January 14

Martin Niemöller, Albert Schweitzer, and the Feast of the Ass

Author

David Barnhart
January 14, 2026

Graffiti from Inman Park, Atlanta, 2019. Own photo.

In Medieval France, January 14 marked the Feast of the Ass, a celebration of all the donkey stories in the Bible. In particular, they honored the donkey who carried the Holy Family on their Flight to Egypt, but the day was also an opportunity to lift up the theological paradox that God’s wisdom often appears foolish in the eyes of the world.

Today is the birthday of Lutheran pastor Martin Niemöller, in 1892. He originally supported Hitler, but regretted it later and was imprisoned for his resistance activities. He is famous for his poem which begins, “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out – because I was not a socialist.”

This is also the birthday, in 1875, of Albert Schweitzer, missionary and polymath. We remembered his death on September 4. 

Reflection: 

Albert Schweitzer wrote:

“Ethics, too, are nothing but reverence for life. That is what gives me the fundamental principle of morality, namely, that good consists in maintaining, promoting, and enhancing life, and that destroying, injuring, and limiting life are evil.” 

Martin Niemöller wrote: 

“I am now convinced that the Reformation of the church will come from the east. In the west there is no spiritual life.”

Prayer: God, reform your Church, which has lost its way and often pursues power or institutional  self-preservation instead of justice and mystical union with you. Let it become a force for the enrichment, abundance, and preservation of life, and let it bring hope to a planet in peril.