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5. THE MORAVIANS: A CRITIQUE
5.1.1 WEAKNESSES
Apart from some of the weaknesses of the missions already mentioned, the main weaknesses are two-fold. Firstly their weakness as an historical movement was that they concentrated more on evangelism to the neglect of planting local churches. This further weakened them in the area of developing Christian leadership. Secondly, another area of weakness could be seen in their debts. During the years in England (1749 to 1755) Zinzendorf's property holdings dwindled, mainly through expenses on missions for the Moravians. With his constant sending of missionaries, he soon found himself bankrupt. His debts of $773 162, nearly threatened disaster and dissolution. They were later assumed by the Moravian body with the heirs of Zinzendorf paid $90 000. This now made the Moravian Church the owner of the Zinzendorf estates. The debts, although a big blot and a disappointment, were repented of and gradually discharged by 1800.
5.2. STRENGTHS
The big strength of the Moravians and Zinzendorf was that they were constantly on the look-out for new areas of ministry and made the most of every opportunity. The Count's time was occupied in directing and controlling these various missions from the home-base. He also adopted the policy of sending out exploratory agents to report back on new fields for labour. Many of his trusted colleagues were sent out into many places around the world. Some went to Lapland and to Ceylon, to Turkey and Algiers, to Wallachia and West Africa, to the Calmucks (Kalmyks) and the Samozedes. He dispatched a party to Livonia in 1743; two doctors to Persia in 1747; a colleague to Labrador in 1752; he sent three to Abyssinia in 1756. Truly, the world was their mission field.
All of these were to spy out the distant lands for hungry souls and to prepare the way for missionaries to follow. Loane comments that: "Zinzendorf's world-wide plans for the spread of the Gospel were far in advance of the vision of most churches in that generation". Missionaries were well trained before going and were encouraged to learn the language without any of the modern aids. A number of these trained men and women became outstandingly proficient and fluent at these foreign languages.
Zinzendorf's last few years were spent in pastoral activities. He died at Herrnhut on May 9, 1760. By the time of his death, the Moravians, in twenty-eight years of activity, sent out 226 missionaries. In 1760 there were also forty-nine serving in thirteen stations in Greenland, North and Central America, and the West Indies, with responsibility for 6 125 people. This was in addition to the Diaspora societies and the settlements in England, North America, and on the continent. In 1800 the Brethren had 161 missionaries active and some 24 000 people connected with the mission posts. In his lifetime Zinzendorf was instrumental in seeing many missionaries sent out and a harvest of souls beyond his original dreams of 1715, with The Order of the Grain of Mustard Seed covenant.
A large part of the Moravian impact "was its catalytic role in sparking missionary vision in other groups through its example and Diaspora witness". Moravian influence may be seen in the founding of Methodism, the Basel and Liepzig missionary societies in Europe and the London and Baptist missionary societies in England.
William Wilberforce, wrote of the Moravians:
They are a body who have perhaps excelled all mankind in solid and unequivocal proofs of the love of Christ and ardent, active zeal in his service. It is a zeal tempered with prudence, softened with meekness and supported by a courage which no danger can intimidate and a quiet certainty no hardship can exhaust.
They are a body who have perhaps excelled all mankind in solid and unequivocal proofs of the love of Christ and ardent, active zeal in his service. It is a zeal tempered with prudence, softened with meekness and supported by a courage which no danger can intimidate and a quiet certainty no hardship can exhaust.
The early missionaries that were sent out were mainly "tent-makers". They worked with their trades, with most of them farmers or artisans. These people were thrusted out, often with little money, except enough to reach their destination. They were expected to be self-supporting. This unique feature made it possible for such a large percentage to serve as foreign missionaries. Voluntary giving was insufficient, according to the Moravians, to finance the task of world evangelisation. Their goal then, was for Christians to be missionaries while pursuing their vocations.
As far as their function in society was concerned, they should be seen according to Beaver, as primarily,
messengers, evangelists, [and] preachers, who were not to stress heavy theological doctrines but rather tell the simple gospel storey of God's loving act of reconciliation of men to himself in Christ our Saviour, who lived and died for all men.
messengers, evangelists, [and] preachers, who were not to stress heavy theological doctrines but rather tell the simple gospel storey of God's loving act of reconciliation of men to himself in Christ our Saviour, who lived and died for all men.
They were, however, a relatively closed community with European control and a diaspora, rather than a group with a denominational outlook. Although this may be considered a fault of the Moravians, the group still had a great impact on the world. This philosophy kept the denomination small, whilst still having a great impact on the people and the churches around them. This could be seen as a major strength then, and not a weakness at all.
After the death of Zinzendorf the leadership was assumed by Spangenberg in 1762 when he was called back from America. He continued for thirty years until his death (1792). His leadership was not equal in genius to the Count, but was marked by his devotion, great practical sense, and high organisational abilities. The Moravians were strengthened during this time and grew as a result of the firm foundation for missions laid down by Zinzendorf.
6. CONCLUSION
The energies and output of the Moravians from 1722 to 1762, for their day and age, was phenomenal. This was mainly due to the administration and leadership abilities of Zinzendorf. From the inception of the community in 1722, with the founding of Herrnhut, it became a model of missions for the whole world. The key to the motivation for missions within the community can definitely be traced to the effects of the Spirit's working in the community on August, 13, 1727. The ensuing unity and peace among the Herrnhuters meant that the community could live together with one sole purpose, to see people won for Christ world-wide. This is remarkable considering the three hundred people that were residing there, in 1727, came from many different denominations.
The energies and output of the Moravians from 1722 to 1762, for their day and age, was phenomenal. This was mainly due to the administration and leadership abilities of Zinzendorf. From the inception of the community in 1722, with the founding of Herrnhut, it became a model of missions for the whole world. The key to the motivation for missions within the community can definitely be traced to the effects of the Spirit's working in the community on August, 13, 1727. The ensuing unity and peace among the Herrnhuters meant that the community could live together with one sole purpose, to see people won for Christ world-wide. This is remarkable considering the three hundred people that were residing there, in 1727, came from many different denominations.
Zinzendorf had great effect among the people. His formative years were crucial. His inspiring stories of overseas opportunities in Greenland, and the plight of Negroes in St. Thomas in 1731 spurred the people at Herrnhut to service. The first missionaries sent were Dober and Nitschmann to St. Thomas. Many followed these two. Some of the main missions established by the Moravians were St. Croix, Greenland, Great Britain, North America, South Africa, South America and Labrador.
Another aspect of their mission was to so permeate other denominations that churches would be revived. This was their ideal which bore much fruit as they aroused devotion to Christ among the churches and scattered themselves to distant places, infiltrating many denominations as they went. The main strengths, then, can be seen not only in the numbers of missionaries sent out, but the diversity and numbers of places that they went out to. They were also crucial in laying the foundations for the Great Evangelical Revival and many mission organisations to follow.
These missions, although very successful on the one hand, did have some failures on the other. They incurred many obstacles such as persecution, libels from other Christians, early deaths of missionaries and very harsh environments to work in. They incurred large debts in the later life of Zinzendorf which hampered missionary efforts for forty years while the Moravians paid off the debt. In short, the Moravians were not perfect.
The Moravians were a mobile "tent maker" group who went out to the different places with little money, but expecting to be self-supporting as they relied upon God for His provision. This helped Zinzendorf to send so many people out when the various needs on the mission fields arose. They were often led to the most difficult and dangerous places. This soon became a characteristic of their fearlessness, to go to the uttermost places of the earth.
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