Joseph Smith as Scientist: A Contribution to Mormon Philosophy — Edition Insights

The Tobacco Test Case

Widtsoe devotes several pages to the Word of Wisdom's prohibition of tobacco, treating it as a crucial test of Joseph Smith's prophetic claims. He notes that the revelation, given in 1833, states tobacco "is not good for man" and should be used only externally "with judgment and skill." To assess whether this could have been human knowledge, Widtsoe traces the scientific history of nicotine: isolated impurely in 1809, purely in 1828, and its poisonous nature understood only later. He cites experiments where a drop on a cat's tongue caused death in seventy-five seconds, and cases of human fatalities from accidental ingestion.

Widtsoe argues that in 1833, the discovery of nicotine was published in a German journal and would not have reached rural New York. He points out that even Hyrum Smith's 1842 sermon against tobacco mentions only its "nauseous, stinking" quality, not its chemical toxicity—suggesting the Smith family lacked that knowledge. The argument is built on a chain of dates, publications, and physiological data, making it a distinctly scientific apologetic.

The Indestructibility of Matter

Widtsoe extends his argument beyond health to fundamental physics. He claims that Joseph Smith's teachings about matter being eternal and indestructible—a core Mormon doctrine—anticipated the law of conservation of mass-energy. He writes that "the principle that matter is indestructible belongs as much to theology as to geology," and that Mormonism has held this view "many years—in some cases before science adopted it."

This section relies on the premise that Joseph Smith's revelations, particularly those in the Doctrine and Covenants and the Book of Abraham, describe matter as uncreated and eternal. Widtsoe does not provide extensive quotations from those texts here, but he asserts their alignment with nineteenth-century physics. The tone is confident, though the evidence is more asserted than demonstrated. Readers should note that Widtsoe's claim about priority depends on how one dates the relevant revelations and how broadly one defines "science."

A Philosophy for the Future

Widtsoe frames Mormonism as a comprehensive system that can absorb all legitimate scientific knowledge. He writes that "the great theology of the future will be such a one" that rests on the basic laws of nature, and that Mormonism's inclusive philosophy will allow it to "survive all religious disturbances." This is not a defensive posture but an expansive one: he envisions a faith that grows with discovery.

The book's preface addresses "thousands of young people" struggling to reconcile science and religion, and Widtsoe positions himself as a guide who has navigated that conflict. His own academic credentials—a Ph.D. in chemistry—lend weight to his argument, though he acknowledges the volume is only "a small contribution" to a field that will require "many generations" to develop fully. The tone is earnest and pedagogical, aimed at readers who want intellectual justification for their faith.

Widtsoe's project is ambitious: to demonstrate that Mormonism is not merely compatible with science but anticipates it. Readers should approach the book as a period piece of early twentieth-century apologetics, shaped by the author's scientific training and his desire to reassure believers. The tobacco argument is the most concrete and testable; other claims about matter and energy are more sweeping and less documented. For those interested in the history of Mormon-science dialogue, this volume offers a clear statement of a position that remains influential.

I finished Joseph Smith as Scientist feeling that quiet ache of unfinished conversations—how the Prophet saw order in tobacco's harm long before we had the language for it. It reminded me of the old question about what comes next, that same patient curiosity. There's a companion volume, Death—and After? — A Reader’s Guide, which sits beside it on my shelf like a friend who waits for my mood to catch up.