Editor’s note: After a lifetime of dedicated service, President Russell M. Nelson died on Sept. 27, 2025, at the age of 101. This article is part of a series exploring different facets of President Nelson’s exemplary, faith-filled life.
President Russell M. Nelson guided the Church’s more than 17 million members through numerous changes during his time as Prophet, from January 2018 to his death on Sept. 27, 2025.
Through the Church’s council system and with the full support of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, President Nelson enacted multiple policy changes within the Church.
“One of the things the Spirit has repeatedly impressed upon my mind since my new calling as President of the Church is how willing the Lord is to reveal His mind and will,” said President Nelson during the Church’s April 2018 general conference. “The privilege of receiving revelation is one of the greatest gifts of God to His children.”
Under his leadership, Latter-day Saint leaders replaced home and visiting teaching with ministering; adjusted Sunday meetings schedule in order to accommodate home-centered, Church-supported gospel study; and asked members to use the full and correct name of the Church. A new Church symbol was introduced.
President Nelson announced 200 temples. He discontinued a policy requiring couples who marry civilly to wait one year before being married or sealed in the temple, and he established a policy allowing women to serve as witnesses for temple sealings and allowing women, youth and children to serve as witnesses for baptismal ordinances.
The First Presidency revised temple recommend interview questions and then updated them along with a statement on the wearing of the temple garment. Time-only marriages in temples were discontinued, and the Church revised conditions in which Church officers may perform civil marriages. The Church made adjustments to ceremonial temple clothing.
The announcements included the new Children and Youth program, changes to Primary progression and young men priesthood ordinations and youth temple recommends, reconstruction of priesthood quorums, the discontinuation of ward Young Men general presidencies, adjustments to bishopric duties, and new Young Women class names and structure changes and a new Young Women theme.
A new “For the Strength of Youth” guide based on principles was released. The Church began sponsoring For the Strength of Youth conferences modeled after BYU’s Especially for Youth program.
President Nelson read a new proclamation to commemorate the bicentennial of Joseph Smith’s First Vision.
Seminary and Institutes of Religion aligned with “Come, Follow Me." The four “Come, Follow Me” manuals were consolidated into one resource. Women began being called as area organization advisers around the world.
A new administrative handbook for all Church leaders and members replaced Handbook 1 and Handbook 2. "Tithing settlement” was changed to “tithing declaration." A new Topics and Questions section in Gospel Library replaced Gospel Topics.
A new edition of “Preach My Gospel” was announced, and the mission handbook was updated. Young service missionaries were integrated into teaching missions. New missionary preparation curriculum was released for wards, stakes and institutes, and the Church created 36 new missions, bringing the total to 450 missions worldwide.
President Nelson changed a Church policy as a result allowing the children of parents who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender to be blessed as infants and baptized when of age.
Priesthood quorums were restructured, as high priests and elders combined into one elders quorum. The First Presidency announced new, unified standards for the creation and adjustment of ward and stake boundaries. The Church directed adjustments to services and meetings held on Easter Sundays and Sundays near Christmas.
Age-range adjustments were made for young single adults, and “Strengthening Young Single Adults” was released, emphasizing young single adults serving in all YSA callings except stake president and bishop.
New hymns began to be released in batches for the new global hymnbook, “Hymns — For Home and Church.“ All four volumes of “Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days” were published. Chapters were released in batches for “Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Russell M. Nelson.”
The Church launched a global effort to nourish women and children, led by the Relief Society organization. Annual summaries of the Church’s vast humanitarian efforts began to be officially published.
The Church expanded the name of the addiction recovery program to “Healing Through the Savior: The Addiction Recovery Program” with an updated 12-step recovery guide. A new Church education initiative called Succeed in School was launched to help youth ages 11 to 18.
