LeGrand Richards
Encyclopedia
LeGrand Richards was a prominent missionary
and leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He served as the seventh presiding bishop
of the LDS Church from 1938 to 1952, and was then called as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles by Church President David O. McKay
. Richards served in the Quorum of the Twelve until his death in Salt Lake City, Utah
at the age of ninety-six.
, Utah Territory
to George F. Richards
and Alice Almira Robinson, his father served many years in the Quorum of the Twelve. As a young boy, LeGrand had several accidents that could have taken his life: once as a small child he was struck in the head by an ax as he approached his father from behind while his father was chopping wood. A few years later LeGrand was thrown from a wagon by an agitated horse and both the wagon wheels rolled over his head. As a child Richards attended the 1893 dedication of the Salt Lake Temple
. Richards's church service began when he filled a proselyting mission to the Netherlands
between 1905 and 1908.
over the mission
, accompanied by his wife Ina Jane Ashton Richards, from 1914 to 1916. Richards was ordained a high priest and bishop on June 29, 1919, by Charles W. Penrose
, and presided over a Salt Lake City ward from 1920 to 1925. In 1926, he filled a short term mission primarily serving in Rhode Island
. In about 1930 Church President Heber J. Grant
sent Richards to southern California
with the plan to call him as stake president. However the then-current stake president called Richards as a bishop and convinced Grant to hold off on calling him as the stake president so local members would not feel as if Richards was an outsider being imposed on them. Between 1931 and 1933, Richards presided over the Hollywood Stake.
In 1933 and 1934 Richards again lived in Salt Lake City, where he served on the stake high council of the Liberty Stake. He was called to this position by stake president Bryant S. Hinckley
. Following this Richards served as president of the Southern States Mission from 1934 to 1937. He was called to this position to replace Charles A. Callis
who had been called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Richards served as presiding bishop during and after the Second World War and began to adopt building programs to deal with the massive post-war growth in membership of the church.
. Based on a document titled The Message of Mormonism Richards developed in 1937 for missionaries during his tenure as president of the Southern States Mission, it contains explanations and interpretations of many doctrinal positions of the LDS Church.
In 1955 Richards published Israel! Do You Know?, an effort to demonstrate the links between Jewish traditions and beliefs and Mormonism; this document was produced in conjunction with an LDS Church program aimed at proselyting Jews living in Southern California.
Richards also played a role in LDS connections with Israel
. He was the head of the Orson Hyde Foundation, which coordinated most of the money sent to Jerusalem which was donated to that city in exchange for the land that became the Orson Hyde Memorial Garden.
paid tribute to Richards as
until David B. Haight
; Both his father George F. Richards
and grandfather Franklin D. Richards had served as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
. Franklin D. Richards was also the nephew of Willard Richards
, another Apostle
and notable leader in LDS church history.
Mormon missionary
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over 52,000 full-time missionaries worldwide, as of the end of 2010...
and leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He served as the seventh presiding bishop
Presiding Bishop (LDS Church)
The Presiding Bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a priesthood calling with church-wide authority. The Presiding Bishop is the highest leadership position within the church's Aaronic priesthood.-Presiding Bishopric:...
of the LDS Church from 1938 to 1952, and was then called as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles by Church President David O. McKay
David O. McKay
David Oman McKay was the ninth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , serving from 1951 until his death. Ordained an apostle and member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1906, McKay was a general authority for nearly 64 years, longer than anyone else in LDS Church...
. Richards served in the Quorum of the Twelve until his death in Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
at the age of ninety-six.
Early life
Born in FarmingtonFarmington, Utah
Farmington is a city in Davis County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Ogden–Clearfield, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 18,255 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Davis County...
, Utah Territory
Utah Territory
The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
to George F. Richards
George F. Richards
George Franklin Richards was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from April 9, 1906 until his death...
and Alice Almira Robinson, his father served many years in the Quorum of the Twelve. As a young boy, LeGrand had several accidents that could have taken his life: once as a small child he was struck in the head by an ax as he approached his father from behind while his father was chopping wood. A few years later LeGrand was thrown from a wagon by an agitated horse and both the wagon wheels rolled over his head. As a child Richards attended the 1893 dedication of the Salt Lake Temple
Salt Lake Temple
The Salt Lake Temple is the largest and best-known of more than 130 temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is the sixth temple built by the church, requiring 40 years to complete, and the fourth operating temple built since the Mormon exodus from Nauvoo,...
. Richards's church service began when he filled a proselyting mission to the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
between 1905 and 1908.
Church service
Richards returned to the Netherlands as the presiding elderMission president
Mission president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . A mission president presides over a mission and the missionaries serving in the mission...
over the mission
Mission (LDS Church)
A mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative area to which church missionaries are assigned. Almost all areas of the world are within the boundaries of an LDS Church mission, whether or not Mormon missionaries live or proselytize in the area...
, accompanied by his wife Ina Jane Ashton Richards, from 1914 to 1916. Richards was ordained a high priest and bishop on June 29, 1919, by Charles W. Penrose
Charles W. Penrose
Charles William Penrose was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from July 7, 1904. Penrose was also a member of the First Presidency of the church under Church Presidents Joseph F. Smith and Heber J...
, and presided over a Salt Lake City ward from 1920 to 1925. In 1926, he filled a short term mission primarily serving in Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
. In about 1930 Church President Heber J. Grant
Heber J. Grant
Heber Jeddy Grant was the seventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was ordained an apostle on October 16, 1882, on the same day as George Teasdale...
sent Richards to southern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
with the plan to call him as stake president. However the then-current stake president called Richards as a bishop and convinced Grant to hold off on calling him as the stake president so local members would not feel as if Richards was an outsider being imposed on them. Between 1931 and 1933, Richards presided over the Hollywood Stake.
In 1933 and 1934 Richards again lived in Salt Lake City, where he served on the stake high council of the Liberty Stake. He was called to this position by stake president Bryant S. Hinckley
Bryant S. Hinckley
Bryant Stringham Hinckley was an American author, religious speaker, civic leader and educator. He served as a prominent mid-level leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the early 20th century. His books were primarily designed for a Latter-day Saint audience.Hinckley was...
. Following this Richards served as president of the Southern States Mission from 1934 to 1937. He was called to this position to replace Charles A. Callis
Charles A. Callis
Charles Albert Callis was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was ordained an apostle by Church President Heber J...
who had been called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Richards served as presiding bishop during and after the Second World War and began to adopt building programs to deal with the massive post-war growth in membership of the church.
Writings
Outside of his apostleship, Richards is probably best known for his widely distributed book, A Marvelous Work and a Wonder: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which was first published in 1950. The commonly referenced work contains a comprehensive teaching outline designed to assist missionaries in their study and presentation of MormonismMormonism
Mormonism is the religion practiced by Mormons, and is the predominant religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement. This movement was founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. beginning in the 1820s as a form of Christian primitivism. During the 1830s and 1840s, Mormonism gradually distinguished itself...
. Based on a document titled The Message of Mormonism Richards developed in 1937 for missionaries during his tenure as president of the Southern States Mission, it contains explanations and interpretations of many doctrinal positions of the LDS Church.
In 1955 Richards published Israel! Do You Know?, an effort to demonstrate the links between Jewish traditions and beliefs and Mormonism; this document was produced in conjunction with an LDS Church program aimed at proselyting Jews living in Southern California.
Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. He was the head of the Orson Hyde Foundation, which coordinated most of the money sent to Jerusalem which was donated to that city in exchange for the land that became the Orson Hyde Memorial Garden.
Tributes
In a memorial address read by his personal secretary after Richards's death, Church President Spencer W. KimballSpencer W. Kimball
Spencer Woolley Kimball was the twelfth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1973 until his death in 1985.-Ancestry:...
paid tribute to Richards as
Place in history
Richards was the longest-lived LDS ApostleApostle (Mormonism)
In the Latter Day Saint movement, an Apostle is a "special witness of the name of Jesus Christ who is sent to teach the principles of salvation to others." In many Latter Day Saint churches, an Apostle is a priesthood office of high authority within the church hierarchy. In many churches, apostles...
until David B. Haight
David B. Haight
David Bruce Haight was the oldest member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints .-Life and career:...
; Both his father George F. Richards
George F. Richards
George Franklin Richards was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from April 9, 1906 until his death...
and grandfather Franklin D. Richards had served as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is a priesthood calling in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . In general, the President of the Quorum of the Twelve is the most senior Apostle in the church, aside from the President of the Church...
. Franklin D. Richards was also the nephew of Willard Richards
Willard Richards
Willard Richards was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and served as Second Counselor in the First Presidency to church president Brigham Young in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death.Willard Richards was born in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, to...
, another Apostle
Apostle (Mormonism)
In the Latter Day Saint movement, an Apostle is a "special witness of the name of Jesus Christ who is sent to teach the principles of salvation to others." In many Latter Day Saint churches, an Apostle is a priesthood office of high authority within the church hierarchy. In many churches, apostles...
and notable leader in LDS church history.
Publications
- Marvelous Work and a Wonder: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Salt Lake City, Utah, first published in 1950, multiple editions. ISBN 0-87747-161-4.
- Israel! Do You Know?, 1954.