Clergyman; born in Kletlenberg,
Germany, July 15, 1704; was a benevolent teacher and helper of poor children.
Joining the Moravians in 1733, he was sent as a missionary to the
West Indies and
North America in 1735.
He established a colony in
Georgia, and received a grant of land from the trustees.
He was the founder of
Bethlehem, a Moravian settlement in
Pennsylvania, and in 1743 lie was made bishop.
He crossed the
Atlantic Ocean several times to look after the
Church in
America, and on the death of
Count Zinzendorf, in 1760, he was called to the supreme council of the sect.
In 1764 he was appointed supreme inspector in Upper Alsatia.
In 1789
Bishop Spangenberg became president of the general directory.
He died in Berthelsdorf,
Saxony, Sept. 18, 1792.