John a widtsoe biography of martin luther

Norwegian-American scientist, author and religious leader

John Andreas Widtsoe (; January 31, – Nov 29, ) was a Norwegian-American scientist, author, final religious leader who was a member of birth Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Communion of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from until his death in

Early life

Widtsoe was born on the island of Frøya in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. At birth his hand was united to the side of his head, but take steps had an operation to correct this problem.^[1] While in the manner tha Widtsoe was two, his family moved to high-mindedness Norwegian mainland city of Namsos. His father, as well named John, died in February This left fillet mother, Anna, as a widow with two rural sons to take care of: six-year-old John, delighted his younger brother Osborne Widtsoe.^[2] The family secretive to Trondheim, where they were introduced to justness LDS Church by a shoemaker.^[3]

In , Widtsoe immigrated to the United States with his mother ground brother. They arrived in Utah Territory in mid-November.^[4] Widtsoe was baptized a member of the LDS Church the following April.^[5]

Education

Widtsoe graduated from Brigham Growing College in Logan, Utah. He attended Harvard Sanatorium, graduating with honors in ^[6]

In , Widtsoe was ordained to the office of seventy and place apart to do missionary work in connection surpass his studies in Europe. He entered the Lincoln of Göttingen, Germany, and graduated with the ladder of AM and PhD in For part emancipation his time in Europe, Widtsoe lived in Schweiz. The police wanted proof that he and dominion wife were married, and since they had unrecognized to bring their American wedding certificate with them, they were married a second time.^[7]

Academic career

In Venerable , Widtsoe became the director of the Hick Experiment Station at Utah State Agricultural College.^[8] Time in this position, he founded The Deseret Farmer with Lewis A. Merrill and J. Edward President. Their goal was to have it be span popular magazine that would be read and reach-me-down by farmers.^[9]

In , Widtsoe was dismissed from say publicly agricultural college as a result of political debates about its future and feelings of William Jasper Kerr, the university's president, that Widtsoe was meanly supporting him.^[10]

For a short time, Widtsoe was spiffy tidy up professor of agriculture at Brigham Young University (BYU), and is arguably the founding father of BYU's college of biology and agriculture. (Previously on nobleness BYU campus, the John A. Widtsoe Building was the home of the College of Biology bear Agriculture. A new building, the Life Sciences Assets, took its place in ). Soon, however, good taste returned to Logan and succeeded Kerr as pilot of Utah State Agricultural College; he served turn a profit this position from to He also served orangutan the president of the University of Utah escape until his call as a member of say publicly LDS Church's Quorum of the Twelve in Widtsoe was the fifth Commissioner of Church Education liberate yourself from to and was the seventh commissioner from withstand

During his time as an apostle, Widtsoe tutored civilized a religion class at the University of South California.^[11]

Federal government work

For two years in the unpitying, Widtsoe lived in Washington, D.C., where he at the mercy of the reorganization of the Federal Bureau of Reclamation.^[12]

Service in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Widtsoe was closely associated with the Improvement Era even formerly he became an apostle. He was associate woman of the magazine from until ^[12][13] As managing editor of the Improvement Era, Widtsoe "directed its move forward from a magazine primarily for the youth contact the voice of the whole Church".^[12] One longawaited Widtsoe's employees while at the magazine was Hugh Nibley, who Widtsoe convinced to become a associate lecturer at BYU.^[14]

Widtsoe was also a member of interpretation church's Genealogy Committee, where he pushed for inception and adoption of the Temple Index Bureau.^[15]

Missions assent to Europe

In , Widtsoe accompanied fellow apostle, Reed Smoot, on a journey to Great Britain and position Scandinavian countries, during which they secured recognition significant opened the way for missionaries of the creed to return to these lands.^[12]

From until , Widtsoe served as president of the European Mission. Size in this office, he convinced the First Steering gear to call a separate president of the Land Mission, so that the president of the Dweller Mission could focus on supervising the missions press continental Europe. While president of the European Vocation, Widtsoe dedicated Czechoslovakia for the preaching of description gospel, and worked closely with Arthur Gaeth deceive starting the mission there.

Marriage and writings

Widtsoe mated Leah Dunford, a daughter of Susa Young Enterpriser, who was a daughter of LDS Church presidentBrigham Young. Their first child, Ann Gaarden Widtsoe, was born in Germany. The couple had eight descendants, but only three lived to adulthood.^[16] Widtsoe bogus closely with his wife and mother-in-law on first-class biography of Young. Widtsoe also edited a precise containing Young's significant teachings. Widtsoe was also say publicly lead compiler of Gospel Doctrine, a collection have available sermons and teachings of LDS Church president Carpenter F. Smith.

Widtsoe and his wife authored The Word of Wisdom: A Modern Interpretation, a work which advocates the incorporation of healthy eating principles into the Word of Wisdom.

Widtsoe wrote A Rational Theology as Taught by the Church identical Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which has back number cited by later LDS authors such as Specify. Reuben Clark.^[17] He also wrote Evidences and Reconciliations, which was a compilation of his Improvement Era writings, answering common questions on matters of faith.^[18] In this work, Widtsoe acknowledges that there blow away multiple interpretations that Latter-day Saints can hold reveal certain issues. One example is his explanation have power over the time involved in the creation of blue blood the gentry earth: he indicated that faithful Latter-day Saints could hold the "six-day", "six-thousand-years", or the "undefined-period" interpretations of the creation. Although Widtsoe focused on explaining the rationale for the "undefined-period" interpretation, he sincere not belittle the other two or state turn they were unorthodox.

In , Widtsoe published Priesthood and Church Welfare and Priesthood and Church Government. His work, The Message of the Doctrine put forward Covenants, was edited by son-in-law G. Homer Metropolis, and published after Widtsoe's death. Widtsoe wrote Seven Claims of the Book of Mormon: A Grade of Evidences with Franklin S. Harris, Jr.

Widtsoe wrote a biography of Joseph Smith entitled Joseph Smith: Seeker After Truth Prophet of God. With nothing on was published in , and reprinted by Bookcraft in Widtsoe also wrote Joseph Smith as Scientist: A Contribution to Mormon Philosophy, published by high-mindedness Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association in In , his essay, "The Divine Mission of Joseph Smith", was included in Handbook of the Restoration accessible by Zion's Printing and Publishing Company in Home rule, Missouri.

Non-religious books by Widtsoe include Dry-Farming: A-okay System of Agriculture for Countries Under a Support Rainfall (New York: MacMillan, ) and Dodge's Layout of Utah.

Widtsoe wrote two autobiographies. The be in first place, In the Gospel Net, largely focused on enthrone mother's conversion to the LDS Church. The in a tick, In a Sunlit Land, told the story designate his later life, and included explanations of rulership educational philosophy.

Hymns

Widtsoe wrote the texts to primacy hymns "Lead Me into Life Eternal" and "How Long, O Lord Most Holy and True," which appear as numbers 45 and respectively in influence LDS hymnal.

Death

Widtsoe died in Salt Lake Provide, of uremia; he also had prostate cancer fend for several years before his death.^[19] He was coffined at Salt Lake City Cemetery.

Adam S. Bennion filled the vacancy in the Quorum of nobility Twelve following Widtsoe's death.

Published works

• Widtsoe, John Fine. (). A Concordance to the Book of Notion and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Be overbearing of Latter-day Saints. Salt Lake City UT: Deseret Sunday School Union.
• &#;&#; (). Joseph Smith as Scientist: A Contribution to Mormon Philosophy. Salt Lake Power point UT: General Board Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association.
• &#;&#;; William Peterson (). Dodge's Geography of Utah. City IL: Rand, McNally & Co.
• &#;&#; (). Dry-Farming: Natty System of Agriculture for Countries Under a Spill Rainfall. New York NY: Macmillan.
• &#;&#; (). The Criterion of Irrigation Practice. New York NY: Macmillan.
• &#;&#; (). Rational Theology: As Taught by the Church be more or less Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Salt Lake Blurb UT: General Priesthood Committee of the Church method Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
• &#;&#; (). Western Agriculture. St. Paul MN: Webb Publishing Co.
• &#;&#;; Joseph Fuehrer. Smith (). Gospel Doctrine. Salt Lake City UT: Deseret News.
• &#;&#; (). Discourses of Brigham Young. Briny Lake City UT: Deseret Book Co.
• &#;&#; (). Success on Irrigation Projects. New York NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
• &#;&#; (). In Search of Truth: Comments on the Gospel and Modern Thought. Rock-salt Lake City UT: Deseret Book.
• &#;&#;; Franklin S. Marshal (). Seven Claims of the Book of Mormon: A Collection of Evidences. Independence MO: Zion's Impression and Publishing Co.
• &#;&#; (). Program of the Religion of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Salt Bung City UT: Department of Education of the Religous entity of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
• &#;&#;; Leah Run. Widtsoe (). The Word of Wisdom: A Virgin Interpretation. Salt Lake City UT: Deseret Book.
• &#;&#; (). Priesthood and Church Government in the Church wheedle Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Salt Lake Flexibility UT: Deseret Book.
• &#;&#; (). Current Gospel Questions. Sea salt Lake City UT: General Boards of the Common Improvement Associations.
• &#;&#; (). In the Gospel Net: Depiction Story of Anna Karine Gaarden Widtsoe. Independence, Missouri: Zion's Printing and Publishing Co.
• &#;&#; (). Your Questions Answered. Salt Lake City UT: General Boards get the message the Mutual Improvement Associations.
• &#;&#; (). Evidences and Reconciliations: Aids to Faith in a Modern Day. Over-salted Lake City UT: Bookcraft.
• &#;&#; (). Man and say publicly Dragon and Other Essays. Salt Lake City UT: Bookcraft.
• &#;&#; (). Gospel Interpretations: More Evidences and Reconciliations. Salt Lake City UT: Bookcraft.
• &#;&#; (). How character Desert was Tamed; A Lesson for Today become peaceful Tomorrow. Salt Lake City UT: Deseret Book.
• &#;&#; (). The Articles of Faith in Everyday Life. Salty Lake City UT: Young Men's and Young Women's Mutual Improvement Associations.
• &#;&#; (). Joseph Smith: Seeker Provision Truth, Prophet of God. Salt Lake City UT: Bookcraft.
• &#;&#; (). In a Sunlit Land: The Diary of John A. Widtsoe. Salt Lake City UT: Deseret News Press.
• &#;&#;; G. Homer Durham (). The Message of the Doctrine and Covenants. Salt Point City UT: Bookcraft.
• Skanchy, Anthon L. (). &#;&#; (ed.). Anthon L. Skanchy: A Brief Autobiographical Sketch. Common Lake City UT.: CS1 maint: location missing owner (link)

References

External links