15 February 2008
Future apostleship speculation
You will recall that, immediately behind a Hispanic, Marlin K. Jensen was my second choice for the new Apostle that will be called into the Quorum as of the April General Conference. Obviously, anything we hear or say prior to then that does not come from the First Presidency can be taken as speculation and rumor. But thinking back to this past September, when the Church sent a high-ranking member of the leadership to the memorial service at Mountain Meadows, they sent then-Elder, now Pres. Eyring. Less than a month later, he would be called into the First Presidency, though none of us knew it at the time. Is this a generally reliable tool for ascertaining the identity of the newest Apostle? If so, see these stories to see who the First Presidency is sending out to do their bidding now. Elder Jensen already carries the title Church Historian, but this particular function seems to be entirely unrelated to that role. Is this a result of the fact that Elder Jensen is a well-known Democrat among the Seventy? I doubt it, because the Church is so famously neutral on partisan issues, and this would seem out of line with that stance.
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My top pick is also one of the Hispanic general authorities. In fact, I will be disappointed if it's not one of them. I don't know how persuasive the "We're an international church" mantra is when, despite the Church's success in Latin America, it is still run by a bunch of older, white men.
ReplyDeleteThat having been said, my second pick would also have to be Elder Jensen.
My third pick would be Elder John B. Dickson. Not because I think he's any more qualified than the other seventies, but because he's the only general authority I actually know and it would be cool to say that I know an apostle. He would also represent a minority group that doesn't have much of a voice in the Church--men who can tie a tie with one hand.
I'd also be happy if they called Darius Gray into the Quorum. Or a woman. (But let's not get ahead of ourselves here.)
ReplyDeleteI still would like a Hispanic, but as I noted in my earlier post, both of the Hispanic Seventies in the Presidency of the Seventy are full-time CES employees and I don't want any more of those in the quorum, of whatever race. I agree though, picking a Hispanic would essentially "put our money where our mouth is."
ReplyDeleteI heard that Bro. Gray was very ill. It would be cool if they picked him, but if a black guy gets in over a Hispanic male, that would seem kind of backwards.
my top pick for a few years now has been marlin k. jensen. when i saw him appealing to the utah legislature, it all the more made me want him in there. president monson has largely been behind many of the church's humanitarian efforts, jensen would seem a good fit for monson's style.
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