This Sunday, April 17th, marks Salem’s Congregation’s 250th anniversary of the annual Easter Sunrise Service. The service will return to an in person gathering after two years of virtual services due to the coronavirus pandemic. It will begin at 6 a.m. and will be led by Rev. Ginny Tobiassen, pastor of Home Moravian Church.
For the first time in Salem’s history, the service will take worshippers to the St. Philips Second Graveyard. St. Philips, the African and African-American Moravian congregation, originated in Salem in 1822 among a predominantly enslaved population.
The procession will be held in both God Acre’s Graveyard and St. Philips Graveyard. By including St. Philips Graveyard in the procession, church officials say they hope to confront and make amends for the church’s historical ties to slavery. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Moravian Church adopted the Southern slave culture with white members owning enslaved people and segregating the Black Moravians.
“We honor a lot of things about our history, but we have committed some grave sins. That’s part of the work we have done and we repent,” said Tobiassen.
Corey D.B. Walker, a Humanities professor at Wake Forest University and chair of African American Studies, said that the Salem Congregation, through efforts such as the inclusion of St. Philips Graveyard, has begun the process of building a human community and humane world through continuity, consistency and commitment. The St. Philips Moravian Church is the oldest standing African American church building in the state of North Carolina which is why, Walker said, its resolutions are all the more purposeful.
“Addressing any historical injustice is never simple. Apologies are never enough. Actions are always insufficient. The best we can hope for is continual practice of doing justice and speaking the truth, even and most especially, in moments when others are silent,” said Walker.
The 8,000 to 10,000 people expected in attendance will assemble in front of Home Moravian Church, located on Church Street, on Salem Square with declarations of the Christian faith and hymn singing. Tobiassen commences the service with the proclamation that the “Lord has Risen!” which is followed by the Band singing Hail, All Hail, Victorious Lord and Savior. After the initial liturgy, the congregation will continue in prayerful silence to both the God’s Acre and St. Philips Graveyards to watch the sunrise.
Music in the Moravian Church has always served as an expression of the congregation’s cultural values. The band assembles in cohorts to go throughout the city playing hymns to both celebrate the Resurrection and awaken people for the Sunrise Service. “Currently, there are 302 members of the Winston-Salem Easter Band. Involvement is not limited to musicians from Winston-Salem area Moravian churches, nor is it restricted to only Moravians,” said Tobiassen.
The service is maintained by the Churches of the Salem Congregation, which is made up of Ardmore, Bethesda, Calvary, Christ, Fairview, Fries Memorial, Home Moravian, Immanuel-New Eden, Konnack Hills, Messiah, Pine Chapel, and Trinity. Nevertheless, people travel from all over the world to witness the magical undertaking that focuses on faith, sacrifice, and forgiveness, Tobiassen said.
Wake Forest University student, Claudia Fernandez, tuned in to the virtual service last year. “The livestream broadcast of the service last year truly was a testament of God’s power and ability to transform the world no matter the circumstances,” said Fernandez.
Even with a limited worship team consisting of Tobiassen, four choir members, and a number of band members, the virtual service attracted thousands of people. The Easter Sunrise Services of 2020 and 2021 were streamed from inside the sanctuary. “If you would close your eyes, it would feel completely normal. It was only when you opened your eyes and saw the empty pews, that you would realize that the pandemic had ravaged our sense of normalcy,” said Tobiassen.
Engaging with the local community, especially the members of St. Philips’ congregation is key for the Moravian Church to heal some of the wounds of the world and their past, and in that healing, they are hoping to do their part towards transformation, said Tobiassen. St. Philips is the only historic Moravian African-American congregation in the country.
