Albert Schweitzer

This documentary chronicles the life of humanitarian, physician, author, theologian and musician Dr. Albert Schweitzer. Footage of Schweitzer's jungle hospital in Lambaréné, French Equatorial Africa, is followed by scenes depicting the doctor's return to his childhood home in the German-French village of Günsbach. Schweitzer makes regular visits to the Alsatian wine-growing village to see his ailing wife and grandchildren and is greeted warmly by old friends and neighbors. After spending time with his family, Schweitzer drops by the local church and plays a prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach on an organ that he, himself, designed years before. Through reenactments, Schweitzer's youth then is recalled: The son of a Lutheran pastor, Schweitzer, who was born in 1875 in Kaizerberg, in what was then Germany, moves to nearby Günsbach when he is six. Schweitzer, a bright but dreamy child, attends the local school, where he is ostracized as an outsider. At age eight, Schweitzer receives his first Bible from his father and reads the text with great curiosity. Schweitzer also begins to ponder nature, noting its inherent cruelty, and incorporates "all living creatures" into his daily prayers. At nine, Schweitzer experiences a life-altering event when he and a friend hike to a grove intending to kill birds with slingshots. As a reluctant Schweitzer is about to fire his slingshot, church bells ring out, and Schweitzer interprets their pealing as a message to desist. To protect the birds from his friend, Schweitzer shoos them away, pledging silently never to kill. Schweitzer's philosophy of non-violence develops over the years, as does his commitment to reduce suffering in life. At twenty-one, Schweitzer decides to dedicate his life to preaching, teaching and music until he is thirty, then devote the remainder of his days to helping his "fellow man." To achieve his goals, Schweitzer studies music and theology at universities in Strasbourg, Paris and Berlin and becomes an ordained minister as well as a professional organist. In addition, he authors several books on religion, philosophy and musicology, including a highly regarded book on Bach. In 1904, shortly before his thirtieth birthday, he reads a monograph about the desperate plight of Africans and decides to study medicine, then set up practice in Africa. Although his ambition is met with skepticism by his family, Schweitzer completes his medical education in six years and, in 1913, founds his missionary hospital in Lambaréné. After the outbreak of World War I, however, Schweitzer and his young wife, who are German nationals, are declared prisoners of war. Unable to practice medicine, Schweitzer begins writing a tome on philosophy, in which he articulates his conviction that all societies should embrace a "reverence for life." Following the war, Schweitzer, his wife and infant daughter return to Europe, so that Schweitzer, weakened by dysentery, can earn enough money to reopen his hospital. Five years later, with financial help from supporters, Schweitzer returns to Lambaréné and builds a new hospital. With Schweitzer's past recounted, the film then depicts a typical day at the hospital: Patients, including many lepers, arrive for treatment, accompanied by their families. Keenly aware of cultural differences, Schweitzer accomodates his patients by allowing them to cook their own food and sleep surrounded by family. Because of the tropical climate, Schweitzer relies on simple instruments and techniques, complemented by expressions of Christian faith. At two o'clock, all of the able-bodied are called to help construct new buildings for the lepers, using money earned from Schweitzer's 1952 Nobel Peace Prize. A tornado, common during the rainy season, hits the village, and the doctor hustles the cold-prone workers inside. Later, Schweitzer oversees an operation and comments that survivors of pain should always help others find deliverance from suffering. The day ends, and Schweitzer retreats to his home to read and write, knowing that his work will never be done as long as there are "claims on his heart."