Alexander Mann (December 2, 1860 - November 15, 1948) was

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

of the

Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh The Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh is a diocese in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Geographically, it encompasses 11 counties in Western Pennsylvania. It was formed in 1865 by dividing the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania ...

, serving from 1923 to 1943.

Family and early Life

Mann was born on December 2, 1860, in

Geneva, New York Geneva is a City (New York), city in Ontario County, New York, Ontario and Seneca County, New York, Seneca counties in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is at the northern end of Seneca Lake (New York), Seneca Lake; all land port ...

, the son of the Reverend Duncan Cameron Mann and Caroline Brother Schuyler. His brother was Bishop Cameron D. Mann. His grandfather was a Scottish clergyman and his mother's brother, his uncle, was also a clergyman.

Education

Mann studied at Hobart College and graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in 1881. He then studied at the

General Theological Seminary The General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church (GTS) is an Episcopal seminary in New York City. Founded in 1817, GTS is the oldest seminary of the Episcopal Church and the longest continuously operating Seminary in the Anglican Communi ...

from where he graduated in 1886 with a

Bachelor of Sacred Theology The Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Baccalaureus; abbreviated STB), not to be confused with a Bachelor of Arts in Theology, is the first of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the second being the Licentiate in Sacred ...

. He was awarded a

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

from Hobart College in 1896 and a

Doctor of Sacred Theology The Doctor of Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Doctor, abbreviated STD), also sometimes known as Professor of Sacred Theology (, abbreviated STP), is the final theological degree in the pontifical university system of the Catholic Church, ...

from Hobart College in 1900 and another from General Theological Seminary in 1923. He also gained a

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL. ...

in 1923 from

Kenyon College Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio. It was founded in 1824 by Philander Chase. Kenyon College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Kenyon has 1,708 undergraduates enrolled. Its 1,000-acre campus is se ...

Ordained ministry

Mann was ordained deacon on May 31, 1885, and a priest on June 20, 1886, both by the hands of Bishop

Arthur Cleveland Coxe Arthur Cleveland Coxe (May 10, 1818 - July 20, 1896) was the second Episcopal bishop of Western New York. He used Cleveland as his given name and is often referred to as A. Cleveland Coxe. Biography He was the son of the Reverend Samuel Hanso ...

. He then became curate at St James' Church in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

, before becoming assistant at Grace Church in

Orange, New Jersey The City of Orange is a township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 30,134, reflecting a decline of 2,734 (−8.3%) from the 32,868 counted in 2000. Orange was original ...

in 1887. He became rector of the same church in 1900. From 1905 to 1923 he served as rector of Trinity Church in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Bishop

Mann was elected bishop on four separate occasions, three of which he declined. He was first elected Bishop of Washington in 1906, then Suffragan bishop of Newark in 1915 and Bishop of Western New York in 1917. In 1922 he was elected Bishop of Pittsburgh which he accepted. He was consecrated on January 25, 1923, by his brother Cameron D. Mann. In 1928, he supported the modification of the

Volstead Act The National Prohibition Act, known informally as the Volstead Act, was an act of the 66th United States Congress, designed to carry out the intent of the 18th Amendment (ratified January 1919), which established the prohibition of alcoholic d ...

to permit the sale of light wine and beer, maintaining that total prohibition cannot be upheld. He also called for the halt of the sale of scrap iron to Japan in 1938. On January 26, 1943, he announced his intention to resign from his post, eventually resigning on December 31, 1943.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mann, Alexander 1860 births 1948 deaths Episcopal bishops of Pittsburgh