Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A learned, respected, accomplished man leaves a life of worldly success to serve Christ among "the least of these."
Albert Schweitzer was a Renaissance man who basked in the utmost respect of the world's intelligentsia. Schweitzer had doctorates in philosophy, theology, and medicine. He was a well-respected author, a concert organist, and a world authority on Bach. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1952.
But he left a life of acclaim to pursue the God-given call to treat all life as sacred, especially in those places on the fringe-in Africa. In what is now Gabon, indigenous people would see him daily with his stethoscope on a distended belly and hear him nighly performing classical music on his piano.
In a time when many people feel small and inconsequential, Schweitzer's life is a testimony to the power of one person's amazing sacrifice, purpose, and the commitment to treat all of God's creations as sacred.
Synopsis
Revere life, and give yours away for the sake of serving others.
As a young man, Albert Schweitzer seemed destined for greatness. His immense talent and fortitude propelled him to a place as one of Europe s most renowned philosophers, theologians, and musicians in the early twentieth century. Yet Schweitzer shocked his contemporaries by forsaking worldly success and embarking on an epic journey into the wilds of French Equatorial Africa, vowing to serve as a lifelong physician to the least of these in a mysterious land rife with famine, sickness, and superstition.
Enduring hardship, conflict, and personal struggles, he and his beloved wife, Helene, became French prisoners of war during WWI, and Helene later battled persistent illnesses.
Ken Gire s page-turning, novelesque narrative sheds new light on Schweitzer s faith-in-action ethic and his commitment to honor God by celebrating the sacredness of all life.
The legacy of this 1952 Nobel Prize honoree endures in the thriving African hospital community that began in a humble chicken coop, in the millions who have drawn inspiration from his example, and in the challenge that emanates from his life story into our day.
Albert Schweitzer seemed destined for greatness and he achieved it by making his life his greatest sermon to a world in desperate need of hope and healing."