my prayer that this online resource can be one more way that God can speak to you and guide you in your daily walk. In so do-ing I pray that this might only deepen your ongoing relationship with Jesus Christ, our Chief Elder, and shepherd of the flock. I also hope that it might encourage groups within our many congregations to remain focused on our primary task of making Christ known to the world. ■

The Transfiguration of our Lord and Ash Wednesday (February 10-16, 2013)


DAILY PRAYERS FOR THE LAST WEEK AFTER THE EPIPHANY

Watchword for the Week

And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus alone. Matthew 17:8

From the distractions of our lives we gather to see Jesus. From the busyness of business we pause to adjust our focus. We come into the presence of God, Knowing our need for God’s leading in our lives.

Psalm 99

God is ruler; let the peoples tremble! God sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake! God is great in Zion; God is exalted over all the peoples. Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is God! Mighty Ruler, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob. Extol the Sovereign our God; worship at God’s footstool. Holy is God!

Moses and Aaron were among God’s priests, Samuel also was among those who called on God’s name. They cried to God, and God answered them. God spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept God’s decrees, and the statutes that God gave them. O Sovereign our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings. Extol the Sovereign our God, and worship at God’s holy mountain; for the Sovereign our God is holy.

Confession of Sin

If we confess our sins God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. In full assurance of faith, let us confess our sins to our gracious God.

Forgive us Holy God, for we have sinned and fallen short of your intended will for us. Too often we diminish the power of your love and the ways through which you seek to bring us back to you. This causes us to live an undisciplined and unfocused life which does not bear witness to


22 The Moravian

you. Forgive us when we allow the distractions of this world to hold a more powerful influence on us than your will. It is at these times we misalign our priorities and find ourselves in places that we should not go. Forgive us when the darkness of our lives keeps us from seeing the light of your redemption, and the new life promised for us both today and in the world yet to come.

The good news in Christ is that when we face ourselves and God with the awareness of our need, we are given grace to grow, and courage to continue the journey. Friends, believe the good news of the Gospel.

In Jesus Christ we are forgiven! Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. AMEN.

This now is a time for the reading of a scripture passage. If you have a copy of the Moravian Daily Texts take time to read today’s texts now, but don’t rush over them as a task to be completed. These are the words that God would have you to cherish for this day. These are words that could transform your life if you allow them to. So read slowly and deliberately. Pause at words or phrases that happen to catch your spirit, for these are places where God might be speaking to you. When you have finished with your reading of scriptures, take time to pray for the needs that you present today, for the needs

of those you love, and for the needs of a hurting world. May your time of prayer help you to clarify where God would want you to focus your energy. When you are ready continue with this prayer as follows:

Let us pray together:

Creator of all humanity, we call you Holy, and seek to worship you all the days of our lives. We pray that the ways of your heavenly kingdom may be made real in the world that surrounds us. May the bread that we need for today be made available for us and all who are hungry; and may you forgive us, just as we are able to forgive those who have sinned against us. In the time of moral testing, may we listen first for your voice calling to us, instead of the call of the world. This world, and all that is in it, always has been and always will be yours, help us to lose ourselves to you and your kingdom. Help us to find who we truly are as we walk in your light. Amen.

Gracious God, lead us to the mountain top where we can see you clearly. May our encounter with you transform our lives into your likeness. May we in turn see the world through your loving eyes. May we forgive as we have been forgiven, and may we share grace just as we have received it. We go from here in the love of God, the Grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ, and in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. Thanks be to God. Amen. ■



FAITHFUL RESOURCES

“One who has health, has hope. And One who has hope, has everything.”—Proverb (thinkexist.com)

Hope is powerful. As the proverb offers, it is through health that greater hope can be embraced and lived out. In 2009, the North-ern Province Provincial Elders’ Conference convened a gathering of the PEC, all members of the three District Boards and all provincial and district staff. The purpose: to identify a strategy for the province to move toward greater congregational health.

Seven characteristics of healthy congrega-tions were identified and later adopted at the 2010 Provincial Synod. They include Com-munity, Leadership, Mission and Service, Pur-pose, Spiritual Formation, Stewardship and Worship. As congregations and pastors have worked to develop their communities in one or more of these areas, they have discovered that finding reliable, theologically sound and engaging resources is not always easy.

In an effort to create a platform for shar-ing resources about healthy congregational development, a website has been developed as a gathering place for quality resources to help Northern Province congregations and leaders in their work. This website is the be-ginning of a collection of useful resources and helpful information for pastors and leaders in congregations to pursue greater health in their communities. For each characteristic of a healthy congregation there are a variety of book, article, web and video resource sugges-tions. Through this endeavor we can share our

diverse perspectives and helpful resources for the better health of all our congregations.

This website will grow with time as we add books, articles, videos and other resources shared by members of our clergy, congrega-tions, and denominational leaders. Resourc-es can be suggested on the website. As new resources that have made an impact on our local ministry and might be helpful to others are made available, they will enrich us all as we share valuable insights and learning.

Come check it out at healthymoravian congregations.wordpress.com and suggest books, articles, videos, and websites that have been helpful to you! (A link is also avail-able directly from www.moravian.org under “Faith & Congregations.”)

Through the development of healthy char-acteristics in our congregations we can be as-sured of finding further hope for us and the world. As we work together to find the ways to share the Gospel in our ever-changing world, we can be encouraged by seeking and work-ing towards improved health in our congrega-tions which will open us to the fullness of our hope in Christ. It is our hope that this website will facilitate sharing and build deeper con-nections as we work to answer Christ’s call to be the Body of Christ in the world. ■

Rebecca Craver is pastor of Edmonton Moravian Church in Edmonton, Alberta.

Northern Province offers new Healthy Congregations resource

Hope is powerful.


Rev. Armando Rusindo, chair of the Mora-vian Church in Cuba, complained to me that he really felt that the Cuban church needed to have its first general assembly to ratify their Book of Order prior to any other events in the church, especially given their limited resources. But he saw that the women in the church, comprising the ma-jority of its membership, were completely determined to hold their first women’s conference this fall, and so he relented.

With the support of the Unity Women’s Desk, the Canadian Moravian Mission

Society, the Florida District churches and others, about 60 women from the church-es in the districts of Holguin, Camaguey, Matanzas and Havana came together from November 30 to December 2, 2012 at the Martin Luther King Center in the capital city to make history for their church.

Attendees were joined by me, South-ern Province ministry candidate Virginia Tobiassen, and Cuban Illovis Gonzalez, acolyte and church planter to the Latino community in Miami. This was the first time that women from all four areas of

Shining in Cuba


Cuba had come together—the first time they could see their unity as a national church. The pastors from the different areas, all men, also came and shared in worship times. They clearly supported and affirmed the important role of women in their congregations.

The theme of the conference was, “Woman, Rise up and Shine.” And that’s exactly what these women did. Opening worship was filled with song and praise, with the message centered on Matthew’s parable of the yeast (Matthew 13:20-21).

Workshops on Saturday, led by Yolanda Brita, were stimulating and helped the women consider barriers to ministry, as well as the many opportunities that lay before them. That afternoon the women chose their first women’s board: national coordinator Tania Sánchez; vice-coordi-nator Alay González; treasurer Arisbel Es-calona; vocal Sandra Pérez; and national advisor Yoland Brito. Sister Alay will be the representative to the Unity Women’s Desk.

I was privileged to preside at Holy Com-munion Saturday evening, the first female clergy to do so in the Cuban Moravian Church. Sis. Illovis gave the message at the closing worship, challenging the women

to shine in sharing love and gratitude in every aspect of their lives. We then lit candles to symbolize how the small light of our lives can blend with the lights of oth-ers to brighten the world. The room filled with song and God’s presence among us was very real. The passion of these wom-en, who often find ways to make “some-thing out of nothing,” was very stirring. We from the US assured them that they did not face their challenges alone, but with the prayers and support of women not only in North America, but in the worldwide Unity.

At the conclusion of the conference Brother Rusindo confessed that truly it was God’s plan to have the women’s conference first. By bringing these women together and encouraging them, the whole church was encouraged. It is now ready to move forward to formalize its structure within Cuba and the worldwide Unity, which it hopes to do in the Spring of 2013. ■

The Rev. Judy Ganz is executive director of the Board of World Mission for the Moravian Church in North America. Photos illustrate events during the women’s conference in Cuba. At left, Judy Ganz serves communion.

26 The Moravian

Traveling to Cuba is like stepping back in time, with the streets full of pre-1960 Ameri-can automobiles, and grand buildings of the past untouched by renovation or repair. But there is more to the sense of difference in Cuba, subtle but profound. How far can we go, even in distant cities like Shanghai or Ka-rachi, without seeing America’s commercial influence (McDonald’s, Burger King)? Yet 90 miles from Key West is a country that feels untouched by the culture of fast food and shopping malls. In fact, after the old cars, the first thing I noticed about Cuba was what was missing: advertising. Can you imagine how it feels to ride through a city (in a 1952 Chevy) and never see a sign enticing you to buy? To me, it felt wonderful.

But I say this from a position of privilege. It’s easy to dismiss the trappings of consumer culture when I can get anything I need. For Cubans, filling daily needs appears to be much harder. At the women’s conference, I heard one leader describe the life of the Cuban mother, trekking daily from place to place to purchase something to feed the fam-ily. Women laughed and nodded and shouted in recognition. In another conversation, a pastor mentioned that it is virtually impossi-ble to buy fresh milk in Cuba. Thinking about the work that was necessary just to procure food, I am all the more grateful for the hospi-tality we were offered in Cuba.

Indeed, whatever scarcity one encounters in this puzzling, beautiful country—whose people love it “like a mother,” said one wom-an, “but a dysfunctional mother!”—there is never a lack of hospitality. Judy and I were overwhelmed by the warm reception from our Cuban sisters and brothers—always be-

ginning with a big embrace and loud smacks on the cheek from everyone we met! But that warmth was more fully expressed in their ea-gerness to converse with us; in their helpful shepherding during a nighttime tour of his-toric Havana; in the handmade gifts they pre-sented; and in the depth and sincerity of their prayers for us.

Some had taken a 14-hour bus ride just to attend this conference. Yet they rode into the conference center on a wave of enthusi-asm, their excited voices filling the dormitory building where we would spend our nights. During our several worship hours, those voices were very often lifted in singing: up-beat, passionate, and Latin-flavored.

These women are excited to be Moravians. That excitement was strong enough to bridge even the worst communication gaps. Some conversations began with the simple words, “Jan Hus! Jan Hus!” which the women would pronounce with great pride (and a Cuban ac-cent). One woman, with a sage nod, added, “Se le cortó la cabeza (his head was cut off).”

“No,” I said.“No?” She looked puzzled. Searching for

the right word, I held up my hands, wiggling the fingers like flames.

“Quemado,” I said. Burned. “Ah! Quemado.” She smiled, and I thought,

I can’t believe I’m having this conversation. As much as I had always dreamed of seeing Cuba, the chance to actually go there came as a complete surprise; and now that I was there, I was calling up my limited Spanish to talk about, of all things, the death of Jan Hus! The Hussite heritage was now a bridge con-necting me to my Cuban Moravian sisters.

Perhaps a bridge is not the best image.

Moravians in Cuba: A growing faith

Bridges are created by human hands. The connection between Moravians in Cuba and America, and around the world, is organic. The Moravian Church in Cuba is part of a living organism—a new shoot, surprisingly sprung from ancient roots.

My grandmother had a rosebush that pro-duced stunning red roses. After her death, I moved the bush to my yard, where it pro-duced only one rose—a white one! Someone told me that transplanting the bush may have awakened an old root stock.

Thinking of the Cuban Moravians, I think of that white rose, lovely but unexpected. It seems that old roots hold the potential to produce new blossoms. What I experienced in Cuba was the result of spontaneous gen-eration: a church created by the power of the Holy Spirit to push new shoots out of the soil where growth might be least anticipated. What grows in Cuba might not look or sound like “traditional” Moravian churches. Music, prayer, praise and preaching will all be differ-ent, drawing nourishment from their native soil. But isn’t that the best part: the oppor-tunity to see what new sights and sounds are born in a truly new Moravian church?

Coming from old roots can also bring some of the same old problems of church life. In one workshop, the women discussed weak-nesses of their church body and threats to its success, as well as strengths the church enjoys and opportunities that it presents. Weakness-

es they mentioned included physical distances between congregations; the lack of ordained pastors; and the lack of a unified program for youth. Threats include secular difficulties: lack of jobs and other societal problem.

But the women also cited anger in the church, demonstrating that like all churches, they have already known the pain of conflict. Clearly, however, the Cuban women have the strength to overcome obstacles; among the strengths they listed were their leadership skills, their strong relationships, and their creativity, so necessary in a society where bringing something out of nothing is a surviv-al skill. As for opportunities, the Cuban Mora-vian women look forward to meeting for study and reflection; to telling their stories; and to putting God’s word into practice in society.

May our Cuban sisters’ willingness to “go the distance” make us more eager to reach across distances ourselves. May their pride in Moravian heritage teach us to value and learn from it. May we, like they, look honestly at our weaknesses and celebrate our strengths, and in doing so may we be part of God’s ongoing work to make all things new. ■

Virginia “Ginny” Tobiassen is a member of Konnoak Hills Moravian Church and a candidate for ministry in the Southern Province. In photo below, Ginny (third from right) joins women in Cuba.

28 The Moravian

MORAVIAN HISTORY

The Northern Province Archives is running out of room. Today, it is near capacity and its ability to continue to receive, preserve and create accessibility to the collections and records could become compromised in the relatively near future.

Fortunately, the Moravian Archives in Beth-lehem was awarded a matching grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities for movable shelving in our main vault ear-lier this year. This matching grant will allow the Archives to expand its storage capacity by 50% in its main vault.

This expansion, at current rates of utiliza-tion, allows for the care of our records and invaluable collection into the future for the next 35 years, without any construction or expansion of the vault space. Although it is a

costly project, it is the most efficient means to expand our Archives for the future needs of the greater Moravian Church.

A two-year effortThis grant approval resulted from the efforts of our Archives’ staff over a two-year period. Upon the first submission, the grant was not approved because of the great number of ap-plications. A subsequent application made the following year resulted in a matching grant being awarded for the project in 2012 to early 2013.

The Archive does important work; col-lecting, preserving and organizing the re-cords, collections, art and written history of the Moravian Church, while making all of this accessible to our churches, members, educators and scholars. This award from the National Endowment for the Humanities

Moravian Archives expansion project helps prepare it for the next 35 years

The main room of the Moravian Archives will soon be piled high with materials pulled to make room for new shelving. This photo is from the 2008 installation of movable shelves in the first vault. At right: The shelves in the Archives’ vault are packed full.


is a recognition, on a national level, of how important it is to preserve and maintain the history and heritage of the Moravian Church.

The grant that the Archives received is a matching grant. The total cost of the project is $297,000, and the grant will cover $148,500 of the expense. The Bethlehem Archives must match this grant with $148,500 of its own fundraising.

We will meet this goal, but we will need the help of Moravians from around the Northern Province. It is essential for the Moravian Ar-chives, our churches and individual members to fully utilize the resource of this grant, while it is available. Fulfilling this challenge will al-low us to preserve our past, protect the price-less collection of our church for decades to come and improve accessibility to the history and heritage of the Moravian Church.

Vault expansionThe vault expansion with movable shelving is scheduled for completion in June. Staff and volunteers will start moving contents out of the vault and into the gallery and the reading room in January. Because these spaces will be used for storage, the reading room will be closed for the duration of the project. No lectures or other programs can be scheduled during the first six months of 2013; most volunteer projects will continue. We hope to reopen after the end of the German Script Course ends in June.

Support for the annual budget of the Mora-vian Archives comes from the Provincial El-ders’ Conference of the Moravian Church, Northern Province; Bethlehem Area Moravi-

ans; and the generous supporters, volunteers and Friends of the Archives. As always, the Archives’ staff and Board of Directors wish to express their gratitude and thanks for their support of our mission to preserve, maintain and provide access to the history and heritage of our Moravian Church.

Contributions to help meet the matching grant can be made to: The Moravian Archives, 41 West Locust Street, Bethlehem, PA 18018-2757 and please note “Vault Project”.

For more information on the Moravian Archives or this project, call 610.866.3255 or visit our website www.moravianchurch archives.org ■

Michael Long is a member of Edgeboro Moravian Church in Bethlehem, Pa. and is president of the Northern Province Moravian Archives’ Board of Directors.

Above and below: New movable shelving like this will expand storage in the Northern Province archive vault

30 The Moravian

MORAVIAN HISTORY

John Valentine Haidt (1700-1780) was the official painter for the Moravian Church, an eighteenth-century religious community that unlike many other Protestant groups did not reject the use of art in their church life. Over the years of his involvement with the Mora-vians in Germany, England and Pennsylvania, Haidt painted many biblical, historical and allegorical paintings, as well as hundreds of portraits; many of his works survive in collec-tions around the world.

This fall, the Northern Province Moravian Church Archives published the first com-prehensive biography of Haidt, based on extensive archival research in Germany and America. The book includes a translation of Haidt’s original autobiography as well as of his Treatise on Art.

While the author of this book, longtime Northern Province Archivist Vernon Nelson,

died in 2010, his work was brought to life by today’s Archives staff with the help of vol-unteers. Thanks to their efforts, Vernon’s re-search is now available in a beautiful bound edition.

A life of researchThis work has been long in the making. Ver-non began researching Haidt in 1966, the same year Colonial Williamsburg had an ex-hibition of Haidt paintings at the museum of the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Collec-tion. Throughout the years, Vernon published articles and contributed to exhibition catalogs and soon decided to turn his research into a monograph.

Much information on Haidt’s American years could be found in the Moravian Ar-chives at Bethlehem, but for Haidt’s earlier

New book brings archivist’s research and words to life

The Life of a Moravian Painter

written by Vernon H. Nelson

John Valentine Haidt

Vern

on H

. Nelson

Details of paintings, photographs taken by the author as study material. Found on his computer following his death.


Haidt was the offi cial painter for the Moravian

Church, an eighteenth-century religious community

that unlike many other Protestant groups did

not reject the use of art in their church life. Over

the years of his involvement with the Moravians

in Germany, England, and Pennsylvania, Haidt

painted many biblical, historical, and allegorical

paintings, as well as hundreds of portraits; many of

his works survive in collections around the world.

This is the fi rst comprehensive biography of

Haidt, based on extensive archival research in

Germany and America.

Vernon H. Nelson was archivist of the Moravian

Church in America, Northern Province.


1700-1780

Paul Peucker describes former archivist Vernon Nelson’s work during a presentation in December.


years Vernon depended upon material found in European archives. Although he had visited the central archives of the Moravian Church in Herrnhut, Germany, in 1969 and 1989, he became a regular visitor after the fall of the Berlin Wall. For many years, especially during his retirement, Vernon researched at the Her-rnhut archives almost annually. He also did research at the Moravian Archives in London, and he visited some of the places where Haidt had lived. During a visit to England in 2002, he even located a long lost Haidt painting at Westminster College in Cambridge.

A few years ago Vernon shared with me his wish that the Archives finish his book on Haidt if he were unable to complete it himself. Did he perhaps foresee that he was running out of time to complete the book?

When Vernon died unexpectedly on Janu-ary 26, 2010, the book was still unfinished. According to his will he had determined that the manuscript was to go to the Moravian Ar-chives to be published had he not finished the book himself.

On his laptop computer a great number of files containing chapters, introductions, and

appendices in various stages was found. The Nelson family gave these files, together with his research notes, to the Moravian Archives in 2011. Based on an earlier draft it was pos-sible to reconstruct the book as he had envi-sioned it.

An ad-hoc committee was formed consist-ing of Susan Dreydoppel, Katherine Faull, Scott Gordon, Heikki Lempa, and Valerie Livingston to review the manuscript and to make recommendations on how to proceed. It was obvious that the book was still a work in progress; Vernon had wished to add more details to the manuscript if he had been given the chance. He had another research trip planned for the same year he passed away.

It was decided to put Vernon’s work into a form that could be printed and made acces-sible to the public. A year ago, we published a call in the Archives’ for volunteers to edit and design the book.


Dr. Paul Peucker is archivist for the Northern Province.

Archives Board President Mike Long presents a copy of “John Valentine Haidt: The Life of a Moravian Painter” to the late author’s brother, Donald Nelson.

The Moravian

To my great joy (and relief!), excellent volunteers immediately stepped forward. Dr. June Schlueter, emerita professor of English at Lafayette College, was willing to edit the text. June had taken Vernon’s German Script Course in the past so she knew him personal-ly. June cleaned up the text and made it clear, concise, and consistent by improving the flow and organization. Another volunteer was Dar-lene Schneck, a book designer in Staunton, Virginia, who had served on the board of the

Moravian Museum in Bethlehem. She turned the text and the images into a beautiful, at-tractive volume.

The goal was to finish the book before Christmas of 2012. Thanks to the hard work of June Schlueter and Darlene Schneck the Archives reached that goal. June delivered her draft of the edited version to me on Val-entine’s Day of 2012: an appropriate date for a book on a man with the same name. Valerie Livingston, art historian and friend of Ver-non’s, wrote an introduction to the book.

During the spring and summer we collect-ed the images that were to go into the book. I traveled to Herrnhut where Olaf Nippe helped me collect images from the collection there. In August Darlene Schneck started her design work. In September she was able to send me the first proofs. June Schlueter com-piled the index and we set a date for the book presentation.

The book is now finished. It is somewhat unusual to see someone’s life’s work finished when the author is no longer around to en-joy the results of his lifelong endeavor. It was Vernon’s desire that his work be edited and made available after his death. I trust we have answered his wish. May this book be a lasting

memorial to his life and merits.The 200-page Haidt biography features

100 color illustrations and is available in a limited run from the Moravian Archives for

$84.95. For more informa-tion about the Haidt book,

visit www.moravian churcharchives.org ■


Mike Long shares a copy of the new book

with June Schlueter who edited the text.

Moravian College Library Director David Schappert (right) discusses the new book with Donald Nelson.


OFFICIAL PROVINCIAL ELDERS’ NEWS

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, January 18-25, 2013The Moravian Church is privileged to join with Christians throughout the world in prayers for the unity of the Church during the week of January 18-25. The theme for this year, “What does God require of us?” is based on Micah 6:6-8.

Ecumenical Sunday, January 27, 2013The Provincial Elders’ Conferences request that congregations observe our ecumenical witness in the worship services on Sunday, January 27, 2013. In addition to prayers and themes for preaching, our ecumenical wit-ness is expressed in our participation in local and regional ecumenical service ministries and in councils of churches. Our church sup-ports financially this ecumenical witness with congregational pledges for local and state councils of churches and with support for the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA and the World Council of Churches.

Prayer Day for Retired Ministers, January 27, 2013The last Sunday in January has been desig-nated as a day of prayer for retired ministers. This is an opportunity to recognize with grati-tude the service our retired ministers and their spouses have rendered to the Church over the years.

NORTHERN PROVINCE

Banning, CaliforniaSister Vicki Jens-Page, who has been serv-ing as pastor of the Grace Moravian Church, Westland, Michigan, has accepted the call to serve as pastor of the Morongo Moravian Church, Banning, California. Sister Jens-Page will begin her new work January 31, 2013.

RetirementsBrother John McCarthy requested and was granted permission to retire from the active call of the Moravian Church effective Decem-ber 31, 2012.

Brother McCarthy was ordained a deacon of the Moravian Church June 21, 2003 and served the church in pastorates in Wisconsin (Lake Mills and Lakeview) and served under call to specialized ministry as a chaplain for HospiceCare, Inc..

The church is grateful for his six years of faithful service.

Brother George Richmond requested and was granted permission to retire from the active call of the Moravian Church effective April 1, 2013.

Brother Richmond was ordained a deacon of the Moravian Church July 22, 1973 in Georgetown, Guyana. In the Northern Prov-ince he has served pastorates in New York (John Hus) and Pennsylvania (Redeemer).

The church is grateful for his forty years of faithful service.

Elizabeth D. Miller Provincial Elders’ Conference

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34 The Moravian

OBITUARY

Brother Cedric Sydney Rodney, 88, of Win-ston-Salem, N.C. passed away November 20, 2012. He was born October 10, 1924 in Georgetown, Guyana in South America.

He graduated from Malone College in Can-ton, Ohio with a Bachelor of Religious Edu-cation degree. Later, he received a Master of Arts degree from John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. He also attended Moravian Theological Seminary in Bethlehem, Pennsyl-vania and was awarded the Doctor of Divinity degree. He completed additional post gradu-ate studies at Oxford University, Canterbury Ecumenical School in England and at Union Theological Seminary in New York City.

Brother Rodney was the pastor of St. Phil-ips Moravian Church in Winston-Salem, N.C.

from 1968 to 1976 and from 1984 to 2003. He also led other churches in Guyana, Ohio and Delaware. Dr. Rodney was a member of several boards in the Moravian Church: Salemtowne, Salem Academy and College, Moravian Theological Seminary, Old Salem, Moravian Historical Society and Historic Bethabara Park. Dr. Rodney also worked on the campus of Winston Salem State University for four decades which included the roles of Chaplain, faculty member, coordinator of the Youth for Christ Choir, chair of the Joseph N. Patterson Lecture Series, coordinator of the James A. Gray Lecture Series, and a member of numerous campus committees.

Brother Rodney is survived by his wife, Dr. Mae Lipscomb Rodney; three children from a previous marriage: Elise, Yvette and Cabot; four grandchildren and one great grandchild. A celebration of Brother Rodney’s life was held November 26, 2012 at Home Mora-vian Church. Burial followed in God’s Acre in Salem. ■

The Rev. Dr. Cedric Sydney Rodney

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Join us for a week-long celebration of the spirituality, heritage and beauty of Moravian music. The 24th Moravian Music Festival is a unique opportunity to gather and enjoy learning tunes old and new, hearing and presenting concerts, and worshiping together in an atmosphere of warm fellowship surrounded by music.

The 24th Moravian Music FestivalJuly 14-20, 2013 in Bethlehem, Pa.

For registration and program information, visit

www.MoravianMusicFestival.org

Come to sing, play, learn & listen!

moravian magazine january/february 2013

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