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75-472: The state of Utah politics was reorganized after the 1890 Manifesto led by Wilford Woodruff . The 1890 Manifesto officially ended the traditionally Mormon practice of Polygamy. Many prominent polygamist Mormons were imprisoned, punished and harassed since the 1890 Manifesto prohibited plural marriage. This action granted the Utah Territory statehood in 1896 on the condition that polygamy was banned in

150-477: A divine revelation. Approximately one year after he declared the Manifesto, Woodruff began to claim that he had received instructions from Jesus Christ that formed the basis of what he wrote in the text of the Manifesto. These instructions were reportedly accompanied by a vision of what would occur if the Manifesto were not issued. Following Woodruff's death in 1898, other church leaders began to teach that

225-661: A major part in abolishing polygamy, the Republican U.S. Senator Reed Smoot rose to political power. Smoot led a political alliance of Mormons and non-Mormons that created a strong Republican party in many parts of the state. The Republican Party is currently dominant in Utah politics: no Democrat has won statewide office since 1996, when Jan Graham was elected attorney general; and when Mia Love replaced Jim Matheson in congress in 2014, Utah's congressional delegation became all-Republican. When Love lost her seat to Ben McAdams in

300-571: A majority abstained." Some members, including apostle Moses Thatcher , only reluctantly supported the Manifesto and interpreted it as a sign that the Second Coming of Jesus was imminent, after which plural marriage would be reinstated. The Manifesto was the end of official church authorization for the creation of new plural marriages that violated local laws. It had no effect on the status of already existing plural marriages, and plural marriages continued to be performed in locations where it

375-799: A party organization, which operates within that county and sends delegates to the State Central Committee. 1890 Manifesto The 1890 Manifesto (also known as the Woodruff Manifesto , the Anti-polygamy Manifesto , or simply " the Manifesto ") is a statement which officially advised against any future plural marriage in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Issued by Church President Wilford Woodruff in September 1890,

450-602: A revelation to Smith stated that "it must needs be that one be appointed of the high priesthood to preside over the Priesthood and he shall be called President of the high priesthood of the Church... and again the duty of the President of the high priesthood is to preside over the whole church". Smith was ordained to that position and sustained by the church on January 25, 1832, at a conference in Amherst, Ohio . In 1835,

525-532: Is found in church scriptures "regardless of the position of the man who says it". Instructions given or positions taken by the president of the church can be changed by a future president of the church because of the Latter-day Saint belief in " continuing revelation ". It is accepted that a church president will occasionally revise or clarify instructions of past church presidents. Church apostle Ezra Taft Benson counseled to "beware of those who would pit

600-560: The 2018 election , Democrats regained one of Utah's four seats. After the 2020 election Ben McAdams lost his seat to Burgess Owens and Utah's congressional delegation became all-Republican again. The Utah Republican Party controls all five statewide offices and holds a supermajority in the Utah House of Representatives and the Utah State Senate . Republicans also hold both of the state's U.S. Senate seats and all four of

675-713: The Council on the Disposition of the Tithes and the Council of the Church . The President of the Church also serves as the ex officio chairman of the Church Boards of Trustees/Education . The concept that the Church of Christ would have a single presiding officer arose in late 1831. Initially, after the church's formation on April 6, 1830, Joseph Smith referred to himself as "an apostle of Jesus Christ, and elder of

750-503: The general authorities and placed the hand-written draft on a table. George Reynolds would later recount that he, Charles W. Penrose , and John R. Winder modified Woodruff's draft into the current language accepted by the general authorities and presented to the church as a whole. Woodruff announced the Manifesto on September 25 by publishing it in the church-owned Deseret Weekly in Salt Lake City . On October 6, 1890, it

825-633: The history of the LDS Church . It advised church members against entering into any marriage prohibited by the law of the land, and made it easier for Utah to become a U.S. state . Nevertheless, even after the Manifesto, the church quietly continued to perform a small number of plural marriages in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, thus necessitating a Second Manifesto during U.S. congressional hearings in 1904. Though neither Manifesto dissolved existing plural marriages, plural marriage in

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900-485: The "Articles and Covenants of the Church of Christ" were revised, changing the phrase "an... elder of the church" to "the first elder of this Church". Thus, after 1835, Smith was sometimes referred to as the "First Elder" of the church. The 1835 revision also added a verse that referred to the office of "president of the high priesthood (or presiding elder)", which had since been added to the church hierarchy. In 1844, in jail awaiting trial for treason charges, Joseph Smith

975-595: The 16th church president, Thomas S. Monson , Russell M. Nelson was ordained and set apart on January 14, 2018, as the church's 17th president. In an unprecedented move, Nelson was introduced as the new church president by D. Todd Christofferson , the senior apostle on the Church Public Affairs Committee on January 16, 2018, in a broadcast originating from the annex of the Salt Lake Temple . Nelson then introduced his counselors and

1050-453: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. United States in May 1890. In April 1889, Woodruff, the president of the church, began privately refusing the permission that was required to contract new plural marriages. In October 1889, Woodruff publicly admitted that he was no longer approving new polygamous marriages, and in answer to a reporter's question of what the LDS Church's attitude

1125-474: The Doctrine and Covenants." Similarly, another writer has stated bluntly that "contemporary Latter-day Saints regard the Manifesto as a revelation." The Manifesto is currently published as "Official Declaration 1" in the Doctrine and Covenants. President of the Church (LDS Church) The President of the Church is the highest office of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). It

1200-480: The First Presidency were never ordained to the office of apostle, such as Charles W. Nibley and John R. Winder . Whether or not a counselor in the First Presidency is an ordained apostle, he is accepted by the church as a prophet, seer, and revelator. Counselors are designated "First Counselor in the First Presidency" and "Second Counselor in the First Presidency", based on the order of being selected by

1275-552: The First Presidency. There have also been a few cases of counselors being ordained to the priesthood office of apostle and becoming members of the Quorum of the Twelve after they had been chosen as counselors in the First Presidency, like J. Reuben Clark . There have been other cases of counselors being ordained to the office of apostle but not set apart as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, such as Alvin R. Dyer . Other counselors in

1350-439: The LDS Church gradually died by attrition during the early-to-mid 20th century. The Manifesto was canonized in the LDS Church standard works as Official Declaration 1 and is considered by mainstream Mormons to have been prompted by divine revelation (although not a revelation itself), in which Woodruff was shown that the church would be thrown into turmoil if they did not comply with it. Some Mormon fundamentalists rejected

1425-475: The LDS Church officially acknowledges that although the Manifesto "officially ceased" the practice of plural marriage in the church, "the ending of the practice after the Manifesto was ... gradual." Rumors of post-Manifesto marriages surfaced and began to be examined by Congress in the Reed Smoot hearings . In response, church president Joseph F. Smith issued a " Second Manifesto " in 1904 which reaffirmed

1500-518: The LDS Church. The cessation of plural marriage within LDS Church gave rise to the Mormon fundamentalist movement. The Manifesto has been canonized by the LDS Church, and its text appears in the Doctrine and Covenants , one of the church's books of scripture . However, when the Manifesto was issued, it was not apparent that Woodruff or the other leaders of the LDS Church viewed it as the result of

1575-548: The Latter-day Saints is to refrain from contracting any marriage forbidden by the law of the land. Wilford Woodruff [signed] President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Less than a month after the Manifesto was issued, the LDS Church used the procedure of common consent to make it binding upon church members. At a general conference of the church in Salt Lake City on October 6, 1890,

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1650-485: The Manifesto was a response to mounting anti-polygamy pressure from the United States Congress , which by 1890 had disincorporated the church, escheated its assets to the U.S. federal government , and imprisoned many prominent polygamist Mormons. Upon its issuance, the LDS Church in conference accepted Woodruff's Manifesto as "authoritative and binding." The Manifesto was a dramatic turning point in

1725-474: The Manifesto was read, after which Lorenzo Snow , the president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles , made the following motion: I move that, recognizing Wilford Woodruff as the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the only man on the earth at the present time who holds the keys of the sealing ordinances, we consider him fully authorized by virtue of his position to issue

1800-508: The Manifesto was the result of a revelation of God. Since that time, church leaders have consistently taught that the Manifesto was inspired of God. In 1908, the Manifesto was printed in the LDS Church's Doctrine and Covenants for the first time, and it has been included in every edition since. A non-Mormon observer of the church has stated that "[t]here is no question that, from a doctrinal standpoint, President Woodruff's Manifesto now has comparable status with [Joseph Smith's] revelations in

1875-486: The Manifesto which has been read in our hearing, and which is dated September 1890, and that as a Church in General Conference assembled, we accept his declaration concerning plural marriages as authoritative and binding. The conference proceedings recorded that "the vote to sustain the foregoing motion was unanimous." However, a modern author reports that "at least some voted against the Manifesto and perhaps

1950-482: The Manifesto. This practice was especially prevalent in Mexico and Canada because of an erroneous belief that such marriages were legal in those jurisdictions. However, a significant minority were performed in Utah and other western American states and territories. The estimates of the number of post-Manifesto plural marriages performed range from scores to thousands, with the actual figure probably close to 250. Today,

2025-502: The President of the Quorum of the Twelve before the First Presidency was reconstituted after the death of Joseph Smith. The tradition of waiting for two to three years before selecting a new president continued until the 1898 death of the fourth president of the church, Wilford Woodruff . Since then, the surviving apostles have typically met in the Salt Lake Temple on the Sunday following the late president's funeral, to select and set apart

2100-422: The Quorum 1868), the senior apostle serving in the Quorum. However, on April 5, 1900, the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve unanimously decided that the date an individual became a member of the Quorum of the Twelve was the relevant date for succession purposes, not the date an individual was ordained as an apostle. Thus, Joseph F. Smith (ordained apostle 1866 and added to the quorum 1867) became president of

2175-411: The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles rejoin it. The Quorum of the Twelve, which may number greater than twelve with the returning members from the First Presidency, then becomes the presiding council of the church, with the senior apostle as its president. (Seniority is determined by the time since joining the Quorum, not by age.) The President of the Quorum of the Twelve becomes the highest-ranking official in

2250-450: The Quorum rather than ordination as an apostle. Young argued that an apostle should not be demoted as long as he is worthy of the position. On March 31, 1900, Snow met with his counselors, Cannon and Smith, and decided to change the policy to gauge seniority based on entrance to the Quorum, rather than ordination as an apostle. Part of the reasoning was the ordination of Brigham Young Jr was done privately by his father, Brigham Young, without

2325-482: The Quorum. On November 23, 1918, Anthon H. Lund , the most senior apostle, was called to serve in the First Presidency. Rather than give up his title as President of the Quorum, as had been done earlier, he maintained his title, and Rudger Clawson was given the title of Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles . That pattern is the pattern that is followed today. Following the January 2, 2018, death of

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2400-446: The Twelve Apostles is important, as the senior apostle presides over the Quorum and usually becomes the president of the church after the current president's death. Specific rules have been applied to unusual situations that have arisen over time, including a member being removed from the quorum by disfellowshipment or excommunication and later being restored to the quorum. It was decided that, the removed apostle then loses his seniority in

2475-406: The body of the Church". If the doctrine is not accepted by the church as the word of God, members are not bound by it, even if it comes from the President of the Church. Some Latter-day Saints assume that statements made by the president in sermons at a church general conference or other formal church meeting would constitute statements made in the capacity of church president. However, even then,

2550-426: The church and has always become the next church president. However, the appointment is not made official until the Quorum of the Twelve meets and selects the next president of the church. Since the late 19th century, the Quorum of the Twelve has moved quickly to reconstitute the First Presidency within days or weeks of the late church president's death. However, Brigham Young presided over the church for three years as

2625-534: The church in 1901, since he was the living apostle who had become a member of the Quorum of the Twelve at the earliest date. In another instance, Ezra Taft Benson left active status in the quorum for a time when he was serving as the United States Secretary of Agriculture in the Eisenhower administration . However, Benson did not lose seniority in the Quorum, and he became the president of

2700-552: The church upon the death of Spencer W. Kimball . If the President of the Quorum of the Twelve has been called to be a counselor in the First Presidency, the most senior apostle not in the First Presidency is set apart and referred to as the Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles . At the death of the president of the church, the Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve retains his position in

2775-498: The church". However, there was another apostle , Oliver Cowdery , and several other elders of the church, making the formal hierarchy of the church unclear. In September 1830, after Hiram Page said he had received revelations for the church, a revelation to Smith stated that "no one shall be appointed to receive commandments and revelations in this church excepting my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., for he receiveth them even as Moses." That established Smith's exclusive right to lead

2850-500: The church's opposition to the creation of new plural marriages and threatened excommunication for Latter-day Saints who continued to enter into or solemnize new plural marriages. Apostles John W. Taylor and Matthias F. Cowley both resigned from the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles due to disagreement with the church's position on plural marriage. Plural marriage in violation of local law continues to be grounds for excommunication from

2925-536: The church. In early June 1831, Smith was ordained to the "high priesthood," along with twenty-two other men, including prominent figures in the church such as Hyrum Smith , Parley P. Pratt , and Martin Harris . As " high priests ", they were higher in the priesthood hierarchy than the elders of the church. However, it was still unclear whether Smith's and Cowdery's callings as apostles gave them superior authority to that of other high priests. On November 11, 1831,

3000-518: The church. The next senior apostle to the president of the church is set apart by the president to be the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles . Though there has never been a popular movement in the church to have a president removed or punished, he could theoretically be removed from his position or otherwise disciplined by the Common Council of the Church . The only president of

3075-521: The court of last resort, I hearby declare my intention to submit to those laws, to use my influence with the members of the Church over which I preside to have them do likewise. There is nothing in my teachings to the Church or in those of my associates, during the time specified, which can be reasonably construed to inculcate or encourage polygamy; and when any Elder of the Church has used language which appeared to convey such teaching, he has been promptly reproved. And I now publicly declare that my advice to

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3150-468: The dead prophets against the living prophets, for the living prophets always take precedence". Not everything said by the prophet is considered to be doctrine. Joseph Smith taught that "a prophet is a prophet only when he was acting as such". When the church president declares new doctrine, "he will declare it as revelation from God, and it will be so accepted by the Council of the Twelve and sustained by

3225-601: The effect that the Utah Commission, in their recent report to the Secretary of the Interior, allege that plural marriages have been contracted in Utah since last June or during the past year, also that in public discourses the leaders of the Church have taught, encouraged and urged the continuance of the practice of polygamy— I, therefore, as President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, do hereby, in

3300-401: The final years of his presidency and at one point, Brigham Young had eight. Counselors are usually chosen from among the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, but there have been a number of exceptions where members of the church's Presiding Bishopric or persons from the church at large were called to be counselors. Any high priest of the church is eligible to be called as a counselor in

3375-542: The head of the church who intends to mislead its members. That is not a statement of belief that they are "infallible" but that their errors will not result in "the permanent injury of the work". Thus, the current prophet can clarify, correct, or change any previous teachings. When a new president of the church is selected, he chooses counselors to assist him. Most presidents have had a minimum of two counselors, but circumstances have occasionally required more than two. For example, David O. McKay had five counselors during

3450-477: The highest seniority, since Kimball had died. When Young died in 1877, Taylor assumed leadership instead of Hyde. Wilford Woodruff , explained in 1879, "Elder Taylor is the oldest in Ordination and that is why he presides today." The First Presidency was dissolved, and the previous members were ordained as counselors to the Twelve. Other men were called to fill the vacancies in the Quorum. When Taylor died,

3525-457: The leadership of the church fell to the Twelve Apostles. Most who were in attendance were persuaded that the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles should lead the church and Young was sustained as "the president of the quorum of the Twelve and first presidency of the church," thereby assuming leadership of the church. However, Young was not ordained President of the Church at the time. On December 27, 1847, three-and-a-half years after Smith's death, Young

3600-561: The majority of Mormon polygamists continued to cohabit with their plural wives in violation of the Edmunds Act . Within six years of the announcement of the Manifesto, Utah had become a state and federal prosecution of Mormon polygamists subsided. However, Congress still refused to seat representatives-elect who were polygamists, including B. H. Roberts . D. Michael Quinn and other Mormon historians have documented that some church apostles covertly sanctioned plural marriages after

3675-587: The manifesto. The Manifesto was issued in response to the anti-polygamy policies of the federal government of the United States , and most especially the Edmunds–Tucker Act of 1887. This law disincorporated the LDS Church and authorized the federal government to seize all of the church's assets. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the provisions of the Edmunds–Tucker Act in Late Corporation of

3750-411: The members voting on the ordination. That put Cannon and Smith ahead of both Brigham Young Jr. and John Willard Young. However, Brigham Young Jr. maintained his position as President of the Quorum. Before Snow died, he instructed Smith not to wait to reorganize the First Presidency, which gave no time to John Willard Young to object. From then on, apostles were not ordained without also being called to

3825-461: The most solemn manner, declare that these charges are false. We are not teaching polygamy or plural marriage, nor permitting any person to enter into its practice, and I deny that either forty or any other number of plural marriages have during that period been solemnized in our Temples or in any other place in the Territory. One case has been reported, in which the parties allege that the marriage

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3900-436: The new leadership of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. That introduction was followed with a traditional press conference, which has been typical for new church presidents and their counselors since being originated in 1973 with new church president Spencer W. Kimball . In the LDS Church, when a president of the church dies, the First Presidency is dissolved, and the members of the First Presidency who were formerly members of

3975-407: The next president of the church (that was done in 1973, and described in detail by N. Eldon Tanner to Brigham Young University students in 1978). At the next regularly scheduled general conference , the membership of the church have the opportunity of sustaining their new leader by common consent , at a special conference session referred to as a " solemn assembly ". Seniority in the Quorum of

4050-426: The number of voting republicans in that county. These representatives are chosen in elections which take place in the Republican county conventions held in odd-numbered years. The State Central Committee (SCC) is the governing body of the party. In 2014 the state legislature passed SB54 which created a pathway by which candidates from all parties in Utah could bypass the nominating conventions and qualify directly for

4125-530: The pattern changed, and the members of the First Presidency rejoined the Quorum based on their seniority. Two years later, Wilford Woodruff was ordained as President of the Church and Lorenzo Snow was the President of the Quorum. When Woodruff died, his counselors returned to the Quorum based on the date they were ordained an apostle, placing George Q. Cannon and Joseph F. Smith below Brigham Young Jr. and John Willard Young . Heber J. Grant objected to that arguing that seniority should be based on ordination to

4200-432: The president may explicitly indicate that he is expressing only a personal opinion. However, individual members of the church may feel cultural pressure to follow suggestions from the president of the church, whether or not they would be considered authoritative. Presidents of the church have taught that God will never allow the president to lead the Latter-day Saints astray and that God will "remove" any man who stands at

4275-411: The president. Additional counselors have been designated in different ways, including "Third Counselor in the First Presidency" (such as Hugh B. Brown ), "Assistant Counselor to the President" (such as John Willard Young ), and simply "Counselor in the First Presidency" (such as Thorpe B. Isaacson ). The president and all his counselors constitute the First Presidency, which is the presiding quorum of

4350-506: The primary ballot by collecting a required number of signatures. SB54 forced the parties in Utah to have open primaries, among other demands. The SCC directed its party chairman, James Evans, to file a lawsuit, which sought, among other things, to overturn the use of open primaries. The Utah Republican Party prevailed on this point, which required the state elections office to defer to the Utah Republican Party as to whether

4425-549: The primary would be open or closed and whether unaffiliated voters would be eligible to sign ballot-access petitions for Republican candidates. The party filed two more lawsuits to try to overturn SB54's signature path to the ballot, but lost those cases. They appealed to the 10th Circuit Court which upheld the lower courts ruling and a subsequent appeal to the US Supreme Court was denied. Party Caucuses are held every two years in Utah. Each of Utah's 29 counties has

4500-480: The quorum and their previous service was not considered when calculating quorum seniority. Later, whether or not an apostle was a member of the Quorum and when the apostle was added as a member of the Quorum became an important factor. For example, following the death of Lorenzo Snow , John Willard Young (ordained 1855 but never in the Quorum) became the senior apostle, and Brigham Young, Jr. (ordained 1864 and added to

4575-432: The quorum's membership, and the President of the Quorum of the Twelve takes his role as President of the Quorum. When the church president is speaking in his official capacity, his words are not considered "infallible". Members of the church are considered not fully justified in their actions if they "blindly" follow the president. The church has counseled its members that they should reject statements that contradict what

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4650-414: The quorum. For example, Brigham Young decided that John Taylor was to be President of the Twelve and Wilford Woodruff would follow him in seniority because of the readmission to the quorum of Orson Hyde , who had been disfellowshipped in 1846, and Orson Pratt , who had been excommunicated in 1842. Young ruled in 1875 that when Hyde and Pratt rejoined the quorum, they became the newest junior members of

4725-408: The senior surviving member of the church's First Presidency , argued there could be no successor to the deceased prophet and that he should be made the "Protector" of the church. Brigham Young opposed that reasoning and motion, as Smith had earlier recorded a revelation, which stated the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles was "equal in authority and power" to the First Presidency, so Young claimed that

4800-517: The state constitution. The Republican Frank J. Cannon was the first delegate elected to congress by the state of Utah in 1894. Although Utah was generally considered a Democratic-leaning area (or an area that would lean Democratic) before statehood, the state of Utah rapidly gained overwhelming support for the Republican Party after 1896 . Although the Republican Party had been strongly opposed to polygamy since its inception and had played

4875-447: The state's U.S. House seats. In off-election years the Utah Republican Party holds organizing conventions where state delegate elect a chair, vice-chair, secretary and treasurer. The state party officers are elected for a term of two (2) years. The State Central Committee (SCC) has representatives from every county in Utah. Along with the automatic members, each county chair and vice-chair, counties are allocated representative based on

4950-402: The title " President ". Russell M. Nelson has been the president since January 14, 2018. Latter-day Saints consider the church's president to be God's spokesman to the entire world and the highest priesthood authority on earth, with the exclusive right to receive revelations from God on behalf of the entire church or the entire world. The President of the Church serves as the head of both

5025-454: Was killed by an armed mob . Hyrum Smith, his presumed successor, was killed in the same incident. Smith had not indisputably established who was next in line as successor to President of the Church. Several claimants to the role of church president emerged during the succession crisis that ensued. Before a large meeting convened to discuss the succession in Nauvoo, Illinois , Sidney Rigdon ,

5100-465: Was believed to be legal. As Woodruff explained at the general conference where the Manifesto was accepted by the church, "[t]his Manifesto only refers to future marriages, and does not affect past conditions. I did not, I could not, and would not promise that you would desert your wives and children. This you cannot do in honor." Despite Woodruff's explanation, some church leaders and members who were polygamous did begin to live with only one wife. However,

5175-480: Was constitutional. That decision left the Mormons no further legal recourse to their current marriage practices and made it unlikely that without change Utah Territory would be granted statehood. Woodruff later said that on the night of September 23, 1890, he received a revelation from Jesus Christ that the church should cease the practice of plural marriage. The following morning, he reported this to some of

5250-550: Was formally accepted by the church membership, though many held reservations or abstained from voting. Utah ratified its constitution in November 1895 and was granted statehood on January 4, 1896. One of the conditions for granting Utah statehood was that a ban on polygamy be written into its state constitution. The Manifesto states: To Whom It May Concern: Press dispatches having been sent for political purposes, from Salt Lake City, which have been widely published, to

5325-420: Was ordained the President of the Church. At the time, seniority was determined by the first date of ordination as an apostle. By that definition, Heber C. Kimball was the most senior. However, since he was called to the First Presidency, Orson Hyde , who was the next most senior apostle became the President of the Quorum. In 1869, Brigham Young changed the order of the seniority, placing Brigham Young Jr. , who

5400-625: Was performed in the Endowment House , in Salt Lake City, in the Spring of 1889, but I have not been able to learn who performed the ceremony; whatever was done in this matter was without my knowledge. In consequence of this alleged occurrence the Endowment House was, by my instructions, taken down without delay. Inasmuch as laws have been enacted by Congress forbidding plural marriages, which laws have been pronounced constitutional by

5475-510: Was the most recently called member of the Quorum, ahead of Joseph F. Smith . Smith had been in the Quorum longer, but Young Jr. had been an apostle longer. In 1875, Young changed the definition of seniority to be determined by the longest continuous term as an apostle. Since Orson Hyde and Orson Pratt had been temporarily removed from the apostleship during Nauvoo, they were removed from their position and placed in seniority, based on when they were reinstated as an apostle. That gave John Taylor

5550-540: Was the office held by Joseph Smith , the church's founder. The church's president is its leader and the head of the First Presidency , its highest governing body. Latter-day Saints consider the president of the church to be a " prophet, seer, and revelator " and refer to him as "the Prophet", a title that was originally given to Smith. When the name of the president is used by adherents, it is usually prefaced by

5625-663: Was toward the law against polygamy, Woodruff stated, "We mean to obey it. We have no thought of evading it or ignoring it." Because it had been Mormon practice for over 25 years to either evade or ignore anti-polygamy laws, Woodruff's statement was a signal that a change in church policy was developing. In February 1890, the Supreme Court ruled in Davis v. Beason that a law in Idaho Territory which disenfranchised individuals who practiced or believed in plural marriage

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