Stokes Sounds Off: Elder Gerrit W. Gong Observes His 69th Birthday

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Friday, December 23, 2022

Elder Gerrit W. Gong Observes His 69th Birthday

Hello again, everyone! I am back two days before Christmas to post a birthday tribute to Elder Gerrit W. Gong, who is celebrating his 69th today. His is the last apostolic birthday to occur this year. The first apostle to observe his birthday in 2023 will be Elder D. Todd Christofferson, marking his 78th on January 24. Let's now turn our attention to today's tribute to Elder Gong.

Gerrit Walter Gong was born in Redwood City, California, on this day in 1953, to Walter and Jean Char Gong. While he was given his father's name for his middle name, his first name was given in honor of and out of respect to Gerrit de Jong, whose family hosted his mother while she studied at BYU-Provo.

After graduating from high school in Palo Alto, California, young Gerrit served as a missionary for the Church in Taiwan. He earned a bachelor's degree at BYU, then continued his education at Oxford University, where, as a Rhodes Scholar, he earned a master's degree and a doctoral degree in philosophy. 

He first met Susan Lindsay, the woman he would later marry, while giving presentations at the MTC focused on the culture of Taiwan, to groups of missionaries assigned to serve in that nation (Sister Lindsay, at that time, was preparing to serve her mission in Taiwan). At some point following her return from missionary service, while he was on summer break from Oxford, the two began dating. 

After Gerrit returned to Oxford, he and Susan (a BYU student) continued their courtship long-distance The couple was married in the Salt Lake Temple on January 2, 1980, and raised 4 sons. They spent most of their married lives in Virginia and Maryland. Brother Gong became a special assistant to the US Secretary of State in 1985. He subsequently became a professor at Johns Hopkins University and Georgetown University.

He continued his career as a special assistant in the US State Department and as a special assistant to the US embassy in China. In 1989, he served as China Chair and Asia Director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He was also invited to participate in multiple education summits, in addition to serving on the United States Department of Education's National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity. 

Toward the end of his professional career, he served as an Assistant to the President of BYU for Planning and Assessment. As impressive as his career may have been, the far more significant things he accomplished were in the course of Church service over several decades, during which he was a bishop, stake president, and area seventy. 

During his latter assignment, he accompanied the presiding authority to my parent's Stake Conference. As he spoke, I was impressed by his warmth, knowledge of the scriptures, and ability to teach from them. While I may not remember any specifics of what he said, the power of the Spirit which I felt when he was speaking was unmistakable.

After that conference, I had the opportunity to greet and chat with him informally. What I had seen at the pulpit while he spoke was even more apparent in his interactions with me and other members of my parent's stake. This is a man who feels and teaches by the Spirit. During the April 2010 General Conference, Elder Gong was among those called to serve as General Authority Seventies. 

He filled various assignments at Church headquarters for the first year or so after his call. From August 2011-August 2013, he served in the Asia Area Presidency as a counselor. In 2013, he was called as president of that same area. As a result of Elder Ronald A. Rasband's call to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles during the October 2015 General Conference, Elder Gong was called to the Presidency of the Seventy on October 6, 2015. 

He transitioned out of his role as Asia Area President and into that new assignment effective January 4, 2016. During his two years of active service in the Presidency of the Seventy, he had responsibility for overseeing the work of the Church in the North America Northeast Area. He also served on the Church Board of Education and Boards of Trustees, and as a member of the Executive Committee of the Boards. Following the October 2017 and January 2018 deaths of Elder Robert D. Hales and Church President Thomas S. Monson, new Church President Russell M. Nelson called both Elder Gong and Elder Ulisses Soares to serve as members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The two made history as the first Asian-American and Latin-American apostles of the Church. They were sustained as such on March 31, 2018, and both were ordained to the apostleship the following Thursday (April 5, 2018).

Consistent with the general practice of the Church, and for the first time since the October 2015 appointments of Elders Ronald A. Rasband, Gary E. Stevenson, and Dale G. Renlund, with the two apostles called, sustained, and ordained on the same day, Elder Gong, who is older, became the senior apostle to Elder Soares. In June 2018, Elders Gong and Soares met with media representatives for the first time as new apostles, at which time Elder Gong reported that he had been asked to chair the Scriptures Committee. 

His additional assignments included serving on the Priesthood and Family Executive Council, the Leadership and Training Committee, and the Outreach Committee. He also had apostolic oversight for the Asia and Asia North Areas. Given the recent shifting of apostolic assignments, it wouldn't surprise me to see confirmation that he is serving on either the Missionary Executive Council or the Temple & Family History Executive Council.

Elder Gong has given a total of 12 addresses in General Conference thus far, which includes 1 as a General Authority, 1 other as a member of the Presidency of the Seventy, and the remaining 10 since beginning his service in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Due to his potential exposure to COVID-19 (for which he tested positive a few days later), he had pre-recorded his remarks in the days leading up to the October 2020 General Conference. 

Having successfully completed his quarantine, he was able to preside at the groundbreaking for the Taylorsville Utah Temple later that month. And after a yearlong delay, Elder Gong presided at the dedication of the Winnipeg Manitoba Temple in October 2021. As an apostle of Asia descent, he was sent in June of this year to rededicate the Hong Kong China Temple

I am grateful to have been able to honor Elder Gong on this, his 69th birthday. Because of my previously-referenced personal interaction with him, I can testify that the Lord has prepared him for his present assignment, and I wholeheartedly sustain him and the other 14 apostles. I continue to monitor all Church News and temple updates and will be sure to pass word of those along to you as I become aware thereof.

In the meantime, that does it for now. All comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated on any post at any time, as long as the offered feedback is made per the established guidelines. I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. 

Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly-added posts and comments. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

6 comments:

  1. Hello again, everyone! The Church News has shared a tribute to Elder Gong:

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders/2022/12/23/23523132/elder-gong-69th-birthday-nine-quotes-from-past-year

    And here are a few more Church News reports that speak for themselves:

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/members/2022/12/22/23523372/new-resources-for-parents-primary-teachers-teach-children-about-covenants-come-follow-me

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/global/2022/12/23/23522847/donation-world-food-programme-refugee-camps-dadaab-kenya

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2022/11/18/23464598/where-are-the-2022-giving-machines-light-the-world

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2022/12/23/23522212/tabernacle-choir-christmas-specials-past-music-the-spoken-word-christmas-specials

    And here is one more Newsroom report:

    https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/world-food-programme-dadaab-kenya-camps-2022

    My thanks once again to you all.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Church News has shared the following two additional reports, which speak for themselves:

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/global/2022/12/23/23523016/central-africa-light-the-world-service-projects

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2022/12/23/23524486/lea-salonga-sir-david-suchet-talk-about-performing-with-the-tabernacle-choir-christmas

      And the latest edition of "This Week on Social" has also been published:

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2022/12/23/23521481/this-week-on-social-president-nelson-all-make-better-world-elder-gong-promises-joy-following-christ

      I don't know if the Church News might do a special edition this weekend entitled "This Christmas on Social", but assuming that doesn't happen, today's installment was the second-to-last one for 2022. I also wanted to note that the following leaders were featured in this week's edition: Church President Russell M. Nelson; Elders Jeffrey R. Holland, Quentin L. Cook, Ronald A. Rasband, Gary E. Stevenson, Gerrit W. Gong, and Ulisses Soares, all of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles; Relief Society General President Sister Camille N. Johnson and her respective First and Second Counselors, Sisters J. Anette Dennis and Kristin M. Yee,; Sister Michelle D. Craig, First Counselor in the Young Women General Presidecy; Primary General President Sister Susan H. Porter and her resptive First and Second Counslors, Sisters Amy A. Wright and Tracy Y. Browning;

      My thaks once again to you all.

      Delete
  2. Hello again, everyone! On this Christmas Eve, the Church News has shared the following additional reports, which speak for themselves:

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders/2022/12/24/23521132/president-eyring-december-2022-liahona-article-the-promised-messiah

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2022/12/24/23522235/hear-luke-2-the-christmas-story-read-by-mormon-tabernacle-choir-guest-artists

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2022/12/24/23522104/music-the-spoken-word-3-symbols-of-christmas-mormon-tabernacle-choir-neal-mcdonough

    I don't know whether or not there will be anything new to report until the day after Christmas, so for now, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas. Stay safe out there, and my thanks once again to you all for your continued interest and ongoing support.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Merry Christmas! While I have no desire to detract from your Christmas celebrations, I did want to pass along the latest Church News updates since all but one relates to Christmas. Here is that one:

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/callings/2022/12/25/23521707/17-stake-presidents-called-from-dallas-to-new-delhi

      And here are the 3 Christmas updates:

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/2021/12/18/23218352/modern-prophets-and-apostles-15-quotes-about-christmas-savior

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders/2022/12/25/23523685/week-in-review-president-nelson-christmas-wishes-president-eyring-spirit-of-christmas

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2022/12/25/23522226/tabernacle-choir-christmas-concerts-stories-narrate-candy-bomber-charles-dickens

      It’s also worth noting that, due to Christmas falling on a Sunday this year, in the US, the official federal holiday will be observed tomorrow. With that in mind, I assume that the general Church leaders will cancel or postpone any typical Monday meetings for later this week. That will also probably be true for next week when Sunday falls on New Year’s Day and the federal holiday will be observed on Monday January 2.

      What that likely also means is that any new temple update would be announced on Tuesday for at least the next two weeks, but whether the Church would shift all subsequent temple announcements to Tuesday going forward or just keep Monday as the day for subsequent announcements after the holiday observances. Stay tuned for more when any new announcements in that respect are shared.

      In the interim, I wanted to note known content coming up this week. I have finished compiling the initial version of my General Conference predictions for April, which will be published in two posts on Wednesday this week. Then on Saturday, I’ve got plans to share a look back at temple construction for 2022 and another post highlighting the major updates from the Church in 2022, along with a look ahead at planned blog content coming in 2023. For now, my thanks once again to you all.

      Delete
    2. On this Monday, as Boxing Day is observed in many commonwealth nations, I am unsoure if any new temple construction updates will be shared today. But I can confirm a few more general Church ews updates. Both the Newsroom ad the Church News have provided a look back at the major developments that occurred worldwide in 2022:

      https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/year-in-review-2022

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders/2022/12/26/23517761/2022-year-in-review-jesus-christ-president-nelson-temples

      Two other Church News reports speak for themselves:

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/history/2022/12/26/23523397/rangi-parker-lifetime-award-church-history-in-new-zealand

      https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2022/12/26/23525290/light-the-world-celebrations-service-giving-machines

      My thanks once again to you all.

      Delete
  3. Hello again, everyone! Although I had hoped that the Church might announce major temple news today or tomorrow, today, I noticed a chnge to the heading of the page that shares the latest temple news:

    https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/temple-news-house-of-the-lord-2022

    The heading now reads, "2022 Temple News From the Church of Jesus Christ". Based on that, I'm assuming that, barring anything unexpected, there might not be any other major temple construction updates in 2022. I say that because the wording for that article matches the heading of the Newsroom's article with the heading "A Look Back at the Church of Jesus Christ in 2022":

    https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/year-in-review-2022

    And the Church News has shared 3 other updates:

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders/2022/12/27/23516770/come-follow-me-2023-new-testament-sunday-school-general-presidency

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/podcast/2022/12/27/23528411/deseret-news-editor-doug-wilks-year-in-review-seeking-joy-through-christ-amid-trials

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/members/2022/12/27/23528058/gladys-knight-kennedy-lifetime-artistic-achievement-award

    As noted above in the threads of this post, I will have 4 additional new posts published before 2022 officially concludes. Stay tuned for that coverage. For now, my thanks once again to you all.

    ReplyDelete

In addition to my life-long love for the subjects which I cover in the posts of this blog, I have long held the belief that we can disagree without becoming disagreeable. Differences of opinion are natural, while being disagreeable in expressing those differences is not. And in that sense, I have no desire to close the door on anyone who earnestly desires to contribute to the ongoing dialogue on subjects covered in the posts on this blog.

At the same time, however, I recognize that we live in a time when incivility, discourtesy, unkindness, and even cyber-bullying has regrettably become part of online interactions. With that in mind, while anyone who wishes can comment on anything if they choose to do so, I hereby reserve the right to immediately delete any comments which are critical, unkind, lack civility, or promote prodcuts, services, and values contrary to either the Church, or to the rules of online etiquette.

I'd also like to remind all who comment here that I try to respond personally to each individual comment as I feel is appropriate. Such replies are not meant to end the conversation, but to acknowledge earnest feedback as it is submitted.

And in order to better preserve the spirit and pure intentions for which this blog was established, I also hereby request that anyone not commenting with a regular user name (particularly those whose comments appear under the "Unknown" or "Anonymous" monikers, give the rest of us a name to work with in addressing any replies. If such individuals do not wish to disclose their actual given names, a pseudonym or nickname would suffice.

Any comments made by individuals who opt to not give a name by which they can ber identified may, depending on the substance and tone of such comments, be subject to deletion as well. I would respectfully ask that all of us do all we can to keep the dialogue positive, polite, and without malice or ill-will. May the Lord bless us all in our discussion of these important matters.