SALT LAKE CITY — Russell M. Nelson, the president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, passed away Saturday night.
The church announced that Nelson died shortly after 10 p.m., passing peacefully at his home.
He was the 17th LDS prophet and president. He was the oldest in the church's history, having turned 101 years old earlier this month.
“All of us who have worked with Russell M. Nelson, and the many he has taught and associated with, have marveled at his extraordinary modesty for a man of his great accomplishments,” President Dallin H. Oaks, the First Counselor in the First Presidency, said in the announcement. “And [we] have marveled at his gentleness. He is just the gentlest and sweetest person you could ever hope to associate with. And he will always be remembered that way.”
Nelson became the head of the Salt Lake City-based faith in 2018 after the passing of President Thomas S. Monson. He became a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1984. He was a heart surgeon before his full-time church leadership calling.
The church's process for selecting the next president and prophet involves "dissolving" the First Presidency (the president's two chosen counselors), who then rejoin the body of apostles, now numbering 14. The most senior apostle — by how long they've been in the calling, not by age — is then generally selected as the new prophet and president. He hand-picks his two counselors, and the second-most senior apostle becomes the president of the Quorum of the Twelve.
The church announced that the formal selection and announcement will take place after Nelson's funeral.
However, the most senior apostle is now President Dallin H. Oaks, who became an apostle in 1984 and has been the president of the Quorum of the Twelve since Nelson became president. He was also Nelson's first counselor.
Although not official, it is expected that Oaks will become the new head of the church because he has the most seniority, as has been the case throughout the church's history.
Before becoming an apostle, Oaks was a Utah Supreme Court justice, and before that, the president of Brigham Young University.
