Jane Goodall’s surprising lesson on death changed how this retired pastor sees life

For Dr. Jane Goodall, the English primatologist, anthropologist, and conservationist, belief in God was not ethereal or otherworldly, nor was it nebulous or a mere concept.

It is not an exaggeration to say that few people on Earth do not know the name Dr. Jane Goodall, who died on Oct. 1 and whose memorial service was held Wednesday in Washington, D.C. at the National Cathedral.

Dr. Goodall was well known — and rightly praised — for her remarkable efforts to leave the world better than she found it. She traveled globally for as many as 300 days a year, engaging world and corporate leaders, supporting the thriving Jane Goodall Institute she founded in 1977, and more than 20 additional institutes that take a holistic approach to conservation. Her Roots & Shoots program empowers young people to create projects that benefit animal, human and environmental life in more than 70 countries.

JANE GOODALL, PIONEER WHO DISCOVERED CHIMPANZEES USE TOOLS, DEAD AT 91 DURING U.S. TOUR

But beyond these mighty accomplishments, I learned much about living out my personal faith from a long conversation we had in March of this year, just months before she took her last breath on Oct. 1. She was the last of 12 interviews I conducted for my book, “Witness to Belief: Conversations on Faith and Meaning” (Morehouse, Oct. 7, 2025). 

Whatever your faith tradition— or if you have none — there is much to gain from Dr. Goodall’s (or, as she asked me to call her, “Dr. Jane”) wisdom about faith and what it means when the final breath comes.

Rev. Dr. Russell Levenson and his new book ‘Witness to Belief’ (Morehouse Publishing)

WHAT DENZEL WASHINGTON TAUGHT THIS RETIRED PASTOR ABOUT FAITH

Reared as an Anglican, her spirituality was broad and inclusive. Though she embraced God through a Christian lens, she never saw those who came to faith differently as any less regarded. “If I’d been born in Egypt, I’d be a Muslim and believe in Allah and so on,” she told me. Yet Dr. Jane confessed that throughout her life, “God was as real to me as the wind that rustled through our garden.”

From left, former House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., actor Leonardo DiCaprio, and chef Jose Andres, attend the funeral of conservationist Dr. Jane Goodall, at the Washington National Cathedral on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025, in Washington. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo)

Growing up, Dr. Jane regularly attended worship and, as she said, “I read EVERY chapter of the Bible,” creating a collection of her favorite verses on tiny strips of paper she placed in a “Bible Box.” These Scriptures offered daily encouragement and inspiration—among her favorites, Jesus’ admonition to persevere: “He who has once set his hand to the plough and looketh back is not fit for the Kingdom of Heaven.”

For Dr. Jane, these early steps of faith launched her vocation. While listening to a Bach piece in Paris’ Notre Dame Cathedral, she experienced what she called a moment of “mystical ecstasy.” 

Guests attend an inaugural Mass, with the consecration of the high altar, at the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral, five-and-a-half years after a fire ravaged the Gothic masterpiece, as part of ceremonies to mark the Cathedral’s reopening after its restoration, in Paris, France, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (Sarah Meyssonnier/Pool Photo via AP)

In her words: “Either we agree with Macbeth that life is nothing more than a ‘tale told by an idiot’ … or, as Pierre Teilhard de Chardin suggested, there is something going on in the universe that looks very much like conception — like birth.” At that moment, she became “utterly convinced that there was a great spiritual power that we call God.” 

For Dr. Jane, “It was a call to action — the voice of God, if you will.”

British ethologist and primatologist Jane Goodall poses with her mascott “Mister H” during a photo session on October 18, 2024, in Paris. (Photo by JOEL SAGET/AFP via Getty Images)

From then on, she drew on her faith and God’s strength. Quoting the Apostle Paul, she told me only months ago, “At this point in my life, I have a very strong belief in the One in whom we live and move and have our being. How else could I cope with the crazy schedule I have now?”

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINION

Much of her work centered on helping others understand the need for alternative energy sources, responsible stewardship of the Earth’s resources, and ethical care of animals. Her approach — a life lesson for anyone in 2025 — was this: “When I am talking with someone who believes in different values, ethics, morals—I have found that arguing or being aggressive does not work. I listen, trying to reach not the head but the heart. Only when head and heart work in harmony can we achieve our true human potential.”

Jane Goodall appears in the television special “Miss Goodall and the World of Chimpanzees” originally broadcast on CBS, Wednesday, December 22, 1965. Location, Gombe Stream National Park, Tanzania.  (Getty Images)

These are among the life lessons I learned from Dr. Jane. But perhaps the most valuable lesson was what she taught me about death. “I have never been afraid of death itself,” she said. “Because I do not believe death is the end. It is, perhaps, more like the beginning. When you die, there is either nothing, or there is something. I do [believe]. My next great adventure is dying, and finding out what that is will be the most exciting adventure ever!”

Jane Goodall, English primatologist, ethologist and anthropologist, with a chimpanzee in her arms, c. 1995. (Photo by Apic/Getty Images)

For some, Dr. Jane Goodall’s life and legacy may one day be just a chapter in history — but that is not what she believed. 

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Just weeks before her death, Dr. Jane wrote my wife and me a brief note, ending with these words: “These may be dark times, but there is one thing we can do—pray! To the Great Spiritual Force of the Universe, whom we know to be God.”

In a time such as ours, it is her faith that should inspire us all to live, as she did, until the last breath comes—making the world not darker, but lighter. And then, when the end comes, to face it without fear but with great expectation: that the greatest adventure is the last one.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE REV. DR. RUSSELL LEVENSON, JR.