APOSTLES THEN AND NOW
Modern-day leaders in the Mormon church come from all walks of life
When Jesus Christ was on the Earth, he introduced his gospel to the world. Early in his ministry, he sought out and called 12 disciples, or apostles, to help him in that work. They came from several walks of life: fishermen, tax collectors and even zealots. Jesus himself was the son of a carpenter. But when called, they put down their nets and followed him.
Their role was to learn of him, directly from him and share that message of salvation with the world. He established his church and the apostles were its leaders with Peter, James and John being chief among them.
Jesus gave them a charge to go into the world and preach his gospel, baptize, and to establish, build up and regulate the church.
In those days, the population of the world was relatively small, travel was difficult, dangerous and slow. Communications were nonexistent by today’s standards, yet a record of some of their works has survived and is found in the Bible.
Fast-forward 2,000 years … so if apostles were on the Earth today, charged with the same responsibilities as the apostles of old, what would that look like? What would their lives and ministry be like?
Apostles in our day
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints presents itself as Jesus’ restored church in the latter-days, modified for our times. The church, which is led by a prophet and his two counselors plus the 12 apostles, believes in continuous revelation from God, baptizes by immersion, gives blessings by the laying on of hands, has temples as in biblical times and is established in over 160 nations worldwide.
Modern-day apostles in the church come from all walks of life. Like former apostles, when called, they drop their nets, figuratively, and serve for the rest of their lives. They are usually called to the apostleship after many years of living, learning, parenting and gaining experience.
The current president of the church, Russell M. Nelson, was an accomplished heart surgeon before he was called as an apostle at age 59. He celebrated his 95th birthday this year, and within the past two years, has visited and ministered in 23 countries around the world.
Other apostles were educators, businessmen, lawyers and even an airline pilot. At a time when many are preparing for retirement, they are just receiving these callings. In our day, these 12 apostles literally travel the world to build up and regulate the church.
Elder David Bednar, who was a college professor, visited Houston earlier this year. What did modern-day apostle Elder Bednar do during his visit?
Technology, including social media, now plays an important role in being able to magnify the dissemination of the word of God. Apostles, in addition to being ambassadors for the church, are also preachers of the word of God. They are special witnesses of Jesus Christ.
While here, he visited with hundreds of parents of young families, and both he and his wife, Susan, gave vital spiritual insight and guidance to them based on their personal experience as parents of three sons. The conversation ranged from very serious, challenging issues to the need for parents to switch from “man to man” to “zone defense” when you transition from two children to three.
That session was held in one of the local churches and was broadcast to several others, so many more could participate in and benefit from the teaching.
He met with several hundred youths and, as a former college professor and president of the BYU campus in Idaho, spoke to them authoritatively about things that are important in the lives of teens in our day.
And he threw out the ceremonial first pitch at an Astros game.
The work of apostles
The Apostles in the church have a very broad spectrum of responsibilities.
Using his blog and Instagram, Apostle Elder Dieter Uchtdorf headed an initiative to help church members to more effectively teach the gospel to themselves, their friends, family and others. “The first great commandment is to love God,” he posted. “It is a primary reason we are on Earth. Ask yourself: Do I believe in Heavenly Father? Do I love and trust Him?”
Elder Ulisses Soares, a native of Brazil, was assigned to dedicate the church’s new temple and minister to the people in
Fortaleza, Brazil.
Elder Dale Renlund, a former medical doctor, led the church’s work on suicide prevention providing encouragement and instruction to those in distress and their associates.
Each of them has a very busy schedule and heavy responsibilities. Not only do these leaders direct major activities in the church, they also minister to the “one,” for each of us is a child of God. They frequently speak with and focus their attention on an individual, just one person. Children and youth receive as much attention as adults and leaders do.
It is not uncommon for one of them to address a large group of hundreds of young missionaries and then, at the end, shake each person’s hands, look them in the eye and acknowledge each one of them.
Religious freedom
In addition to the predictable issues that faiths in our day wrestle with, current efforts to erode basic religious freedoms are possibly the most pressing. There are powerful forces at play, both in this country and around the world, that aim to constrain religious organizations and the vital work that they do in the community. These constituencies actively lobby and posture to restrict freedoms that are foundational to this nation and its people.
Much of the work of the apostles is to band together with other faith leaders and organizations who feel accountable to God, to maintain these most dearly held rights. Sensing the real danger of the possible limiting of these freedoms, faiths put aside doctrinal differences to jointly advocate for the continuation of people’s rights to worship according to the dictates of their own conscience.
Elder Gerritt Gong addressed the G20 Interfaith Forum during meetings in Tokyo concerning the vital role that religious organizations play in society.
During president Nelson’s visits to Central and South America, he noted, “We are grateful to spend some time with Colombian President Iván Duque Márquez earlier today. We discussed religious freedom and the importance of protecting families.”
Prior to an evening devotional at Tecnópolis Arena in Buenos Aires, Nelson and his wife, Wendy, greeted Argentinian faith leaders.
Apostles M. Russell Ballard and Ronald Rasband met with Vice President Mike Pence to discuss the value of faith and religious freedom when he visited Salt Lake City.
Likewise, when president Nelson visited with Pope Francis during the dedication of the church’s new temple in Rome earlier this year, one of the major topics that was discussed was religious freedom.
People and institutions need to be reminded of the good that comes to nations and societies from faithbased organizations. Often the vital contributions that they make cannot be replicated by any other groups or entities in society.
At the end of the day, the most basic and enduring message that the apostles share with people around the world, be they paupers or potentates, are Jesus’ two great commandments: love God with all thy heart might mind and strength and love thy neighbor as thyself.
Kelly Foss is a writer and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Houston area.