Salem Moravian Graveyard – “God’s Acre”

Brian S — This one is for you!
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THE SCENE
Winston-​Salem, NC surprised me with its charming old school villages as well as its gorgeous architectural buildings and amazing covered bridge. But what truly surprised me was accidentally stumbling upon the Salem Moravian Graveyard, also affectionately known as ‘God’s Acre’. Not that I was surprised by the cemetery, but surprised at how interested I was in walking through it.
You see, I am about as creeped-​out by cemeteries as I would be if placed in a box full of tarantulas. I dislike them so much I don’t even want to be buried in one when I’m dead! Think I’m kidding? I told my wife and children to turn me to ashes, go on a vacation and spread me on multiple beaches throughout the Caribbean. But please, no cemeteries.
So it was a complete shock when I found myself drifting though this place with a strong sense of interest. I suppose it appealed to my neat and orderly nature to see rows of white marble plates in a gorgeous green field of grass and beautiful trees. It became even more interesting to discover people are buried here in categorized sections or «choirs». Married men in one section while single men were in another, same for the women of the Salem community. An entire section of headstone were labeled «wife of» along with touching sentiments from the families.
Speaking of families, there is a separate Cemetery adjacent to the Moravian Graveyard with more traditional headstones that seemed to form large family plots. Many of them were very impressively designed. Some were like courtyards where the family member’s stones surround a larger monument stone with the family’s name. Another had an angel gripping the base of a cross bearing the family name. It was touching to see the desire of these families to stay together even after life on this earth had ended.
Separate from this gravesite is a second and smaller «God’s Acre» for African-​American members of the Moravian congregation. It is also located on Church Street on the opposite end of the street on the grounds of the oldest Black Church still standing in North Carolina. Once known as the «Slave Church», it is part of the experience when visiting this village and the part I took most interest in while visiting. I will be posting a review of it separately. Here is a YouTube link to some of the history of the church:

THE PLAQUE ON THE CEMETERY ENTRANCE READS:
— The Moravian Graveyard is still known fondly by the old Germanic name of «God’s Acre» (Gottesacker). This burial ground is characterized by its simplicity and uniformity. As the name implies, this is a field where the bodies are «sown as perishable seed» to await the day when they will be raised in an «imperishable form.»
— Here the departed are buried in chronologically, in the order in which they are «called to be home with the Lord.»
— Here are no statues or monuments to distinguish the graves of the rich from those of the poor. The recumbent stones remind us of the equality of the dead in God’s sight.
— The visitor will soon note that the men, women and children are buried separately. This is a continuation of the «Choir System»… The congregation was divided into groups according to age, sex, and marital status so that each individual might be cared for spiritually according to their different needs.
[ Read entire plaque here:
]
FINAL THOUGHTS
Although I was shocked to find myself walking through this cemetery, I was flat out blown away that my children took a strong interest in it as well. I promise you they aren’t weird kids, just very family driven and loved the idea of staying together for eternity. I love my family. It was amazing how in the shadows of death we felt so alive and connected to each other.
This may be the only cemetery on the planet that I find myself willingly interested in visiting. It truly is beautiful to see.