Written By: Albert Schweitzer
Translated By: Richard and Clara Winston
Reviewed Edition: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1965
Hardcover, 63 pages
No ISBN Shown
This book is available via the Internet Archive at [IA].
Quotes
Table of Contents
This slim volume provides an overview of Schweitzer's ethics, particularly reverence for life. Much of the text is abstracted from Schweitzer's other writings, particularly Out of My Life and Thought, The Philosophy of Civilization and Peace or Atomic War?. However it is not a collection of quotes but rather a series of essays. They read as coherent discussions and provide an excellent introduction to his ethical thought. Also included are two essays in opposition to atomic weapons. As usual with Schweitzer's writing, all the essays are clear and devoid of technical jargon.
There is no introduction provided. The only clue about the history or motivation of the volume is provided in a postscript: "This little book grew out of a proposal which Gerald Götting made to me during a visit to Lambaréné in August, 1961. Albert Schweitzer".
"The fact is that the questions which arise out of such elementary ethics are truly imposing and cannot be readily dealt with. ... It is entirely subjective. The individual must decide for himself how far he will go in self-sacrificing altrism. ... His conscience is never allowed to rest."
"The universe provides us with the dreary spectacle of manifestations of the will to live continually opposed to each other. One life preserves itself by fighting and destroying other lives. The world is horror in splendor, meaninglessness in meaning, sorrow in joy."
"The principle of reverence for life rejects relativism. It recognizes as good only the preserving and benefiting of life: any injury to, and destruction of, life, unless it is imposed on us by fate, is regarded as evil. ... In every case we must decide ourselves to what extent we may remain ethical and to what extent we will have to bow to the necessity of harming and destroying life, and thereby incurring the guilt of such actions."
"Open your eyes and seek another human being in need of a little time, a little friendliness, a little company, a little work. ... Do not lose heart, even if you must wait a bit before finding the right thing, even if you must make several attempts."
"All nations, especially the ones that have atomic weapons at their disposal, must refuse even to talk of atomic war as a potential resort. But a good many of them will not realize that we are dealing with a spiritual and ethical problem. They think that peace or atomic war will go on being a purely political and military problem, and that the relevant decisions can be left to those who govern, the diplomats and generals. ... Let us then set about awakening a public that in any case instinctively draws back from the inhumanity of using atomic weapons. ... The command of the hour is that the people of the countries possessing atomic weapons make their voices heard. They must take over the responsibility and prove capable of the spiritual act of commitment to humanitarianism."
The Problem of Ethics in the Advancement of Human Consciousness
Ethical Culture
Man and Man
Man and Creature
Peace or Atomic War
And End to Atomic Weapons
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