Moravian Church in the context of "Gracehill"

The Four Marks of the Church, also known as the Attributes of the Church, describes four distinctive adjectives of traditional Christian ecclesiology as expressed in the Nicene Creed completed at the First Council of Constantinople in AD 381: "[We believe] in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church."

This ecumenical creed is today recited in the liturgies of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Catholic Church (both Latin and Eastern Rites), the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Assyrian Church of the East, the Moravian Church, the Lutheran Churches, the Methodist Churches, the Presbyterian Churches, the Anglican Communion, and by members of the Reformed Churches, although they interpret it in very different ways, and some Protestants alter the word "Catholic" in the creed, replacing it with the word "Christian".

A sacrament is a Christian rite which is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence, number and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol of the reality of God, as well as a channel for God's grace. Many denominations, including the Catholic, Lutheran, Moravian, Reformed (Continental Reformed, Presbyterian, and Congregationalist traditions), Anglican, Methodist and Baptist, hold to the definition of sacrament formulated by Augustine of Hippo: an outward sign of an inward grace, that has been instituted by Jesus Christ. Sacraments signify God's grace in a way that is outwardly observable to the participant.

The Catholic Church, Hussite Church and the Old Catholic Church recognize seven sacraments: Baptism, Penance (Reconciliation or Confession), Eucharist (or Holy Communion), Confirmation, Marriage (Matrimony), Holy Orders, and Anointing of the Sick (Extreme Unction). The Eastern Churches, such as the Eastern Orthodox Church and Oriental Orthodox Church as well as the Eastern Catholic Churches, recognize these as the seven major sacraments, but also apply the words sacred mysteries corresponding to Greek word, μυστήριον (mysterion), and also to rites that in the Western tradition are called sacramentals and to other realities, such as the Church itself. Many Protestant denominations, such as those within the Reformed tradition, preach just two sacraments instituted by Christ: the Eucharist (or Holy Communion) and Baptism. The Lutheran sacraments include these two, often adding Confession (and Absolution) as a third sacrament. Anglican and Methodist teaching is that "there are two Sacraments ordained of Christ our Lord in the Gospel, that is to say, Baptism and the Supper of the Lord", and that "those five commonly called Sacraments, that is to say, Confirmation, Penance, Orders, Matrimony, and Extreme Unction, are not to be counted for Sacraments of the Gospel."

Evangelicalism (/ˌiːvænˈdʒɛlɪkəlɪzəm, ˌɛvæn-, -ən-/), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of the Christian gospel. The term evangelical is derived from the Koine Greek word euangelion, meaning "good news," in reference to the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. Evangelicalism typically places a strong emphasis on personal conversion, often described as being "born again", and regards the Bible as the ultimate authority in matters of faith and practice. The definition and scope of evangelicalism are subjects of debate among theologians and scholars. Some critics argue that the term encompasses a wide and diverse range of beliefs and practices, making it difficult to define as a coherent or unified movement.

The theological roots of evangelicalism can be traced to the Protestant Reformation in 16th-century Europe, particularly Martin Luther's 1517 Ninety-five Theses, which emphasized the authority of Scripture and the preaching of the gospel over church tradition. The modern evangelical movement is generally dated to around 1738, influenced by theological currents such as Pietism, Puritanism, Quakerism, and Moravianism—notably the work of Nicolaus Zinzendorf and the Herrnhut community. Evangelicalism gained momentum during the First Great Awakening, with figures like John Wesley and the early Methodists playing central roles.

A pastor (abbreviated to "PsPr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and Anglicanism, pastors are always ordained. In Methodism, pastors may be either licensed or ordained.

The New Testament typically uses the words "bishops" (Acts 20:28) and "presbyter" (1 Peter 5:1) to indicate the ordained leadership in early Christianity. However, the word "pastor" (ποιμήν/poimēn) is only used one time to describe church leadership in the New Testament in Ephesians 4:11 which says, "that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers" (NRSV). Peter instructs church leadership using the verb, "to tend the flock' (lit. 'to shepherd,' ποιμαίνω/poimainō) of God that is in your charge, exercising the oversight (1 Peter 5:2 NRSV). The words "bishop" and "presbyter" were sometimes used in an interchangeable way, such as in Titus 1:5-6. However, there is ongoing dispute between branches of Christianity over whether there are two ordained classes (presbyters and deacons), or three (bishops, priests, and deacons). The first view is affirmed by some Presbyterians. On the other hand, Christians of the Roman Catholic, Persian, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Moravian, Scandinavian Lutheran, Anglican, Old Catholic and other Presbyterian traditions maintain the latter view, with all but the Presbyterians affirming the doctrine of apostolic succession.

The Czechoslovak Hussite Church (Czech: Církev československá husitská, CČSH or CČH; Slovak: Cirkev československá husitská) is a Christian church that separated from the Catholic Church after World War I in Czechoslovakia.

Both the Czechoslovak Hussite Church and Moravian Church trace their tradition back to the Hussite reformers and acknowledge Jan Hus (John Huss) as their predecessor. It was well-supported by Czechoslovakia's first president, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, who himself belonged to the Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren.

Musikfest is an American music festival that has been held annually since 1984 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. It is the nation's largest non-gated free music festival. The festival begins on the first Friday in August, though it has been preceded since 2015 with a Thursday preview night involving the premium stage and adjacent areas. The festival ends the second Sunday thereafter.

Musikfest draws thousands of visitors to Bethlehem from around the nation and world in a celebration that weaves through a Moravian community that dates back to 1741. Festival visitors are treated to hundreds of free shows with great genre variety over the course of the event. Each night, the festival's premium stage, Steel Stage, formerly known as RiverPlace and Kunstplatz, hosts a nationally known recording artist. These premium concerts, along with select shows at other stages, require paid tickets to gain admission.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, most jurisdictions of the Eastern Orthodox Church (including the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople), the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Union of Utrecht, the Lutheran World Federation, the Anglican Communion, the Mennonite churches, the World Methodist Council, the Baptist World Alliance, the World Communion of Reformed Churches, several Pentecostal churches, the Moravian Church, and the Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church. Notably, the Catholic Church is not a full member, although it sends delegates who have observer status to meetings.

The WCC describes itself as "a worldwide fellowship of 352 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service". It has no head office as such, but its administrative centre is at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland. The organization's members include denominations which claim to collectively represent over 600 million people across the world in more than 110 countries.

The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (German: Die protestantische Ethik und der Geist des Kapitalismus) is a book written by Max Weber, a German sociologist, economist, and politician. First written as a series of essays, the original German text was composed in 1904 and 1905, and was translated into English for the first time by American sociologist Talcott Parsons in 1930. It is considered a founding text in economic sociology and a milestone contribution to sociological thought in general.

In the book, Weber wrote that capitalism in Northern Europe evolved when the Protestant (particularly Calvinist) ethic influenced large numbers of people to engage in work in the secular world, developing their own enterprises and engaging in trade and the accumulation of wealth for investment. In other words, the Protestant work ethic was an important force behind the unplanned and uncoordinated emergence of modern capitalism. In his book, apart from Calvinists, Weber also discusses Lutherans (especially Pietists, but also notes differences between traditional Lutherans and Calvinists), Methodists, Baptists, Quakers, and Moravians (specifically referring to the Herrnhut-based community under Count von Zinzendorf's spiritual lead).