He was born 208 years ago today. He had about three months of formal schooling. He lived in poverty, away from most centers of civilization. He was shot to death in jail. The governor expected his death to put an end to him.
And yet . . .
He dashed off a work of five hundred pages in under three months that is still being read 180 years after its original publication.
He correctly claimed, while still a teenager, that his name would be known for good and evil all over the world.
He correctly noted that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.
Even if you do not think Joseph Smith was a prophet, that is pretty impressive.
