Modern day revelation as recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 112:28 teaches, “But purify your hearts before me; and then go ye into all the world, and preach my gospel unto every creature who has not received it.” Additional instructions are given in Doctrine and Covenants 84:62, “Therefore, go ye into all the world; and unto whatsoever place ye cannot go ye shall send, that the testimony may go from you into all the world unto every creature.”

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ (Latter-day Saints) emphatically profess that the vicarious atonement of Jesus Christ was not merely for a choice few, but rather all people can have the opportunity to partake of its wondrous blessings. Therefore, following in the footsteps of our Great Exemplar who admonished His disciples, ““Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15), they count it a privilege to be able to share the message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ with any and every person they meet.

Everyone should be Involved in Missionary Work

Everyone should be actively engaged in missionary work. Like the original twelve apostles, every person who professes to be a modern day disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, is commissioned to take the message of the gospel to all corners of the earth. The gospel is a messenger to prepare the way before the Lord. Said the Savior,

 And even so I have sent mine everlasting covenant into the world, to be a light to the world, and to be a standard for my people, and for the Gentiles to seek to it, and to be a messenger before my face to prepare the way before me (Doctrine and Covenants 45:9).

The Savior further admonished, “Behold, I sent you out to testify and warn the people, and it becometh every man who hath been warned to warn his neighbor” (Doctrine and Covenants 88:81). And so, as the message is carried throughout the world, the rallying cry of the Lord’s royal missionary army should echo that of the prophet Jeremiah, “O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the Lord” (Jeremiah 22:29).

All are called to Send Forth the Message of the Gospel

David O. Mckay, the 9^th President and Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ, exhorted, “Every member a missionary!” In addressing the early Saints of the Church, he proposed a profound question – a question that remains applicable in this dispensation of time. He said, “The world is hungry to hear the truth. … We have it. Are we equal to the task—to the responsibility God has placed upon us?” (In Conference Report, Oct. 1945, 113–14.)

The Master commanded His disciples to:

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen (Matthew 28:19-20).

Considering the commandment given by the Savior to His disciples, President McKay taught,

The text … “go ye unto all the world” is really the missionary injunction given by the risen Christ to his Apostles. In effect He says:

Consider this work unfinished until all nations shall have accepted the gospel and shall have enlisted themselves as my disciples. …

With the same direct commission from the risen Lord who with the Father appeared in person in the beginning of the nineteenth century, the proclamation of the gospel is being made by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to “every nation, kindred, tongue and people” as fast as means and personnel can carry it forward (In Conference Report, Oct. 1949, 118.)

Responding to the subject of the magnitude and urgency of missionary work, and why everyone needs to be involved, Elder Jeffery R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (the second highest governing body in The Church of Jesus Christ), in his 2006 General Conference address titled “Prophets in the Land Again”, commented:

As surely as the rescue of those in need was the general conference theme of October 1856, so too is it the theme of this conference and last conference and the one to come next spring. It may not be blizzards and frozen-earth burials that we face this conference, but the needy are still out there—the poor and the weary, the discouraged and downhearted, those “[falling] away into [the] forbidden paths” we mentioned earlier, and multitudes who are “kept from the truth because they know not where to find it.” They are all out there with feeble knees, hands that hang down, and bad weather setting in. They can be rescued only by those who have more and know more and can help more. And don’t worry about asking, “Where are they?” They are everywhere, on our right hand and on our left, in our neighborhoods and in the workplace, in every community and county and nation of this world. Take your team and wagon; load it with your love, your testimony, and a spiritual sack of flour; then drive in any direction. The Lord will lead you to those in need if you will but embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ that has been taught in this conference. Open your heart and your hand to those trapped in the twenty-first century’s equivalent of Martin’s Cove and Devil’s Gate. In doing so we honor the Master’s repeated plea on behalf of lost sheep and lost coins and lost souls (Jeffrey R. Holland, “Prophets in the Land Again”, Ensign, November 2006).

Why Mormon Boys Serve Missions

Indeed a great work has begun, and the preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ is the responsibility of all followers of Christ. In The Church of Jesus Christ it is a specific duty for men who hold the priesthood. Latter-day Saint theology teaches that the priesthood is the authority given to worthy male members of the Church to act in God’s name for the salvation of His children. Latter-day Saints further believe and teach that the same priesthood authority that existed in Christ’s original Church exists in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints today.

Scriptures teach that the “field is white already to harvest; and lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul” (Doctrine and Covenants 4:4). Wherefore, any young man of the priesthood who has a desire to go on the Lord’s errand and labor in His vineyard preaching the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is called to the work. And as Thomas S. Monson, President and Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ, has taught, “Whom the Lord calls, the Lord will qualify,” and “When you’re on the Lord’s errand, you’re entitled to the Lord’s blessings.”

As these young priesthood holders diligently prepare to “embark in the service of God” they are reminded that they must be willing to serve God with all of their heart, might, mind and strength, and if they do so, they are promised that they will be able to “stand blameless before God at the last day” (See Doctrine and Covenants 4:2). Scriptures further teach that the qualifications for the work are “faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God” (See Doctrine and Covenants 4:5).

While serving as a Mission President in Australia, the late Bruce R. McConkie wrote concerning being on the Lord’s errand:

I am called of God. My authority is above that of the kings of the earth. By revelation I have been selected as a personal representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is my Master and he has chosen me to represent him. To stand in his place, to say and do what he himself would say and do if he personally were ministering to the very people to whom he has sent me. My voice is his voice, and my acts are his acts; my words are his words and my doctrine is his doctrine. My commission is to do what he wants done. To say what he wants said. To be a living modern witness in word and deed of the divinity of his great and marvelous latter-day work.

During the Priesthood Session of the April 2013 General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ, President Monson poignantly asked the young men of the Aaronic Priesthood, “Young men, are you ready to respond? Are you willing to work? Are you prepared to serve?” [1] He further admonished the young men,

At best, missionary work necessitates drastic adjustment to one’s pattern of living. It requires long hours and great devotion, selfless sacrifice and fervent prayer. As a result, dedicated missionary service returns a dividend of eternal joy which extends throughout mortality and into eternity. The challenge is to be more profitable servants in the Lord’s vineyard. [1]

During the course of his remarks, President Monson also shared a four-point formula that would ensure anyone embarking on a mission success in the mission field. Those four points are: search the scriptures with diligence, plan your life with purpose, teach the truth with testimony, and serve the Lord with love.

Why do Mormon boys serve missions? Answer: to preach the message of the restored gospel, and through that message and the testimony and witness of the Holy Spirit, bring precious souls – men, women, and children unto the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, the missionary who redeemed the precious souls of all mankind, gives this blessed assurance as recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 18:15-16:

15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!

16 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!

The words of Joseph Smith, the first Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ, puts this entire discussion into its proper frame. Said he,

The standard of truth has been erected; No unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the great Jehovah shall say the work is done.

Keith L. Brown

Keith L. Brown is a convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, having been born and raised Baptist. He was studying to be a Baptist minister at the time of his conversion to the LDS faith. He was baptized on 10 March 1998 in Reykjavik, Iceland while serving on active duty in the United States Navy in Keflavic, Iceland. He currently serves as the First Assistant to the High Priest Group for the Annapolis, Maryland Ward. He is a 30-year honorably retired United States Navy Veteran.

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Sister Monson Was Endeared by Her Family

President and Sister Monson were married for 64 years. In October 2013 they would have celebrated 65 years of marriage. They have three children – Thomas Lee, Ann Frances, and Clark Spencer. Making mention of her in his biography titled To the Rescue, President Monson stated, “If there was ever a heroine in my life, it would have to be Frances.” [2] The LDS Church news release stated that President Monson recognized his companion as the family’s “beacon of love, compassion and encouragement.” [1] Again in his biography, President Monson further commented, “I am so grateful for my mother-in-law. She brought into the world a lovely daughter who is my wife and companion, who I can assure you is her husband’s keeper, and the keeper of her children as well — a noble daughter of our Heavenly Father.” [2]

Ann Monson Dibb, the only daughter of President and Sister Monson, once made a comment in an Ensign article titled President Thomas S. Monson: Finishing the Course, Keeping the Faith about her mother that could now serve as an appropriate tribute as she recalled the true character of one of Heavenly Father’s special daughters:

My mother is unlike many of the women of today’s generation. Instead of looking for the recognition of the world, she has always received her acknowledgment of worth from such things as the happy smile of a son or the outstretched hand of a grandchild. President Wilford Woodruff once said that the mother has greater influence over her posterity than any other person can have, and her influence is felt through time and eternity. I am grateful to my mother, thankful for her influence and pray that I might always be worthy of her love. As I reflect upon the many blessings which I have received as the daughter of an apostle of the Lord, the one which means the most to me is the gift and blessing of the woman he married, my mother.”  [3]

In a recent YouTube video posted on Friday, 17 May 2013, by LDS Public Affairs, Ann Dibb Monson remarks that a person could not know her mother without her father, and a person could not know her father without her mother. They made each other complete. Ann further comments that this became even more evident during her father’s visits to her mother’s hospital room during the past 6 and a half weeks.

A Life of Dedication and Devotion

Frances Beverley Johnson was born on 27 October 1927, to Franz Emanuel Johnson and Hildur Augusta Booth Johnson. She was the youngest, and only daughter of 5 children, and was named after her father. She grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah during the days of the Great Depression. The date of her death, 17 May, would have been the birthday of her father, as well as, the birthday of President Monson’s father. She was born of Swedish descent.

She attended Emerson Elementary School, and was a graduate of East High School in Salt Lake City, Utah. She became proficient in both playing tennis and playing the piano in her teenage years. Following high school, she studied math and science at the University of Utah, and worked at the Deseret News in the accounting department at a local department store to help pay the cost of her education. While she was attending the University, she met, and fell in love with a young man, Thomas S. Monson, who would become her eternal companion. Her father, Franz, felt an immediate connection with young Thomas Monson because Monson’s great uncle had baptized him into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sweden. Thomas Spencer Monson and Frances Beverley Johnson were married for all time and eternity in the Salt Lake City, Utah Temple on 7 October 1948. He was 21 years of age, and she was 20.

As a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ, Sister Monson had a keen understanding of the meaning of service. She served in the Relief Society and Primary. “She also earned the church’s Golden Gleaner award, part of a now-discontinued program for 18-to-30-year-old single church members, by meeting a rigorous set of requirements for church activity and self-improvement.” [3] She also served with President Monson in the LDS Canadian Mission, headquartered in Toronto, Ontario.

The LDS Church news release further stated that, “Sister Monson lived a Christ-centered life in word and deed. She will forever be remembered for her kindness and quiet, sustained support of her husband in his Church duties.” [1]

A Loving Legacy Left to Her Family

Frances Beverley Johnson Monson will always be remembered as a woman who had a heart full of compassion, was patient and understanding, always had words of encouragement to share, and loved the Savior. She was always by her eternal companion’s side and supported him in all of his many Church callings throughout the years. “My mother is the other part of my father’s success story because she has been supportive of him in everything he’s done,” Sister Dibb (Ann Monson Dibb, daughter of President and Sister Monson) said. [2]

As the matriarch of the Monson home, she nurtured each of her three children in the admonition of the Lord. She clearly understood the words of Solomon, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:26.) Perhaps one of the guiding principles from the scriptures that she used in the rearing of her children, and instilled in each of them, is also found in the wise words of Solomon, “In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:6.) As her children now, and in the days ahead, reflect upon the love that this remarkable woman gave to each of them, and the lessons that she taught them, will be able to say with surety, “We do not doubt our mother knew it” (see Alma 56:48, Book of Mormon.)

Keith L. Brown

Keith L. Brown is a convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, having been born and raised Baptist. He was studying to be a Baptist minister at the time of his conversion to the LDS faith. He was baptized on 10 March 1998 in Reykjavik, Iceland while serving on active duty in the United States Navy in Keflavic, Iceland. He currently serves as the First Assistant to the High Priest Group for the Annapolis, Maryland Ward. He is a 30-year honorably retired United States Navy Veteran.

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President Monson served in the United States Navy during World War II. Of that experience he recalls:

I believe my first experience in having the courage of my convictions took place when I served in the United States Navy near the end of World War II.

Navy boot camp was not an easy experience for me, nor for anyone who endured it. For the first three weeks I was convinced my life was in jeopardy. The navy wasn’t trying to train me; it was trying to kill me. [1]

President Monson also recalls some of the important life lessons that he learned while serving in the Navy. One of those lessons was the courage to stand alone. In a Mormon Message video appropriately titled “Dare to Stand Alone” he recounts an incident that really helped him to fully understand the importance of this principle.

Of that incident President Monson has said:

Since that day there have been times when there was no one standing behind me and so I did stand alone. How grateful I am that I made the decision long ago to remain strong and true, always prepared and ready to defend my religion, should the need arise. [1]

He was ordained an elder in The LDS Church one week prior to leaving for active duty. He would soon learn another important life lesson that would involve using the Priesthood authority which he now had. That lesson was to always be willing to help to heal. He recalls:

The night preceding our Christmas leave, the barracks were quiet. Suddenly I became aware that my buddy in the adjoining bunk—a member of the Church, Leland Merrill—was moaning in pain. I asked, “What’s the matter, Merrill?”

He replied, “I’m sick. I’m really sick.”

The hours lengthened; his groans grew louder. Then, in desperation, he whispered, “Monson, aren’t you an elder?” I acknowledged this to be so, whereupon he pleaded, “Give me a blessing.”

I became very much aware that I had never given a blessing. My prayer to God was a plea for help. The answer came: “Look in the bottom of the seabag.” Thus, at 2:00 a.m. I emptied the bag. I then took to the night-light The Missionary’s Hand Book and read how one blesses the sick. With about 120 curious sailors looking on, I proceeded with the blessing. Before I could again stow my gear, Leland Merrill was sleeping. [1]

Of the experience President Monson commented, “If we are on the Lord’s errand, we are entitled to the Lord’s help. His help has come to me on countless occasions throughout my life.” [1]

Another important life lesson that he learned while serving in the Navy was the importance of being honest.He tells of a particular day where an officer had made the announcement that everyone who knew how to swim would be put on a bus and taken to San Diego for the day. Those who did not know how to swim were to stay behind for a full day of swimming lessons. He had learned how to swim as a boy and could do so quite well, so he got in line to go on the bus to San Diego. Instead of going to their destination they were taken to a gym and were ordered to jump in the deep end of the pool. He and most of his fellow shipmates did as ordered, but there were about 10 who did not know how to swim that were pushed into the water and allowed to go under twice before being pulled out. President Monson remarked, “I tell you, I was glad I hadn’t tried that! The experience taught me the value of being honest and true to yourself at all times.” [1]

By Keith Brown

Keith L. Brown

Keith L. Brown is a convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, having been born and raised Baptist. He was studying to be a Baptist minister at the time of his conversion to the LDS faith. He was baptized on 10 March 1998 in Reykjavik, Iceland while serving on active duty in the United States Navy in Keflavic, Iceland. He currently serves as the First Assistant to the High Priest Group for the Annapolis, Maryland Ward. He is a 30-year honorably retired United States Navy Veteran.

of-common-sense.site123.me/

Over 20,000 people stood in absolute silence, waiting. And then, after about five minutes, the familiar figure of the honored guest appeared. But it wasn’t until Thomas S. Monson, prophet and president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints greeted, smiled, and shook hands with those standing close-by that he sat down and the respectful audience was seated.

That was the first tribute of an evening of beautiful music, narration and birthday wishes for President Monson’s 85th birthday celebration. Golden Days: a Celebration of Life, held at the Salt Lake City LDS Conference Center on Friday, August 17, 2012, centered on President Monson’s dedicated service to the world.

“We are here tonight to honor his service,” said President Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the First Presidency. “We can do it tonight, tomorrow and as long as we live by serving others in the way he serves others.”

Hosts for the evening were Steve Young, NFL football Hall of Fame quarterback and founder of the Forever Young Foundation, and Jane Clayson Johnson, Emmy award-winning national news correspondent and former co-host of The Early Show on CBS.

Dallyn Vail Bayles, professional actor, singer and recording artist, Metropolitan Opera tenor Stanford Olsen and singer and actress Rebecca Luker were the guest performers. Music and commentary highlighted President Monson’s life and included some of his favorite songs, including Broadway tunes “Seventy Six Trombones” from the Music Man; “Tomorrow” from Annie; “All I ask of You” from Phantom of the Opera; “There But For You” from Brigadoon; and “Memory” from Cats. A deeply moving rendition of “Bring Him Home” from Les Miserables performed by Bayles brought the audience to its feet.

An impressive procession of nearly 200 Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts singing the Trail builder’s hymn marched on to the stage and filled the aisles of the lower level of the center as a tribute to President Monson’s four decades on the National Executive Board of Boy Scouts of America. He is the recipient of the Silver Beaver and Silver Buffalo awards, the Bronze Wolf (the highest international scouting award), and the Silver Fox Award from Canada. In a prerecorded message Bob Mazzuca, Chief Scout Executive for the Boy Scouts of America, not only wished a happy birthday but also praised President Monson for his contribution to scouting.

About half way through the program, the audience joined the hosts, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the Orchestra at Temple Square in singing a heartfelt “Happy Birthday” to the beloved prophet.

A documentary of President Monson’s life detailed significant events, including his romance and courtship of Frances Johnson, a coed at the University of Utah, and his service in the Navy during World War II which strengthened his commitment to live the gospel.

President Monson became a bishop when he was 22 years old and hung a picture of Christ in his office. Faced with difficult situations, he asked himself what Christ would do. That same picture has hung in every office–from bishop to president of the Canadian Mission and then as an apostle at age 36, and today as prophet.

The documentary explained that in 1968, President Monson promised the Latter-day Saints behind the Iron Curtain that they would one day have their own temple if they were faithful. At that time there were no buildings, no wards, stakes or mission. To them it seemed impossible but twenty years later, a temple was built in East Germany.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, recounted his experiences.

As a German I recollect the grand act of faith when during the Cold War you blessed our people and country behind the Iron Curtain with prophetic promises which seemed impossible at the time. The grandness of this historic moment was difficult for us to comprehend. Your faith stretched ours. That faith was rewarded, and we witnessed the literal fulfillment of your blessing. An Apostle of the Lord had been among us. We understood that President Thomas S. Monson was not only our friend, but that God was his friend.

President Uchtdorf said that he had travelled to a regional conference in North Germany with President Monson. It had been several years, but he remembered the names of many members and wanted to visit, a former stake president and patriarch, Michael Panitsch. President Uchtdorf explained that brother Panitsch was bedridden, very ill, and unable to attend the conference.

“So President Monson said, ‘Then we will go to him.’

I knew that President Monson had foot surgery shortly before the trip to Germany and could not walk without pain. When I shared with President Monson that Brother Panitsch lived on the fifth floor of an older building with no elevators but very high and long staircases, he only said, ‘Dieter, don’t you worry.’ And off we went.

Every few steps he had to pause to get over the pain. He never uttered a complaint. He would not give up. He gave Brother Panitsch a beautiful blessing, cheered him up, and thanked him for his lifelong service.

Helen Keller said, ‘I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light.’ President Monson, you are a friend who brings light to the dark, and you are the prophet of God for our time. We love and sustain you. We pray for you.”

President Eyring said that he had witnessed a tribute to President Monson in the desert of Arizona when they travelled toward the airport after the dedication of the Gila Temple. He recalled:

The prophet asked his driver to let him shake the hands of a couple and their small children who were standing in the sand at the edge of the road. There was not a house in sight, but as soon as President Monson began to shake hands with the children, more families began to appear. He greeted them all with a sunny smile and each smiled back in obvious delight. He bathed them in the warmth of the pure love of Christ, without concern for his own comfort and safety and oblivious to the reactions of anyone except those he loved and greeted.

The road and the barren hills reminded me of the land above the Sea of Galilee where crowds had gathered to feel the love of the mortal Lord.

Now, these Saints of the latter days were drawn to the Savior’s prophet, an ordained servant of their day. And he blessed them by his loving, patient, undivided attention as they paid him tribute. Not only were those he greeted given a golden moment, but so were those of us who saw it happen. I am not the same, nor is any of the participants, because having felt that love, we are changed.

More than once I have remembered his example and gone out of my way and out of my zone of comfort to someone in need of attention, encouragement, and help.

President Monson has done so much of this, spoken and written, so movingly and even asked us to go as he has in the Lord’s behalf to others. The Church has been changed across the earth for generations to come.”

Reverend Monsignor Joseph Fitzgerald of the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City addressed President Monson in a prerecorded video tribute:

I have known you and Frances [and] some of your family for many years and have always been struck by the tremendous devotion all of you have for the betterment of other people, to the enrichment of our community, and of the greater world. . . . So many times I’ve heard you say, ‘We can’t let the hungry stay hungry, the homeless, homeless, or those without clothing, naked. We have to do everything we can together to help those people.’ And you have.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpYagtCon2s&feature=youtu.be

Keith L. Brown

Keith L. Brown is a convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, having been born and raised Baptist. He was studying to be a Baptist minister at the time of his conversion to the LDS faith. He was baptized on 10 March 1998 in Reykjavik, Iceland while serving on active duty in the United States Navy in Keflavic, Iceland. He currently serves as the First Assistant to the High Priest Group for the Annapolis, Maryland Ward. He is a 30-year honorably retired United States Navy Veteran.

of-common-sense.site123.me/

President Monson was born on 21 August 1927 in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has lived a fulfilling life. He served his country in the military for a short stint, having enlisted in the United States Navy near the conclusion of World War II, at the age of 18. After the Navy, he attended the University of Utah and graduated Cum Laude in business in 1948. Soon thereafter he began working for the Deseret News daily newspaper in Salt Lake City as an advertising executive. At the young age of 22, after his marriage to Frances Beverly Johnson, he was called to serve as the Bishop of the Sixth-Seventh Ward in Salt Lake City and faithfully attended to the temporal and spiritual needs of each of 85 widows in the ward. It was also here that he began his lifelong involvement with the Boy Scouts of America.

In 1955, he was called to serve as a counselor in the Stake Presidency of the Temple View Stake in Salt Lake City. And from 1959 to 1962, he served as President of the LDS Church’s Canadian Mission, headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. After returning from Canada, he resumed work at the Deseret News, eventually becoming general manager of the Deseret News Press. He was working there at the time of his call to serve as an Apostle, in 1963. [1]

This year marks President Monson’s 85th birthday, and the Church is planning to celebrate his special day with “Golden Days: A Celebration of a Life,” a gala musical event which is scheduled for Friday, 17 August 2012, at 8 p.m. in the Church’s Conference Center located in downtown Salt lake City, Utah. The gala will feature the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, the Orchestra at Temple Square, and other guest performers. The duties of master of ceremonies for the event will be shared by former BYU and NFL football legend Steve Young and former news anchor and author Jane Clayson Johnson.

According to the press release by the Church of Jesus Christ on Friday, 8 June 2012, the evening will “take a nostalgic look back at President Monson’s illustrious life from his childhood, marriage and stint in the U.S. Navy during World War II to his decades of service (in the church).” [2]

Of this event, Steve Young said:

It is a privilege to play a small part in (this) recognition. President Monson has served other people all his life. I know he’s more comfortable in that role than having any accolades focused on him. This celebration is a great way to let him know how much he is loved and appreciated. [2]

Free tickets for this event are required and will be distributed through a random selection process due to an expected high level of demand. Beginning Saturday, 16 June 2012 at 12:01 MDT, those interested in obtaining tickets will be able to register online at www.lds.org/events or via telephone at 801-570-0080 (local callers) or 1-866-537-8457 (long distance or out of state callers.) Registration for tickets will remain open until 11:59 PM MDT on Monday, 25 June 2012. Those who are selected to receive tickets will be notified by email on Thursday, 5 July 2012. Only one registration per household is permitted, and the maximum number of tickets that can be requested is four. Standby tickets will be made available the day of the event.

The program will also be shown over the LDS church satellite system on Saturday, Aug. 18, with subsequent rebroadcasts to many areas of the world. It will be rebroadcast in its entirety on BYU TV on Saturday, Aug. 18, at 7 p.m.; Sunday, Aug. 19, at 10 a.m.; and Monday Aug. 20, at 3 a.m. All times are MDT. [2]

Concerning this gala event, Jane Johnson added:

So many around the world have been influenced by President Monson’s warmth, compassion and genuine love of people. We celebrate and honor his extraordinary life of service and leadership. [2]

Keith L. Brown

Keith L. Brown is a convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, having been born and raised Baptist. He was studying to be a Baptist minister at the time of his conversion to the LDS faith. He was baptized on 10 March 1998 in Reykjavik, Iceland while serving on active duty in the United States Navy in Keflavic, Iceland. He currently serves as the First Assistant to the High Priest Group for the Annapolis, Maryland Ward. He is a 30-year honorably retired United States Navy Veteran.

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