Georges Lemaître

Georges Lemaître, a man who truly understood "In the beginning...", was not only a brilliant physicist but also a Catholic priest. This combination made him uniquely suited to ponder the origins of the cosmos, though perhaps less so for explaining why certain holidays involve eight nights of presents.

His most notable contribution was formulating the theory of the expanding universe, which he called the "hypothesis of the primeval atom." Later, it was snarkily dubbed "The Big Bang" by Fred Hoyle, a proponent of the Steady State theory, who intended it as a dismissive jab. Jokes on him, though, as Lemaître's bang turned out to be quite the hit.

While he spent his days charting the heavens and pondering cosmic beginnings, Lemaître remained rooted in his faith, serving as a priest and even, briefly, as president of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. He was, to put it mildly, more concerned with the universe's expansion than with, say, expanding the Jewish people's presence in Belgium.