Although followers have held the teachings of Schwenkfeld since the 16th century, Schwenkfelder Church was not formed until the 20th century, due in large part to Schwenkfeld's emphasis on inner spirituality over outward form. He also labored for a fellowship of all believers and one church. Originally calling themselves Confessors of the Glory of Christ after Schwenkfeld's 1541 book
Great Confession on the Glory of Christ, the group later became known as Schwenkfelders. These Christians often suffered persecution like slavery, prison, and fines at the hands of the government and state churches in Europe. Most of them lived in
southern Germany and
Lower Silesia. By the beginning of the 18th century, the remaining Schwenkfelders lived around
Harpersdorf in the Duchy of
Silesia, which was part of the Bohemian Crown. As the persecution intensified around 1719–1725, they were given refuge in 1726 by
Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf in
Saxony. When the
Elector of Saxony died in 1733,
Jesuits petitioned the
new ruler to return the Schwenkfelders to Harpersdorf. With their freedom in jeopardy, they decided to look to the
New World; toleration was also extended to them in Silesia in 1742 by King
Frederick II of Prussia. The Schwenkfelder Church has remained small. , there are four congregations in southeastern Pennsylvania. All of these bodies are within a fifty-mile radius of Philadelphia: one in the city itself, and one each in
East Norriton,
Palm, and
Worcester. The Schwenkfelders meet each year to remember their migration to America on the Sunday closest to September 24. It is the longest running continuous running thanksgiving service in America and is held at one of the Schwenkfelder churches. They also meet on the first Saturday of February for Christian Education at the Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center in Pennsburg, PA. On the first Sunday in June, they meet for historic worship at the Salford Meeting House in Lower Salford Township. ==Characteristics==