“I wanted to be a doctor that I might be able to work without having to talk because for years I had been giving myself out in words.”

German polymath from Alsace

Albert Schweitzer was a German thinker from Alsace, active as a theologian, organist, musicologist, writer, humanitarian, philosopher, and physician. He became known for a life that joined scholarship, faith, and practical service. As a Lutheran minister, he questioned both the secular historical-critical portrait of Jesus and the traditional Christian reading of him. He is also known for his work on Pauline Christianity, especially his view that Paul’s mysticism of being in Christ is central, while justification by faith is secondary.