Johann Wilhelm Ebel (1784–1861) was a German

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

clergyman and teacher. Ebel was born in Passenheim (Pasym),

East Prussia East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label=Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 187 ...

, becoming a

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

Königsberg Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was named ...

. He was one of the founders of the Mucker Society, a group with pronounced similarities to earlier

Gnostic Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized pe ...

groups. Ebel and the society were tried on a variety of charges relating to morality, all of which were dismissed after a six-year trial. He died in 1861.

References

*Gross, Ernie. ''This Day in Religion''. New York: Neil-Schuman Publishers, 1990. . *Paul Konschel, ''Der Königsberger Religionsprozeß gegen Ebel und Diestel (Muckerprozeß)''. Königsberg 1909 1784 births 1861 deaths People from Szczytno County People from East Prussia 19th-century German Lutheran clergy {{Germany-reli-bio-stub