Mention the name Herschel in the field of Astronomy and one must decide which Herschel are we talking about. In addition to being world famous astronomers, father William, son John, and sister Caroline were also sincere Christians. Each member of this amazing family achieved international fame and success in the field of astronomy. Their common bond of astronomy and Christianity allowed them, in the words of the great German astronomer, Johannes Kepler, “to be merely thinking God’s thoughts after Him.”
William Herschel is generally regarded as the founder of modern stellar astronomy. Born in 1738, William, at the age of 18, moved from his home country of Germany to England where he began a fruitful career in music. Among his many music jobs William became a band instructor, private music teacher, performer, composer, and church organist. But when evening came he took up his hobby of gazing at the stars in the sky. As the years advanced William became so fascinated with the heavens that he made astronomy his full time profession and passion.
Among his many accomplishments and discoveries, William recognized the existence of double stars and discovered the first planet since ancient times – Uranus. In addition, he constructed the greatest reflecting telescopes of his day and studied and cataloged many nebulae and galaxies as few men have done before him. Herschel also mathematically verified that the sun itself was moving through space as part of the Milky Way galaxy.
But throughout his careers in music and astronomy William Herschel remained a sincere Christian. According to Henry Morris: “As a Christian, Sir William was said by his biographer to be ‘a great, simple, good old man,’ noted for his kindness and his sublime conception of the universe as a marvelous witness to the handiwork of God. It was Herschel who said: ‘The undevout astronomer must be mad.’”1
While William had a very basic education, his son John had an excellent education and his first job was that of a mathematician. But like his father, John had a passion to study the heavens. According to the website, Answers in Genesis: “John added to his father’s observations of distant celestial bodies (including double stars and nebulae) visible in the northern hemisphere. He then undertook the equivalent work for the southern hemisphere. He was the first astronomer to measure the brightness of stars with real precision. John made extremely detailed observations of Halley’s comet. He also authored an extremely successful textbook on astronomy.”2 In addition, John was one of the first to apply photography to astronomy.
John, also like his father, believed that his discoveries in the field of astronomy confirmed the existence of a loving Creator God. He once said: “All human discoveries seem to be made only for the purpose of confirming more and more strongly the truths [that] come from on high and [that are] contained in the sacred writings.”3
Finally, William’s sister Caroline, is considered the first woman astronomer of international reputation. While she remained her brother’s devoted assistant for almost 50 years, she was a noted astronomer in her own right. She discovered eight comets and three nebulae. She completed, arranged, and edited the star catalogues of her brother and of John Flamsteed, the famous British astronomer. Caroline received many awards for her work including the Gold Medal for Science by the King of Prussia. Caroline believed in service to others as an important part of her Christian faith. She viewed helping her brother William and his discoveries far more important then her own career. She never married and when she hit the ripe old age of 98, the year of her death, she found much comfort from singing her favorite Christian hymns.
This truly remarkable family demonstrates my sincere belief that science and Christianity have long been companions in the quest for knowledge.
1 Henry M. Morris, Men of Science: Men of God (El Cajon, California: Master Books, 1988), p. 30.
2 Great Creation Scientists: Sir William Herschel (1738–1822) | Answers in Genesis
3 Great Creation Scientists: Sir William Herschel (1738–1822) | Answers in Genesis