(December 27, 1571–November 15, 1630), was the German founder of physical astronomy. He discovered the laws governing planetary motion and pioneered the discipline of celestial mechanics, known as Kepler’s Laws, which aided Newton in his formulation of the theory of gravitation. He advanced Copernicus’ heliocentric theory of the solar system, with the planets revolving around the sun instead of the earth. His publishing of the ephemeris tables, necessary for plotting star movement, contributed to the theory of calculus.
In regard to his invaluable scientific discoveries, Johannes Kepler declared:
O, Almighty God, I am thinking Thy thoughts after Thee! Nothing holds me! I will indulge in my sacred fury, I will triumph over mankind by the proud confession that I have stolen the golden vases to build up a tabernacle for my God, far away from the confines of Egypt. If you forgive me, I rejoice; if you be angry, I can bear it. The die is cast; the book is written, to be read either now or by posterity, I care not which. It may be well to wait a century for a reader, as God has waited six thousand years for an observer.154
In the conclusion of his treatise, Harmony of Worlds, Johannes Kepler wrote:
I thank Thee, my Creator and Lord, that Thou hast given me this joy in Thy creation, this delight in the works of Thy hands; I have shown the excellency of Thy works unto man, so far as my finite mind was able to comprehend Thine infinity; if I have said aught of Thy glory, graciously forgive it.155
In Homage to the Book, Johannes Kepler stated:
We astronomers say, with the common people, the planets stand still or go down; the sun rises or sets. How much less should we require than the Scriptures of Divine inspiration, setting aside the common mode of speech, should shape their words according to the model of the natural scientist, and, by employing a dark and inappropriate phraseology about things which surpass the comprehension of those whom it designs to instruct, perplex the people of God, and thus obstruct its own way towards the attainment of the far more exalted object at which it aims.156