Moravian motto

[Margies3]

I was just looking up what the Moravian church teaches because it had been mentioned in a book I was reading and it occurred to me that I know absolutely nothing about that particular group. I don't really know a whole lot more now than I did when I started looking. If you have personal knowledge of this group, I'd be interested in your input.

In the meantime, one article I read said that the motto of the Moravian church is this....

"In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; and in all things, charity".

I don't know one other thing about that group - but I do know that I LIKE their motto. Whatcha think?

[Sam]

This saying has been attributed to St. Augustine and to others:

In necessariis unitas,
In dubiis libertas,
In omnibus autem caritas,
or
In essentials unity,
In doubtful things liberty,
But in all things love.

[Margies3]

This saying has been attributed to St. Augustine and to others:

In necessariis unitas,
In dubiis libertas,
In omnibus autem caritas,
or
In essentials unity,
In doubtful things liberty,
But in all things love.

That's interesting, Sam. Thanks. I'm guessing that this saying is not original to the Moravians, but just something that they have "adopted" as their own. I read it on Wickipedia.

[Timmy]

Is knowing what the essentials are an essential? :heeheehee

[pelathais]

The Moravian Brethren arose from the Czech and Moravian rebellions known as the Hussite Wars of the 1200-1300's. Jan Hus was a Czech (Bohemian) priest of the RCC faith who sought to free the Bohemians (Czechs and Moravians) from the German controlled Holy Roman Empire.

The Kingdom of Bohemia was very wealthy at the time. The capitol of Prague was the center of European learning and the rich silver mines at Kutna Hora were the principal source of coinage for all of Europe from Roman times up until the discovery of the Americas.

Hus believed the sacraments of communion, the bread and the wine, were symbolic and could not be turned into the literal "Corpus Christi" (body of Christ) by the RCC Mass. That was the primary point of controversy. The other points had to do with the ecclesiastical hierarchy that was responsible for channeling the wealth of Bohemia into German hands and ultimately into Northern Italy and Rome.

"Good King Wenceslas" of the Christmas song was a Bohemian king a couple of centuries before the advent of Hus and was noted for his piety and charitable acts throughout Europe. He became a hero of the Protestants after Luther's rebellion successfully stemmed the flow of the silver from Northern Europe into Italy. (Remember the old adage, "Follow the money").

For almost 200 years, the Bohemians successfully defended their freedoms. They innovated such military tactics as the "War Wagon" (Medieval "tanks") and massing companies of musketeers. But they were also troubled by their own internal divisions as the "Taborites (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taborites)" continually broke away seeking even more radical reforms than the "Ulraquists" (who demanded communion in "both kinds" - bread and wine, as a symbolic reminder of Christ's suffering).

When Wenceslas III was murdered by some of his own nobles who were under the pay of the King of Austria, the wars against the Empire were ended. Wenceslas was cut down in Moravia while organizing the resistance. His sister was married off to the Emperor's brother, John (the Blind) of Luxembourg, who was a good man and did much to try and heal the country. However, the "Kingship" was removed from Bohemia where kings had ruled for over 500 years and the crown was incorporated into Austria's crown until 1918.

The modern day Moravian Brethren trace their roots back to the time of this conflict though their doctrines today have also taken on the flavor of the Baptist movements since the 1600's. Thomas Fudge, author of "Christianity Without the Cross" did his doctoral research in the Hussite movement and the wars of that period. His bibliography of primary sources is considered a premier tool for the historian looking into these matters.