The Moravian Church that we know in the Lehigh Valley only gives us a glimpse into the efforts congregations of the faith are involved in.
A press release highlighted the church’s most recent initiative, called The Debt Jubilee Project: For the Healing of the World. The project seeks to eliminate medical debt nationwide in areas that have a Moravian presence.
More than 13,000 families are expected to see substantial medical debt resolved – almost $11 million dollars worth – thanks to the Moravian Church’s work.
The project is a partnership between the church and the nonprofit RIP Medical Debt, which purchases medical debt and erases it rather than allowing it to be sold to for-profit debt collectors. $100,000 was raised by congregations across the country, and almost $11 million more was contributed by RIP Medical Debt.
75% of the funds helped relieve debt throughout the U.S., while the remaining 25% will be used for patients in Honduras. In Pennsylvania, 2,400 families were relieved of more than $2 million of medical debt.
Sylvia Hauser, Director of Communications and Development for the Moravian Board of World Mission, said the work was inspired by a biblical call to help the sick, as well as the faith’s belief that “healthcare is a fundamental human right.”
The project was initially inspired by Trinity Moravian Church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, which helped pay off $3 million of medical debt for individuals in their surrounding area.
More than 35,000 members make up nearly 140 Moravian congregations in the U.S. and Canada. The Northern Province of the church is headquartered here in Bethlehem.
