Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from History of the Moravian Missions Among Southern Indian Tribes of the United States, Vol. 1
Moravian mission history is particularly rich in this field, for the Indians. Ever lay near to the hearts of the Moravian Breth ren - hearts filled with the great love of the Saviour. Histories of the labors of the Moravians among the northern tribes in the United States and Canada have been written, and _it is fitting that this story Of the Moravian missions among southern Indian tribes of the United States should be added, a history which has never before been written, except in outline. This mission, also, is a finished work of the Church, and, from that viewpoint, de serves to be written and read.
This story forms part of the early history of Wachovia, the Moravian settlement in North Carolina, which, in turn, is one of the main chapters in the history of that State.
The primary work of the Church of Christ is the spreading Of His Gospel. Methods do and should change; people change; times change. Fifty years ago, the farmer plowed his field with an Old-fashioned plow, drawn by a team Of horses or a yoke of oxen. He reaped the grain with a cradle, bound it by hand, and separated the grain from the chaff with a flail. The grain was ground between two millstones, and then the dough was baked in the fireplace. The result of this difficult process was bread.
Today, the farmer plows with a tractor, reaps his grain with a binder, threshes the wheat in a modern threshing machine, has it ground in a modern mill, and the housewife bakes it in an electric range. But note again, the result of this new process is bread. Thus, spiritual truth abides unchanged and man's need of this Bread of Life is exactly the same as ever it has been. This work, therefore, is not a mere recital Of the past, but lays claim to be an inspiration for the present and the future. What the Cherokee and the Creek needed was the Gospel; what every human heart today needs is the Gospel; the same Gospel in both cases - there is but one Gospel - the Grace of God in Christ for all men.
The composition Of this work has been extended over several years, the most laborious part being the translating of the Diary and correspondence Of the mission through the many years dur ing which these were written in the German. The increasing demands of a busy city pastorate crowded this work into the hours Of the night, when, in the quiet, it seemed as if the scenes of the history which follows were being re-enacted. The writer asks considerate judgment because the work could never occupy the main line of thought, time or strength.
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