Johann Friedrich Oberlin* was a Lutheran clergyman and philanthropist who established a ministry in Alsace, a historic region of northeastern France. The second son of Johann Georg Oberlin and Marie-Madeleine Feltz, he was born in Strasbourg, August 31, 1740 and, like his father, educated at the Strasbourg University. His initial interest was in becoming a soldier. After a brief service as chaplain in the French army, in 1767 he became pastor at Ban-de-la-Roche where he spent the rest of his long life in labor for the material and spiritual improvement of his impoverished parishioners. He practiced medicine among them, founded a savings and loan bank, introduced cotton milling, helped the people build better roads, and brought in modern agricultural methods. Orphan asylums established by "Papa Oberlin" were the beginning of the many "Oberlinvereine" for the protection of children. He was a man of rare spirituality, being frequently styled "a saint of the Protestant Church." Each month he preached three sermons in French and one in German. In 1819, he was appointed "Knight of the Ehrenlegion" by king Ludwig XVIII. Johann Friedrich died, June 1, 1826, in either Walderbach, Bavaria or Ban-de-la-Roche, where he is buried. Oberlin College was named in his honor.

In his 1906 publication Memorials of the Huguenots in America Reverand A. Stapleton wrote: "The Oberlins were distinguished in the history of France, notably the Reformer of Ban-de-la-Roche (Johann Friedrich Oberlin), who was a relative of the Pennsylvania Oberlins." According to an excerpt from his memoirs, in the early part of his ministry, Johann Friedrich was determined to go to Pennsylvania. The American Revolution interfered with this desire and he never made the trip.

*Johann Friedrich was his recorded name at birth. The French refer to him as Jean Frederic and Anglicized, his name often appears as John Frederick.