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He wonders who these Moravians may be, and wonders, as a rule, in vain, proposes Hutton of the ordinary Englishman. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An unbiased account of the "first" refomation in Europe
I read this book, because I am doing personal research on the origin of Wesley's"Second Work of Grace" (so-called) and the Pentecostal doctrine and belief in present day outward baptism of the Holy Spirit. I have always been an admirer of the Ana-Baptists, which the Moravians are not, but have come to be uncomfortable with their tendencies towards outward pietism, chialist views of the Kingdom, and social justice Christianity. John Wesley was much affected by the Moravians he encountered on a voyage across the Atlantic ocean. It appears that this Wesley was not quite a convert himself (his own opinion) when he went to Georgia to convert the Indians and colonists. However, the Wesley brothers eventually came to have bitter disagreements with the Moravians over the decades that followed, reconciling only in their later years. This was quite interesting to me, to see how at odds Charles Wesley was with Zinzendorf in particular.

Mr.Hutton does a very good job of piecing together the aberrant as well as the fundamental views of the Bohemian reformation movement, later called Moravian. He appears to leave no stone unturned in his effort to acquaint us with the origin of, the idiosyncrasies, and mistakes of the Moravian church and it's leaders.

My only complaint is his infidelity to chronological order in his story. One is thrust back in time on several occasions, to pick up a strand left behind in a previous chapter.

Overall, the author appears to be very trustworthy. He both praises and faults Zinzendorf as well as exposing the many errors in both teaching, hymnody, and practice. His analysis of the inclusiveness and the centralization of the missionary efforts of the visible Moravian church show us plainly that when men attempt to improve themselves through self imposed separation and discipline, they always resist the will of the Holy Spirit. The tendency toward isolationism and, simultaneously, a lack of proselytizing almost doomed the church many times.

My view of Zinzendorf is much affected by this book and I realize, more than ever, that there is no perfect or faultless man on the earth. At the same time, while I admire much of what the Moravian church (Unitas Fratum) did and attempted, they were almost self-defeating in their open mindedness toward both Protestant and Catholic believers. They were the most ecumenical of churches, but therein lay their biggest problem: the point of their beliefs and doctrines were muddled. While they were widely admired for their morality and integrity, they were, it seems, much too focused on temporal appearances and self-sufficiency and ironically, dependency on the "Lot", which became their rule rather than a tool to determine the will of God in only the most difficult situations.

A very broad, yet very detailed history of this troubled and yet admirable movement. The author includes the doctrinal stance of the present day Moravian church, which is indicative of the long term affect of the historical views and teachings of their founder, Count Zinzendorf. I admire their declaration of "In Essentials, Unity, In Non-Essentials, Liberty, and In All Things, Love", but they also adhere to the Augsburg Confession. This is confusing to me, since they affirm both the Lutheran and Anglican views and yet consider themselves members of neither church. Yet, those they "converted" they compelled to remain in or return to their original churches. Interestingly, the Augsburg Confession denounces the Ana-Baptist theology regarding the sacraments. Indeed, the Moravian church emphasizes experiential Christianity, that is, inner feelings and revelations as well as outward emotional raptures. In that regard they seem to have predated the current charismatics and the Quietism.

In short, this is an very interesting and fairly concise history of this movement. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a better understanding of the church that actually predates the Ana-Baptists and was inspired into existence by the teaching and martyrdom of John Hus. I did wonder what the author's relationship was to one of the principles in the English mission, another James Hutton, but that is hardly relevant due to the apparent transparency of the author regarding each person's human flaws.

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"He wonders who these Moravians may be, and wonders, as a rule, in vain," proposes Hutton of the ordinary Englishman. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

An honest and surprisingly unbiased history
I read this book, because I am doing personal research on the origin of Wesley's"Second Work of Grace" (so-called) and the Pentecostal doctrine and belief in present day outward baptism of the Holy Spirit. I have always been an admirer of the Ana-Baptists, which the Moravians are not, but have come to be uncomfortable with their tendencies towards outward pietism, chialist views of the Kingdom, and social justice Christianity. John Wesley was much affected by the Moravians he encountered on a voyage across the Atlantic ocean. It appears that this Wesley was not quite a convert himself (his own opinion) when he went to Georgia to convert the Indians and colonists. However, the Wesley brothers eventually came to have bitter disagreements with the Moravians over the decades that followed, reconciling only in their later years. This was quite interesting to me, to see how at odds Charles Wesley was with Zinzendorf in particular.

Mr.Hutton does a very good job of piecing together the aberrant as well as the fundamental views of the Bohemian reformation movement, later called Moravian. He appears to leave no stone unturned in his effort to acquaint us with the origin of, the idiosyncrasies, and mistakes of the Moravian church and it's leaders.

My only complaint is his infidelity to chronological order in his story. One is thrust back in time on several occasions, to pick up a strand left behind in a previous chapter.

Overall, the author appears to be very trustworthy. He both praises and faults Zinzendorf as well as exposing the many errors in both teaching, hymnody, and practice. His analysis of the inclusiveness and the centralization of the missionary efforts of the visible Moravian church show us plainly that when men attempt to improve themselves through self imposed separation and discipline, they always resist the will of the Holy Spirit. The tendency toward isolationism and, simultaneously, a lack of proselytizing almost doomed the church many times.

My view of Zinzendorf is much affected by this book and I realize, more than ever, that there is no perfect or faultless man on the earth. At the same time, while I admire much of what the Moravian church (Unitas Fratum) did and attempted, they were almost self-defeating in their open mindedness toward both Protestant and Catholic believers. They were the most ecumenical of churches, but therein lay their biggest problem: the point of their beliefs and doctrines were muddled. While they were widely admired for their morality and integrity, they were, it seems, much too focused on temporal appearances and self-sufficiency and ironically, dependency on the "Lot", which became their rule rather than a tool to determine the will of God in only the most difficult situations.

A very broad, yet very detailed history of this troubled and yet admirable movement. The author includes the doctrinal stance of the present day Moravian church, which is indicative of the long term affect of the historical views and teachings of their founder, Count Zinzendorf. I admire their declaration of "In Essentials, Unity, In Non-Essentials, Liberty, and In All Things, Love", but they also adhere to the Augsburg Confession. This is confusing to me, since they affirm both the Lutheran and Anglican views and yet consider themselves members of neither church. Yet, those they "converted" they compelled to remain in or return to their original churches. Interestingly, the Augsburg Confession denounces the Ana-Baptist theology regarding the sacraments. Indeed, the Moravian church emphasizes experiential Christianity, that is, inner feelings and revelations as well as outward emotional raptures. In that regard they seem to have predated the current charismatics and the Quietism.

In short, this is an very interesting and fairly concise history of this movement. I would recommend it to anyone who wants a better understanding of the church that actually predates the Ana-Baptists and was inspired into existence by the teaching and martyrdom of John Hus. I did wonder what the author's relationship was to one of the principles in the English mission, another James Hutton, but that is hardly relevant due to the apparent transparency of the author regarding each person's human flaws.

History of the Moravian Church
I found this to be an excellent book for people who do not know anything about the Moravian Church.It is very well written and easy to read.

The next best thing to being there
J. E. Hutton has a wonderful flowing style and a slightly whimsical manner as he journeys the road that led to one of the most powerful expressions of church that the history of Christianity has seen in the Moravian revival. I found it immensely readable and inspirational. ... Read more

Product Description
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process.We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This inviting book explores the Christmas celebrations of the Moravian Church in the South, whose members were marking the holiday as early as the 1780s in ways recognizable to modern Americans. This abundantly illustrated volume explores the many facets of traditional Moravian Christmas celebrations, including decorations (such as the idiosyncratic "Putz"), food and beverages, gifts, services, and music. Thomas discusses how these traditions evolved over time, within and outside the Moravian communities, as well as how certain non-Moravian Christmas traditions were incorporated into the Moravian customs. Includes 128 color illus. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

My book review
This was a nice book that my grandmom had at her house. There was nothing to do because everyone was yelling about the turkey being bad and mom had too much of her medicine so I went upstairs and was reading this book. Its sad what they did to the moravians but it was interesting to learn why they got kicked out of Pennslavania and about George Washinton. The pictures were pretty too.

A Popular and Scholarly work on Christmas
This is a beautifully produced 'Christmas book', with many vintage and modern photographs related to the Moravian observance of Christmas in American South: the churches where they worshipped ,their Christmas trees, and decorations as well as photographs of secular Christmas features contemporary with the period covered; roughly 1750's - 1950.The author provides a brief history of the "Moravians in the South",proceeds to provide an interesting and entertaining description of the Moravian Christmas. One might consider this a nice Social History of the Southern Moravian Christmas experience: It is not just that these folks put up decorations and baked buns but that, those things were 'of a piece' with their Christian Faith and how it related to their church family and community. But this is NOT a religious production.

The author has taken pains - awkwardly, I believe - to glide over the seriouslyChristocentric mindsetof the Moravians, that would have informed their celebration of Christmas. She statesshe is not a "theological person" or of Moravian background. This is fair enough. But Moravians did not celebrate Christmas because they were of a "whatever""religious bent". Perhaps Ms.Smith - Thomas did not want to offend those of other faiths or of no faith. In which case, CHRISTmas is not the subject one ought to write about.

This is a popular but scholarly work. The narrative will be interesting to adults but the photographs will be appreciated by children as well. There is a substantive Bibliography,footnotes, index and photography credits.

The book is bound in a deep red cloth (real cloth not paper) with gilt printing on the spine.

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Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Moravians Know Church Muisc!

Visit any Moravian church on any given Sunday and you will hear outstanding sacred music.No wonder this hymnal, new but now a decade old, is so very fine.It has all of the traditional hymns that an historic protestant denomination would expect to sing, and it has many of the best-loved new hymns from the past fifty or so years.All were thoroughly researched and congregation-tested and they will stand the test of time.

You will enjoy having this hymnal even if you are not a Moravian, for their traditional repertoire has some very singable hymns from their early days.It also presents some new hymns that fill a need in the hymn repertoire not met heretofore. For example:

#389 "All Who Have Gone Before Us" WIR PFLUGEN, offers the congregation a wonderful way to sing about those who have entered the Church Triumphant in words that are comforting and scripturally sound.

#443 "May God's Love Be Fixed Above You!" LAUDA ANIMA, is a blessing or benediction which has almost an Irish "May the road rise to meet you..." sensitivity.

#632 "God, Renew Us By Your Spirit" RESTORATION, is a hymn for God-led renewal.What a refreshing idea in an era when renewal in our churches tends to be driven by other forces!

#665 "Bless All Those Who Nurture Children" HYMN TO JOY, is just about the best hymn ever for celebrating teacher dedication, sung to the tune for "Joyful Joyful We Adore Thee".It honors teachers beautifully.

Every Moravian congregation has this hymnal--it is part of their denomination's polity to do so when a new hymnal is produced.Would that other denominations followed that wise course!

If you find this review helpful you might want to read some of my other reviews, including those on subjects ranging from biography to architecture, as well as religion and fiction.
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Product Description
The Moravian Church stands firmly within mainstream Protestant tradition; John Wesley used to belong to the Moravian Church.This is an introduction to how the Moravian Church relates to other denominations, particularly Methodism. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

solid information
This book, although dry, is a must for anyone who desires to know more about the Moravian church and its missions. The ultimate in general knowledge. ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1870.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

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Other ISBNs in this set include: 0548808279. ... Read more

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Publisher: London : Moravian Publication OfficePublication date: 1908Subjects: Moravian ChurchMoravian ChurchHymns, EnglishNotes: This is an OCR reprint. There may be numerous typos or missing text. There are no illustrations or indexes.When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. You can also preview the book there. ... Read more

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Publisher: Philadelphia : J.B. Lippincott ... Read more