God's Acre
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God's Acre is a churchyard, specifically the burial ground. The word comes from the
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
word ''Gottesacker'' (''Field of God''), an ancient designation for a burial ground. The use of "Acre" is related to, but not derived from the
unit of measurement A unit of measurement, or unit of measure, is a definite magnitude (mathematics), magnitude of a quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same kind of quantity. Any other qua ...
and can be of any size. In the early 17th century the term was used as a translation of the German, but by the end of the century, it was accepted as an English term. American Congregationalist poet
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include the poems " Paul Revere's Ride", '' The Song of Hiawatha'', and '' Evangeline''. He was the first American to comp ...
wrote an 1842 poem called "God's Acre" which referenced this term. While used to refer to graveyards generally in English, the term is used particularly among communicants 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 ...
in parts of
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, but not in the Moravian independent provinces of Alaska and Labrador/Newfoundland.


In Christianity

In
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, prior to the 19th century, most parish churches were surrounded by a burial ground. Particularly in the 19th century, the churchyard was referred to by a number of gentle, less stark terms, including "God's Acre". The term is less used today but is still employed when drawing attention to the field-like quality rather than the disposal function. For example, the God's Acre Project is a national (UK) project which "recognises churchyards and cemeteries as significant areas for flora, fauna and social history and seeks to provide advice and guidance for their management".


Moravians

It has become the traditional name given to the graveyards of Congregations 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 ...
. The first Moravian God's Acre was begun in 1730 on the western slope of the ''Hutberg'' (“Hill of Watching”) at
Herrnhut Herrnhut (; ; ; Upper Lusatian: ''Harrnhutt'', ''Harrnutt'') is a town of around 6,000 inhabitants in Upper Lusatia, in the district of Görlitz, in eastern Saxony, Germany. The town is mainly known as the place of origin of the community of t ...
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in
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, the Moravian Mother Congregation. As the Moravian Church spread around the world, they laid out their graveyards on hilltops, also calling them ''Hutberg'' and naming the graveyard ''God's Acre''. The name comes from the belief that the bodies of the dead are "sown as seed" in God's Acre, as in a field, so that they can rise again when
Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
returns to the world. God's Acre is not literally one
acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...
in size; many are larger or smaller. Moravians believe strongly in equality, even in death; therefore, every stone in a God's Acre is a recumbent stone of the same material with the same proportions so that no one person stands out among the stones. The
Communion of Saints The communion of saints (Latin: , ), when referred to persons, is the spiritual union of the members of the Christian Church, living and the dead, but excluding the damned. They are all part of a single " mystical body", with Christ as the head, ...
is continued even on the graveyard as it reflects the continuity of the congregation. In addition, the deceased are buried by ''choir''; to the Moravians, these were the living groups into which the Congregation was originally divided to meet the needs of the members according to their age and station in life. Originally, men and women sat in their choir groups in church at worship. The burial by choir in God's Acre also reflects the way the members of the congregation sat as a worshipping community so that visually and symbolically the Congregation continues in the graveyard. Along with being separated by gender, there are also sections for people of different ages and marital statuses. The typical configuration has sections for infant girls and infant boys, girls and boys, single men and single women, and married men and married women. The deceased are buried in their respective section in the order they have died. Smaller God's Acres may combine the infant and children sections. Some larger God's Acres, such as the Salem Moravian Graveyard in Old Salem,
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
, may also have separate sections for those who are
cremated Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a corpse through Combustion, burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India, Nepal, and ...
, as their remains take up less space than those who are buried with their bodies intact. In addition to the God's Acre on the Hutberg in
Herrnhut Herrnhut (; ; ; Upper Lusatian: ''Harrnhutt'', ''Harrnutt'') is a town of around 6,000 inhabitants in Upper Lusatia, in the district of Görlitz, in eastern Saxony, Germany. The town is mainly known as the place of origin of the community of t ...
there are striking God's Acres in almost every Moravian Congregation, including in Chelsea Moravian Burial Ground (part of
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
) in the United Kingdom, Bethania in North Carolina and Koenigsfeld in the Black Forest of Germany. Many God's Acres also feature arched entrance
gate A gate or gateway is a point of entry to or from a space enclosed by walls. The word is derived from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*gatan'', meaning an opening or passageway. Synonyms include yett (which comes from the same root w ...
s inscribed with an appropriate
Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...
verse along the top; if there is more than one entrance, each gate will usually have a verse above it. There is also the
Good Friday Good Friday, also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday, or Friday of the Passion of the Lord, is a solemn Christian holy day commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary (Golgotha). It is observed during ...
tradition of cleaning gravestones in Moravian cemeteries. The week before Easter, families and church groups clean the uniform gravestones and decorate them with flowers, transforming the God's Acre into an almost-garden like place. Many Moravian churches have a custom of holding an
Easter Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...
sunrise service Sunrise service is a worship service specifically on Easter Sunday practiced by some Christian denominations, such as the Moravian Church. The sunrise service may take place in the church or outdoors, sometimes in a park, and the attendees are se ...
, or ''Resurrection Service'' in a God's Acre, the "
Church Militant In some strains of Christian theology, the Christian Church may be divided into: *the Church Militant (), also called the Church Pilgrim, which consists of Christians on Earth who struggle as soldiers of Christ against sin, the devil, and "the ...
" gathering together amid the graves of the " Church Triumphant" before the Risen Christ. The opening words of the Resurrection Service, ''" The Lord is risen!/The Lord is risen indeed!"'' date from the first such Moravian-style service in
Herrnhut Herrnhut (; ; ; Upper Lusatian: ''Harrnhutt'', ''Harrnutt'') is a town of around 6,000 inhabitants in Upper Lusatia, in the district of Görlitz, in eastern Saxony, Germany. The town is mainly known as the place of origin of the community of t ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
in 1732. The liturgy for the service is a Confession of Faith drawn up by Nicolaus Ludwig, Count von Zinzendorf (1700–1760) patron and leader of the Renewed Unitas Fratrum. It is based on
Martin Luther Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...
's
Small Catechism Luther's Small Catechism () is a catechism written by Martin Luther and published in 1529 for the training of children. Luther's Small Catechism reviews the Ten Commandments, Apostles' Creed, the Apostles' Creed, Lord's Prayer, the Lord's Prayer ...
.


Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

The God's Acre in
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Bethlehem is a city in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Northampton and Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh counties in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Bethle ...
, also known as ''Moravian Cemetery'', is the oldest Moravian cemetery in North America and the second oldest God's Acre, just behind the one in Herrnhut. It was created in 1742 when Johannes Müller died of a fever. Müller was one of the first Moravian converts in North America, having been born in Rhinebeck
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
, he had personally met the first group of Moravian missionaries, the First Sea Congregation, when they arrived in
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
on June 7, 1742. He then abandoned his life to move with them and establish Bethlehem. Shortly after the Moravians arrival in Bethlehem, Müller succumbed to a fever on June 26, 1742. His death spurred the Moravian community to make their first God's Acre in North America. Zinzendorf personally found a suitable location, a three-acre plot to the north-east of the settlement. The cemetery was in continuous use from 1742 to 1912 when all 2,716 plots were filled. At the time of its filling, it was the oldest continuously used cemetery in the United States. The cemetery consists of the distinct flat stones used in other God's Acres, and burial mounds mostly used by Indians. The occupants are interred in alphabetical order, with the poor and rich, Black and White, Indian and Settler being buried side by side with no distinction. The only change to the cemetery came in 1921 when the burial mounds where flattened as they had started to suffer structural damage and threatened to destroy portions of the cemetery. The cemetery was made a
National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...
in 1953. The cemetery, and its age, is also the source of many of Bethlehem's ghost stories and urban legends. Notable burials include: *
David Nitschmann der Bischof David Nitschmann der Bischof (David Nitschmann the Bishop, 21 December 1696, Suchdol nad Odrou, Moravia – 8 October 1772, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania) was with Johann Leonhard Dober one of the two first missionaries of the Moravian Brethren in the W ...
, Bethlehem's first bishop *James McDonald Ross,
Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...
chief John Ross' son, a civil war veteran who died as a POW in
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*
Mohican The Mohicans ( or ) are an Eastern Algonquian Native American tribe that historically spoke an Algonquian language. As part of the Eastern Algonquian family of tribes, they are related to the neighboring Lenape, whose indigenous territory was ...
Chief Tschoop, who Chingachgook in ''
The Last of the Mohicans ''The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757'' is an 1826 historical romance novel by James Fenimore Cooper. It is the second book of the '' Leatherstocking Tales'' pentalogy and the best known to contemporary audiences. '' The Pathfinder'', ...
'' is modeled after * Jacob B. Kemerer, State Senator from 1899 to 1901


Nazareth, Pennsylvania

On July 16, 1741, the Moravians purchased 5,000 acres in present-day
Nazareth, Pennsylvania Nazareth is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough's population was 6,053 at the 2020 census. Nazareth is part of the Lehigh Valley metropolitan area, which had a population of 861,899 a ...
in the
Lehigh Valley The Lehigh Valley () is a geography, geographic and urban area, metropolitan region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh and Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Northampton counties in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a co ...
region of eastern
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
. Following the success of the
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in
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Bethlehem is a city in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Northampton and Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh counties in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Bethle ...
, Nazareth would become home to their boys school. A community in Nazareth quickly grew as a supplemental center for Bethlehem. They formed the church's second God's Acre in North America, also known as the Indian Cemetery, in 1744. This cemetery remained active until 1762, and Nazareth grew into the second-most important site for the church in North America. However, by 1762, the God's Acre was abandoned, and the
Pennsylvania Dutch The Pennsylvania Dutch (), also referred to as Pennsylvania Germans, are an ethnic group in Pennsylvania in the United States, Ontario in Canada, and other regions of both nations. They largely originate from the Palatinate (region), Palatina ...
became the primary ethnic group of the region. Following reports of Moravian missionary efforts in the region, and the fact the church buried Indians and Settlers side by side with no distinction, it came to be believed that the interred in the cemetery where predominately Indians from Welagamika, a nearby village, earning its name as the ''Indian Cemetery''. However, of the 71 burials, 67 were white Moravian settlers, and only 4 belonged to the
Lenape The Lenape (, , ; ), also called the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. The Lenape's historica ...
Indians. The property's owner, John Jordan Jr., gifted the land to the Moravian Historical Society in 1867. The Jordan family had built a pavilion over the burial site which was demolished in favor of a marble
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dedicated by Robert Haas later in 1867. In 1916, a two-story structure was built at the summit of the hill known as Indian Tower which has served numerous purposes throughout its existence. Including as a
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station during
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before ownership was transferred to the '' Nazareth Moravian Church''. The church has struggled to maintain the tower from vandalism citing the cost of repairing the tower, including an instance of vandalism two days after a restoration effort. The tower has also been the source of several of Nazareth's persisting ghost stories. The obelisk is a
National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...
while the tower is a state landmark.


Salem, North Carolina

August Gottlieb Spangenberg August Gottlieb Spangenberg (15 July 170418 September 1792) was a German theologian, minister, and bishop of the Moravian Church. As successor to Nicolaus Zinzendorf as bishop of the Moravian Church, he helped develop and lead international Mora ...
founded Salem,
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
as the second Moravian missionary colony in North America. A Choir System was implemented and in 1771 the first settler would die, John Birkhead, and as such a God's Acre was established in the settlement. Over 7,000 Moravians are buried on the plot with 20 by 24 inch flat headstones aligned in chronological order. As the city has grown around the God's Acre, the undeveloped plot has become a sort of oasis in the urban downtown. Unlike other God's Acres in North America, the God's Acre in Winston-Salem is still in use by the Salem Congregation, a group of 13 Moravian churches in the city, making it one of the oldest continuously used burial grounds in North America.


Blackville, South Carolina

God's Acre also refers to a small patch of land whose legal owner is "God Almighty". The land includes a natural spring whose water, local tradition holds, has healing powers. Located near Blackville, South Carolina, the land was owned by L. P. "Lute" Boylston until 1944 when he died. In his will, Boylston gave the land to "God Almighty" to ensure that the water from its spring would always be free for anyone to drink. Coordinates: The Springs are listed as part of the South Carolina National Heritage Corridor. There is also a nearby historical marker on SC 3.


New Canaan, Connecticut

A section of town in
New Canaan, Connecticut New Canaan () is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 20,622 according to the 2020 census. The town is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. About an hour from New York City by train, the town ...
, where there are three large, white churches side by side, is referred to locally as "God's Acre", although the area is actually less than an acre and the name came about because the area was once a cemetery.Debbie Seaman
"New England: True Northeast; White Churches; New Canaan, Conn."
''The New York Times'' (June 3, 2001) Retrieved July 7, 2010


References

{{Moravian Church Navigation Traditions of the Moravian Church