moravians and slavery

", “But,” said the official, “that is impossible. In his study, A Separate Canaan: The Making of an Afro-Moravian World in North Carolina, 1763–1840, Jon J. Sensbach examines the motives of African Americans who sought and were granted membership in the Moravian fellowship. Later, in 1735, Moravian missionaries moved into Georgia but were unsuccessful. He shows that many of these converts did expect to shed their slave status. This brick structure, still in use, was consecrated in 1800. In the context of this overall pattern, the story of the enslaved people admitted to the fellowship of the Moravian community in Salem, North Carolina provides a poignant example. The former slave accepted, and his message stirred in the Moravians a deep commitment to go wherever God would send them. (Photo by Ellen Tucker shows Mr. Bill Cook, a volunteer guide at the St. Philip’s Heritage Center and African American History Museum, whose insights enriched this essay.). Raboteau writes that the would-be converts often expected that baptism would result in a change of their status. At the time, Bethlehem was considered one the most egalitarian communities in European North America, said Seth Moglen, a professor of English at Lehigh. The use of slave labor in the American South presented—not surprisingly—ethical challenges to those Christians committed to preaching the gospel to all. Anna Maria Samuel was admitted to membership in the Moravian Church in 1793 at the age of eleven. Adolescent Moravians were educated in gender-segregated communal homes called choirs, where they shared worship-centered social activities and were assigned and apprenticed to the various crafts and professions the community required. Moravians were active evangelists among the enslaved Africans in the Caribbean and among Native Americans, particularly in the area around Bethlehem, PA. The prospect of organizing the many German settlers of Lutheran, Reformed, and sectarian background into a union church was an additional factor … Landscape of Slavery. Those admitted to their communion shared a “kiss of peace” signifying their spiritual equality. The Hidden Town Project is focused on understanding the landscape of slavery in Salem and the individuals who were enslaved there. They went there in order to minister to the slaves on the island, even selling themselves as slaves in order to get access. Leaving Copenhagen on Oct 8, 1732, they arrived in St. Thomas two months later on December 13. This resulted in punishments that surprised and angered the enslaved. The first Moravian mission in the Americas was among black slaves in the West Indies (1732). The detailed Moravian records provide insight and information about the people and the changing nature of enslavement in the town. The Moravian Slaves, a popular story about Christian Missions concerning Johann Leonhard Dober and David Nitschmann, describes how these two young Moravian Brethren from Herrnhut, Germany, were called in 1732 to minister to the African slaves on the islands of St. Thomas and St. Croix in the Danish West Indies. Yes that’s right, “some” not all. This development in Salem coincided with the clandestine establishment of African American Methodist and Baptist congregations elsewhere in the South. Meanwhile, the communalist spirit of Salem was waning, and white Moravians were rebelling against the rule of elders and the bars to individual property acquisition—including personal ownership of slaves. When Moravians first arrived in the Caribbean, they were appalled that most slave owners rejected the prospect of slave conversion. [7], After returning from the West Indies, both men continued to serve in the Moravian church, and both were ordained as bishops. Allegedly, when they were told that they would not be allowed to do such a thing, Dober and Nitschmann sold themselves to a slave owner and boarded a ship bound for the West Indies. In the North, some kept slaves but it was common for Moravians to buy slaves with the intention of … The irony of that situation bore practical implications for the interrelationships between master, missionary, and slave. is speculative to some degree as i assume this type of information would generally not be mentioned in the original documentation. The story of the enslaved people admitted to the fellowship of the Moravian community in Salem, North Carolina, illustrates the contradictions inherent in a Southern culture identifying as Christian and reliant on slave labor. Finally, the core message of Christianity, especially as preached by the Moravians, meant that “masters were as sinful as [slaves] themselves,” Sensbach writes. Also the socalled “Sok… . Like all property in the community, the enslaved people would belong to  the community as a whole, preventing any single family from enriching themselves through trading in slaves. Like most colonists, Moravians accepted slavery in the 18th century and even brought to the colonies slaves who were converted in their Caribbean missions. Because of this, some proselytes’ request to be confirmed to membership would be frustrated for months or years, even though the would-be converts were dutifully undergoing Christian instruction. Traditionally, “preaching the gospel to all nations” meant that the Christian disciple was sent out with the gospel to the pagans. Written by Dr. C. Daniel Crews, Archivist and church historian, they tell of the beginning of Wachovia, from its first settlement of Bethabara in 1753 through the turmoil of the Revolutionary War and the peace of 1783, plus the Civil War period, 1860-1865, the twofold story of the Moravians and slavery and St. Philips Moravian Church, and the tragedy of the Cherokee Nation and the Moravian mission that served them. Both were skilled speakers and ready to sell themselves into slavery to reach the slaves of the West Indies. (Moravians were not allowed to engage in any trade with outsiders that had not been planned by the elders for the entire community’s benefit). The Christianization of Slavery. They needed a large labor force to execute their ambitious building projects while attending to basic food-production needs. "With impressive chronological and geographical breadth and a clear-eyed, transdenominational perspective, Christian Slavery reveals how the religious programs of early Quakers, Anglicans, and Moravians all became entangled with colonial slavery. In 1740 the group went to Pennsylvania and founded Nazareth and Bethlehem. From the time the first slave was purchased by Wachovia Moravians on Aug. 7, 1769, the black population lived, worked, and played in the same spaces occupied by their owners but in the shadows, going almost unnoticed in what has become known as Hidden Town. For their part, Africans newly arrived in America after the traumatic Middle Passage were seldom interested in adopting the white man’s faith. In the South, Moravians kept slaves and even segregated them in church services. Enslaved persons who converted to the faith would share the community’s moral views and behavior. Educated in this communal way, Moravians were conditioned to a uniform moral code and a shared worship practice that emphasized simplicity and the fellowship of all believers. The Moravians, who called themselves the Unity of Brethren, were theologically descended from Jan Hus’s 15th century attempt to reform Bohemian Catholicism yet related in other ways to the pietistic strain in Lutheranism. He and Nitschmann thought that in that way they would be able to reach them in their pitiful condition and tell them the way of salvation. As the ship pulled away from the docks, it is said that they called out to their loved ones on shore, "May the Lamb that was slain receive the reward of His suffering!" Because evangelists like Whitefield and Wesley presented the gospel in simple, yet emotive language (rather than in the more theologically technical diction of the Anglican liturgy and catechism), enslaved people with limited education could grasp it more easily. By Brandon Griffin — ; Published April 24, 2016, 7:56 pm Lifestyle. Dober remained in Europe, but Nitschmann traveled with John Wesley and helped to found the mission at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. It’s excellent for getting a feel of the full geographical range of all the mentioned ethnicities, however it should be noted that this regional breakdown (“Senegambia”, “Sierra Leone”, “Windward Coast” etc.) During the first year of the Civil War, a new brick church was built for the black congregation. Today a reconstruction of this church, housing an informative exhibit about slave life in Salem, stands on the original site in Historic Old Salem. Gospel Message of Great Awakening Reaches Those Enslaved in North America Despite the Moravian preference for simplicity, instrumental music was an important part of Moravian worship. The Moravians’ origins. On January 1, 1863, the Emancipation Proclamation would go into effect declaring freedom for some slaves. Christ loved . from the archive of Moravian slavery and to make them central to a history of the present that pursues the unfinished project of equality. … The conversion process involved a series of steps that had to be confirmed by the Moravian elders’ use of the Old Testament-based practice of drawing lots to determine God’s will. Into All the World . Dober answered that they themselves were willing to become slaves. It will not be allowed. A enslaved man’s joking familiarity with Moravian youth might rebound on him in a beating. Hus was a Catholic priest in what is now the Czech Republic. While in the St. Thomas, they lived frugally and preached to the slaves, and they had a certain amount of success. “Christian Slavery” shows how Protestant missionaries in the early modern Atlantic World developed a new vision for slavery that integrated Christianity with human bondage. During the American Revolution, enslaved people heard news of British commander Cornwallis’ promise to emancipate those who fled to his lines. (p. 120). [6] By 1734 they had both returned to Germany, but other Moravian missionaries continued the work, establishing churches on St. Thomas, St. Croix, St. John’s, Jamaica, Antigua, Barbados, and St. Kitts. Rejecting the links between temporal and spiritual freedom, Moravians simultaneously “created an alternative hierarchy that placed true Christians, black or white, over all others, black or white” and reified the centrality of slavery to the standing social order (155). Moravian neighbors, one missionary community serving the North from its seat in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and the other serving the South from Salem, North Carolina, and neither participating in civic or military life. Inside the new brick church (today part of the African American History exhibit at Old Salem), several hundred African Americans gathered on May 21, 1865, to hear a Union cavalry chaplain announce their emancipation. Between 1856 and 1858, the town officials abolished the lease system, subdivided lots in the town, and began selling them off. Before transitioning from this apprenticeship into independent family units, their marriages had to be approved by the ruling council of elders. Some of the very first Moravian missionaries went to the Caribbean island of St Thomas. On October 8,1732, a Dutch ship left the Copenhagen harbor bound for the Danish West Indies. The disappointment of these hopes among black Moravians occurred more gradually than in the case of many other slave groups. In … [1][2]. "—Travis Glasson, Temple University "In case we thought that North American problems with slavery were homegrown, Katharine Gerbner shows in … Anna Maria Samuel’s three brothers–Christian, John, and Jacob–played classical violin for the black congregation. The Moravian Church has been around for over 500 years. The church held its last service at this location in 1952. Still, all were held accountable to the needs of the community and the decisions of the elders. . No white man ever works as a slave.”, “Very well,” replied Nitschmann, “I am a carpenter, and will ply my trade.”[5], After some difficulty, the missionaries found support from the Danish Queen and her court, and although the Danish West Indian Company refused to grant them passage, a ship was eventually procured. Although their work was to be severely hampered by the distrust and hostil-ity that pervaded the plantation atmosphere, the Moravians readily accepted the institution of slavery that was at … Quaker, Anglican, and Moravian missionaries arrived in the Caribbean intending to “convert” enslaved She became part of the Older Girls Choir, moving into the Sisters House on Salem square (Photo of an exhibit in Historic Old Salem). It also meant that, while “mankind had been granted a blanket pardon . As such, it provided a source of community support for its small membership, even despite the white minister who supervised services. The Moravian missionaries were the first large scale Protestant missionary movement. A real need for “spiritual anchoring” in a world where black servants had been separated from their own traditional spiritual practices, and were often separated from family members, also operated. Sensbach argues that instances of runaways during this time were probably motivated by this news. As the shi… The story of the Moravians begins more than 300 years before John Wesley’s day with would-be church reformer Jan Hus. the enslaved and dispossessed, not in spite of their disinheritedness, but because of it” (105–106). By 1822 the hostility of some white Moravians was so pronounced that the elders of Salem decided to create a separate worship space for black Moravians. After the Civil War, its members, now freedmen, helped to organize one of the first schools for African American children in North Carolina. I am not aware of any other initiative within the Moravian Church that seeks reckon with or address slavery and the slave trade, nor to come to terms with the church’s own involvement in slavery. Photo by Ellen Tucker. One of the best Christian stories ever told is the life of two Moravian Missionaries who sold themselves as slaves to preach the Gospel. Other aspects of life with the Moravians seemed unfair. In response, Quaker, Anglican, and Moravian missionaries articulated a vision of "Christian Slavery," arguing that Christianity would make slaves hardworking and loyal. In America the reverse was the case: the pagan slave was brought to a Christian disciple who was frequently reluctant to instruct him in the gospel. Hus took the then-radical step of offering the cup of Communion to laity. Did Moravian Missionaries really sell themselves into Slavery? Yet those who were enslaved often claimed this rough social parity in a way that surprised and angered the Moravians. Allegedly, when they were told that they would not be allowed to do such a thing, Dober and Nitschmann sold themselves to a slave owner and boarded a ship bound for the West Indies. It took on new meaning for African Americans on New Year’s Eve of 1862. After settling in Pennsylvania in 1741, they sent small groups to found settlements elsewhere in the British colonies. Click the link to learn more. Then, over the course of a few decades, economic and civic circumstances forced the Moravians in North America to adapt their Millions survived the Middle Passage and the experience of bondage Some enslaved people, after being admitted to full communion with the Moravians, felt the injustice of their slave status more keenly and began challenging it, either in attitudes the Moravians thought “ungrateful” or in clandestine behavior, like stealing community property to engage in secret trading. Some assert that Dober and Nitschmann did this but produce no supporting evidence or sources to support the claim. Professor discusses history of slavery in Bethlehem. [4] When asked by a court official how they would support themselves, Nitschmann replied, “We shall work as slaves among the slaves. The worldwide influence of the 18th century Moravian missionaries was extraordinary. Such labor came at less than half the cost of the hired white labor, and the Moravians at first found the enslave Africans more tractable. Journal of Moravian History black slaves in the Danish West Indies, would begin. . Younger generations of Moravians, born and raised in the South, were adopting Southern racist attitudes. Moravian missionaries baptized 13,000 converts before any other missionaries arrived on the scene. Membership gradually shrank as congregants were drawn toward churches in the larger African American community with a more vibrant worship style. Moravia, incidentally, was a Czech region. Over time, missionaries increasingly used the language of race to support their arguments for slave conversion. "—Travis Glasson, Temple University "In case we thought that North American problems with slavery were homegrown, Katharine Gerbner shows in … Yet even as slave expectations of membership became more modest, the commitment of white Moravians to a biracial spiritual fellowship shrank. In 1823 a log church was built for the African American community in the Salem area. The black congregation would be led by a white minister whose role was, in large part, to preach a version of the faith that emphasized obedience to one’s assigned station in life. and had died especially to save . The Moravians adopted the Southern slave culture somewhat reluctantly. Expanding the Archive: Enslaved Afro-Moravians and their Memoirs The expansion of the archive remains a top priority for historians of slav-ery. Moravians are originally from ancient Bohemia and Moravia in what is the present-day Czech Republic (“A brief history,”). The Moravian mission to the West Indies was concerned with the slave popu lation to the almost total exclusion of others, and the rmssionatries, in their attitude towards slavery and their dealings with the slaves, present to the historian an unusu/al aspect of West Indian society in … Still, colonial divines like Cotton Mather thought it incumbent upon slaveholders to bring their slaves into the faith and thereby assure the salvation of their souls. They raised objections to sharing the kiss of peace at baptism, sharing benches in worship, and admitting black young people into the adolescent choir groups. The Moravian Slaves, a popular story about Christian Missions concerning Johann Leonhard Dober and David Nitschmann, describes how these two young Moravian Brethren from Herrnhut, Germany, were called in 1732 to minister to the African slaves on the islands of St. Thomas and St. Croix in the Danish West Indies. Raboteau’s book details the resultant complex process in which African Americans gave the faith their own distinctive style and emphasis—in part by infusing it with cultural attitudes and practices brought from Africa and in part by focusing on a tenet of the faith that marginalized people have always grasped more readily than Christians in more fortunate circumstances: that God, in the person of Jesus Christ, redeemed humanity by suffering as humanity suffers.

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