Who Were: the Moravian Missionaries

Christianity among Native peoples is a delicate topic for a variety of reasons.  It could be used to justify persecution of Natives and enforcement of them to give up their lands and culture.  It has been argued that missions made Natives dependent on missionaries for subsistence and robbed them of their independence.  While groups and individuals were often well-meaning, and may have done some good, there are many examples of missionaries meddling in Native affairs with tragic consequences.  Father Rale's War (1722-25), Father LeLautre's War (1749-1755) and the Gnadenhutten Massacre (1782), all covered in previous posts, are some examples.  Whether Christianity and missionary societies are good or ill I'll leave to each reader to decide.  However one looks at them, they did make their mark on the frontier and Native societies.

One of the more active missionizing groups was the Moravians, or Czech Brethren, as they were sometimes called.  This group, combining Hussite with Lutheran beliefs, arose in Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic in 1457.  They were bitterly resented and persecuted by the Established churches in Europe, the main reason being their insistence on preaching and missionizing.  North American gave them a wide scope for this activity.  Missionary societies began in earnest in the 18th century, and within decades, Moravian schools, missions, churches and even settlements were up and down the frontier.  The first attempt was to the Mahican people in what is now Dutchess County, New York.  Then, sponsored by wealthy backers in Europe, missions were opened in 1741 in Pennsylvania.  Missions in North Carolina opened in the 1760's, and a mission was established in 1801 to the Cherokees in Murray County, Georgia.  Later, when the Cherokees were removed to Oklahoma, the Moravians followed them West.

Some Native leaders welcomed the Moravians and other missionaries because they educated the young and taught handicrafts and agriculture, skills that were needed to compete with White settlers.  They were particularly successful among the Mahican and some of the Delaware/Lenape, as well as the remains of the Susquehannock people.  Other Native leaders opposed the missions, believing they were taking away Native people's independence and culture.  Tecumseh was an often and outspoken critic.  He often used the tragedy at Gnadenhutten in 1782, when 100 Christianized Delaware were murdered by Pennsylvania militia, as an example of how injurious the mission system could be to Native ways of life.  Ironically, the Battle of the Thames, which may have claimed his life, was fought near a Moravian mission settlement, and is sometimes called the Battle of Moraviantown, for that very reason.