President Jeffrey R. Holland, President of the Quorum of the Twelve of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, passed away on Saturday, December 27, 2025 at approximately 3:15 a.m. MST surrounded by his family. He was a religious leader and scholar, former president of BYU as well as a husband and father.
He is survived by his children; Matthew, Mary Alice and David Holland, his children-in-law, his 13 grandchildren and several great grand-children. He is preceded in death by his wife, Patricia Holland.
Early Life
Holland was born on December 3, 1940, in St. George, Utah to Frank and Alice Holland.
As a St. George native, Holland was named and blessed as a baby in the St. George Tabernacle and attended several church services in the historic building.
He attended Dixie High School as a teenager and began his college education at Dixie State University, where he played on the men’s basketball team.
In October 1960, 19-year-old Holland departed on a mission to Great Britain, where he served with a young Elder Quentin L. Cook, now a member of the Quorum of the Twelve. They were companions near the end of their missions.
After completing his mission, Holland married his high school sweetheart, Patricia, on June 7, 1963 in the St. George temple.
Holland graduated from Brigham Young University with a bachelor's degree in English and a masters degree in religious education. Later, he received a second masters degree and a Ph.D. in American studies from Yale University.
Career and Church Service
In 1974, Elder Holland was appointed the dean of Religious Education at BYU. In 1980, he replaced Dallin H. Oaks and became the ninth president of BYU.
Elder Holland’s time as BYU president ended when he was called to the First Quorum of the Seventy in 1989. While part of the quorum, he also served as a counselor for the Young Men’s General Presidency.
In 1994, when the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Ezra Taft Benson, passed, Elder Holland was called to be an apostle by the new president, Howard W. Hunter.
In November 2023, he became Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve after the previous President, M. Russell Ballard, passed away. After Russell M. Nelson, President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, passed away in 2025, President Holland became President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
One of Elder Holland’s most notable sermons comes from the October 1999 General Conference, “An High Priest of Good Things to Come” in which he shares a story from his life about moving with his young family. Their car broke down multiple times and Elder Holland had to walk several miles for help.
At the end of the address, he said that if he could encourage the younger version of himself he would tell him, “Don’t you quit. You keep walking. You keep trying. There is help and happiness ahead…You keep your chin up. It will be all right in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come.”
Elder Holland testified that blessings always come, but not always when we expect them. However, because of the goodness of God and the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the blessings will always come, he said.
Holland authored several books on Church topics throughout his life, one of which he co-authored with his wife, Patricia Holland.
Devotionals and addresses
Due to Elder Holland’s deep connection to BYU, he has given many BYU devotionals throughout his career.
His most well-known speeches are, “Of Souls, Symbols, and Sacraments”—a required reading in many religion classes at BYU—“Cast Not Away Therefore Your Confidence,” “How Do I Love Thee?,” “Lessons from Liberty Jail,” and “Remember Lot’s Wife: Faith Is for the Future.”
Many of Elder Holland’s devotionals focused on the importance of turning to God and Christ and putting one’s trust in Them.
In his January 1988 BYU devotional, “Of Souls, Symbols, and Sacraments” he talks about chastity and the importance of protecting the spirit within each individual. He closed this speech by testifying of the love of Jesus Christ, the gift of repentance and his desire that each person will come unto Christ and be lifted through Him.
Elder Holland emphasized the importance of having connections and experiences with God and remembering them in his March 1999 BYU devotional “Cast Not Away Therefore Your Confidence.” He reminds listeners that the adversary will try to distract and dissuade people from the things they know but to rely on the various moments they shared with God.
On Feb. 15. 2000, Elder Holland gave a speech at BYU titled, “How Do I Love Thee?” In the talk, he focused on charity, the pure love of Christ. He talked about how having charity and being a faithful disciple is crucial to everything we do, including dating and marriage.
Elder Holland gave his devotional, “Lessons from Liberty Jail” in September of 2008. He tells about the time Joseph Smith spent in Liberty Jail and compared it to the experiences people have today, striving for revelatory experiences in metaphorical jail cells.
He told the audience, “You can have sacred, revelatory, profoundly instructive experience with the Lord in the most miserable experiences of your life—in the worst settings, while enduring the most painful injustices, when facing the most insurmountable odds and opposition you have ever faced.”
“Remember Lot’s Wife: Faith Is for the Future” was given in January 2009. He brings up the example of Lot’s wife and how she longingly looked back as they left. Elder Holland encouraged listeners to look forward with faith and know that God has goodness prepared for each person’s future.
In addition to his many devotionals at BYU, Elder Holland also delivered numerous messages to preparing missionaries at the MTC.
Holland often remarked on the profound importance of missionary work in his life, crediting much of what he accomplished in his life to the 24 months he spent serving the Lord as a missionary.
“I pray that 59 years, seven months, three weeks and two days from now, you will still feel about your mission the way I still feel about mine, and the way I want you to feel tonight — and tomorrow and the next day,” he told missionaries at an MTC devotional in 2022.
In a 2013 MTC devotional, Holland expressed his love and trust for the rising generation of missionaries.
“So you’ve got to invest yourself in this for your sake, for the Church’s sake, and for heaven’s sake. The angels are smiling down on this dispensation and expect so much of you in order that the Lord can triumphantly come. There’s a lot riding on your shoulders,” he said.
During his life, Elder Holland testified frequently of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the promised blessings for those who believe in Him.
Holland’s most recent General Conference address was in October 2025 and was entitled “Lifted Up the Cross.” He spoke of the miraculous impact of the Book of Mormon in his life and its confirmation of the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
“As the glorious Resurrection followed the agonizing Crucifixion, so blessings of every kind are poured out on those who are willing, as the Book of Mormon prophet Jacob says, to "believe in Christ, and view his death and suffer his cross," President Holland said.
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