Welcome

Brockweir Moravian Church stands in a beautiful and peaceful setting on the banks of the River Wye, on the edge of the Forest of Dean. The congregation is drawn largely from the village but the welcome of the church extends to the many visitors drawn to the beauty of the area. We are a welcoming and inclusive congregation, please contact the Lay Pastor for information about Weddings, SS Blessings, Baptisms, and Funerals. We would also be delighted to welcome you if you would like to visit.

Getting Here

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Brockweir is situated between Chepstow and Monmouth on the A466. Take the signposted turning off to the village, cross over the bridge. Leave your car in the centre of the village and take the road to the side of the Brockweir Inn to find the short footpath which leads to the church.

History

The Moravian presence in Brockweir dates back to 1833. Then, Brockweir was a busy little port with a thriving ship-building industry. It was the highest point up-river which the larger ships could reach and so became the place where the larger vessels loaded and unloaded, smaller river craft transferring goods to and from places as far up-river as Hereford. In those days Brockweir had a population of about 350. There was no place of worship but seven public houses! A contemporary writer described it as being 'noted as a city of refuge for persons of desperate and lawless character. The Lord's Day was kept as a day of unhallowed revelling and desecrated by cock-fighting, gambling and quarrelling. The peaceful river- bank setting where the Church is now situated was once the site of much of this revelry.

In 1831 a Tintem doctor, worried about the spiritual state of the villagers as well as their physical health, wrote about the situation to the Moravian Minister in Bristol. The Minister came and spoke to the villagers, and received an encouraging response. The building of the church began, financed by voluntary contributions. It was opened on 2nd May 1833 when 400 adults and 120 children attended the service of dedication.

The Church continued in Brockweir, weathering the decline of the ship-building trade in the 1870's, the coming of the railway in 1874, and the bridging of the river in 1902. But in 1961 the congregation numbers were so low that the Church was on the point of closing. The Baptist Church in Monmouth heard of this, and under their Minister [Rev. Dennis Monger] undertook to keep the Church open. This was a modern ecumenical experiment and the Brockweir Moravian/Baptist experience became well known both locally and nationally. By 1993 the Church had grown and was able to 'stand on its own two feet' again. But the Moravians in Brockweir acknowledge that they owe a great debt to the Monmouth Baptists, and to Rev. Monger in particular.

Ecumenical Welcome

Because we're the only church offering regular public worship in Brockweir, we invite all Christians in the village to play as full a part as they are able [allowing for any continued commitments to their own denomination] in the life and fellowship of this congregation. We invite those of all Christian traditions, and those having no particular denominational affiliation, to worship and to share in Holy Communion with us, and to share in the ministry and mission of the Church in this community.
We are enriched by the service of Ministers and Lay Preachers of other denominations regularly lead our worship and our pastoral care extends to all in the village who desire it.