What makes Bethlehem, Pennsylvania's Moravian settlement so unique

Transcript

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William Brangham: The U.S. saw its 26th UNESCO World Heritage Site declared this past summer. It was in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, where a historic settlement of the Moravian Church, along with three other such settlements in Germany, Denmark, and Northern Ireland, were collectively named a World Heritage Site this year.

Digital video producer Tim McPhillips went to Bethlehem to see what made this Moravian settlement so unique.

Tim McPhillips: This holiday season in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, looks like it does every year. A Christmas tree stands by city hall with a nativity scene at its base. Twinkling lights adorn the city’s main street.

But one thing is new. This summer, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO, deemed this place, the Bethlehem Moravian Settlement, as the United States’ 26th UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Rev. Janel Rice, Senior Pastor, Central Moravian Church: So, the Moravians date their history back to 1457, the followers of a Catholic priest and reformer, John Hus, formed what they called the Unitas Fratrum, the unity of their brethren, in the Czech Republic area.

They eventually became known as the Moravian Church.

Tim McPhillips: Janel Rice is the senior pastor of Bethlehem Central Moravian Church, which is still an active church.

Rev. Janel Rice: There’s no Christianity without community, and I think that is one of the core tenets and beautiful beliefs of the Moravian Church.

Tim McPhillips: Facing persecution in what is now the Czech Republic, some Moravians found refuge on the estate of a German count in the 1720s.

Charlene Donchez Mowers, Former President, Historic Bethlehem Museums and Sites: They established a community which they called Herrnhut, or Lord’s Watch as a translation.

Tim McPhillips: Charlene Donchez Mowers is the recently retired president of Historic Bethlehem Museums and Sites. She helped lead the charge to inscribe the Bethlehem Moravian Settlement as a World Heritage Site.

Charlene Donchez Mowers: While they were there, they had a renewal of the church. And then, in the 1730s, they decided to start sending out missionaries.

Tim McPhillips: Those missionaries then traveled the world, spreading their faith, not through arms, but through building communities.

Rev. Janel Rice: Moravians came to Bethlehem in 1741. They named Bethlehem on Christmas Eve in that year, coming to both preach to the Native Americans and also the German settlers that were already here.

Tim McPhillips: Three other communities, ones in Germany, Northern Ireland and Denmark, joined the Bethlehem site in the 2024 UNESCO World Heritage designation.

Together, they showcase the Moravian Church’s architectural and urban planning ideals that remain consistent across continents.

Rev. Janel Rice: They built not only churches, but also really community centers.

Tim McPhillips: In Bethlehem, which was named after the Middle Eastern city where Christians believed Jesus was born, Moravians built America’s first pumped municipal water supply. And, like in every Moravian Settlement, they constructed a Gemeinhaus, a place for living, worship and education that Mower says was ahead of its time.

Charlene Donchez Mowers: They felt that everyone should be educated, not just the sons of the wealthy. And that was incredible. So they were educating women with the same curriculum as the men. They were learning mathematics, sciences, foreign languages.

Tim McPhillips: Near the Gemeinhaus was the Single Sisters’ House, living quarters for single women, including those who chose not to get married.

Rev. Janel Rice: If they chose to remain single, they would be allowed to remain there and live out their lives as single sisters, which is fairly radical in the 18th century world.

Tim McPhillips: In its early years, the Moravian Settlement in Bethlehem operated as a communal society.

Charlene Donchez Mowers: Everyone worked for the good of the community and everyone, in turn, was taken care of from birth to death.

Tim McPhillips: Likewise, in the original cemetery, all gravestones were the same, regardless of status or class. Today, the Central Moravian Church still operates in one of the nine original buildings contained in the UNESCO site, providing an authentic experience for visitors.

Rev. Janel Rice: I think you can see how history doesn’t just remain in our past, but can inform. To entertain strangers is to entertain angels unaware. So you are welcoming in guests into our space and hopefully sharing them a bit of good news, a bit of God’s love.

Tim McPhillips: In Bethlehem, now known for its Christmas charm, instead of its once mighty steel mill, leaders like Mowers hope the new UNESCO status will draw more tourists year-round, not just at the holidays.

Charlene Donchez Mowers: It’s a World Heritage triangle between the Statue of Liberty in New York and Independence Hall in Philadelphia.

Tim McPhillips: Like other UNESCO sites, Bethlehem’s origin is helping define its future.

Charlene Donchez Mowers: All of a sudden, we’re in the same boat, in essence, as the Great Wall of China, the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt. And that’s just incredible for our little town in Bethlehem to be in that same company.

Tim McPhillips: For “PBS News Hour,” I’m Tim McPhillips in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.