This month marks 293 years since the first publication of one of the Moravian Church’s longest running and most impactful programs, the Daily Texts. These devotional materials, consisting of a “Watchword”, a text randomly chosen from the Old Testament, and an accompanying passage from the New Testament, are popular with Christians of many denominations and this seems a good opportunity to briefly examine their history.

The roots of the Daily Texts actually predate the modern Moravian Church and lie in Pietism, a movement within the Lutheran Church that started in 17th century Germany and emphasized a personal relationship with Christ. Pietists often employed books of devotions and shared “watchwords”, selected or randomly chosen Bible passages, amongst themselves and it was in this context that Count Nicholas von Zinzendorf first encountered the concept while a student. He would in turn introduce the idea to the young Moravian community in Herrnhut, presenting the first watchword during a church service on May 3rd, 1728. Starting the next day one or more church members, referred to as a Losungsträger or watchwood carrier, would visit each family in the community to inform them of that day’s watchword and the community was encouraged to meditate on the selected passage. This proved very popular and in 1731 the first print edition was published.

Each year the Daily Texts are prepared in Herrnhut, Germany. The watchwords are randomly selected from a series of about 2,000 Old Testament texts and each is then paired with a New Testament passage selected to accompany and enhance the watchword.They are then translated into many languages and distributed throughout the world in a variety of formats, including print, large print, through a dedicated app, and online. The exact presentation of the Daily Texts varies between regions, for example the USA edition also includes further suggested scripture readings that if followed will have someone read through certain sections of the Bible in a year and the entire Bible over two years, as well as hymn verses and a prayer related to the watchword.

Further Reading:

“A Brief History of the Moravian Daily Texts” The Moravian Church. Accessed  5/12/2025 https://www.moravian.org/2018/07/a-brief-history-of-the-moravian-daily-texts/

Peucker, Paul. “Herrnhut: The Formation of a Moravian Community,  1722-1732”  Penn State Press, 2022

“Using the Moravian Daily Texts” The Moravian Church. Accessed 5/12/2025 https://www.moravian.org/2018/07/using-the-moravian-daily-texts/