“Real happiness is to be found only in God himself; all other delights are but an empty shade, and are capable of yielding only momentary satisfaction.”
This sentiment comes from one of the most brilliant scientific minds the world has ever known. According to mathematics historian Morris Kline, Leonhard Euler ranks at the highest level with Archimedes, Newton, and Gauss. In fact, about one-third of all publications in the fields of mathematics, theoretical physics, and engineering mechanics between the years 1725 and 1800 were authored by Euler!
Born in 1707 in Basel, Switzerland, Leonhard Euler was the first child of Protestant minister Paulus Euler. Leonhard grew up knowing that his father expected him to follow him into the ministry, but God had a different brand of ministry in mind. By age 16, Euler earned his Master’s degree in philosophy. Then, only seven years later was appointed Professor of Physics at St. Petersburg Academy in Russia, eventually serving as a physics professor at the University of Berlin and even tutoring the Princess of Prussia.
God gave Leonhard Euler a truly remarkable mind. His estimated IQ was 180-200 (for reference, Albert Einstein’s IQ was believed to be 160-165!). Unlike so many gifted people today, Euler used his mind to think deeply about his Creator, resulting in a love for his fellow man: “If true happiness consists in union with the Supreme Being, which it is impossible for a moment to doubt, the enjoyment of this happiness necessarily requires, on our part, a certain disposition, founded on supreme love to God, and the most perfect charity toward our neighbor.”
These musings about happiness are intriguing since Euler faced many trials in his life. He suffered a near-fatal fever in 1735, just one year into his marriage to his beloved bride Katharina, and the infirmity left him nearly blind in his right eye. A devoted family man, Leonhard was married to Katharina for 39 years until she died in 1773. They had 13 children, but only 5 survived beyond childhood. His hardships intensified when, upon his return to Russia in 1766, he became almost completely blind in his left eye as well.
Despite his horrible eyesight, Euler continued his prolific research. According to E.T. Bell, “Euler watched the approach of blindness with equanimity. There can be no doubt that his deep religious faith helped him face what was ahead of him.”
Euler looked to a risen Christ and a sovereign God who puts all things in order. His personal suffering didn’t get in the way of trusting the whole of God’s Word. Leonhard argued that “the Bible presents the unique and true source of all our duties in a way that cannot be attributed to the talents of its authors, and so we regard the Bible as having come from God. Clearly, Leonhard saw the fingerprints of God in his life and his studies: “For since the fabric of the universe is most perfect and the work of a most wise Creator, nothing at all takes place in the universe in which some rule of maximum or minimum does not appear.”
Euler created or popularized mathematical expressions such as the natural logarithm, the imaginary unit, trigonometric functions (i.e., cosine, tangent), ∏ (pi), and the Euler φ (phi) totient function. With numerous contributions to calculus, geometry, and algebra, the list goes on and on. But perhaps Euler left us with something even greater. He comprehended man’s inherent weakness and recognized how it plays a role in the intersection of the natural and supernatural, the visible and invisible, especially in light of our eternal salvation: “If we are prone to such sad mistakes in our research on the phenomena in this visible world, a world which we can sense, how unfortunate would we be if God had abandoned us to ourselves with regards to the invisible world and our eternal salvation.”
Let’s stop for a moment and allow these truths to sink in and transform our thinking about temporary suffering and eternal bliss – about a God Who “knows our frame and remembers that we are dust” (Psalm 103:14). Let’s remember that “it is written: ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God’” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10). Finally, let’s rest in our great and loving God even as we face adversity today.
David MacMillan, Creation Moments Board Member
Painting: Leonhard Euler, PD.
Portions of this content were adapted from a recent Christian heritage diversity event put on by scientists and engineers at a privately held large corporation in the USA. There is still hope for corporate America!
