Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf Celebrates His 78th Birthday Today

Hello again, everyone! As it is now past midnight Utah time, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf is marking his 78th birthday today. So let's get right into this post, which will share some highlights of his life in honor of this milestone. Dieter Friedrich Uchtdorf was born on November 6, 1940 in Ostrava, which at that time was defined as the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, but is now known as the city of Ostrava in the Czech Republic. His parents were Karl Albert and Hildegard Else Opelt Uchtdorf.

With his family twice becoming refugees, he grew up in Germany, where his family joined the Church in 1947, and  went on to study engineering, business administration, and international management, after which he joined the German Air Force in 1959, where he trained to be a fighter pilot. In 1965, he joined Lufthansa German Airlines as a pilot, working as an airline captain from 1970-1996. He held many responsible executive positions with German Airlines. He reported feeling discouraged about having to learn English, but has also described how he was able to do so.

He married Harriet Reich on December 14, 1962 (whom he had met when the missionaries brought her and her family to Church while he was a young man),and they both have different recollections of hwo they actually got together). Their family is comprised of two children and several grandchildren. He served as a stake president before his call as a General Authority.

He was sustained a member of the Second Quorum of the Seventy on April 2, 1994. On April 6, 1996, he was sustained to the First Quorum of the Seventy. He became a member of the Presidency of the Seventy on August 15, 2002 and was sustained a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on October 2, 2004 and ordained an apostle on October 7, 2004 (becoming the 11th apostle born outside the United States).

On February 3, 2008, he was set apart as 2^nd Counselor in the First Presidency to President Thomas S. Monson. Of those 11 apostles born outside the United States, he became the 6th international apostle to serve in the First Presidency. At the time of his call to the First Presidency, he was the 13th in apostolic seniority. During the period of almost a decade in which he served alongside President Monson and First Counselor President Henry B. Eyring, the deaths of six apostles senior to him meant he had become the 7th in apostolic seniority.

And with the death of President Monson occurring just three months after the death of Elder Robert D. Hales, the First Presidency was dissolved. The new Church President, Russell M. Nelson, chose as his counselors his seatmate Elder Dallin H. Oaks and President Eyring. As a result, Elder Uchtdorf returned to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

When he departed that Quorum to serve in the First Presidency, he had been the tenth most senior member of that Quorum, and he returned to it as the third in seniority, with only Acting President M. Russell Ballard and Elder Jeffrey R. Holland ahead of him. And in recognition of his administrative capacities and capabilities, his assignments as a recently-reassigned Quorum member were those that had previously been held by the three who had been the most senior members of the Quorum (Presidents Nelson, Oaks, and Ballard)..

Elder Uchtdorf has spoken frequently about ways in which Church members should consider themselves called to action. I enjoy hearing what he has to say in his General Conference addresses every six months. Throughout his almost 24 years as a general authority, almost 14 years as a special witness of the Savior, and nearly a decade of service in the First Presidency, he has now given 69 talks, only 2 of which were given prior to his apostolic call. To review any of these remarkable and noteworthy addresses, click here (it should be noted that his first talk given as a General Authority, has somehow been omitted from that larger list).

Elder Uchtdorf is a man of great personal warmth and charm, and we are blessed indeed to have him among the Special Witnesses of Christ at this time. He has always struck a very warm and welcoming tone in his public discourses, and his current assignments are a clear testament to the great faith the Brethren have in him. In addition to being the 3rd most senior member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, he is also the third oldest, behind only President Ballard and Elder Quentin L. Cook. He is also the 7th senior apostle overall, and the 6th oldest of the 15 apostles overall.

Although he may never personally read this tribute, it was an honor to provide it for him on this, his 77th birthday. I continue to monitor any and all Church news and temple developments and will be sure to pass word of those along to you all as I receive it. That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly-added content, please feel free to subscribe. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in all that you do.