Remembering the Life of President Russell M. Nelson

With sorrow we announce that Russell M. Nelson, beloved President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, passed away peacefully shortly after 10 p.m. MDT today at his home in Salt Lake City. He was 101 — the oldest president in the history of the Church.

President Nelson was called as an Apostle on April 7, 1984. He became the leader of the Church on January 14, 2018. His time as prophet will forever be remembered as one of global ministry (he visited 32 countries and U.S. territories), increased temple construction (he announced 200 new temples) and profound change. Beginning in the April 2018 general conference in which he was sustained as the senior Apostle, President Nelson began introducing frequent adjustments designed to help the Saints minister more like Jesus Christ and better emphasize the centrality of the Savior of the world in all the Church does. Later sections of this obituary provide a detailed accounting of his travels as president and the many changes he implemented.

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Prior to full-time Church service, President Nelson was a heart surgeon revered and respected the world over. He performed the first open-heart surgery in Utah in 1955. He served as president of the Society for Vascular Surgery, a director of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, chairman of the Council on Cardiovascular Surgery for the American Heart Association and president of the Utah State Medical Association. He authored numerous chapters in medical textbooks and other publications. He lectured at and visited professionally many organizations throughout the United States and other nations. And he was conversant in 11 languages.

“All of us who have worked with Russell M. Nelson, and the many he has taught and associated with, have marveled at his extraordinary modesty for a man of his great accomplishments,” said President Dallin H. Oaks, who was called to serve in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on the same day as President Nelson in 1984 and who served as President Nelson’s First Counselor in the First Presidency. “And [we] have marveled at his gentleness. He is just the gentlest and sweetest person you could ever hope to associate with. And he will always be remembered that way.”

President Nelson is survived by his wife, Wendy, eight of his 10 children, 57 grandchildren, and more than 167 great-grandchildren.

As with the Apostles in New Testament times, Latter-day Saint Apostles are called to be special witnesses of Jesus Christ. President Nelson was one of 15 men who help oversee the growth and development of the global Church, which now numbers more than 17 million members.

A successor is not expected to be formally chosen by the Church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apostles until after President Nelson’s funeral (details pending).

A “Beloved Physician” Who Fused Medicine and Faith

One might not expect an Apostle to be a world-renowned heart surgeon, as was the case with President Nelson before his call to lifelong service in the Church. But healing hearts physically and spiritually is not uncommon for disciples of Jesus Christ in any age. The New Testament writer Luke was a physician of some repute — indeed, the Apostle Paul, with whom he traveled as a missionary, called him “the beloved physician” (Colossians 4:14).

As a physician, President Nelson was perhaps best known for his part in the development of an artificial heart and lung machine small enough to function in an operating room. Made possible by invaluable support and encouragement from his first wife, Dantzel, it was an achievement that heightened his appreciation for the gift of life. “I think a surgeon is in a unique position to understand one of God’s greatest creations — the human body,” he said. “Every segment of the body motivates me to faith.”

President Nelson’s reverence for life instilled in him a spiritual approach to medicine. His lodestar scripture in the Doctrine and Covenants guided his actions both in and out of the operating room: “And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated” (Doctrine and Covenants 130:21).

“In other words,” President Nelson said, “you don’t wish for a blessing; you work for a blessing and you make it possible. I often taught my team with whom I was working: This patient has been praying for success, and he’s got a family praying for success. All of those prayers won’t do a bit of good if you make a single mistake, so you’ve got to do your job perfectly in order for this patient to have a possibility of having the blessing they seek.”

His medical school days stretched to the first 12 years of his marriage. His graduation from the University of Utah’s medical school at age 22 was followed by an internship and several more years of residency in Minnesota and Massachusetts; two years of military duty in Washington, D.C., and abroad; and a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota. His consuming interest in research eventually led to his groundbreaking work on the heart-lung machine. He later served as a research professor of surgery and director of the Thoracic Surgery Residency at the University of Utah and chairman of the Division of Thoracic Surgery at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City.

In 1955 President Nelson performed the first open-heart surgery in Utah, and he completed more than 7,000 operations throughout his career. One of his most noteworthy operations came in 1972, when President Nelson’s love of medicine and faith came full circle when he was asked to perform high-risk surgery on Spencer W. Kimball, who was at the time a senior Apostle of the Church. President Nelson was serving as the Church’s General Sunday School President while continuing his work as a heart surgeon. He was given a priesthood blessing before the operation that he believed affected the outcome.

“It was just like a musician who played a piano concerto without ever making a mistake or a baseball pitcher pitching nine innings of errorless ball,” he said. “That long and complicated operation was done without a single flaw. And at the end of the operation when his heart leaped with power, I knew that he would live. And as we were closing his chest, I had the feeling that this man would live to become the President of the Church.”

Spencer W. Kimball indeed became President of the Church and lived another 13 years.

“[President Nelson] had great insights from his medical training into the health issues that arise with General Authorities,” President Oaks said. “And he gave us remarkable insights into what that kind of diagnosis meant and what the outlook was, and the practical implications of that particular diagnosis.”

Life with Dantzel

President Nelson always sought to do his best at whatever task was before him. As a young child, it was the performing arts, not the healing arts, that first captured his attention. He sang tenor in a prizewinning quartet and played the lead in a musical as a freshman at the University of Utah. In fact, his love of music eventually led him to the love of his life.

He remembers arriving for a rehearsal for an upcoming play and hearing a soprano on the stage. “She was stunning,” President Nelson recalled. “Her voice was incredible, and I said, ‘Who is that?’ The musical director replied, ‘That’s Dantzel White. She’s the one you’ll be singing with in this show.’” President Nelson said, “We never made another date with anyone else from that point forward.”

Music became a centerpiece of their lives together. The Nelsons never went without music in their home after purchasing a used piano for less than $100 early in their marriage. During his days as a physician, President Nelson would get up early in the morning to play the piano and study the scriptures. Combining them, he said, brought a spiritual influence into their home.

Like many young married couples, the Nelsons worked together to make ends meet, and it wasn’t always easy. President Nelson recalled walking down the streets of Boston one night with his wife, having four children at the time, when she pressed her nose against the windowpane of a furniture store and asked, “Sweetheart, do you think someday we will ever be able to afford a lamp?” It was during these times, President Nelson said, that they remembered the scripture in Matthew 6:33, which reads, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

“I thought they were a really good team,” recalled Gloria Nelson Irion, the third of the 10 Nelson children, which included nine girls and one boy. “They took good care of each other and were really secure in their love for each other. When my dad would come home from work, or come into the home, his first thing he would do was go seek out my mother and greet her with a hug and a kiss. … He showed us that the best thing a man can do for his children is to love their mother.”

Dantzel was the heart of the Nelson home. President Nelson said, “She has given me companionship, 10 beautiful children and all those wonderful intangible things a wife gives to a husband to help him strive for fulfillment and selflessness.”

From oldest to youngest, the Nelson children are (with names of spouses in parentheses) Marsha N. Workman (Richard Workman), Wendy N. Maxfield (died in 2019, married to Norman A. Maxfield), Gloria N. Irion (Richard A. Irion), Brenda N. Miles (Richard L. Miles), Sylvia N. Webster (David R. Webster), Emily N. Wittwer (died in 1995, married to Bradley E. Wittwer), Laurie N. Marsh (Richard M. Marsh), Rosalie N. Ringwood (Michael T. Ringwood), Marjorie N. Lowder (Bradley J. Lowder) and Russell M. Nelson Jr. (Britney).

For his part, President Nelson spent time with his children in the midst of a busy medical and Church schedule. He traveled extensively and often took one family member with him at a time. He viewed these times with his children as a wise investment. “Those trips gave me a chance to listen to their problems and their ambitions and for us simply to talk to one another and share ideas and experiences with each other,” he said. Activities such as scripture reading, family prayers twice a day and weekly family home evenings also helped keep the family close.

“As the family grew, he made it a point to come to every, every important milestone. He came to every child’s blessing, baptism, priesthood ordination, missionary farewell [and] wedding,” said Irion.

Marrying Wendy L. Watson

President Nelson fervently believed the secret to a happy life is not what you have but the knowledge you possess of God. People “have to know that God lives. They have to know that He has a plan for them. If they will follow that plan, they will find joy, even though life’s hardships bring grief, challenge, sometimes pain, sadness,” he said. “If they can have that faith in Him and link themselves to Him, they’ll have strength to withstand the trials that life will bring. In the process they will find great joy.”

His spiritual mettle was tested when his beloved Dantzel passed away unexpectedly in February 2005. If anything, her death strengthened his faith and commitment to family.

At the April 2006 general conference, President Nelson talked about the need to strengthen marriages.

“Marriage brings greater possibilities for happiness than does any other human relationship,” he said. “Yet some married couples fall short of their full potential. They let their romance become rusty, take each other for granted, allow other interests or clouds of neglect to obscure the vision of what their marriage really could be. Marriages would be happier if nurtured more carefully.”

Shortly after the conference, President Nelson married Wendy L. Watson. Prior to the marriage, the Canadian-born Sister Nelson had been a professor of marriage and family therapy for 25 years — the last 13 at Brigham Young University.

Sister Nelson has spoken of the spiritual wrestle of fasting and prayer she experienced before choosing to develop a relationship with then-Elder Nelson. She said entering a large family and uprooting herself from her career, among other things, proved to be tremendous challenges.

“We think, ‘Oh, it’s the Lord’s will. That means everything is going to be just easy and wonderful and marvelous.’ And instead, it was tough,” Sister Nelson said during a ministry trip to the Pacific with the prophet in May 2019. “We had different expectations. He was still grieving Dantzel, without a doubt. … It was a huge change.”

“We just love her,” Irion said. “She has been such a blessing to my father and also to our family for taking care of him.”

“His children were fabulous, I must say,” Sister Nelson added. “I wanted to be their friend, and they were certainly mine. They couldn’t have been more welcoming. The grandchildren are splendid. And now the great-[grandchildren] are just amazing.”

During a ministry visit to Australia in 2019, President Nelson described Wendy this way: “She’s a doctor. She’s a gerontologist. She’s a marriage and family therapist. And she’s a really fun girl to be with.”

A Polyglot Prophet to the Nations

During ministry visits to several Latin American countries in the fall of 2019, the prophet gave significant portions of his sermons in Spanish, much to the delight of the local Latter-day Saints. In Peru, for example, he delivered introductory remarks in English. Then he transitioned, saying, “With your permission, I would like to address you in Spanish.” The entire coliseum erupted in applause.

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“I was once with him, and he broke into Russian as part of a communication with a Russian-speaking person,” President Oaks said. “I know that he learned enough Chinese to participate in an open-heart surgery operation in China, giving instructions in Chinese, in the operating room.”

In fact, his daughter said her father was conversant in 11 languages.

“I think he loved meeting people from all around the world,” Irion said. “He loved to see them embrace the gospel, become Saints and see the change in them from sadness to hope and from darkness to light.”

He was also instrumental in getting the Church recognized in many communist countries. “He was an eyewitness to the miracles that happened there,” his daughter said. “He did the best he could, and then the Lord took it the rest of the way. Door after door opened that he never thought would.”

After becoming the leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in January 2018, President Nelson visited extensively with Latter-day Saints and government and religious leaders on nearly every continent. He traveled to 32 countries and U.S. territories.

He also spent significant time building bridges with leaders of other faiths and groups and nations. Most notable was his visit with Pope Francis at the Vatican in March 2019 and his relationship with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), a civil rights organization in the United States.

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“We had a most cordial, unforgettable experience,” President Nelson said of his visit with the pope. “His Holiness, he was most gracious and warm and welcoming. What a sweet, wonderful man he is, and how fortunate the Catholic people are to have such a gracious, concerned, loving and capable leader.”

In May 2018 the prophet joined NAACP leaders in a call for greater civility and racial harmony. Then, in July 2019, NAACP leaders invited President Nelson to speak at the organization’s annual convention in Detroit. “We don’t have to be alike or look alike to have love for each other. We don’t even have to agree with each other to love each other,” President Nelson said. He gathered again with NAACP leaders in June 2021 to announce educational and humanitarian initiatives related to their ongoing collaboration.

The prophet visited with leaders of many nations while traveling in various countries. This included government officials from Cambodia, Colombia, Indonesia, New Zealand, Peru, Samoa, Tonga, Vietnam and others. He also welcomed many leaders to Temple Square, including a Vietnamese delegation, the Cuban ambassador, and the leader of the Muslim World League.

The prophet bolstered these bridge-building efforts by urging Latter-day Saints to be peacemakers who “build, lift, encourage, persuade, and inspire — no matter how difficult the situation.”

“Brothers and sisters, we can literally change the world — one person and one interaction at a time. How? By modeling how to manage honest differences of opinion with mutual respect and dignified dialogue,” President Nelson said. “If you are serious about helping to gather Israel and about building relationships that will last throughout the eternities, now is the time to lay aside bitterness. Now is the time to cease insisting that it is your way or no way. Now is the time to stop doing things that make others walk on eggshells for fear of upsetting you. Now is the time to bury your weapons of war. If your verbal arsenal is filled with insults and accusations, now is the time to put them away. You will arise as a spiritually strong man or woman of Christ.”

While traveling with President Nelson in 2018 (a trip that included a stop in Jerusalem, the city of peace), then-Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles noted President Nelson’s global vision.

“He’s the prophet to the world, and he has that view,” Elder Holland said. “He has that prophetic seership. We sustain him as a seer and a revelator, and he is looking at the whole world.”

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A Man Who Changed the Church

Many significant changes were introduced by President Nelson. As was mentioned previously, each of these was designed to place laser-like focus on Jesus Christ.

“President Nelson, I don’t know how many more ‘rushes’ we can handle this weekend. Some of us have weak hearts. But as I think about it, you can take care of that too. What a prophet!” —Elder Holland, April 2018

Under his leadership the prophet adjusted the way Saints around the world minister to each other. He repeatedly stressed the importance of the correct name of the Church. He shifted the emphasis of gospel instruction to be centered in each home and supported by the Church. He modified a policy allowing children of LGBT parents to be baptized. He adjusted the faith’s temple recommend interview questions to help Church members more deeply understand the purpose of temple worship. He introduced a new global youth program for the Church’s children and teenagers. He announced a new witness policy for live baptisms, proxy baptisms and live and proxy sealings. He authorized a global policy for couples married civilly to be married immediately in one of the faith’s temples. He reorganized and consolidated priesthood quorums and organizations for adults and children. He introduced various changes to missionary policies and procedures. He changed the Church’s symbol to includes a portrayal of the resurrected, living Lord Jesus Christ. And he read a new proclamation to the world about the Restoration of the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

“To paraphrase Ralph Waldo Emerson, the most memorable moments in life are those in which we feel the rush of revelation,” said then-Elder Jeffrey R. Holland near the conclusion of the April 2018 general conference, in which the prophet introduced several notable changes. “President Nelson, I don’t know how many more ‘rushes’ we can handle this weekend. Some of us have weak hearts. But as I think about it, you can take care of that too. What a prophet!”

All these changes were made as President Nelson encouraged Latter-day Saints to receive personal guidance from God just as he received revelation for the Church. He and other leaders repeatedly said these changes are part of the ongoing Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

A Master Teacher Who Touched Hearts

President Oaks referred to President Nelson as a master teacher. “I’ve heard surgeons that he trained comment on how effective he was at teaching them to be surgeons,” President Oaks said. “And I’ve seen him as the master teacher teach the servants of the Lord in the same way.”

As a “beloved physician” President Nelson literally touched the hearts of hundreds of patients suffering from physical ailments. As a disciple of Christ, he healed hearts through word and deed.