John Andreas Widtsoe (1872-1952) was a Norwegian-born educator, scientist, and Apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Together with James E. Talmage and B.H. Roberts, Widtsoe was representative of the "liberal" branch of early 20th Century LDS theology.
Joseph Smith as Scientist
originated as a series of articles Widtsoe penned for the
Improvement Era
. In it, Widtsoe compares the teachings of Mormonisms founding prophet with the science of his day. While Widtsoe's analysis has been marred by the last century of advances in physics, it remains a fascinating effort to bring together the theological and scientific approaches to knowledge.