Spencer W. Kimball
Encyclopedia
Ancestry
Kimball's grandfather, Heber C. KimballHeber C. Kimball
Heber Chase Kimball was a leader in the early Latter Day Saint movement. He served as one of the original twelve apostles in the early Latter Day Saint church, and as first counselor to Brigham Young in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his...
, was one of the original Latter Day Saint apostles
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 later served as first counselor to Brigham Young
Brigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
in the First Presidency
First Presidency (LDS Church)
The First Presidency is the presiding or governing body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . It is composed of the President of the Church and his counselors. The First Presidency currently consists of President Thomas S. Monson and his two counselors, Henry B...
of the LDS Church. Through his aunt Helen Mar Kimball
Helen Mar Kimball
Helen Mar Kimball was a wife of Joseph Smith, Jr., founder of the Latter Day Saint movement.-Early life:...
, he was a nephew of Joseph Smith, Jr..
Early life
Kimball was born in Salt Lake City, Utah TerritoryUtah 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 Andrew Kimball and Olive Woolley, sister of Mormon fundamentalist pioneer John W. Woolley. When Spencer was three, his father was called to preside as president of the St. Joseph stake
Stake (Mormonism)
A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregations in denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. A stake is approximately comparable to a diocese in the Catholic Church and other Christian denominations...
and his family relocated to the town of Thatcher
Thatcher, Arizona
Thatcher is a town in Graham County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the town is 4,865. It is part of the Safford Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Thatcher is located at ....
in southeastern Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
.
During his childhood, Kimball suffered from typhoid fever
Typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as Typhoid, is a common worldwide bacterial disease, transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected person, which contain the bacterium Salmonella enterica, serovar Typhi...
and facial paralysis
Paralysis
Paralysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...
and once nearly drowned. Four of his sisters died in childhood, and his mother died when he was eleven.
After graduating from high school in 1914, he was called to serve as a missionary
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...
in the Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-Swiss Mission
Missions of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
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...
, but due to World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, was reassigned to the Central States Mission
Missions of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
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...
until 1916. In 1917 he attended the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
, but received an army draft
Conscription in the United States
Conscription in the United States has been employed several times, usually during war but also during the nominal peace of the Cold War...
notice later that year. Despite several imminent departures, each was delayed and he was never called up. During this time he courted Camilla Eyring, sister of the famous chemist Henry Eyring
Henry Eyring
Henry Eyring was a Mexican-born American theoretical chemist whose primary contribution was in the study of chemical reaction rates and intermediates....
, and they married civilly on November 16, 1917 in Pima, Arizona. Seven months later, on June 7, 1918, the couple were sealed in a marriage ceremony in the Salt Lake Temple. They eventually had four children: Spencer L., Olive Beth, Andrew E., and Edward L.
Edward L. Kimball
Edward L. Kimball is a now-retired law professor at Brigham Young University who has written biographies of his father Spencer W. Kimball and his mother Camilla Eyring Kimball. Mormon historians have described these as "well crafted" biographies...
Shortly after marrying, Kimball received employment in banking. After working for several different banks, in 1927 he started his own insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
and real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
agency. Additionally, he made a significant portion of his income as a debt collector. This he continued until his call into full time church service. Kimball was also actively involved in PTA
PTA
-Organizations:* Andalusia Technology Park , a science park in Málaga, Spain* Parent-Teacher Association* Pakistan Telecommunication Authority* Passenger transport authority, a United Kingdom local government authority...
, city council
City council
A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...
, Red Cross, Boy Scouts
Scouting in Utah
Scouting in Utah has a long history, from the 1910s to the present day, serving thousands of youth in programs that suit the environment in which they live.-History:...
, and elected statewide leader of the Arizona Rotary Club in 1936.
Kimball served in various positions within the church, including stake
Stake (Mormonism)
A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregations in denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. A stake is approximately comparable to a diocese in the Catholic Church and other Christian denominations...
clerk, counselor, and later president.
Apostolic ministry
On July 8, 1943 Kimball was extended the call to be a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles by J. Reuben ClarkJ. Reuben Clark
Joshua Reuben Clark, Jr. was an American attorney, civil servant, and a prominent leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Born in Grantsville, Utah Territory, Clark was a prominent attorney in the Department of State, and Under Secretary of State for US president Calvin Coolidge...
of the First Presidency
First Presidency
In the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
. He was ordained an apostle and set apart as a member of that quorum on Thursday, October 7, 1943 in 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,...
by 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...
.
Indian Placement Program
Throughout his ministry, Kimball labored among the native peoples of North and South America. As part of this work, he developed the "Indian Student Placement Program"Indian Placement Program
The Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1947 to 1996, in which LDS Native American The Indian Placement Program, or Indian Student Placement Program was a program of The Church of Jesus Christ of...
to provide Native Americans the opportunity to attend school while living with host families. Twenty years after its inception, nearly 5,000 students a year participated in the program. The program ended when schools were improved among the Native Americans.
Ministry to the "children of Lehi"
Spencer W. Kimball had received a commission to minister to all of LehiLehi
Lehi refers to:In Mormonism:* Lehi , a prophet in the Book of Mormon of the 7th-6th centuries BC* Lehi, son of Helaman, another prophet in the Book of Mormon of the late 1st century BC...
's children from George Albert Smith
George Albert Smith
George Albert Smith, Sr. was the eighth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints .-Early life:...
. This not only encompassed the Native Americans of North America, but also Polynesians and the Indigenous people of Latin America. He was involved in organizing the first stake in Latin America in Argentina and in the start of missionary work in Ecuador.
Health challenges
In 1948, Kimball suffered a heart attack. Several years later he battled recurring throat cancer. This led to one and a half vocal cords being removed in 1957; as a result, he was thereafter barely able to speak above a hoarse whisper. After his heart condition resurfaced, in 1972 a successful open-heart surgery replaced an obstructed artery and failing valve. Because presidential succession in the church is traditionally based on seniority in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, he was not expected to become church president. However, the younger Harold B. LeeHarold B. Lee
Harold Bingham Lee was eleventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from July 1972 until his death.- Early life :...
, who ranked above him in seniority in the Quorum, died suddenly in December 1973. Kimball then became the 12th president of the church.
Ministry as president of the church
Kimball had a vision of a greatly expanded ministry. He urged church members to pray for more nations to be opened to the preaching of the gospel. He constantly counseled church members to "lengthen their stride". Temple building went forward at a pace never before seen in the church. One of these temples was built in São Paulo, Brazil and it was the faithfulness of such African descended church members as Helvécio MartinsHelvécio Martins
Helvécio Martins was the first person of Black African descent to be called as a general authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ....
and others in contributing toward the construction of the temple, that was one of the examples of faithfulness that caused Kimball to so often and so strongly supplicate the Lord on the issue of the ordination of brethren of African descent to the priesthood.
Official Declaration—2
Despite Kimball's age and history of poor health, major developments occurred during his presidency. Notable is the 1978 declarationOfficial Declaration—2
"Official Declaration—2" is the formal 1978 announcement by the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that the church's priesthood would no longer be subject to restrictions based on race or skin color...
conferring the priesthood
Priesthood (Mormonism)
In the Latter Day Saint movement, priesthood is considered to be the power and authority of God, including the authority to act as a leader in the church and to perform ordinances, and the power to perform miracles. A body of priesthood holders is referred to as a quorum.Priesthood denotes elements...
on all worthy male members. Prior to this declaration, black
Black people
The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
males of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n descent were not permitted to obtain the priesthood. Known as Official Declaration—2
Official Declaration—2
"Official Declaration—2" is the formal 1978 announcement by the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that the church's priesthood would no longer be subject to restrictions based on race or skin color...
, it may be found in the Standard Works
Standard Works
The Standard Works of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are the four books that currently constitute its open scriptural canon.* The Holy Bible * The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ...
at the end of the Doctrine and Covenants
Doctrine and Covenants
The Doctrine and Covenants is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement...
.
Impact
The number of missionariesMormon 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...
also greatly increased and a burst of temple
Temple (LDS Church)
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a temple is a building dedicated to be a House of the Lord, and they are considered by Church members to be the most sacred structures on earth. Upon completion, temples are usually open to the public for a short period of time...
building occurred. His book The Miracle of Forgiveness is one of the best-known church books within the LDS Church.
In the 1980s Kimball's health declined and the duties of the presidency were increasingly shouldered by his counselor Gordon B. Hinckley
Gordon B. Hinckley
Gordon Bitner Hinckley was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from March 12, 1995 until his death...
. Kimball died at Salt Lake City and was buried at Salt Lake City Cemetery
Salt Lake City Cemetery
thumb|The northern section of the cemetery at night, looking towards Salt Lake CityThe Salt Lake City Cemetery is in The Avenues neighborhood of Salt Lake City, Utah. Approximately 120,000 persons are buried in the cemetery. Many religious leaders and politicians, particularly many leaders of The...
. Following his death, Kimball was succeeded by Ezra Taft Benson
Ezra Taft Benson
Ezra Taft Benson was the thirteenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1985 until his death and was United States Secretary of Agriculture for both terms of the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower.-Biography:Born on a farm in Whitney, Idaho, Benson was the oldest of...
.