Mack, Alexander

(1679–1735)

   Sect Founder.

   Mack was born in Schriesheim, Germany, of humble parents. After a time spent accompanying the Pietist E.C. Hochmann von Hochenau, he moved to Schwarzenau. There he set up the first Church of the New Baptists or Brethren. As a result of their Anabaptist inclinations, they were persecuted in Germany and eventually, under Mack’s leadership, they settled in Pennsylvania in America. Mack was the author of Basic Questions and Rights and Ordinances, which outlined the principles of the new community. In 1871 the group took the title German Baptist Brethren. Today they are known as the Church of the Brethren and have about two hundred thousand members. They are known for their pacifism and sober way of life.

   D.F. Durnbaugh (ed.), European Origins of the Brethren (1959);

   H.A. Kent, 250 Years Conquering Frontiers: A History of the Brethren Church (1958).