Moravian Connection
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania was founded in 1741 by a group of Reformation-era Protestants from central Europe known as the Moravians. The Moravians were avid writers and faithful keepers of diaries; each member of a Moravian congregation was also charged with writing a kind of memoir called a lebenslauf, which translates into English as “course of life.”
In the spirit and tradition of the founders of the Moravian community in Bethlehem, the Moravian College Writers’ Conference will foster and celebrate writing as a valuable record of “the course of life.” Like the early Moravians, we will celebrate the power of the written word to shape our sense of self, our community and our world. We hope that this conference will also enhance awareness of the colonial-era Moravians, and of Bethlehem’s many cultural, artistic and historical riches.
Brief History of Moravian College
Moravian College has a long and rich history closely intertwined with the establishment of Bethlehem and Moravian theology and culture.
Tracing its founding to 1742, Moravian College is recognized as America’s sixth-oldest college. In 1732 settlers from Germany and Moravia (now a part of the Czech Republic) came to North America, and in 1741 they founded the community of Bethlehem on Christmas Eve. Then, as now, schools were seen by the Moravians as second in importance only to churches. In 1742, their concern for education led to the founding of the first girls’ boarding school in America. Originally known as the Bethlehem Female Seminary, it changed names as it grew in size and expanded its curriculum. Itwas incorporated in 1863 as the Moravian Seminary for Young Ladies and later became Moravian Seminary and College for women in 1913.
A boys’ school was also established in 1742, and later become Nazareth Hall Academy. In 1807, a men’s college and theological seminary was established as an extension of the boys’ school. That institution, Moravian Theological Seminary, moved to Bethlehem in 1858 and was renamed Moravian College and Theological Seminary.
In 1954, after a century-and-a-half of separate development and growth, the women’s and men’s institutions were combined to form a single coeducational college, with the Seminary maintaining a closely related, but academically distinct identity as a graduate school of theology. As a result of the merger, Moravian College became the Lehigh Valley area’s first coeducational institution.
The Moravian Tradition
The Moravian Church’s historic emphasis on education, and the vital role of education as an instrument of salvation, derives from the beliefs of its influential early bishop, John Amos Comenius (1592-1670). Moravian adherents believed that all human souls could find salvation, and thus all human beings needed to be educated as a means toward salvation. In a time when education in Western societies was generally limited to elite males, Comenius believed in education for males and females, poor and wealthy alike. Education was nearly as important as religious observance from an early time. In more recent times, Comenius has been credited as “the father of modern education.” His innovations include graded learning, education for women as well as men, using pictures in textbooks, and the encouragement of life-long learning.