Gospel Topics

Succession of the Presidency

For many years I have studied and written about the succession in the LDS presidency. I was fully converted to the process of how the the Quorum of the Twelve were automatically in charge as soon as the president died, because the First Presidency was dissolved. And since the Quorum of the Twelve was a quorum of equal authority (D&C 107:24), then it was obvious that they were now in charge. Also, since the president of the Quorum of Twelve apostles presided over that quorum, that meant that he immediately presided over the church.

However, it wasn't scriptural.or historically accurate.

D&C 107:22-26, 36

22 Of the Melchizedek Priesthood, three Presiding High Priests, chosen by the body, appointed and ordained to that office, and upheld by the confidence, faith, and prayer of the church, form a quorum of the Presidency of the Church.
23 The twelve traveling councilors are called to be the Twelve Apostles, or special witnesses of the name of Christ in all the world—thus differing from other officers in the church in the duties of their calling.
24 And they form a quorum, equal in authority and power to the three presidents previously mentioned.
25 The Seventy are also called to preach the gospel, and to be especial witnesses unto the Gentiles and in all the world—thus differing from other officers in the church in the duties of their calling.
26 And they form a quorum, equal in authority to that of the Twelve special witnesses or Apostles just named.
 . . .
36 The standing high councils, at the stakes of Zion, form a quorum equal in authority in the affairs of the church, in all their decisions, to the quorum of the presidency, or to the traveling high council.

Notice that we have four quorums that are all "equal in authority": First Presidency, Twelve Apostles, Seventy and High Council. We tend to think that only the First Presidency and Twelve Apostles are involved in succession in the presidency, but according to the scriptures we have at least two other quorums that have equal authority. As the revelations reveal, the Lord did not intend to build a hierarchical church structure. The citizens of Zion know the Lord (Jer. 31:34) and they don't require any man to speak for the Lord for they all shall know the Lord.

D&C 102:9-10

9 The president of the church, who is also the president of the council, is appointed by revelation, and acknowledged in his administration by the voice of the church.
10 And it is according to the dignity of his office that he should preside over the council of the church; and it is his privilege to be assisted by two other presidents, appointed after the same manner that he himself was appointed.

Making a Tradition

1. The Prophet will designate his successor

D&C 43:3-4

Hyrum was designated to succeed Joseph Smith.

2. Joseph Smith III was designated by his father to succeed him.

• The Mark Hoffmann forgery might make us think that there was no real blessing of Joseph Smith III
• He was blessed by his father in Liberty Jail (Joseph Smith III and the Restoration, page 13)
• Lyman Wight wrote that after Liberty Jail, Joseph laid hand on Joseph and said, "You are my successor when I depart"
• In the Red Brick Store, Young Joseph said, "About my selection by my father to be his successor in office, I remember of being called in his office, or into a room adjoining his office, and receiving the laying on of hands, and a prophetic blessing or setting apart, whatever it may be called" (Temple Lot Abstract, page 40) - James Whitehead, Joseph's private secretary testified of that meeting, "At that meeting Joseph Smith ... was selected by his father as his successor. He was ordained and anointed at that meeting. Hyrum Smith, the Patriarch, anointed him, and Joseph his father blessed him and ordained him, and Newell K. Whitney poured the oil on his head, and he was set apart to be his father's successor in office, holding all the powers that his father held.... I was there too. (Temple Lot Abstract, page 28)
• James Whitehead also testified that Joseph was designated as a successor to Joseph Smith Jr. at a meeting in a Nauvoo grove before 3,000 people.
  "The church did take action as a body on the question of the ordination of young Joseph as his father's successor; the church consented to it. That was done first by the indorsement of the High Council, and then it was brought up before the whole body of the congregation, the whole people; and there were thousands there. That was done at the meeting held in the grove at the east end of the temple. I should think there were three thousand (3,000) there.
  There was a record kept of it, but the record was taken to Salt Lake. I was present on that occasion. There was a vote taken, the congregation voted, and agreed to the appointment of young Joseph as the successor of his father.... A negative vote was taken, but nobody voted in the negative." (Temple Lot Abstract, page 33)

However, he was only 11 years old when Joseph Smith Jr. was killed. Joseph Smith III was not ready to assume such a position until directed by God to join with the Reorganized church in 1860.

3. What about the other members of the 1st Presidency.

Is it possible that Sidney Rigdon as First Councilor would have the right to succeed Joseph? We have D&C 90:6 that says that Sidney and Frederick G. Williams were equal in holding the keys.

4. We have to find another way (The designated way isn't working).

1. Joseph's brothers Hyrum and Samuel both died within a month of Joseph's death.
2. As noted above the High Council and Seventy are equal in authority to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
3. There was no revelation received to re-organize the First Presidency as required by D&C 102:9.
4. Rigdon might have had a valid claim to the leadership as one of the members of the First Presidency.
5. Brigham didn't consider himself to be Joseph Successor.

What of Joseph Smith's family? What of his boys? I have prayed from the beginning for sister Emma and for the whole family. There is not a man in this Church that has entertained better feelings towards them. Joseph said to me, "God will take care of my children when I am taken." They are in the hands of God, and when they make their appearance before this people, full of his power, there are none but what will say—"Amen! we are ready to receive you."

The brethren testify that brother Brigham is brother Joseph's legal successor. You never heard me say so. I say that I am a good hand to keep the dogs and wolves out of the flock I do not care a groat who rises up. I do not think anything about being Joseph's successor. (Journal of Discourses 8:69).

5. Wasn't Brigham Young "transfigured" on August 8, 1844?

1. No contemporary accounts. The first mention of something special came many years later.
2. The church was sustaining the Quorum of Twelve apostles to lead the church, not Brigham Young.
3. Testimonies from John D. Lee and Apostle Orson Hyde are marvelous and specific, but they were not in Nauvoo at the time and therefor could not have witnessed the event they describe.
4. Why did Brigham Young only give us one revelation?
5. Brigham had to convince most of the Twelve Apostles that the First Presidency needed to be organized.

        Brigham Young didn't feel comfortable with the title of prophet

"For the first time in my life, for the first time in your lives, for the first time in the kingdom of God in the 19th century, without a Prophet at our head . . . Heretofore you have had a prophet as the mouth of the Lord to speak to you. But he [Joseph Smith] has sealed his testimony with his blood, and now, for the first time, are you called to walk by faith, and not by sight. . . . You cannot fill the office of a prophet, seer and revelator: God must do this. You are like children without a father and sheep without a shepherd."  August 8th, 1844 discourse (Complete Discourses of Brigham Young, pg 20)

“I am not a visionary man, neither am I given much to prophesying. When I want any of that done I call on brother Heber—he is my Prophet, he loves to prophesy, and I love to hear him” - April 6, 1853 (Journal of Discourses, 1:132-133).

"I am not going to interpret dreams; for I don't profess to be such a Prophet as were Joseph Smith and Daniel; but I am a Yankee guesser” (July 26 1857 - Journal of Discourses 5:77)

October 6, 1857:
We will attend to the business of the Conference first, and then dismiss until afternoon.

[After putting the motion for himself to be sustained as "Prophet, Seer, and Revelator," the President remarked:—]

I will say that I never dictated the latter part of that sentence. I make this remark, because those words in that connection always made me feel as though I am called more than I am deserving of. I am Brigham Young, an Apostle of Joseph Smith, and also of Jesus Christ. If I have been profitable to this people, I am glad of it. The brethren call me so; and if it be so, I am glad. (Journal of Discourses 5:296)

“I do not want to skip Joseph, Peter, Jesus, Moses and go to my Father in Heaven. All I ask for is to be guided by the spirit of Joseph, then let others be governed by their head, or priesthood. Joseph enjoyed the priviliges which I never thought I had. Joseph was called of God. I was called of Joseph.” (The Complete Discourses of Brigham Young, Vol. 2, p. 1108.)

6. The new President of the Church is Ordained or Set Apart.

1. Brigham was never ordained as the president or prophet of the church.
Who ordained me to be First President of this Church on earth? I answer, It is the choice of this people, and that is sufficient. (April 7, 1852 discourse -- Millennial Star, Vol. 16, p. 442).


2. Lorenzo Snow was the first president to be ordained (set apart) by the apostles.
A solemn assemble ratified the appointment of Lorenzo Snow on 10 Oct. 1898. After the conference they ordained the new apostle, Rudger Clawson. After that, Franklin D. Richards records:


President Snow with 14 hands on his head was set apart and blessed by GQ Cannon then Pres. Snow and 14 blest GQ Cannon as his First and Jos. F. Smith as his 2nd Counselor. . . .

"For the first time, a Church president had been 'ordained' as president by his fellow apostles. Each apostle thus symbolically yielded his keys to the senior apostle. It was a gesture of unity, an outward sign that there was but one head of the Church at a time, even though each apostle received the 'keys of the kingdom' at ordination. This innovation became the standard procedure at all reorganizations after President Joseph F. Smith." (Steven H. Heath, Notes on Apostolic Succession, Dialogue vol. 20, no 2, p. 49)


3. Joseph F. Smith was ordained by John Smith, the presiding patriarch.

"At the reorganization meeting, President Smith called upon his brother John Smith, the patriarch, to set him apart as president of the Church. It was the first time the Patriarch to the Church had ever been involved in a reorganization meeting. A natural question was: Did the patriarch have the authority to set a president apart?" (Steven H. Heath, Notes on Apostolic Succession, Dialogue vol. 20, no 2, p. 51)

7. The prophet is called until he dies

• John Taylor
• David O. McKay
• Joseph Fielding Smith
• Spencer W. Kimball
• Ezra Taft Benson
• Howard W. Hunter

8. God's Plan or Man's Plan

9. Apostolic Coup d’etat by: Radio Free Mormon - Bill Reel

He reviews the historical takeover of the church by the Quorum of the Twelve and why originally they never had anything to do with the leadership of the church. They were involved in missionary work. During the time of Joseph Smith, he never had an Apostle as a counselor in the First Presidency.

It discusses how the Twelve overcame those who might have a right to lead the church and also discusses the death of Samuel Smith 1 month after the deaths of Joseph and Hyrum.