It has been confirmed that Gordon B. Hinckley, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, passed away this evening at 7 PM. He was 97.
For those of flist who are not LDS, this was a great, good man. He became president of the Church in 1995 and led with vigor and energy, despite his age. Indeed, he often outpaced those years his junior. (News reports say he was at work in his office just on Wednesday.) He is beloved by his people and will be remembered by them as a faithful servant of the Lord and a true disciple of Jesus Christ. He was a prophet in the truest sense of the word.
I believe that President Hinckley, having seen his three predecessors as president of the Church go through illness, frailty, and incapacitation, pleaded with the Lord to be spared that. The Lord answered the request of his prophet, and President Hinckley's life ended quite suddenly, but only when his work was finished.
Here is the
Deseret News Obituary for Gordon B. Hinckley.
This is the man whose signature is at the bottom of my mission call letter. This is the man who was always optimistic about the future, never chiding but always exhorting us to do better and to be better than we are. Though I never met him, he inspired me with his courage and confidence. We are diminished by his absence, and the heavens rejoice that he has finished his work. He is now reunited with his beloved wife, who preceded him in death by several years.
I recall when Sister Hinckley died and Sheri L. Dew spoke at her funeral. Memorably, Sister Dew said the following: "When I learned that Sister Hinckley had slipped through the veil, I had a flood of emotions, but through my tears I also felt a sweet jubilation. I couldn't help but think, she did it! She did what she came here to do, and she did it magnificently, for she left everywhere she went and everyone she met better than she found them."
Well, the same now can be said of President Hinckley. He did it! Would that I can live life as valiantly as he did and leave each place I go and each person I meet a little better, a little happier than I found them.
Excerpt from the above obituary:
A reporter asked President Hinckley: "What will be your focus? What will be the theme of your administration?"
Instinctively, he answered, "Carry on. Yes. Our theme will be to carry on the great work which has been furthered by our predecessors.
"We are particularly proud of our youth," he added later on. "I think I have never had a stronger generation of young men and women than we have today. ... They are going forward with constructive lives, nurturing themselves both intellectually and spiritually. We have no fears or doubts concerning the future of this work."
In his first address to the general membership during the 165th Annual General Conference on April 2, 1995, he urged all to move forward and become more Christlike.
"The time has come for us to stand a little taller, to lift our eyes and stretch our minds to a greater comprehension and understanding of the grand millennial mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
"This is a time to be strong.
"It is a time to move forward without hesitation, knowing well the meaning, the breadth and the importance of our mission.
"It is a time to do what is right regardless of the consequences that might follow.
"It is a time to be found keeping the commandments.
"It is a season to reach out with kindness and love to those in distress and to those who are wandering in darkness and pain.
"It is a time to be considerate and good, decent and courteous toward one another in all our relationships. In other words, to become more Christlike."
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ETA 1: I wanted to add some favorite quotes of mine from President Hinckley. I reserve the right to add more as the days pass, but here is the first one, which I found surfing friends' friends:
"We need to stand a little taller, be a little kinder, be a little better, than we have been. I pray that each of us will be a little more thoughtful, a little more courteous. We can lower our voices a few decibels. We can return good for evil. We can smile when anger might be so much easier. We can exercise self-control and self-discipline and dismiss any affront levied against us.
"I pray that we will keep our tongues in check and not let anger prompt words which we would later regret. I pray that we may have the strength and the will to turn the other cheek, to walk the extra mile in lifting up the feeble knees of those in distress.
"May God help us to be a little kinder, to be more forgiving, to lay aside old grudges and nurture them no more."
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Second quote, found in Salt Lake Tribune article
The Wit and Wisdom of President Hinckley:
"I am an old man given to meditation and prayer. I would enjoy sitting in a rocker, swallowing prescriptions, listening to soft music, and contemplating the things of the universe. But such activity offers no challenge and makes no contribution.
"I wish to be up and doing. I wish to face each day with resolution and purpose. I wish to use every waking hour to give encouragement to bless those whose burdens are heavy, to build faith and strength of testimony. If in the process I should die on some distant strand while speaking to my friends in the church, it would be better than if I were to spend my days, looking out languidly upon the world without purpose or design." (April 5, 1997)
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ETA 2: Here's a memorial video I found on the
mormon community:
Click to view
Warning to my LDS flisters: it will make you cry! (But, you know, in a good way.)
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ETA 3: Observations on the Funeral
It is now more than a week later, and President Hinckley's funeral was held on Saturday, February 2, 2008. I watched a good four hours of coverage of the funeral, including two or three mini-bios of President Hinckley, on BYU TV. Every speaker was inspired in his or her remarks. One of Bishop Burton's comments especially stuck with me. To paraphrase, he said that when he first heard that President Hinckley had died, he cried tears of sorrow, soon followed by tears of joy.
I saw that many political leaders were there, including Mitt Romney, who did no campaigning in the state on that day. It was the right thing for him to go to the funeral, even though he last precious campaigning time leading up to Super Tuesday.
I thought President Monson looked very somber at the beginning of the funeral, but he brightened up during his closing talk. His story about the cane and doctor was quite funny. I can still see the delightful pictures of President Hinckley bopping President Eyring on the head with his cane from last Conference in my mind's eye. President Eyring looked so delighted, and President Hinckley had such a mischievous grin. President Hinckley maintained his optimism and sunny disposition to the end.
Truly, Gordon B. Hinckley was a great man, and he will be missed. President Monson will be a great president of the Church also, and he has able counselors in President Eyring and President Uchtdorf, but the void President Hinckley left will be felt for some time.