LAMBARENE, Gabon -- I first learned of Dr. Albert Schweitzer's work when I was a medical student in the 1960s. During those years, the story of Schweitzer's efforts to improve the health of Africans in his hospital in Lambarene ignited my colleagues' and my imaginations. It was thus with a sense of privilege that I recently visited his hospital here, where his excellent work continues today. Sadly, the same cannot be said about the continuation of his message of peace.
Schweitzer's own life, before his work in Africa, had been extraordinary -- that of a man blessed with many talents. Born in Alsace in 1875, he became an outstanding organist and musicologist while quite young, particularly excelling in the works of Johann Sebastian Bach.
At Strasbourg University, he pursued courses in philosophy and medicine, while continuing his musical training. When he was 22, he won a scholarship that enabled him to study philosophy at the Sorbonne and to continue studying the organ. At 24, he received his doctorate in philosophy, and the following year his doctorate in theology. When he was 26, he was elected head of the Theological Seminary of St. Thomas in Strasbourg.