Felix Leopold Oswald (December 6, 1845 – September 27, 1906) was a Belgian American

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

, naturalist,

secularist Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on secular, naturalistic considerations. Secularism is most commonly defined as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state, and may be broadened to a sim ...

and

freethought Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other methods ...

writer.

Biography

Oswald was born in Namur, Belgium. He graduated from Brussels University in 1865. He studied at Gottingen and Heidelberg where he obtained his M.A. and

M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...

degrees. In 1866, as a military doctor he joined a corps of Belgian volunteers in support of Emperor

Maximilian I of Mexico Maximilian I (german: Ferdinand Maximilian Josef Maria von Habsburg-Lothringen, link=no, es, Fernando Maximiliano José María de Habsburgo-Lorena, link=no; 6 July 1832 – 19 June 1867) was an Austrian archduke who reigned as the only Emperor ...

. He travelled in Mexico and later settled in the United States.Troelstra, Anne S. (2016). ''Bibliography of Natural History Travel Narratives''. KNNV Publishing. p. 328. Oswald was a conservationist. He was concerned about the negative effects of

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated d ...

. He urged a legislative act to protect "the woods of all the upper ridges in hill countries." His writings on natural history experienced an extensive international readership. He wrote many scientific articles. His articles were published in the ''

Popular Science ''Popular Science'' (also known as ''PopSci'') is an American digital magazine carrying popular science content, which refers to articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. ''Popular Science'' has won over 58 awards, incl ...

'' magazine, '' The Monist'' journal, '' The Open Court'' journal and the '' North American Review''. Oswald lived as a

hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Ch ...

and traveller, cooking his meals over an open fire. He was dubbed "the monkey man" as he had two or three pet monkeys that he allowed to move freely in his house. In 1905, his house including his monkeys were set on fire and destroyed.

Natural hygiene

Oswald was supportive of

natural hygiene Orthopathy (from the Ancient Greek, Greek ὀρθός ''orthos'' 'right' and πάθος ''pathos'' 'suffering') or natural hygiene (NH) is a set of alternative medicine, alternative medical beliefs and practices originating from the ''Nature Cure ...

, a movement which advocated

fasting Fasting is the abstention from eating and sometimes drinking. From a purely physiological context, "fasting" may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight (see " Breakfast"), or to the metabolic state achieved after ...

, vegetarian dieting, pure water, clean air and exercise. In 1889, Oswald wrote a series of articles under the general title, ''International Health Studies'' for John Harvey Kellogg's ''Good Health'' journal. Oswald was an

anti-vaccinationist Vaccine hesitancy is a delay in acceptance, or refusal, of vaccines despite the availability of vaccine services and supporting evidence. The term covers refusals to vaccinate, delaying vaccines, accepting vaccines but remaining uncertain abou ...

and associated with Bernarr Macfadden. In 1901, Macfadden's publishing company released Oswald's book ''Vaccination a Crime''. Oswald was influenced by

Sylvester Graham Sylvester Graham (July 5, 1794 – September 11, 1851) was an American Presbyterian minister and dietary reformer known for his emphasis on vegetarianism, the temperance movement, and eating whole-grain bread. His preaching inspired the graha ...

, he referred to fasting as "the Graham starvation cure."

Religion

Oswald was a

writer and naturalist who did not believe in the supernatural."Dr. Felix Leopold Oswald"
''Blue-Grass Blade''. March 21, 1909. p. 2 Oswald has been described as an outspoken freethinker and one of the greatest advocates of the American freethought world. He authored the book ''The Secret of the East'' in 1883 and an article in 1891 that argued

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

was of

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

origin. Lewis G. Janes suggested that this idea was "discredited at the outset by the totally different conceptions of the God idea and the destiny of man after death in the two religions." James Thompson Bixby wrote a rebuttal to Oswald's article. He argued that "the resemblances alleged by Dr. Oswald, even if granted, would be insufficient to prove his case... the differences between the Gospel and Buddhism run deeper and are more positive than the like-nesses."

Edwin Arnold Sir Edwin Arnold KCIE CSI (10 June 183224 March 1904) was an English poet and journalist, who is most known for his work ''The Light of Asia''.secular humanism Secular humanism is a philosophy, belief system or life stance that embraces human reason, secular ethics, and philosophical naturalism while specifically rejecting religious dogma, supernaturalism, and superstition as the basis of morality an ...

, and that writers such as Oswald who wanted to "prove that Christianity was derived from Buddhism was a way of undermining its authority." Biblical scholars have rejected the theory that Christianity originated from Buddhism. Oswald was influenced by the research of

Rudolf Seydel Rudolf Seydel (May 27, 1835 – December 8, 1892) was a German philosopher and theologian born in Dresden. In 1860 he received his habilitation at the University of Leipzig, where in 1867 he became an associate professor of philosophy. He was ...

. Orientalist

Friedrich Max Müller Friedrich may refer to: Names * Friedrich (surname), people with the surname ''Friedrich'' * Friedrich (given name), people with the given name ''Friedrich'' Other * Friedrich (board game), a board game about Frederick the Great and the Seven Year ...

rejected Oswald's thesis but respected his dedication to the subject. Müller commented that Oswald was "one of the more conscientious and fair-minded students of Buddhism."

Death

Oswald died from a train crash at

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...

on September 27, 1906.''Scientific Notes and News''
(1906). ''

Science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

'' 24 (614): 446–448. Obituaries have described it as a tragic accident, whilst railway employees reported that he had committed suicide.

Selected publications

* Oswald, F. L. (1877). ''The Climatic Influence of Vegetation — A Plea for Our Forests''. ''

Popular Science Monthly ''Popular Science'' (also known as ''PopSci'') is an American digital magazine carrying popular science content, which refers to articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. ''Popular Science'' has won over 58 awards, inclu ...

'' 11: 385–390.
''Summerland Sketches, or Rambles in the Backwoods of Mexico and Central America''
(1880)
''Physical Education; Or, The Health-Laws of Nature''
(1882)
''The Secret of the East: Or, the Origin of the Christian Religion''
(1883)
''Zoological Sketches: A Contribution to the Out-Door Study of Natural History''
(London: W. H. Allen, 1883)
''Household Remedies, for the Prevalent Disorders of the Human Organism''
(1885) * ''Days and Nights in the Tropics'' (1887)
''The Poison Problem''
(1887)
''The Bible of Nature: Or, the Principles of Secularism: A Contribution to the Religion of the Future''
(1888) * Oswald, F. L. (1891)
''Was Christ a Buddhist?''
''

The Arena An arena is an enclosed area that showcases theatre, musical performances or sporting events. Arena, ARENA, or the Arena may also refer to: Places and jurisdictions * Arena, Saskatchewan, Canada * Arena, Iran * Arena, Calabria, Italy * La ...

'' 3 (1): 193–201. * ''Body and Mind'' (1901)
''Oriental Athletes''
(''Physical Culture'', 1901) * ''Vaccination a Crime: With Comments on Other Sanitary Superstitions'' (Physical Culture Publishing Company, 1901)
''Macfadden's Fasting, Hydropathy and Exercise''
(1903)
''Vitality: How to Acquire and Conserve It''
(1905)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oswald, Felix Leopold 1845 births 1906 deaths 19th-century American physicians American anti-vaccination activists American atheists American hermits American naturalists American nature writers American male non-fiction writers American secularists American skeptics Belgian emigrants to the United States American critics of Christianity Belgian critics of Christianity Fasting advocates Freethought writers Orthopaths People associated with physical culture People from Namur (city) Rationalists Simple living advocates