Margaret Leinbach
July 2, 2003 

Great questions! Can I attempt some possible observations and suggested answers?

Can you document your claim that the statement that "[Moravians do not Know that Jesus is the only way to  Salvation] has been  a Moravian position for centuries." If this has been our position as expressed in writings of Zinzendorf and Spangenberg and in the documents of the Ancient Unity, why is it not present in the Ground of the Unity. 

One place to find a good short summary of Zinzendorf's mission theology is
David A. Schattschneider, "Pioneers in Mission: Zinzendorf and the Moravians," International Bulletin of Missionary Research 8 (1984): pages 63-67. There may be a copy in our archives, and it's certainly in Reeves Library at Moravian College. Also the Rev Al Frank is a good resource on Spangenberg and may be able to point you to some of his writings. Al's in the Daily Text.

I can tell you what I got from two courses in Moravian History is that Moravian missionaries were instructed to preach Christ and him crucified, the gift of his atoning work, but most of all the blessings of a personal relationship with Jesus.  They could not offer salvation--that's God call. What we could offer is the peace, joy and love that comes from the experience of a personal relationship with Jesus and being his disciple.  I was also quite taken with an example used by Zinzendorf of the "imbecile." Our faith, our salvation, cannot depend upon our reason or correct belief, says Zinzendorf, because some folks just aren't born with that ability or capacity. So even though a person is mentally incapable of knowing Jesus, by God's gracious gift he or she may still be saved.

As to why it's not in the Ground of the Unity, I suggest it may be by its absence!! Because in the sentence "We believe and confess that God has revealed Himself once and for all in His Son Jesus Christ; that our Lord has redeemed us with the whole of humanity by His death and His resurrection; and that there is no salvation apart from Him," we did not qualify "the whole of humanity" with qualifications like: "who confess Him as Lord." Or, "with the whole of humanity who have been baptized into his death and resurrection." 

Also I find it significant that the Westminister Confession is not one of the numerous Confessions listed in the Ground of the Unity.

Also, you might offer some Scriptural basis for this view point. 

Here are some New Testament scripture passages that indicate to me God's grace in salvation is both available and given far beyond what we as Jesus' disciples can determine or define:

Yes, there are passages like John 3:16 and Romans 1:16 that seem to say salvation is for everyone who has faith in Christ. Thanks be to God!

Yet there are also Jesus' clear words in Matthew 25, the story of the past judgment where the sheep are parted from the goats on the basis of how well they loved their neighbor. The saved sheep are directed to the right hand of the Son of Man because they visited the sick and imprisoned, gave food and drink to the hungry and clothed the naked. The goats, (many of whom call Jesus, "Lord"!) who failed to show love to their neighbors in these ways are directed to everlasting hell. Thus, faith and belief are mentioned only indirectly in this passage--and then not in a helpful, but in a damning way!  Looking just at this passage (as some folks love to look only at John 3:16) only good works determine whether you go to heaven or not.

There is yet another group of New Testament passages which emphasize salvation is dependent upon God's grace and not human works. Paul repeatedly says we are saved by God's grace, which "is the gift of God" (Eph 2:8; Rom 3:24). God's grace known no bounds. 2 Cor. 5:15 Paul asserts Christ "has died for all" "so that all will be made alive in Christ" (1 Cor.15:22).  Can we definitively say who "all" includes here, or can God's grace be given in ways we either don't think is right or can't imagine? I'm reminded here of the sage advice of a Bible Study teacher: "The surer we are that we have THE answer, the greater the margin for error.

In my Moravian History class Dan Crews told us the story of his answer to the following question in the context of the Moravian-Lutheran bilateral dialogue.  "How do Moravians understand Christ to be present in the Holy Communion?" asked the Lutherans  Daniel's answer: "Jesus is like the 300 lb. canary. He is present in the Lord's Supper anyway he wants to be."

I submit this is also a good answer for the question of how Jesus affects salvation. God saves us through Jesus' life, death and resurrection anyway God wishes. All we can do as Moravians is speak about the wondrous gift of relationship we each have with Jesus, and show by our living and loving, our grateful response to God's love.

Again, thank you for offering this opportunity to stimulate good thoughtful and relevant dialogue!

Your sister in Christ,
Margaret Leinbach

MARGARET K. LEINBACH