A “Moors’ Lovefeast” and Masked Enslavement in the Eighteenth-Century Moravian Church

Abstract

This article analyzes context and circumstances of an event described as a “Moors’ lovefeast,” which took place in the Moravian Church settlement of Herrnhaag in December 1742. Several of the “Moors” in attendance hailed from the West Indies, others from North America and Africa. Likewise present were a Malabar, a Tatar, and a German Sinto. Adding to the cosmopolitan luster of the Herrnhaag congregation, their presence broadcasted a powerful message of missionary success and eschatological expectation. Some of these men, women, and children were or had been enslaved, but the prestige bestowed on these so-called “Moors” contributed to masking their enslavement. A close reading of the available sources shows how contemporary practices of enslavement fed into Moravians’ methods of representing missionary success as well as their unique spirituality and eschatological vision.