St. Albert The Great

In the year 1205, St. Albert the Great was born in Lauingen, Swabia. His father, military lord in the army of Emperor Frederick II, was amongst Albert’s great role models and was a key reason to his immense success as a scientist. As an adolescent, Albert studied at the University of Padua and there fell under the spell of Blessed Jordan of Saxony, the Dominican who made the rounds of the universities of Europe drawing the best young men of the universities into the Dominicans. After several teachings based on the wonderful works of Blessed Jordan of Saxony, he then came in 1241 to the University of Paris, where he lectured in theology. While teaching in Paris, he was assigned by his order in 1248 to set up a house of studies for the order in Cologne. For this assignment he gathered around him a band of theologians and his greatest pupil, Thomas Aquinas.

In 1260, Albert was appointed bishop of Regensberg where he resigned after three years, and was called to be an adviser to the pope and was sent on several diplomatic missions. Later in his life, he resided in Cologne, and took part in the Council of Lyons in 1274. In his old age, he traveled to Paris to defend the teaching of his student Thomas Aquinas. It was in Cologne that his reputation as a scientist grew. When Cologne decided to build a new cathedral, he was consulted about the design because of his close relationships with the pope, kings, and bishops.

On November 15, 1280, Albert died of old age and was buried in St. Andrea’s Church. Because of his inspiring writings and remarkable scientific knowledge, He was canonized and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1931 by Pope Pius XI. Albert was convinced that all creation spoke of God and that the tiniest piece of scientific knowledge told us something about Him. In scientific creation, Albert saw the hand of God.