Moravian Love That Changed the World

In August 1727, a fractured community of religious refugees gathered at Herrnhut, a small estate in Saxony owned by Count Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf. These Moravian believers had been bickering for years — divided by doctrine, nationality, and old grudges. They could barely stand to worship together.

Then something shifted. During a communion service on August 13, the Holy Spirit fell on that tired, quarrelsome group with such force that eyewitnesses said no one could tell who was weeping more. Former enemies embraced. Longtime rivals asked forgiveness on their knees. That single day launched a prayer vigil that continued unbroken for over a hundred years.

But what happened next revealed the depth of their transformation. The Moravians began sending missionaries to places no European church would touch — the slave plantations of the Caribbean, the frozen coasts of Greenland, the leper colonies of South Africa. Two young men even sold themselves into slavery in Suriname so they could share Christ with enslaved Africans. Their last words from the dock were reportedly, "May the Lamb that was slain receive the reward of His suffering."

The watching world took notice. John Wesley, encountering Moravian missionaries on a storm-tossed ship, was so struck by their love and courage that it reshaped his own faith journey.

Jesus told His disciples that the world would recognize them not by their theology or their eloquence, but by their love. At Herrnhut, a small band of forgiven people proved Him right.