Moravian Mission Machine: DVD

My dear wife and I found this portrayal instructive. Well done retracing the history and development of the Moravian movement, both European and American, it was a wonderfully challenging call to follow them as they zealously followed God. As we watched it for the third time in as many years, we again appreciated their hearts, the goals they set for themselves, and something of why Dean noted that it lasted a mere “20 years.” One of our takeaways was how despite their love and earnestness they constructed their own Tradition of the Elders, not perceiving how this would hamper their fruitfulness. Both men and women were to limit their clothing to what was drab and lifeless, quite the opposite of their Father’s creativity and beauty. The women wore head coverings that looked like they hid shaved baldness. Does that attract others, to a colorless Savior? John Wesley confessed that he had missed the opportunity to emulate them, yet he brought shame / dishonor on himself by wearing women’s tresses. We liked the video but wondered, although many Moravians were married, if they took vows of celibacy, since no children were mentioned – until the very end. Unanswered questions include, After such intensity of devotion, such commitment to long-term prayer, sacrifice, and following without compromise, why do they also come across as passionate but rigid and joyless?