Moravian Theology

Dear Colleagues, 

The Moravian Church (Unitas Fratrum) has a long and rich theological heritage that has at times produced some provocative and innovative understandings of the Christian religion. With roots in the Hussite Reformation of the 15^th century, the Moravians developed a unique approach to church reform based on a distinction between what is essential, ministerial, and incidental. The church promoted orthopraxy more that orthodoxy. Similar to the later Anabaptists, the Moravian Church was originally a pacifist church with a strict ethical discipline, but, unlike the Anabaptists the Moravian Brethren, encouraged education and ecumenism. Moravian bishop John Amos Comenius drew heavily on Moravian theology in his program of educational and social reform in the 17^th century. In the 18^th century, the Moravian Church was revived and transformed by the German Pietist movement and the provocative theology of Nikolaus von Zinzendorf. Zinzendorf was one of the first theologians to focus on Christian faith as subjective and wholistic, and his sermons and hymns influenced German Romanticism and existentialism. During the Zinzendorf era, the Moravian Church was an international religious community dedicated to global Protestant missions. Already by 1800, most members of the church were people of color outside of Europe and the United States of America, but the Moravian mission was conducted within the context of European colonialism. In the 20^th century, the church engaged in a long process of restructuring that allowed for greater theological and ecclesiastical diversity. This collection of articles will highlight the cultural diversity of modern Moravian theology and the complications of maintaining unity in the midst of diversity. The question today is whether there is such a thing as “Moravian theology” or whether there are multiple Moravian theologies.

Tentative completion schedule:

• Abstract submission deadline: 1 September 2022
• Notification of abstract acceptance: 15 September 2022
• Full manuscript deadline: 31 March 2023

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 400–600 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send it to the guest editor  ([email protected]) or to the Religions editorial office ([email protected]). Abstracts will be reviewed by the guest editors for the purposes of ensuring proper fit within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

Prof. Dr. Craig Atwood
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Hussites
• Unity of the Brethren
• Comenius
• Zinzendorf
• post-colonialism
• Tanzania
• Caribbean theology
• Philadelphianism
• ecumenism
• Pietism
• atonement
• Christology
• Holy Spirit