“Come, Follow Me” for Dec. 30-Jan. 5 kicks off Latter-day Saints’ yearlong study of the Doctrine and Covenants with a focus on “The Restoration of the Fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Bicentennial Proclamation to the World.”
President Russell M. Nelson introduced the proclamation during April 2020 general conference through a video recorded in the Sacred Grove outside of Palmyra, New York. It is only the sixth proclamation issued by Church leaders.
Written by the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the 2020 proclamation recites events of Joseph Smith’s First Vision, the appearance of the Father and the Son, and the subsequent coming of heavenly messengers to restore ordinances and priesthood authority. It underscores the translation of the “Book of Mormon — Another Testament of Jesus Christ,” as well as its teachings and testimonies. And it declares that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints “is Christ’s New Testament Church restored.”
Following are a few quotes from past and present leaders about “The Restoration of the Fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Bicentennial Proclamation to the World.”
A monument of words
“As we anticipated this 200th anniversary of Joseph Smith’s First Vision, the First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles wondered what we might do to commemorate appropriately this singular event.
“That theophany initiated the Restoration of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ and ushered in the dispensation of the fullness of times.
“We wondered if a monument should be erected. But as we considered the unique historic and international impact of that First Vision, we felt impressed to create a monument not of granite or stone but of words — words of solemn and sacred proclamation — written, not to be carved in ‘tables of stone’ but rather to be etched in the ‘fleshy tables’ of our hearts (2 Corinthians 3:3). …
“Study [the proclamation] privately and with your family members and friends. Ponder the truths and think of the impact those truths will have on your life if you will hear them, hearken to them, and heed the commandments and covenants that accompany them.”
— President Russell M. Nelson, April 2020 general conference, “Hear Him”
“This general conference has given us an outpouring of the riches and joy of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We have rejoiced in the vision of the Father and the Son that commenced the Restoration. We have been reminded of the miraculous coming forth of the Book of Mormon, whose central purpose is to testify of Jesus Christ and His doctrine. We have been renewed with the joyful reality of revelation — to prophets and to us personally. We have heard precious testimonies of the infinite Atonement of Jesus Christ and of His literal Resurrection. And we have been taught other truths of the fullness of His gospel revealed to Joseph Smith after God the Father declared to that newly called Prophet: ‘This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!’ (Joseph Smith—History 1:17).
“We have been affirmed in our knowledge of the restoration of the priesthood and its keys. … This morning we were inspired by the Lord’s living Prophet presenting an historic proclamation of the Restoration. We affirm its declaration that ‘those who prayerfully study the message of the Restoration and act in faith will be blessed to gain their own witness of its divinity and of its purpose to prepare the world for the promised Second Coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ’ (‘The Restoration of the Fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Bicentennial Proclamation to the World’).”
— President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the First Presidency, April 2020 general conference, “The Great Plan”
“We were blessed this morning to hear our beloved Prophet, President Russell M. Nelson, deliver a profound bicentennial proclamation to the world with respect to the Restoration of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This seminal declaration by President Nelson has made it clear that the Church of Jesus Christ owes its origin, existence and direction for the future to the principle of continuous revelation. The new proclamation represents a loving Father’s communication to His children.”
— Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2020 general conference, “The Blessing of Continuing Revelation to Prophets and Personal Revelation To Guide Our Lives”
Behind the scenes
“I’d like to give you a little peek behind the scenes and tell you what we did for the months and months leading up to that proclamation. In President Nelson’s wonderful way, he allowed all of the prophets and apostles, all 15 of us, to work on putting together the proclamation. We wrote it out, we edited it, I even think I have a couple of words in that proclamation that I may have contributed. But in the end, I want you all to know that we reached unity, and we knew that what we were doing in preparing that proclamation to the world was the mind and the will of the Lord Jesus Christ. Then our dear Prophet, with his prophetic mantle, finished the proclamation and prepared it for his reading in the Sacred Grove at general conference. It was a wonderfully special, revelatory experience, and I bear my witness to all of you tonight that it’s a true proclamation of what the Lord Jesus Christ would have us know.”
— Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles during a September 2020 young adult Face to Face event
“I remember prior to the filming [of the proclamation video] beginning when President Nelson looked up — just for a moment — but he looked up to the heavens. And at that moment, I thought, ‘The heavens truly are just as open as they were when the Prophet Joseph was in that grove.’ It was a tender experience to witness and to feel the Spirit that was there as President Nelson spoke those beautiful words. But I felt, even in the grove, even though it was a handful of people standing there with him, [that] he was speaking to the world. And it was so beautifully powerful because I know the members felt that. They felt that connection to that remarkable place where it all began, where the world was changed because of what took place in the Sacred Grove with Joseph Smith, the Father and the Son.”
— Sister Joy D. Jones, then the Primary general president, in the May 2020 Church News video, “A Sacred Proclamation: A behind-the-scenes look at filming the bicentennial proclamation”
“It was a profound privilege to stand in the Sacred Grove while President Nelson was delivering the proclamation on the Restoration. And I thought, ‘This is an absolutely remarkable experience, to be listening to this proclamation about the Restoration that has impacted every single person who lives upon the earth, delivered by our [then]-95-year-old Prophet who is strong and vital and has all the keys of the kingdom. That was a marvelous experience and I will never forget it. I felt very highly honored to be one of the two called leaders who were there observing in [a] quiet hush, in reverence, in that beautiful setting.”
— Sister Jean B. Bingham, then the Relief Society general president, in the May 2020 Church News video, “A Sacred Proclamation: A behind-the-scenes look at filming the bicentennial proclamation”
What is a proclamation?
Church News reported in 2020 that, generally, Church declarations and statements are directed at Latter-day Saints, while proclamations are meant to reach beyond the scope of Church membership — proclamations are directed to the world.
“All such declarations have been solemn and sacred in nature and were issued with the intent to bring forth, build up and regulate the affairs of the Church as the kingdom of God on the earth,” wrote Robert J. Matthews in an entry on “proclamations” in the 1992-published “Encyclopedia of Mormonism.”
A proclamation is different than an official declaration, doctrinal exposition or statements on policies. Some of these come from only the First Presidency, some just from the Quorum of the Twelve, and some from both the presidency and the quorum.
Examples of declarations can be found in the Church’s Doctrine and Covenants. Official Declaration 1 is the 1890 Manifesto, stating officially the Church’s advice against any future plural marriages by the Latter-day Saints in response to increasing anti-polygamy pressure from the United States government. And Official Declaration 2 is the 1978 Revelation on Priesthood announced by Church leaders in June 1978 — that extended the priesthood to all worthy male members of the Church regardless of race or ethnicity — and ratified in the October 1978 general conference.
Examples of other such communications include the 1847 general epistle from Brigham Young and the Council of the Twelve Apostles to the early Saints during the several years of the “apostolic era” following the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, the 1909 First Presidency statement on the origin of man, a doctrinal exposition on the Father and the Son issued in the August 1916 Improvement Era magazine, the 1938 First Presidency message on world peace issued a month after the onset of World War II, and the Jan. 1, 2000, pronouncement of The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles at the transition of the 20th and 21st centuries.
Other proclamations
To date, Church leaders have issued only six proclamations. The first three came during the first 35 years after the Church’s organization, the last three during the past 40 years.
“The Restoration of the Fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Bicentennial Proclamation to the World” is the most recent proclamation. The previous five are:
- Proclamation of the First Presidency to the Saints Scattered Abroad, issued on Jan. 15, 1841, in Nauvoo, Illinois — Signed by Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon and Hyrum Smith, the proclamation details the progress of the Church despite hardships and persecutions.
- Proclamation of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, issued on April 6, 1845, in New York City, New York, and on Oct. 22, 1845, in Liverpool, England — Issued by the Twelve since the martyrdom dissolved the First Presidency, the proclamation was printed and distributed on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. It proclaimed that God had spoken from the heavens and restored the gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth and included a voice of warning as well as an invitation.
- Proclamation of the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles, issued on Oct. 21, 1865, in Salt Lake City — This proclamation was sent to Church members to correct certain theories about the nature of God and established the order that new doctrine is to be announced only by the First Presidency.
- Proclamation from the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, issued on April 6, 1980, from Fayette, New York — President Spencer W. Kimball announced the proclamation during the Sunday morning session of the April 1980 general conference and the 150th anniversary of the organization of the Church. He and then-Elder Gordon B. Hinckley joined conference proceedings from the restored Peter Whitmer Sr. Farmhouse, with Elder Hinckley reading the proclamation, which detailed the Church’s restoration, progress, doctrine, mission and message.
- The Family: A Proclamation to the World, issued Sept. 23, 1995, in Salt Lake City — Read by President Gordon B. Hinckley at the General Relief Society Meeting leading into October 1995 general conference, with the proclamation’s purpose to “warn and forewarn” the world and offering an official Church statement on family, marriage, gender roles and human sexuality.
