Bethlehem set to host global guests at UNESCO World Heritage recognition ceremony
Inscription events planned for Moravian Church Settlements delegates from United States, Denmark, Germany, and Northern Ireland/UK
BETHLEHEM, October 15, 2024 — J. William Reynolds, Mayor of the City of Bethlehem and Chair of the Bethlehem World Heritage Council and Commission along with Bethlehem Area Moravians, Central Moravian Church, Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites, and Moravian University has announced events on Oct. 16 and 17 in Bethlehem, PA to commemorate the addition of Moravian Church Settlements to the UNESCO World Heritage List.
This special occasion will welcome delegates from the four transnational Moravian Church Settlements collectively inscribed on July 26, 2024, in New Delhi, India. Global guests from Christiansfeld, Denmark; Gracehill, Northern Ireland/UK; and Herrnhut, Germany plan to join the Bethlehem celebration.
“We are honored to have been selected to host these events,” said J. William Reynolds, Mayor of the City of Bethlehem. “It is my privilege to welcome our special guests and friends from the network of Moravian Church Settlements worldwide. Together, we’ll embrace this unique opportunity to join in our commitment to and celebration of our shared global heritage.”
To honor the inscription, a World Heritage Worship Celebration at Central Moravian Church (400 Main St., Bethlehem, PA 18018) will take place at 5:45 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, Oct. 16. The service will feature the transnational voices of Bethlehem’s World Heritage partners.
A World Heritage International Recognition of Inscription Ceremony and Press Conference will be held at 3 p.m. EDT on Thursday, Oct. 17 at Moravian University’s Foy Concert Hall (342 Main St., Bethlehem, PA 18018).
Both programs will be live-streamed on YouTube.
Central Church Celebration on Wednesday at 5:45 p.m.
World Heritage Inscription Ceremony Thursday at 3 p.m.
Scheduled to speak at Thursday’s inscription ceremony at Foy Hall are: Mayor J. William Reynolds, City of Bethlehem; Susan Wild, PA Congresswoman; Lamont McClure, Northampton County Executive; Richard Verma, Deputy Secretary of State for Management & Resources; Courtney O’Donnell, United States Ambassador to UNESCO; Lazare Eloundou-Assomo, Director of the World Heritage Centre; Pedro Ramos, Acting Deputy Director, Congressional and External Relations, National Park Service; Minister Gordon Lyons, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom; Consul General Till Knorn, German Consulate General New York; Mayor Knud Erik Langhoff, Denmark.
The historic Moravian Church Settlements of Bethlehem, Gracehill, and Herrnhut, joined Christiansfeld (inscribed in 2015) as a single World Heritage site that represents the outstanding universal value of these historic settlements and the worldwide influence of the Moravian Church.
Moravian Church Settlements — Bethlehem is the 26th World Heritage site in the United States and the third in Pennsylvania.
With its intact core of original buildings, Moravian Church Settlements – Bethlehem preserves some of the most important structures and sites relating to the Moravians in the New World and is significant as an outstanding example of Moravian architecture and town planning. The settlement played a key role in both the international and American Moravian communities.
Located in the heart of downtown Bethlehem, the site spans 10 acres. It includes nine structures, four ruins, and God’s Acre cemetery, all within the already designated Historic Moravian Bethlehem National Historic Landmark District — one of only eight Landmark Districts in Pennsylvania and one of just over 200 in the nation.
Moravian Church Settlements is the first Transnational, Serial World Heritage Site in the US and is the result of a decades-long effort among Bethlehem Area Moravians, Central Moravian Church, City of Bethlehem, Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites, Moravian University, and with the support of Northampton County and others.
Members of the media are invited to participate in a question and answer session during Thursday’s inscription event and additionally in the Media Room at Payne Gallery, Foy Hall, immediately following the presentation. For press and interview arrangements, please contact Craig Larimer, Director of Community Relations and Marketing — World Heritage, at larimerc@moravianchurchsettlements.org
For more information, visit https://moravianchurchsettlements.org.
MEDIA CONTACT
Moravian University
Craig Larimer
Director of Community Relations and Marketing — World Heritage
larimerc@moravianchurchsettlements.org
610-360-0419
moravianchurchsettlements.org
Moravian Church Settlements is a transnational extension of Christiansfeld, a Moravian Church Settlement in Denmark founded in 1773 and inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2015. The Moravian Church is a Protestant denomination in the free church tradition centered in Herrnhut, Saxony, Germany. The extension includes three additional component parts:
Bethlehem (USA) was established in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1741. This highlights the early transatlantic dimension of the Moravian Church phenomenon during a prolific settlement-building decade and added the cultural dimension of the Moravians’ outreach to Native Americans.
Gracehill (UK) was founded in Northern Ireland in 1759. It represents the significance of the Moravian Church in the UK and exemplifies a unique series of ‘ideal’ urban plans that demonstrate a notable gender axis. This is showcased by the division of the town plan into a sisters’ side and a brothers’ side, which directly reflects the fundamental functional structure of Moravian society.
Herrnhut (Germany) is considered the ‘mother’ or ‘founding town’ of the Renewed Moravian Church. It was established in 1722 in Saxony and evolved in line with the development of Moravian theology and societal ideals. This town defined the principles of all Moravian Church settlements.
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