James Clerk Maxwell

June 13, 1831 – November 5, 1879

Physicist & Mathematician

United electricity, magnetism, and light — all to God's glory

Biography

Scottish physicist responsible for the classical theory of electromagnetic radiation, unifying electricity, magnetism, and light. Einstein called Maxwell's work 'the most profound and the most fruitful that physics has experienced since the time of Newton.'

Faith & Testimony

A deeply committed evangelical Presbyterian who prayed regularly and saw his physics as revealing God's glory. He wrote, 'I think that the results which each man arrives at in his attempts to harmonize his science with his Christianity ought not to be regarded as having any significance except to the man himself.'

Sources

James Clerk Maxwell — Wikipedia — Biography including his evangelical Presbyterian faith
James Clerk Maxwell and the Christian Proposition — Ian Hutchinson (MIT) — MIT professor's examination of Maxwell's deep evangelical Christian faith, including his own prayers and correspondence about God's sovereignty over nature
The Life of James Clerk Maxwell — Lewis Campbell and William Garnett — Early biography containing Maxwell's letters and poetry expressing his devout Christian faith — he wrote: 'I have looked into most philosophical systems and I have seen that none will work without God'