PROVO, Utah — While spending the last two months at the Provo Missionary Training Center learning Mandarin Chinese for her upcoming mission in Taiwan Taipei, Sister Ella Hessing also experienced the historic apostolic interregnum, the announcement of a new Church President and the organization of a new First Presidency in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The sister missionary from Boise, Idaho, said she followed the “solemn” and “sacred” process of prophetic succession with new appreciation while in the MTC, despite not fully understanding all aspects of it.
“It’s not something I feel like we understand, it’s kind of overlooked,” she said. “But it really does have significance.”
Greater understanding about priesthood authority, keys and the divine order of Church leadership came for her and hundreds of other missionaries as Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke on the topic in a devotional at the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah, on Tuesday, Nov. 4.
The devotional was also broadcast to the Church’s other 10 MTCs worldwide.
“We are living right now in a remarkable season in the history of the Church. I want you to absorb and relish that,” Elder Bednar said. “I pray it will endure with you forever and help you understand things about yourself and about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
Elder Bednar was accompanied by his wife, Sister Susan Bednar, who also spoke.
The priesthood
In the context of recent historic events — from the conclusion of an apostolic interregnum to President Dallin H. Oaks becoming the 18th Church President — Elder Bednar taught principles of priesthood authority and keys to help missionaries see “the grandeur, the beauty, the spiritual eloquence, the simplicity of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
He emphasized the following points:
- Priesthood authority was conferred by the laying on of hands directly from heavenly messengers to the Prophet Joseph Smith.
- Priesthood is the authority to represent God and act in His name for the salvation of His sons and daughters.
- Priesthood is God’s power and authority delegated to men on earth to perform the ordinances that are necessary for salvation and exaltation.
- Priesthood authority is exercised under the direction of those who hold priesthood keys, which keys entail the right and responsibility to direct the work of the priesthood.
- Worthy boys and men can be ordained to various offices in the Aaronic Priesthood (deacon, teacher, priest and bishop) and the Melchizedek Priesthood (elder, high priest, patriarch, seventy and apostle).
Elder Bednar noted that when a man is ordained to the office of apostle in the Melchizedek Priesthood and set apart to serve in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, he receives all of the priesthood keys restored to the earth in this latter-day dispensation. Thus, President Oaks began his journey to become Church President 41 years ago when he was ordained and set apart as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
New Prophet and First Presidency
Reading from Doctrine and Covenants 107, Elder Bednar explained the responsibilities of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. All 15 are prophets, seers and revelators who hold all the keys, but only the president of the Church, as the senior apostle and presiding high priest of the Church, is authorized to exercise all keys.
When a Church president dies, the First Presidency is dissolved, then the presiding authority rests upon the president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The prophetic gifts and the Lord’s work continue without interruption.
“This brings a simplicity and an orderliness to the work of the kingdom of God, to the work of salvation and exaltation, that is unparalleled in any organization of any kind, anywhere in the world,” Elder Bednar said.
He described participating in the setting apart of President Oaks and the reorganization of the First Presidency as “stirring, sacred, powerful and peaceful.”
“I witness that the Lord Jesus Christ, beginning many, many years ago, initiated the process of preparing Dallin Harris Oaks to become the 18th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I bear my witness of the divine power by which it occurred.”
‘The Lord loves His missionaries’
In her remarks, Sister Bednar engaged the missionaries with thought-provoking, interactive questions about various topics, including:
- Fears and anxieties related to missionary work.
- Valuable advice received from parents or Church leaders.
- Positive characteristics and traits in companions.
- The significance of wearing a missionary name tag.
After hearing the missionaries’ responses, Sister Bednar quoted scriptures and shared her insights, concluding with her testimony.
“I know the Lord loves His missionaries,” she said.
What missionaries learned
Following the devotional, missionaries shared what they learned.
“It’s significant to know that this Church is not run like a business. It’s not like a board of executives, but instead it’s a group of servants of the Lord. They are divinely chosen,” said Sister Makenzie Bird, from Canton, Georgia, assigned to the Taiwan Taipei Mission.
Added Sister Ashley Munns, from Herriman, Utah, and assigned to the Canada Vancouver Mission, “Nobody lobbies or petitions for the position of the Prophet. These men are called of God.”
Elder Teancum Tirrell, from Taylorsville, Utah, assigned to the Washington D.C. South Mission, appreciated learning about the organization of the Church. “It is so simple and effective,” he said.
