Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke during the Saturday afternoon session of April 2025 general conference how the love felt among members of the Church will lift others to Jesus Christ. The following is a summary of what he said.
Elder Uchtdorf’s talk summary
A friend visiting a branch in Germany was impressed by the members’ love for each other.
When people experience the Church for the first time, they are likely to notice how they feel and how members treat one another. The Savior wants them to leave with stronger faith in Him. The love felt there will lift them closer to Jesus Christ.
The Lord invites His children to join His kingdom and anxiously engage in building it. To be of one heart, individuals must align their hearts with the Savior.
One category comes before all others: child of God. Unity in the Church is not because of a common background but because of a common objective — being “one in Christ” (Galatians 3:28).
Those who love God and want to know Him better and seek to keep the commandments are a perfect fit for the Church, which is one body. “All are needed in the body of Christ.”
For those who are not yet members of the Church, “we invite you to join us as we rejoice in the Savior’s ‘song of redeeming love.‘”
Church members’ love for God and His children is a powerful testimony to the world that this is the Savior’s Church.
See the full text of Elder Uchtdorf’s talk: ‘By This All Will Know That You Are My Disciples’
Notable quotes
“The Lord invites us not just to join His kingdom but also to be anxiously engaged in building it.”
“We are one, not because of where we’ve been but where we are striving to go, not because of who we are but who we seek to become.”
“Our love for God and His children is a powerful testimony to the world that this is truly the Savior’s Church.”
Who is Elder Uchtdorf?
- Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf was called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 2004. He served as second counselor in the First Presidency under President Thomas S. Monson, from February 2008 to January 2018.
- From 1965 to 1996, he was a pilot, captain and corporate executive for the German airline Lufthansa.
- Twice in his life, he and his family have been refugees. When he was 4 years old, World War II forced him from Czechoslovakia. Years later, the Uchtdorfs fled their home in East Germany in search of safety in West Germany.
- He met his wife, Sister Harriet Reich Uchtdorf, in their teens attended a branch in Frankfurt, Germany, soon after she and her family joined the Church. Years later, following Elder Uchtdorf joining the German air force and completing his training in the United States, they began a courtship and were soon married in the Swiss Temple (now the Bern Switzerland Temple) in 1962. They are the parents of two children.
What has Elder Uchtdorf done recently?
- Elder Uchtdorf spoke on nourishing the roots of faith and testimony, in the October 2024 general conference.
- During a Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults in February 2025, Elder Uchtdorf spoke about making decisions with God’s help.
- Elder Uchtdorf urged youth to “look unto Christ” during a worldwide youth broadcast in January.
- During a ministry assignment in Costa Rica and Colombia, he invited listeners to properly prioritize Heavenly Father in their lives.
- In the heart of the “City of Bridges,” Elder Uchtdorf dedicated the Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Temple in September 2024 and taught how a temple can be a connection between heaven and earth.
