Church of the Brethren
Part of a series of articles on
Schwarzenau Brethren
Background
Christianity
Protestantism
Anabaptism
Pietism
Doctrinal Tenets
Non-Creedalism
Triune Baptism
Love Feast
Feet Washing
Holy Kiss
Anointing for Healing
Non-Resistance
The Brethren Card
People
Alexander Mack
Louis Bauman
Conrad Beissel
Donald Durnbaugh
Christoph Sauer
John Whitcomb
Groups
Brethren (Ashland) Church
Brethren Reformed Church
Church of the Brethren
Conservative Grace Brethren
Dunkard Brethren
Grace Brethren
Old German Baptist Brethren
Old Order German Baptist Brethren
Extinct Groups
Ephrata Cloister
Church of God (New Dunkers)
Also Known As
German Baptists
Dunkers
Related Movements
Mennonites
Amish
Community of True Inspiration
River Brethren
The Church of the Brethren is a Christian
denomination originating from the Schwar-
zenau Brethren ("Schwarzenauer Neutäufer")
organized in 1708 by eight people led by Al-
exander Mack, a miller, in Schwarzenau (Bad
Berleburg), Germany. The Brethren move-
ment began as a melding of Radical Pietist
and Anabaptist
ideas. The
first of
its
churches in America was established in 1723.
These churches became commonly known as
Dunkers and more formally as German
Baptist Brethren. The denomination holds the
New Testament as its only creed. Historically
the church has taken a strong stance for non-
resistance or pacifism. Distinctive practices
include believers baptism by trine immersion;
a threefold Love Feast consisting of feet
washing, a fellowship meal, and communion;
anointing for healing; and the holy kiss.
The Church of the Brethren represents the
largest body descending from Mack’s Sch-
warzenau Brethren church. The German
Baptist Brethren suffered major division in
the early 1880s, creating the Old German
Baptist Brethren, the Brethren Church, and
the majority adopting the name Church of the
Brethren in 1908. It has 125,964 members,
1,006 congregations and 37 fellowships as of
June, 2008 [1]. There are six liberal arts col-
leges and one seminary (Bethany Theological
Seminary in Ri