BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Himmel auf erden, or heaven on earth, is how a German philosopher described intimacy between married Moravians.
In 1740, Nicolaus Zinzendorf wrote "Seventeen Points of Matrimony" as a guide for the Moravians to engage in sex, which he considered to be a "holy act" for couples.
The intimate life of the city's earliest settlers — including Zinzendorf's views on the matter — are discussed in the Love, Lust & Marriage tour held at the Moravian Museum in the 1741 Gemeinhaus, 66 W. Church St.
The hourlong tour, which gives extensive insight into the Moravian way of life, is offered by Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites and held on Saturday afternoons through Feb. 22.
Adults-only tour
Each guided tour, suitable for adults only due to its taboo nature, explains how Moravian men, women and children did not sleep or eat together. Instead they lived in dorms called "choirs."
Starting as toddlers, females wore ribbons to reveal their status in life — blue ribbons meant a woman was married and single ladies pink.
Once of age, men and women were matched by casting lots — a chance to leave the decision up to God.
"Sunday night, we had intercourse with each other. The Savior was very near and merciful to us. We felt very well. We have a sacred respect for one another."Moravian man in the 1700s describing his first time with his wife
Well, God and a round box.
During a recent tour, Loretta Hein, a guide with Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites, showed a group of 12 people a box that determined whether a couple would marry.
"Inside the box or cylinder would be three tubes. One paper would say, Ja, or yes. The next would say, nein, or no and the third one was blank," Hein said. "If you picked no, you could never ask to get matched again, and if two people were really set on being married, they would have to leave the Moravian community."
Once couples married, they would receive "extensive martial instruction" before their wedding night.
" They were often assigned married elder coaches and they would work with those two so that couples would be prepared for sexual intimacy in marriage, getting instruction on what to expect, how to handle themselves during sexual intercourse and be good partners," Hein said.
The carnal rule? No lust allowed.
"This belief in sexual intimacy between husband and wife was like unifying with Christ, so matrimonial intercourse would therefore be very acceptable, but it could only be seen as a sacramental holy act if done without lust," Hein explained.
As staff at the Moravian Museum began to put the tour together, they learned not everyone was pleased with the idea of having elders teach them about intercourse.
As research revealed, the elders waited outside the rooms and offered support if there were problems doing the deed.
Or were the elders a naughty bunch?
"This idea of elder coaches of being present bothered a disgruntled Moravian who left the community and later said elders and eldresses can nicely watch couples have sex," Hein said. "But we can't say if it's true because sometimes when people leave a community they said negative things."
Other Moravians found intimacy to be godlike, Hein said.
Hein shared with tour-goers what young colonist Gaylord Oneberg thought of his first time with his wife, Suzanne.
"On September 8th, Sunday night, we had intercourse with each other. The Savior was very near and merciful to us. We felt very well. We have a sacred respect for one another," she read.
Options abound
When couples wished to engage in sex, it had to be booked by appointment.
Since men and women slept in different beds, sex between couples occurred in a structure called the blue cabin.
And married partners had their choice of where to do the deed.
" They could have sex on a bench or a bed. The couples who were determined to keep the carnal lust out of the equation would use the bench," Hein said. "Or sometimes if the pressure was too bad, they used a wall."
Sometimes couples would sneak off for walks in the woods, but that was frowned upon.
The out-of-the-ordinary tour is another way staff at the Moravian Museum are celebrating the historic Moravian Church settlement's designation as a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.
"We recently created a World Heritage tour that goes into more details and shows the nine buildings, the ruins and the Moravian cemetery," Hein said.
Starting in mid-March, two members of the Moravian church will join during two tour stops.
Tickets to the tour cost $20.
For information on the experience and other Historic Bethlehem Museum & Sites' attractions, visit the website.
