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Zug Lecture Overview
The Annual Jeanette Barres Zug Lecture: Pious Innkeeper and Godly Tavern presented by Peter Vogt.
With the establishment of congregational inns in almost all of their settlements, the Moravians provided an important infrastructure for travelers, both church members and outside visitors. In Herrnhut, the first inn was established as early as 1726, setting an example for all later settlements. Bethlehem, PA even had two notable inns: the Crown Inn (1745) and the Sun Inn (1758). Moravian congregational inns represented an important point of contact between the settlement and its surroundings, supporting the community in its economic life and witness of faith. In order to safeguard the spiritual values and municipal interests of the community, the central leadership of the church provided detailed instructions for the management of the inn. The buildings of Moravian inns with a high degree of similarity represent a unique feature of the overall architectural heritage of Moravian settlements.
Peter Vogt Bio
Peter Vogt is Director of Theological Education in the Moravian Church, European Continental Province, and co-pastor of the Herrnhut congregation in Germany. An alumnus of Moravian College and Theological Seminary, he received his Master of Divinity in 1995 from Harvard Divinity School and his Doctor of Theology in 2001 from Boston University. His academic interests include the theology of Zinzendorf, the history and practices of the Moravian Church, and 18th century Pietism. His list of publications includes more than 100 articles and dictionary entries and ten books, among them Our Moravian Treasures, a manual for theological education in the world-wide Moravian Church (2019). In the last five years he belonged to the transitional coordinating group for the preparation of the UNESCO World Heritage nomination “Moravian Church Settlements,” a site that was successfully inscribed on July 26, 2024. Peter and his wife Jill have two children, Anna and Christian, and enjoy classical concerts and hiking.
