President Russell M. Nelson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, passed away just after 10 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27. He departed peacefully in his Salt Lake City home.
He is survived by his second wife, Wendy Watson Nelson; eight of his ten children; and more than 200 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Following President Nelson’s death, the church’s First Presidency released the following statement.
Russell Marion Nelson Sr. was born Sept. 9, 1924, in Salt Lake City to Marion C. Nelson and Edna Anderson Nelson. He was the second of four children and grew up in a loving home.
President Nelson cherished his family and often spoke of the influence of his pioneer great-grandparents, all eight of whom converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Europe.
Though his parents were not active in the Church growing up, they allowed President Nelson and his siblings to attend Sunday School. Because of devoted home teachers and Sunday School teachers, President Nelson was baptized as a member of the Church at age of 16 with his siblings. Later in life, President Nelson was sealed to his parents.
“I adored my parents,” said President Nelson. “They meant the world to me and taught me crucial lessons. I cannot thank them enough for the happy home life they created for me and my siblings. And yet, even as a boy, I knew I was missing something. One day I jumped on the streetcar and went to an LDS bookstore to find a book about the Church. I loved learning about the gospel.”
As a child, President Nelson was curious about how the world worked. This curiosity led to a natural love of science. President Nelson decided as a teen that he would pursue medicine in college.
He attended the University of Utah, where he met Dantzel White in a musical production at the school. They were married Aug. 31, 1945, in the Salt Lake Temple, just a few months after President Nelson received his degree. They are the parents of 10 children — nine daughters and one son.
Because he attended school during World War II, President Nelson compressed a four-year premedical degree into three years and began medical school at the University of Utah in 1944. He graduated at the top of his class. He also served in the U.S. Naval Reserve from 1945 to 1947.
President Nelson served his residency in surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and at the University of Minnesota. He later received his Ph.D. in 1954. He also received several honorary degrees: Doctor of Science from Brigham Young University in 1970, Doctor of Medical Science from Utah State University in 1989 and Doctor of Humane Letters from Snow College in 1994.
During his professional career as a heart surgeon, President Nelson and other medical professionals pioneered the development of the heart-lung machine. In 1955, he became the first doctor in Utah to perform open-heart surgery.
Throughout his career, President Nelson authored numerous publications and chapters in medical textbooks and lectured and visited professionally throughout the United States and many other nations. He received many awards and honors throughout his life, including the Heart of Gold Award from the American Heart Association, the Golden Plate Award, presented by the American Academy of Achievement and the Gandhi-King-Mandela Peace Prize.
President Nelson has served as president of the Society for Vascular Surgery, a director of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, chairman of the Council on Cardiovascular Surgery for the American Heart Association and president of the Utah State Medical Association.
President Nelson developed close ties with China during his career and was credited with introducing open-heart surgery to China in 1980. He was awarded honorary professorships from three universities in the People’s Republic of China.
One notable moment of President Nelson’s career is when he performed open-heart surgery on Spencer W. Kimball, who would go on to be the 12th president of the Church.
During his professional career, President Nelson also served in a variety of church callings, including stake president of the Bonneville Stake, general president of the Sunday School, regional representative for Brigham Young University and regional representative for the Kearns Utah Region.
Despite his great success in medicine, President Nelson accepted the call to serve as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles without hesitation. He began serving in that quorum April 7, 1984. Before he left his professional career behind, he performed his last surgery on one of China’s most famous opera stars, Fang Rongxiang, in 1984 after being called as an apostle.
President Nelson’s love of the gospel of Jesus Christ was evident from the beginning of his service to the Lord. In his first general conference address as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, he pledged to commit his “effort, my energy, and (his) all” in his service.
In his nearly 34 years serving in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles prior to becoming president of the Church, President Nelson visited 134 countries to share the gospel.
President Nelson’s first wife, Dantzel, passed away unexpectedly from heart failure Feb. 12, 2005, after nearly 60 years of marriage.
“For a season, my grief was almost immobilizing. But the message of Easter and the promise of resurrection sustained me,” President Nelson said.
President Nelson later married Wendy L. Watson. They were sealed by President Gordon B. Hinckley in the Salt Lake Temple on April 6, 2006.
“How I love her! She is an extraordinary woman — a great blessing to me, to our family, and to the entire Church,” President Nelson said of Watson.
President Nelson served as president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from July 15, 2015, until his call to lead the Church.
President Nelson was sustained and set apart as the 17th president and prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2018, shortly after the passing of President Thomas S. Monson.
Despite being 93 years old at the time of his calling, President Nelson was healthy and active for his age and loved to ski.
Elder W. Craig Zwick, an emeritus General Authority Seventy, said he has been with President Nelson on black diamond ski runs.
“The man can ski with the best of them,” Zwick said.
In his first address as prophet, President Nelson said he wanted to begin with the end in mind, and encouraged members to strive for the blessings of the temple. President Nelson often emphasized the importance of temples during his ministry and announced 200 temples during his time as prophet, the most of any church president.
In his first general conference talk as the prophet, President Nelson spoke about revelation.
“In coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting and constant influence of the Holy Ghost,” President Nelson said.
During his time as the prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Nelson presided over a historic number of large-scale changes in the Church. The following changes are only a few of many that have shaped the culture of the Church today.
- April 1, 2018 — Ministering replaces home and visiting teaching.
- May 9, 2018 — The Church will end its relationship with Boy Scouts of America, announces new activity program for children and youth.
- Aug. 16, 2018 — President Nelson issues a statement on using the full name of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (He later addresses this topic in general conference, and changes are made to Church websites, social media accounts, mobile apps, etc.)
- Sept. 5, 2018 — Missionary candidates will receive assignments online instead of in the mail.
- Oct. 6, 2018 — Home-centered, Church-supported gospel study and adjustments to the Sunday meeting schedule are announced, with church meetings lasting for two hours instead of three.
- Dec. 20, 2018 — Sister missionaries have the option to wear dress pants.
- Feb. 15, 2019 — Missionaries are authorized to communicate with their families each week on preparation day by text, online messaging, phone calls and video chats.
- April 4, 2019 — Children of parents who identify themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender may be blessed as infants and baptized without First Presidency approval.
- May 6, 2019 — One-year waiting period for temple sealings after civil marriage is discontinued.
- Oct. 2, 2019 — Women, youth and children may now serve as witnesses of sealing and baptismal ordinances.
- Jan. 30, 2020 — The Church announces new administrative handbook for all Church leaders and members to replace Handbook 1 and Handbook 2.
- June 12, 2020 — Blue dress shirts, no ties are approved as missionary attire exceptions.
- March 11, 2021 — Six women called as the first international area organization advisers for the Church, in the Europe Area. Others are called to serve in the Philippines and Caribbean areas.
- Nov. 30, 2022 — The notice “Strengthening Young Single Adults” is released, emphasizing young single adults serving in all YSA callings except stake president and bishop.
- June 22, 2023 — President Nelson announces a new edition of “Preach My Gospel” at the 2023 Seminar for New Mission Leaders.
President Nelson served as the Lord’s prophet during the COVID-19 pandemic. He urged members to remember the Lord and trust in Him in the midst of trials.
He said, “How can we endure such trials? The Lord has told us that ‘if ye are prepared ye shall not fear.’ Of course, we can store our own reserves of food, water, and savings. But equally crucial is our need to fill our personal spiritual storehouses with faith, truth and testimony.”
Four general conferences were held with only program participants in attendance and all audience members tuning in virtually. During the April 2020 general conference, President Nelson issued “The Restoration of the Fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Bicentennial Proclamation to the World” and led the Church in the Hosanna Shout to commemorate Joseph Smith’s First Vision.
In his final general conference address in October 2023, President Nelson urged members to “think celestial.”
“In my first message as President of the Church, I encouraged you to begin with the end in mind. This means making the celestial kingdom your eternal goal and then carefully considering where each of your decisions while here on earth will place you in the next world,” President Nelson said.
President Nelson practiced his own teachings by focusing on his family.
“The highest titles I have are husband and father,” President Nelson said.
The beloved prophet lived a life abundant of service. His love for the Savior and His gospel were ever apparent. He served with love and devotion and will be missed in his service to the Lord and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
President Nelson's funeral service will be held at the Conference Center on Temple Square on Oct. 7, the week after the October general conference. The service will be open to the public for ages eight and above and tickets will be available online starting on Oct. 2. The funeral will be broadcast online for those unable to attend in person.