A Love Feast service is a Moravian tradition that originated in Herrnhut, Germany. Moravian refugees had settled in Herrnhut to escape religious persecution in 1722. There were many political and theological disputes among the community as it began to form. During a worship service, however, the members of the church felt particularly moved and connected, causing them to put their disagreements aside.

The congregation came to "recognize the value of their love for each other rather than whatever reasons they had to disagree with one another," Graceham Moravian Church’s current Pastor Jay Petrella said. Nobody wanted to leave, so they sent out for food when people started to become hungry as the service went on, "and on and on," according to Petrella. The people of the church then proceeded to share a meal so that they could continue to be together to worship. This shared meal that brought them closer together has since been referred to as the original ‘Love Feast.’

To commemorate this special moment in Moravian history, Graceham Moravian Church occasionally hosts Love Feasts, at which sweet rolls are served during worship services along with a drink, whether it be coffee, milk or water. These services are held on special occasions such as Easter and Christmas. Graceham Moravian Church will be hosting a Love Feast on October 22 to celebrate the anniversary of the Church’s founding 265 years ago.

Moravians from Herrnhut ended up in the United States when they settled in Pennsylvania on a mission. "The goal of the original missionaries from Herrnhut, Germany was not to create a whole bunch of Moravians," Petrella said. "It was just that they felt passionate about their love of God and went out to tell people about it."

"It always says in our history: we were here to minister to the public," said Mike Miller, a member of Graceham Moravian Church and the Church’s unofficial "resident historian," as Petrella referred to him. "It wasn’t our idea to be any kind of a big shot."

The history of Graceham Moravian Church dates back to the 1740’s when residents invited a Moravian pastor and spiritual teacher from Pennsylvania to preach in the area. The Moravians settled in the town and built a log ‘Gemeinhaus,’ or a congregation hall, in 1749. By October 8, 1758, the Church had organized a congregation and appointed a permanent minister. This day is regarded as the church’s official anniversary. The congregation built a parsonage in the 1790’s and the second Gemeinhaus, built in the 1770’s, was replaced by the brick sanctuary erected in the 1820’s that still stands today.

Days after the congregation was organized on October 8, the Church opened a school for the children. The school lasted until the town opened a public school in 1839. A Sunday school opened that same year.

The Church still holds Sunday school classes which are open to all ages. They have a full-time Christian Education director to oversee it. "We have, sometimes, as many people in Sunday school as there are in church," Miller said. He attributes the turnout to the strong organization of the program. "It’s the real deal." Classes are held at 9:15 a.m. during the academic year. The Church also has a youth group that meets on Sunday nights during the summer as well as a Bible study group.

Another lasting tradition for Graceham Moravian Church is mission trips. The Church organizes a youth mission trip to a different location each year. The group travels to serve a community in need through home repair projects for residents who perhaps can’t afford to pay for such services. According to Petrella, an example of the volunteer work the group partakes in is building a handicap ramp for a resident who is disabled. This past summer, the Church organized a mission trip to Wrightsville, Pennsylvania for a group of 13 adults and kids.

The Church will be holding a yard sale during Thurmont’s Colorfest this month, as they do each year. A large portion of the proceeds goes towards the annual mission trips.

The Graceham community is small but close, according to Petrella. The Church runs several community outreach programs. Members come together once a month to share what the Church calls a "Served with Grace" dinner. Volunteers from the Church prepare and serve hot meals for anyone who shows up. The meal is free, but some will offer a donation. Some residents come out of need, and others are just happy to "get out of the house and have some place to go," according to Petrella. "They look forward to meeting the people that they can see here, and they make friends, and so on."

The "Served with Grace" tradition began 11 years ago this month. It was discontinued in April 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak, and resumed last winter. Around 100 to 120 nutritious meals are served each month. Some of the food served is made with vegetables from the Community Garden on the Church’s property. Produce from the garden is also supplied to the Thurmont Food Bank and the Thurmont Senior Center.

Another one of the community outreach programs Graceham Moravian Church runs is the annual school supply drive held in August. The Church collects backpacks and school supplies for volunteers from the community to put together and distribute from the fellowship hall.

The Church also helps run the Thurmont Food Bank as a part of the Thurmont Ministerium, a group of congregations and community organizations from various faiths in the Thurmont area. Members of the Church volunteer every week to collect and distribute food for the community, "and the need has been going up the past little while," said Petrella, "so anybody who wants to donate… they’d love to have it."

Worship services are held on Sundays at 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Services are live streamed on the Youtube account @gracehammoravianchurch2222. Past live streams can also be accessed on these platforms.