On January (or was it February) 19, 1735, Alexander Mack died at his home in Germantown, Pennsylvania. Sometime before his death, he had said to his sons, “Now when I am gone, don’t mark my grave, or they might sometime want to erect a monument....” Mack’s sons were distressed and protested to their father. At last Mack agreed to allow them to mark his grave with a small slab.
Mack was buried in a community cemetery which was later abandoned. In 1894 his remains were moved to the cemetery at the back of the mother church in Germantown where six generations of his descendants are also buried.
Mack was the founder of the
Church of the Brethren in Schwarzenau in Germany, in 1708. He was born in Schriesheim in 1679. He was a miller by trade. More
here.
The Brethren movement began as a melding of Pietist and Anabaptist ideas. The first of its churches in America was established in 1723. These churches became commonly known as German Baptist Brethren. The denomination holds the New Testament as its only creed. Historically the church has taken a strong pacifist stance. Distinctive practices include baptism by immersion; a threefold Love Feast consisting of feetwashing, a fellowship meal and communion; anointing for healing; and the holy kiss. More
here.
