- The Church of Jesus Christ's Easter initiative, "greater love," aims to spread God's love.
- The initiative features a video viewed by millions, emphasizing Jesus Christ's Resurrection.
- Missionaries and church members share the message globally, promoting joy and peace.
SALT LAKE CITY — This Easter season, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is spreading the message of the Savior's resurrection through its "greater love" initiative.
The Easter video released by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints focusing on "greater love" is expected to reach tens of millions of people around the world, according to John Boswell, senior director in the church's missionary department.
The church tracks its reach closely each year and has tens of thousands of missionaries sharing it around the world, along with other church members, he said.
"In today's world, where there's so much turmoil … this is one of those messages that brings joy and peace and hope and love. And so we're hopeful that as many people as possible will be able to see this," he said.
This is the second year the Easter initiative has been "greater love," which comes from the Bible in John 15:13: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
Boswell said this theme highlights the "greatest act of selfless love in the history of the world."
"That's really how we look at the Savior's suffering, death, and resurrection. ... We are so grateful to be able to tell that story," he said.
Each year, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints produces a new video highlighting its initiative. This year, the video has two parts — one telling the story of the last week of the Savior's life, and then the second half highlights how each person is impacted by it and how Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love each person.
"The joy that sustained him in his suffering was his love for you. Through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, all will live again. No one will be forgotten. Because of him, you can experience a fullness of joy. This is greater love. This is Easter," it says.
General conference
Easter messages will be shared during each of the four general conference sessions this weekend. They will be streamed live on KSL.com and summaries of the talks from church leaders will be published shortly after each speaker. The sessions will also be broadcast on KSL, Ch. 5, and on KSL NewsRadio, 102.7 FM and 1160 AM.
The sessions begin at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Mountain time Saturday, April 4, and Sunday, April 5. In November, the church announced that the evening session on Saturdays has been discontinued.
Parking at the Conference Center will not be available to the public, but there are other lots available. General conference tickets can also be used as a UTA pass for traveling to and from conference sessions.
Boswell said the comments they have seen about the video are "overwhelmingly positive," particularly the second part, which he said is resonating with viewers.
Elder Gary E. Stevenson, of the church's Quorum of the Twelve, gave a conference talk in 2023 inviting conferencegoers to make Easter a season and not a day, and the missionary department uses the initiative to provide resources to help members seeking to take on that advice, which has continued from other church leaders.
This content is available on the church's home website and on a specific Easter website. In addition to study resources, the website provides an Easter video playlist, a special program from the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square and resources to help local leaders with Easter season plans.
A statement from the church said it began its Easter focus on Feb. 22, with an Easter message from the First Presidency,
During this Easter season, the church's missionary department also produced a second video with a message from the First Presidency. In the video, church President Dallin H. Oaks says, "Jesus Christ's atoning sacrifice and Resurrection are the ultimate evidence of God's love."
Boswell said as this video was released, missionaries around the world were sent an invitation to share it with people they interact with, amplifying the church's message.
The missionary department hopes these messages were used by members as they invited people to worship with local congregations on Palm Sunday and at general conference on Easter weekend. In addition to missionaries, he said he hopes all church members are sharing it with their friends and neighbors and on social media.
"It's a perfect time for an invitation to come and worship with us … or even to watch the video together," he said.
Boswell said the initiatives have continued to build and evolve since the church began running annual Easter initiatives over a decade ago, but the message remains consistent — everyone will be blessed and have the opportunity to live again through the Resurrection of the Savior.
The push to celebrate locally and globally on Easter with general conference, Boswell said, is an opportunity to help as many people as possible feel the joy and love from the Savior.
