An Agnostic in the Fellowship of Christ : The Ethical Mysticism of Albert Schweitzer

Lutheran theologian and Nobel Peace Prize winner Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965) sought to redefine Christianity with a confession of faith for the modern world, declaring that: “I am an agnostic in the fellowship of Christ.” This book reveals the reality of Schweitzer’s Christian agnosticism for readers in theology and ethics.

This book details the theology, ethics, and philosophy of the Nobel Peace Prize Laurette Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965). It surveys his entire corpus of religious writings, including his unfinished estate works (Nachlaß), and explores the intellectual history behind his distinctive theological synthesis. This book also traces Schweitzer’s own intellectual and spiritual development from childhood, to his academic years, and throughout his time at the African medical mission. It also places Schweitzer into dialogue with other Protestant theologians including Martin Luther, Karl Barth, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and Thomas Altizer, as well as with contemporary philosophers like Jacques Derrida. The aim is to reveal what a living faith and mysticism can mean for the modern world, and where common ground can be found for traditional and liberal Protestant theology today.