The ''Daily Watchwords'' () is an annual, globally distributed publication of the
Moravian Church
The Moravian Church, or the Moravian Brethren ( or ), formally the (Latin: "Unity of the Brethren"), is one of the oldest Protestant denominations in Christianity, dating back to the Bohemian Reformation of the 15th century and the original ...
.
It was started on 3 May 1728, and is now published in 50 languages, making it the oldest and most widely read
daily devotional
A daily devotional is a religious publication that provides a specific spiritual reading for each calendar day. Many daily devotionals take the form of one year devotional books, with many being tailored specifically for children, teenagers, stude ...
work in the world. The publication is traditionally in the form of a book or booklet, containing a selection of short bible verses, one for each day of a year.
Old Testament
The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...
texts, the "Watchwords", are chosen by lot annually in
Herrnhut from a collection of 1824 verses.
New Testament
The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
texts, the "Doctrinal Texts", are then selected to comment on the ''Watchwords''. Total annual circulation is over 1.5 million copies.
This is an ecumenical ministry of the worldwide
Moravian Unity that transcends confessional, political and racial barriers of all kinds.
Th
Moravian Daily Textsservice of the
Moravian Church in North America makes available by email each day's ''Watchwords''.
References
*Renkewitz, Heintz, ''Alle Morgen Neu'', Herrnhut, Bad Boll, 1972.
External links
Daily Watchwords – Moravian ChurchDaily Texts – Moravian Church
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Traditions of the Moravian Church
1728 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire
Christian devotional literature