* CHURCH - Every Latter-day President Has Testified of the Book of Mormon

Every Latter-day President Has Testified of the Book of Mormon

One of the quiet but powerful witnesses of the Restoration is this simple fact.

Every President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, from the beginning until now, has borne clear and unmistakable testimony that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and another testament of Jesus Christ.

Different eras.

Different personalities.

Different challenges.

The testimony has never changed.

Below is a brief sampling of how each President has borne witness.

1. Joseph Smith Jr.

“I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.”

History of the Church, volume 4, page 461. Statement recorded July 1838.

2. Brigham Young

“No man can know that Jesus is the Christ but by the Holy Ghost. No man can know that the Book of Mormon is true but by the same power.”

Journal of Discourses, volume 7, page 333. Sermon delivered February 19, 1860.

3. John Taylor

“The Book of Mormon is a record of the dealings of God with ancient peoples on this continent, and it bears witness of Jesus Christ.”

Journal of Discourses, volume 20, page 264. Sermon delivered November 16, 1879.

4. Wilford Woodruff

“I know by the power of the Holy Ghost that the Book of Mormon is true.”

Journal of Discourses, volume 13, page 163. Sermon delivered October 19, 1869.

5. Lorenzo Snow

“The Book of Mormon is one of the greatest evidences of the divinity of this work.”

Conference Report, April 1899, page 46.

6. Joseph F. Smith

“It has brought to me a knowledge of the truth and divinity of the gospel.”

Conference Report, October 1906, page 58.

7. Heber J. Grant

“I believe that no man can read the Book of Mormon prayerfully and not know it is true.”

Conference Report, October 1925, page 10.

8. George Albert Smith

“It is a divine record. Its message is for all mankind.”

Conference Report, October 1942, page 15.

9. David O. McKay

“The Book of Mormon is a revelation from God.”

Conference Report, April 1950, page 32.

10. Joseph Fielding Smith

“The Book of Mormon is true scripture, revealed by God.”

Doctrines of Salvation, volume 1, page 188. Teachings from the 1950s.

11. Harold B. Lee

“If we want to know whether the gospel is true, read the Book of Mormon.”

Conference Report, October 1970, page 90.

12. Spencer W. Kimball

“The Book of Mormon is the instrument God has designed to sweep the earth.”

Conference Report, April 1975, page 4.

13. Ezra Taft Benson

“The Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion.”

General Conference, October 1986. “The Book of Mormon—Keystone of Our Religion.”

14. Howard W. Hunter

“The Book of Mormon testifies of Jesus Christ.”

General Conference, October 1994. “A Testimony of Jesus Christ.”

15. Gordon B. Hinckley

“The Book of Mormon is either true or false. There is no middle ground.”

General Conference, October 2003. “The Miracle Made Possible by Faith.”

16. Thomas S. Monson

“The Book of Mormon is the word of God.”

General Conference, October 2011. “The Power of the Book of Mormon.”

17. Russell M. Nelson

“The Book of Mormon is a miraculous miracle.”

General Conference, October 2016. “The Book of Mormon: What Would Your Life Be Like without It?”

18. Dallin H. Oaks

“The Book of Mormon is a witness of Jesus Christ and of the reality of revelation.”

General Conference, April 2020. “The Purpose of the Book of Mormon.”

One Book.

One Testimony.

Nearly two centuries of prophetic witness.

The names have changed.

The witness has not.

All of these prophetic testimonies ultimately point us to the same invitation Moroni extended at the end of the Book of Mormon. He did not ask us to rely on tradition, personality, or inherited belief. He invited us to read, ponder, and ask God with real intent, promising that the truth of the book would be made known by the power of the Holy Ghost.

I have done exactly what Moroni invited. I have read the Book of Mormon, pondered its message, and asked God in sincere prayer. In response, I have been blessed with a clear and personal answer from Him that the Book of Mormon is true. That witness did not replace faith. It deepened it. And it continues to anchor my testimony of Jesus Christ and His restored gospel.

The Book of Mormon does not ask to be defended by argument, only to be read, prayed over, and allowed to speak for itself through the voice of God.

#OneMansDeclarationofChristsLove

* FUNERAL - K. LeRoi Nelson Memorial Services - My Memories Shared

I am grateful for the memories and times shared with my brother.  Although most know him as Roi Nelson, his first given name was “Kay,” which is the name my sister Louise and I used - so my children know him as “Uncle Kay.” 

He was 12 years old when I was born in South Dakota.  Our father had moved from Cache County in Utah in the fall of 1931, having been hired by the federal government’s Bureau of Indian Affairs, working first at the Cheyenne River Agency where I was born; and then in March of 1942, our family moved near Mission, South Dakota, on the Rosebud reservation. My brother remained to finish the 12th grade school year in Gettsyburg, South Dakota, before coming to join our family and graduate from Todd County High School in Mission, South Dakota. 

My brother has always been a good worker.  When he was a teenager, he worked summers in South Dakota doing farm and ranch work on the government farm and ranch that our father managed. He put in long hours  but liked working outdoors and enjoying nature.  

We had a Chesapeake dog named Rex that K. would hitch up to pull a sled on the large dam near our home when the water was covered with thick ice.  He also fixed up an “ice boat,” that had a flat bottom with a sail for a ride moved by the wind on the ice.

Roi met the love of his life, Ina Shepherd, in Logan where they both were seniors at Utah State University and worked together as business managers of the yearbook. They were married in the Salt Lake Temple September 4, 1947, and graduated together in May 1948.  

They then moved to Lafayette, Indiana, where Roi attended graduate school at Purdue where he got his doctorate degree and started teaching at Purdue University.  They moved to Westwood, California in 1952, where Roi did Postdoctoral research at UCLA.  In the fall of 1954, Roy was hired at Wayne State University in Detroit, where they purchased their first home in Berkeley, Michigan. In January of 1956, they moved to Provo, Utah, when my brother joined the faculty at BYU teaching organic chemistry.

During some of my earlier years, my brother was not living at home - while he served in the U. S. Air Corp, attended Utah State University in Logan, and then was married and starting a family - so many of our shared special memories actually began when I came to BYU as a freshman and he was married to Ina and teaching at BYU. However, I do have a special memory of staying with them part of the summer in 1954 when Ronald was a baby and they were living in Lafayette, Indiana, where my brother was teaching at Purdue University.

When they were living in Saint George, I came one summer for a visit and went hiking with Roi.  The trail had been changed from when he had hiked this way previously, so it took us longer to get down to the car than he had expected. It was a hot day, and he had run out of water as we were hiking back down and he wasn’t feeling able to continue. I was really concerned, but after sitting on a stump for some minutes, he was able to continue on down to the car. He said it was a reminder to always be better prepared with water on the next hike.  He kept a record of his hikes and got a lot of pleasure being in nature.

K. and Ina hosted our first Nelson Family Reunion at their place near Sundance, with the next reunion in South Dakota at our farm, and then more memories made in California when Louise and the Hyers hosted.  I’m grateful for those special memories.

Other fun travel memories were made with our parents who invited K. and Ina, our sister Louise and husband Angus, and Sam and me on a trip overseas to Israel, Greece, England, and Switzerland with a BYU study group.  Our next overseas trip with our parents was to Europe and to the Oberammergau passion play in Germany and to 5 other European countries. Our third trip with our parents was an Eastern Caribbean cruise that included the coast of Venezuela.  So many wonderful family memories made and shared. 

Kay later arranged for a siblings’ cruise to the Western Caribbean for the wives and husbands creating more happy memories.

I am grateful Sam and I went to visit Kay in his apartment in Orem in December.  He had a sign on his door inviting visitors to come in to share his Christmas display of the creche my father-in-law had made with wood from a tree from our farm in South Dakota.  We had a nice visit with Kay that day while he set aside the book he had been reading before we came.  

My brother made good memories while he was here and now has had a wonderful reunion in heaven with Ina and four children - daughter Marlene and son Alan, both who lived only a few hours, and more recently Ronald and then Harold who each had enjoyed special lives until passing on, along with our parents, and other family and friends waiting to welcome him.

I am grateful K. LeRoi is my brother. I love him.

And I share these fond memories in the Name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

* PHOTOS - Remembering My Brother, Kay LeRoi Nelson

Some Memories Made with K. LeRoi and Louise

Narene and Kay - April 2013 - Spanish Fork, Utah visit

Louise, Kay, Narene, Mother & Dad 

at the home in Martin, South Dakota

K. LeRoi, Ina, Sam, Narene, Angus Hyer, Ronald, Margaret Nelson, Marlowe Hyer, Louise Hyer holding 

Louise, Kay, Narene - our parents 60th - Nov. 1983

February 2003 Carnival Paradise Cruise

Louise, Kay, Narene, and Sam

Narene, Louise, and Kay - Caribbean Cruise - 2002

Sam, Narene, Louise, and Kay - Caribbean Cruise - 2002

Kay and Narene - March 2003 - Papua New Guinea

Narene and Kay hiking near Saint George - March 2013

Kay, Narene, and Sam

Louise & Kay - Ina's Funeral - March 2016

Narene & Kay - May 2016 - Spanish Fork

Narene and Kay - December 26, 2017 - Spanish Fork

Kay, Narene, and Louise - Roatan Honduras - March 2003

Louise, Narene, and Kay - Cruise

(My mother's funeral) 1992 - Grandmother Nelson's funeral with Kay standing between son David and father LeRoi Nelson.  (Kayleen, David, K. LeRoi, Granddad Nelson, Ina, Karalee,David, and Ronald)

Ina and Kay - Family Reunion, 2005

Kay with Dave and Kayleen's family - 2020

Dave & Kayleen Family - Our farm in SD - 2020

Mitchel Nelson's Missionary Farewell - Narene & Sam, Kayleen, Kristen, Rachelle, McKay, Jarrett, Blake, Niki, Holly & Ashley Hyer, David 

Harold's Funeral - Dave and Kayleen's Family

Grandpa LeRoi Nelson:  He stayed in the canyon for about nine months this past year (2018).  We have enjoyed doing work projects together.  He has designed and drew the plans for an R & R Center on the property.  The foundation was poured last fall.  He's our hero at 92 years old.  His main residence is in St. George, where he hikes and stays involved in special projects and organizations.  We love our hikes together!

Kay's Celebration of Life, July 2023 (David & Kayleen's Family)

Kay's yearbook photo

Louise and Kay

Kay and Louise

Louise, Kay, and Narene - Mission, SD

Kay and Ina stopped to see us at the farm in South Dakota on their trip across the United States in a mobile home, stopping at every state.  Marla joined them as they continued on westward.

(Ronald, Harold, Ina, Kay, Karalee, and David)

Narene, Kay LeRoi, Mother and Dad, Louise - 1973, together to celebrate our parent's 50th Anniversary.  The painting on the wall behind us was painted by Uncle Alton Peterson, my mother's brother.

I enjoyed going on a hike with Kay and his friend when I had gone to Saint George with Beth who was attending another event.

Ina's funeral - Lori, Kayleen, Marla, Narene, Lauri, Karalee, Beth

Ryan, Doug, Scott, David, Kay, Lon, Marlowe, Blake, Kevin, Sam

Kay, Narene, & Louise holding Marlow - photo taken with Parley LeRoi Nelson (our dad) - in Mission, South Dakota , 1958

Kay in the Salt Lake Tabernacle 

David & Kayleen's family at Sundance with Blake & Niki's family, 2020

This photo was taken on the trip to Israel with Mother, Dad, Kay & Ina, Louise & Gus, and Sam and me.  The man on the left was our German guide who spoke several languages including English.  The man in the middle may have been a local guide.  The man on the right was our BYU tour director. 

We saw many historical and interesting things on that European trip, including Michelanaagelo's Pieta in Saint Peter's Basilica, Vatican City, in Italy.

Kay and Ina

Kay and Ina by their home in St. George

Kay and Ina are reunited for eternity.

Shutterfly Book "Remembering . . . "

Logan, Utah Cemetery

Louise, Kay, and Narene - 2005

Together decorating graves in Utah on Memorial Day.

Nelson Family Reunion in South Dakota 2002

Families Can Be Together Forever