Block party honors Bethlehem’s UNESCO inscription

Bethlehem community members gathered Saturday afternoon to observe the UNESCO World Heritage celebration, honoring Bethlehem’s historic Moravian churches.

On July 26, 2024, UNESCO designated Bethlehem’s Moravian churches a world heritage site, alongside the Taj Mahal, the Pyramids of Giza and other world renowned sites across the world. Bethlehem’s churches are a part of 1,248 properties recognized across the globe. 

The Moravian Church Settlements are part of a transnational site, sharing the spot with Moravian churches in Christiansfeld, Denmark; Hernhut, Germany; and Gracehill, Ireland. These settlements honor the history of Moravian churches. 

The block party, centered around the Central Moravian Church and City Hall, honored Bethlehem’s 2024 inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage list, and was the first public event held by Mary Katherine Faull, the first Bethlehem world heritage site manager. 

Faull said the party brought people together to show the heritage site is a living community of the present and future, not only the past. 

“Those foundations laid in the 18th century by the Moravians who came here, whether it’s in terms of the philosophy of equality, philosophy of industry, philosophy of community, all of those things come together here, and I think that’s important for everyone in the city,” Faull said. 

Bethlehem’s UNESCO site is made up of nine buildings and four archaeological remains. 

Faull said she plans to talk to each of the five community partners who own or lease the properties to see what they believe is needed to conserve, preserve and interpret these sites. 

At the event, she spoke about her new role and her two main jobs, which include reporting to the World Heritage Committee and helping to develop materials for various property owners in Bethlehem. The Committee has the final say on if a property is inscribed to the World Heritage List. 

Faull also said the World Heritage Committee’s connection to Moravian University is important as it allows her to develop authentic and accurate historical materials.

Melissa Johnson, the president of the Moravian Church Eastern District, volunteered at the event. She said this celebration was important as it recognizes the years of work that led up to the inscription.

“This is such a wonderful opportunity to introduce the idea of World Heritage to the larger city and pull people in who maybe aren’t really aware of what’s happening yet,”  Johnson said. “So I think that’s the best part of today, is to just celebrate with all of the community, neighbors and partners.”

Johnson spent most of her day meeting people and handing out hot dogs to community members while advertising the Moravian Church. 

“The heritage aspect is so important to celebrate, to remember why we’re here, where we came from, but also look to the future and be able to share this site in a larger way with the whole world now,” Johnson said. 

Kyle Johnston, the associate director of the Moravian Music Foundation, said the celebration showed everyone in the community what resources everyone has to offer. 

Johnston said the Music Foundation’s mission is to preserve the music of Moravian culture. It was founded in the 1950s and serves to collect and maintain the music, focusing primarily on what was used in Moravian festivals.

“I know from my personal experience there’s a lot of people who don’t know what my organization does, and so me being out here is kind of showing this is what I have to offer,” Johnston said

Johnston also said he believes Bethlehem wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for the city’s historical sites, which he thinks are often overlooked but are an important part of the community. 

He said that today a lot of people focus on the steel and industrial history, which are important, but we wouldn’t have this large community if it weren’t for Bethlehem’s original Moravian population.