Angelus Silesius, properly JOHANN SCHEFFLER, a German philosophical poet, was born at Breslau in 1624, of Protestant parents, who educated him in their own faith. After practising some time as a physician, he embraced the Roman Catholic faith and took orders as a priest. He died in 1677.
His philosophy is a singular mixture of mystical pantheism and Christian morality, elevated by a strong personal love of God. Some of his poems are found in German Protestant hymn-books.