By Bishop William H. Nicholson, Senior Pastor, AncMC, Administrator for UIMM, Chair of the Northern Hemisphere of World Fellowship of Moravian Revival Churches Happy Holy Week and Easter! God is good!
Just yesterday, April 12, 2022, I heard someone in Anchorage, Alaska, proselyting one of our leaders from the Anchorage Moravian Church (AncMC) to leave the AncMC and go to their Traditional Church. He said come to the “Real Moravian Church” in Alaska’s largest city.
Proselytizing is not right! I feel anyone who proselytizes does not know better than anyone else. And also feel that a person’s inner life belongs to them alone, and most people should value that inner life and resent attempts to intrude upon it. I think intruding upon it is wrong. I believe that one must ask God’s Spirit where they should be and “not forsake the Assembly” where-ever the Spirit of God directs.
Since the proselytizing one said the AncMC is not a member of the Real Moravians, I think it is timely for a commentary on this issue. We are known by our fruits according to God’s Word, so please let’s in humility uplift Christ and Him only.
Our Lamb has Conquered; Let Us Follow Him! This is still our Moravian Revival Church motto. Since the ancient Moravian church is part of our heritage, we can still use the ancient Moravian Lamb logo. The ancient Moravian Lamb logo is public domain and not copywrited. A legal challenge arose in our Moravian Revival Churches under Bishop Emmaus Mwamakula in Tanzania for usage of the Moravian logo. The legal challenge failed.
In Anchorage, Alaska, we were once one Church – the AncMC, but because God has blessed us we are now a modern day era Holy Spirit movement erupting out of the AncMC, through UIMM and now through the World Fellowship of Moravian Revival Churches (WFMRC), we expect 100s of Churches to join this end-day Revival movement! Our vision is to keep awake and do our best to fill the skies with lost souls redeemed by the blood of the Lamb before Christ comes again, which is very soon!
Please note that we do not make any distasteful comments about the Alaska Traditional Moravian Churches with head offices in Bethel, Alaska. They are anointed and still belong to Christ and has great and positive influences upon their peoples. But the Traditional Churches should not be proselyting from our Moravian Revival Churches. It must stop! I request the Alaska Moravian Province (AMP) bishop Frank Chingliak to please make that clear to his flock in Anchorage, Alaska! On at least two recent occasions I’ve asked him personally to share in our AncMC pulpit, but so far has refused. I long for the day when we will indeed be a living family of God, living out the full counsel of God’s Word and working together in common witness.
The two other bishops, including myself of the Moravian Revival Churches under United International Moravian Ministry group (UIMM), incorporated in 2012, and the leadership of the World Fellowship of Moravian Revival Churches (WFMRC), organized in 7 countries in 2016, have remained quiet and patient in the midst of severe persecution for their stand on the Holy Scriptures. Please remember, In simple, these Churches were excluded from the Traditional Moravian Church because of their stand against homosexuals in the pulpit, and stand for the Holy Spirit giftings in the life and worship of the Church.
Historically, UIMM, including the AncMC in Anchorage, Alaska, came out of the AMP in Bethel, Alaska. I don’t want to sound harsh, but we were “thrown out” by the AMP because our worship style was based upon the Bible and allowing for more freedom of worship. Another reason for exclusion according to Bishop Jacob Nelson was for “laying hands on the sick and anointing people for healing”. So too, the AMP under Bishop Peter Green sought support by Moravians in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania to exclude UIMM in 2016, at the once in seven years worldwide synod of the Unitas Fratrum.
Not giving our group a chance to testify at the Worldwide Synod, even though five of us traveled to Jamaica at great expense, our UIMM group was excluded by the World-wide Unity in November 2016. It was orchestrated in subcommittee by the Chairperson of the Northern Province of the Moravian Church in America, because of our stand against homosexuals serving in Moravian pulpits. Before I left for Jamaica that person said to me – “You shot yourself in the foot!” It happened, but did not happen.
Thankfully, this action set UIMM free to expand and grow on our own. Sort of like Paul and Barnabas who had a disagreement, which led to the doubling of the gospel. In time they forgave and worked together. That is our dream that someday, UIMM and the AMP will be able to work together in common witness to fulfill the Great Commission and Disciple converts. And that the Unitas Fratrum will recognize us as a worldwide fellowship willing to work together with them in Unity.
Since 2016, UIMM had six churches. Now UIMM has 26 churches and fellowships in Alaska and in the Central America country of Honduras. Presently the WFMRC has over 150 Churches and Fellowships in seven countries in America, Central America, the Philippines, Cambodia and three African countries. This coming weekend another bishop of a Lutheran denomination and Province in Northern Tanzania, Africa with 14 more Churches will join the WFMRC present day Holy Spirit movement. Another Lutheran Province is in talks to join us.
UIMM and the WFMRC does not proselyte. But certainly, if the Holy Spirit directs and you are alone or want to leave a lukewarm or dead Church devoid or not following the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, one should feel open to come under the umbrella of our Fellowships. That way our end-day movement will gather more strength to fill the skies as we network together.
The position that the Co-Chairs of the WFMRC, both Bishop Mwamakula and myself have stated, recently, is as follows: “The only requirement we have in our Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere Moravian Revival Churches is that we do not allow homosexuals in pulpits and we believe in the fivefold ministry and spiritual gifts. Each church group is autonomous and can worship the way they think and feel as long as it follows scriptural guidelines.”
In closing, the Moravian Revival Churches are a trans-denominational Holy Spirit-led movement. These Churches and Fellowships include people from different Traditional Moravian Churches, from other denominations such as the Allied Christian Church, non-denominational Churches, and now even Lutheran Churches. This is an end-day movement that is networking together to advance the Kingdom of God before Christ comes again.
Who are the real Moravians? Like I believe Count Nicholas Zinzendorf said, it is the “Living Family of God, Living Out the Full Counsel of God’s Word”.
Note: BREAKING PERSONAL PROTOCOLS? We’ve been quiet too long and do not agree to go on public media. But it is needed after being quiet for 6 plus years. There is too much confusion out there, so this is being placed to clear the air. Someone said we left the Alaska Moravian Province. The truth is, we did not leave; they chased us out for standing on God’s Word. But we thank God for this. We feel blessed and the fruits are enormous and worldwide. But we pray for the day when we can fellowship together; UIMM and AMP; and AMP and UIMM together and totally forgiven and moving forward together for the sake of the Gospel and winning the lost generation for Christ.