The Pear Tree Blossoms: The History of the Moravian Church in South Africa 1737-1869, Bernhard Krüger

This book tells the story of the Moravian mission stations at the Cape from their beginning until the division of the work into two provinces. It is to a great extent based on hitherto unexplored sources at the Genadendal archives and places the events into the context of South African general history. For the first periods, during which the foundations were laid at Genadendal, I have told the story in detail, but as the range of the work increased, I had to concentrate on the main personalities and events.

It is an account of a peculiar and remarkable missionary effort, which made an impact on the ecclesiastical history of the Cape, throws an interesting light on the contemporary South African scene and has resulted in the establishment of the Moravian Church in this country. In the concluding chapter, an evaluation of the characteristics, intentions and limitations of this enterprise is given.

Condition: Fair (pages and cover yellowed and worn)