Line upon Line

Cover image via Gospel Media Library.

Calling Stake Patriarchs

Elder N. Eldon Tanner, then a member of the Twelve, once visited a stake in Southern California, partly with the assignment of designating a new stake patriarch. In meeting with the stake’s leadership, Elder Tanner told them that he did not want recommendations, but would simply be on his own in finding the patriarch. That was not necessarily typical, but it is what Elder Tanner did on this occasion—and it unfolded just as he wished. In one of the Saturday meetings, a brother was called on to offer one of the prayers. It was in that moment that the Lord revealed to Elder Tanner that this was the man to be called as the stake patriarch. And so he was.[i]

This episode illustrates one way the spirit of revelation operates in the ongoing work of the kingdom. It comes from an era that lasted until fairly recently—a time when only members of the Twelve could identify and call stake patriarchs. That task was not left to local leaders, but reserved only for those called and ordained as prophets, seers, and revelators. It is an interesting period to study, because it helps us appreciate the degree of revelation that occurs in the Church.

So, what does the record show?

Some Examples

Spencer W. Kimball once shared how he needed to appoint a stake patriarch and how, in the process, he interviewed, searched, and prayed that he might learn the Lord’s will concerning the selection. For some reason, though, none of the suggested candidates was the man for the assignment at that particular time.

As the day wore on, and as the evening meetings of stake conference began, Elder Kimball still did not know who should be called as patriarch. At one point during the meeting, however, he suddenly turned to the stake president and asked him to identify a particular man seated far back from the front of the chapel. The stake president told him the man’s name, and Elder Kimball said, “He is the man the Lord has selected to be your stake patriarch. Please have him meet with me in the high council room following the meeting.”^[ii]

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Thomas S. Monson shared a similar experience. He spoke of an assignment to name a patriarch in a particular stake, and of how his discussions with the stake presidency about various candidates had “yielded no fruit.” Even at the conclusion of the Saturday evening session of stake conference, it was still not apparent who the patriarch should be. But then he reports:

“As I walked toward the rear of the chapel, I noticed the back of a man leaving the front door. Instantly I knew he was the patriarch. I said to the stake president, ‘Who is that brother?’

“‘That is Brother Davies, a member of our high council,’ he responded.

“He will be your patriarch.’” And thus Brother Davies became the patriarch of that stake.^[iii]

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Another example was shared by Sheri Dew regarding Gordon B. Hinckley. She writes: “During the conference at which the Tokyo South Stake was organized, Elder Hinckley had just completed conducting the sustaining of the new stake presidency when he abruptly paused for an uncomfortable length of time. Finally he said solemnly, ‘We have yet one more calling to make, and this one was not part of today’s agenda. My old and faithful friend, Brother Kan Watanabe, is attending the meeting today, and the Lord has made it known that he would like to call Brother Watanabe as a patriarch in the [neighboring] Machida Stake.’”

Sister Dew reports that Brother Watanabe later said: “All attending that day were very surprised with this sudden announcement, but no one was more surprised than I. Following the meeting I was ordained as a patriarch under the hands of Elder Hinckley.”^[iv]

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In another experience, Thomas S. Monson spoke of the need to name a patriarch and of how he reviewed the names of three prominent men who were former leaders of the stake. He could not get inspiration for whom to name, however, and throughout the Saturday of stake conference he prayed earnestly for help—but to no avail. Later that night, he awakened at 2 am, knowing that a patriarch’s name still had not been made known to him—and yet that he absolutely needed to name one. He knelt at the side of his bed and poured out his heart to the Lord, pleading for His divine help. He then returned to bed and fell into a deep sleep. During the sleep, he had a dream that eliminated two of the three brethren whom he had considered as a patriarch. When he awakened in the morning, he knew that the third individual was the patriarch whom the Lord wanted, and thus the call was issued to him to serve.^[v]

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Harold B. Lee once named a patriarch in New York, describing the calling as a “comforting, spiritual experience.” The setting-apart was even more spiritual, however. It occurred in a bishop’s office in the basement of the church building. The office had no windows and only one door, the only opening in the room. The stake president’s wife recorded what happened in this setting and later sent it to Elder Lee; afterward he shared it in a Single Adult Conference. She wrote:

“[The new patriarch] sat in the chair in the center of the room with his back toward the door. The door was closed. You, Elder Lee, stood behind Brother Paul and gave him the ordination and blessing.

“Just as Elder Lee lifted his hands to place them on [the patriarch’s] head, a shaft of bright light came onto the back and top of Elder Lee’s head. It was like bright sunshine suddenly coming through a square window—eight to ten inches square—and shining down on a forty-five-degree angle on the back and top of his head. I saw the light just before I bowed my head. I thought what a coincidence that that shaft of light should shine on Elder Lee just at this particular instant—as he was putting his hands on Brother Paul’s head.

“Just as quickly as I thought this, I realized that there were no windows, therefore this was not sunlight. I knew in the same instant that it was a stream of light from Heaven that needed no physical window to come through. I opened my eyes and looked up to see and again the shaft of light was visible.” She added that “then I knew the source from which Brother Paul could declare lineage and project blessings that would come to the individuals he would bless in the years that lie ahead.”^[vi]

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One of the most interesting experiences in calling stake patriarchs was shared by President Thomas S. Monson. He says:

“Many years back I had been assigned to name a patriarch for a stake in Logan, Utah. I found such a man, wrote his name on a slip of paper, and placed the note inside my scriptures. My further review revealed that another worthy patriarch had moved to this same area, making unnecessary the naming of a new patriarch. None was named.

“Nine years later I was again assigned a stake conference in Logan. Once more a patriarch was needed for the stake I was to visit. I had been using a new set of scriptures for several years and had them in my briefcase. However, as I prepared to leave my home for the drive to Logan, I took from the bookcase shelf an older set of scriptures, leaving the new ones at home. During the conference I began my search for a patriarch: a worthy man, a blameless servant of God, one filled with faith, characterized by kindness. Pondering these requirements, I opened my scriptures and there discovered the slip of paper placed there long years before. I read the name written on the paper: Cecil B. Kenner. I asked the stake presidency if by chance Brother Kenner lived in this particular stake. I found he did. Cecil B. Kenner was that day ordained a patriarch.”^[vii]

Revelation for Stakes, Revelation for the Church

It is interesting to think of the ways these apostles received revelation in naming patriarchs: watching a man offer a prayer; seeing a man sitting far back in the audience; observing the back of a man’s head; conducting a public meeting—in a different stake no less; receiving a divine dream; and, against all pattern, picking up an old set of scriptures. And remember, too, the shaft of light in a room with no windows.

All of these experiences help us appreciate the degree of revelation that exists in the Church. After all, these are instances of the Lord’s power in cases of single individuals, with no more than a single stake at issue. From an intellectual standpoint, therefore, it is natural ask: If the Lord provides revelation on matters of this limited scope, does it make sense that He wouldn’t provide it on matters of much wider consequence—matters of importance to the entire Church, and even to the whole world? Spiritually, we know that the Brethren are guided by revelation, but even intellectually, it is completely implausible to imagine that He would direct the calling of stake patriarchs and not direct decisions of much greater scale and importance.

Even today, as stake presidents have the responsibility for calling patriarchs (who are then approved by the Twelve), they can testify of the powerful spirit of revelation that attends such decisions. And this, of course, just accentuates the point: If the Lord provides revelation to local leaders on matters of this limited scope, does it make sense that He wouldn’t provide it to prophets, seers, and revelators on matters of much wider consequence—matters of importance to the entire Church, and even to the whole world?

It is important to know, by the power of the Spirit, that the Lord leads His Church. But, in the process of attaining this testimony, it doesn’t hurt to recognize the way He is involved in individual stakes—and calling stake patriarchs is, of course, only one small example. Surely, the impressive way He directs His leaders on matters of such small scale tells us that He is clearly involved in those that are exponentially larger—and that He directs them in impressive ways there as well.

The Lord bestows—and withholds—revelation as He sees fit, of course. He does not provide revelation on everything. But He does provide revelation on many things. The calling of stake patriarchs is just one example of His ongoing and intimate involvement in the work of His kingdom, through the power of the Spirit.

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Duane Boyce and Kimberly White are father and daughter. Learn more about modern prophets in their recent book, The Last Safe Place: Seven Principles for Standing with the Prophets in Troubled Times.

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[i] This episode was shared firsthand with me by a close relative who participated in the experience.

[ii] This account by Spencer W. Kimball was shared by Thomas S. Monson in, “They Pray and They Go,” General Conference, April 2002, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2002/04/they-pray-and-they-go?lang=eng&_r=1.

[iii] See Thomas S. Monson, Inspiring Experiences that Build Faith (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1994), 73.

[iv] In Sheri L. Dew, Go Forward With Faith: The Biography of Gordon B. Hinckley (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1996), 379.

[v] See Thomas S. Monson, Inspiring Experiences that Build Faith (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book, 1994), 73.

[vi] Quoted in L. Brent Goates, Harold B. Lee, Prophet and Seer (Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1985), 334.

[vii] Thomas S. Monson, “Your Patriarchal Blessing: A Liahona of Light,” General Conference, October 1986, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1986/10/your-patriarchal-blessing-a-liahona-of-light?lang=eng&_r=1.