Elder Neil L. Andersen marks his 66th birthday

As I did a few days ago for Elder Stevenson, I want to present a brief biography of Elder Andersen, including important highlights of his time as a general authority. Born in Logan, Utah in 1951, Elder Andersen served a full-time mission in France.. He obtained a bachelor's degree during his time at BYU-Provo (in economics), and his MBA at Harvard with that same major. During his time at BYU, he met and married his wife, Kathy Sue Anderson, and together they raised four children. 

He spent his professional career working various jobs. At the pinnacle of his career, he was Vice President of the Morton Plant Health Stystem. His Church service involved time as a stake president, mission president (overseeing the France Bordeaux mission) from 1989-1992. Less than a year after his return, he was called to be a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy.

During his time as a Seventy, he served in a wide variety of Church assignments, including as executive director of the church's Audiovisual Department, assistant executive director of the Priesthood Department, and in the presidencies of the following areas: Europe West Utah North, Utah South, North America Southwest, North America Northeast, and the Brazil South Area (during which time he served as the area president).

In 2005, Elder Andersen was called to the Presidency of the Seventy, where he was assigned to preside over the Idaho and North America Southwest areas. He gradually moved up in the ranks of the Presidency of the Seventy until 2008, when Elder D. Todd Christofferson’s call to the Quorum of the Twelve in April and Elder Earl C. Tingey’s release from the Presidency the following August, at which point he became the senior president and was assigned to assist in all areas.

When Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin’s death in December 2008 resulted in a vacancy in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Elder Andersen became the second apostle to be call, sustained, and ordained during President Monson’s presidency.

Because Elder Andersen has been a part of general Church leadership since April 1993, and had an increase of his opportunities to speak in General Conference as a result of his subsequent calls to the Presidency of the Seventy (being given the opportunity to speak every 1.5-2 years) and his calling to the apostleship (where he speaks once each conference, the total number of General Conference talks he has given in any capacity add up to 22. To review any or all of those talks, click here.

I am grateful for Elder Andersen's ministry. I hope with all my heart that today went well for him. For now, thanks for the privilege of your time. Any comments are welcome and appreciated. Until I post again, all the best. 

Additional Church News

Hello, all! I have some happier Church-related newsl pulled from Mormon Newsroom. The Church shared this article regarding the completion of the Ghana MTC renovation & expansion, and this one sharing Church news from various areas of the world, It was great to hear about these updates. Thanks, as always, for the privilege of your time. I will post again soon. Until that time, all the best to each and every one of you.

Added one hour later: This just in: leaders of the women's auxiliaries of the Church (Sister Jean B. Bingham, Relief Society General President; Sister Bonnie H. Cordon, First Counselor in the Primary General Presidency, and Sister Neill F. Marriott, Second Counselor in the Young Women General Presidency) traveled together to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma last Saturday, August 5, for a breakfast with leaders of the government, business, and various religions. The purpose of that gathering was to address the needs of that city to find homes for those in the foster care system.

According to the leaders in attendance at that breakfast, the following faiths were represented at this breakfast: Baptists, Protestants, Jewish, and Mormon. The LDS leaders asked to represent the Church at this event were well chosen. Both Sister Marriott and Sister Bingham have had foster children in their homes, and they and their families love those children as much as they do their own. There was much more to their visit than simply attending this breakfast. You can read more about that subject here. Thanks again to you all for your interest and support, and may God be with you all until my next post.

Elder James J. Hamula, General Authority Seventy, Released and Excommunicated

Hello, all! Sad news today from the LDS Church. Our leaders announced that Elder James J. Hamula, a General Authority Seventy, had been released and excommunicated from the LDS Church. The Church rarely provides public explanations for this course of action, and this instance is no different. For details of what is known about this matter, click here and here. I appreciate that this issue was handled with sensitivity, respect, and in accordance with Church policy. As more becomes known about this in the coming days, I will pass that information along. For now, thanks to you all for the privilege of your time, and may the Lord bless you all.

Continuing the report of the Fair Mormon Conference: Address given about role of religious faith

As the above title implies, I am focusing this post on another address given during the FairMormon Conference. That address, given by Daniel C. Peterson, highlighted the importance of faith (particularly in the gospel and the various aspects thereof) as a grounding force against doubt, discouragement, and a whole host of worldly ills. While I do not feel I could do a better job of summarizing Brother Peterson's remarks, I do want to testify that I know for myself what a grounding force my faith has been as I continue an ongoing battle with depression, anxiety, and a whole host of other challenges. Some have criticized me for spending so much time on blogging about such trivial things when my time could be better spent elsewhere (such as taking care of my family through employment). However, at times when I have felt overwhelmed by my health and the associated conditions thereof, getting lost in Church news and passing it along to loyal readers has indeed kept me from becoming too overwhelmed by the enormity of what I am feeling. So I know that Brother Peterson knows what he's talking about. I have always used study of the gospel (and developments related to that) to help me cope with things, and while I cannot do much with my days right now (by the standards of others who may not have so much to deal with), my blogging about subjects close to my heart, like this one, definitely has helped and improved my perspective on things. So again, thanks to you all for the ongoing interest and support, including the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish you all the best.

Sister missionary dies in Guatemala

The Church News reported this tragic story about how a sister missionary serving in Guatemala was electrocuted to death. It is always hard to hear of such deaths, but I hope the family takes comfort in knowing that their missionary passed away while serving the Lord as she always desired to, and that she is surely carrying on that sacred missionary work beyond the veil, and that they will be reunited with her again someday. In the meantime, this is a great opportuinity for us to be reminded of the importance of praying for the safety and success of all who serve the Lord in such capacities. May the Lord bless this family and continue to bless all those who serve as his emissaries in any capacity is my humble prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.