Russell M. Nelson, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ oldest president, passes away

SALT LAKE CITY – At 101 years old, Russell M. Nelson, the longest-serving president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, passed away on Saturday night, as announced by church officials.

Nelson died at his home in Salt Lake City, church spokesperson Candice Madsen said in a statement.

Before becoming president, Nelson was a heart surgeon and served in high-ranking positions within the church for 40 years. He was appointed to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1984 and became president following Thomas S. Monson’s death in January 2018. By 2024, he was celebrated as the church’s first centenarian president.

While the new president of the Mormon church has not been named yet, it is likely to be Dallin H. Oaks, according to church tradition. He is the longest-serving member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles who are still active.

Sen. Mike Lee of Utah posted a warm tribute to Nelson on social media shortly after the announcement.

Lee observed, “Throughout my acquaintance with him, he has consistently displayed — and for me, epitomized — the deep faith, genuine humility, and assured calmness typically found in a dedicated disciple of Jesus Christ.”

Nelson made significant changes to the church

Nelson, during his tenure, initiated significant changes, notably in 2018 when he urged people to discontinue using the terms “Mormon” and “LDS,” which marked a departure from previous church efforts that had heavily promoted those terms.

In 2019, Nelson also received attention for reversing controversial 2015 policies that prohibited baptisms for children of gay parents and labeled same-sex couples in ways that could lead to expulsion, which had faced significant criticism.

But even though Nelson’s administration was gentler and more welcoming to LGBTQ+ people than those of previous presidents, the church stance on same-sex marriage didn’t change. His administration also sharpened rules limiting the participation of members who pursue gender-affirming medical procedures or change their names, pronouns or how they dress, leading to criticism that it would marginalize transgender members.

Nelson and one of his top counselors described their approach to LGBTQ+ members as trying to balance the “love of the Lord and the law of the Lord.”

Presidents of the Utah-based faith are considered prophets who lead the church through revelations from God in collaboration with two top counselors and members of the Quorum of the Twelve.

Nelson was known for leading the church through the COVID-19 pandemic and severing the faith’s century-long ties with the Boy Scouts of America, creating the church’s own youth program that also could serve the more than half of its 17 million members who live outside the U.S. and Canada.

The disassociation came after the Boy Scouts of America decided to allow LGBTQ+ youth members and adult volunteers to join.

Tenure included scrutiny over abuse reports

During his tenure, long-simmering scrutiny swelled over the way the faith handles sexual abuse reports lodged with local leaders. An Associated Press investigation found the religion’s sexual abuse reporting hotline can be misused by its leaders to divert abuse accusations away from law enforcement and instead to church attorneys who may bury the problem, leaving victims in harm’s way.

Nelson and church leaders defended their practices, saying the hotline “has everything to do with protecting children and has nothing to do with cover-up.”

The church also faced scrutiny about closed door, one-on-one interviews between youth and local adult leaders where questions might arise about identity and sexuality.

The faith changed its guidelines to direct lay leaders never to disregard a report of abuse, a more direct instruction than previous guidelines. It also allowed children to bring a parent or adult with them during one-one-one interviews with local church leaders known as bishops.

Nelson expanded leadership and forged partnerships

Nelson also appointed non-American leaders to the all-white and mostly American top governing body and pushed to publish regional hymnbooks that celebrate local music and culture worldwide.

The president shortened Sunday services and accelerated a long-running push to build more temples, dotting the world with the faith’s lavish houses of worship despite resistance in some parts of the U.S.

He also forged a formal partnership with the NAACP. Until 1978, the church banned Black men from the lay priesthood, a policy rooted in the racist belief that black skin was a curse. The church disavowed the reasons behind the ban in a 2013 essay, but never issued a formal apology. It remains one of the most sensitive topics for the church.

Born in Salt Lake City in 1924, Nelson joined the religion in young adulthood. He was a doctor at the age of 22 and served a two-year Army medical tour of duty during the Korean War before resuming a medical career that included being director of thoracic surgery residency at the University of Utah.

Nelson was known for his skill of precision, which made him a successful surgeon during his time in church leadership. He had a reputation for stressing obedience to law and to what he called the “covenant path,” the series of ordinances and practices that mark a life in the faith, said Mormon scholar Matthew Bowman, a religion professor at Claremont Graduate Universities.

Nelson and his first wife, Dantzel White, had 10 children together. After she died in 2005, Nelson married Wendy Watson in 2006.