Church leaders pay tribute to President Hinckley

Church leaders pay tribute to President Hinckley


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Carole Mikita reporting President Gordon B. Hinckley's closest associates pay tribute to the man they say did a lot of good in the world and left a rich legacy.

President Hinckley's two counselors and the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles say they each are experiencing a deep personal loss with his passing.

These men were President Hinckley's closest associates, some for many years, and they were his dear friends.

Church leaders pay tribute to President Hinckley

President Thomas S. Monson served as the First Counselor, in the First Presidency. He said, "It was my privilege to know and love President Hinckley long before either of us was called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles or the First Presidency. Through the years I have sat next to him, have served with him and have learned from him. I am a witness to his prophetic calling.

"President Hinckley was prodigious in his work ethic and was totally dedicated to the gospel of Jesus Christ. He was a friend to one and all and a leader who inspired spirituality. His outreach on an international scale was unprecedented. He was truly a prophet for our time. Like the Master, he devoted his life to doing good, and God was surely with him. His life was a gift to the world."

Church leaders pay tribute to President Hinckley

President Henry B. Eyring has been the Second Counselor in the First Presidency only since October. But it was clear he and President Hinckley loved and respected one another. He said, "President Hinckley had the gift to make people want to do better and to feel that they could. Last Tuesday I sat in a meeting with him as he considered and then decided matters of great importance, some about individuals and some affecting the entire Church. He was pleasant, incisive, and clearly inspired. For me, he raised the standard of what it is to be a disciple of Jesus Christ, giving all."

The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, which now leads the Church with the two counselors is expressing heartfelt love and admiration for President Hinckley and the singular life of service he lived. In a statement, members said, "The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles unitedly expresses its heartfelt love and admiration for President Gordon B. Hinckley and the singular life of service he lived. He was our prophet, our leader, our brother and our friend. We feel a deep, personal loss at his passing.

"President Hinckley served as an apostle for more than 46 years, the last 13 of which were as the senior apostle during his time as prophet and president of the Church. From those earliest days to these most recent ones, he unfailingly demonstrated his devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ, whose witness he was at home and abroad.

"We will miss his wit and his wisdom, his leadership and his love. However, we cannot but rejoice in his reunion with his beloved Marjorie, with his parents and other family members who have gone before, and with the prophets of God, both ancient and modern, among whose eternal ranks he now stands. As the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles we echo the voice of the Master, ‘Well done, thou good and faithful servant. … Enter into the joy of thy Lord.'"

The new First Presidency will be organized sometime after President Hinckley's funeral, when a new president is ordained, and then he will choose two counselors; they may be Apostles but not necessarily.

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