LDS Prophet Howard W. Hunter

Howard William Hunter (b. November 14, 1907; d. March 3, 1995) 14th President and Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Howard had the shortest presidency in Church history, just nine months. He was a successful lawyer in California and gave thirty-five years service as a general authority Apostle. President Hunter stressed the importance of everything concerning the Temple.

## Contents

* 1 Early life
* 2 Service To The Church
* 3 Quotes
* 4 References

## Early life[edit]

Howard was born in Boise, Idaho, to father John William Hunter and mother Nellie Marie Rasmussen Hunter. At age eight, Howard wanted to be baptised but his father would not allow it until he was fourteen. Howard's immigrant great-grandfather became disenchanted with Utah and returned home. Subsequently, Howard's father was not a Mormon until Howard was a young adult. Hunter had a love for music and played a number of different instruments. After high school he started a band called 'Hunter's Croonaders,' and toured for five months on the SS President Jackson.[1]

## Service To The Church[edit]

June 10, 1931, Howard W. Hunter married Clara May Jeffs and she bore him three children, one died as a child. He got a job with the municipal government in Los Angeles. Howard became interested in law so he went back to school and graduated with his law degree and passed the bar in 1939. In 1941, he became Bishop of his ward for a length of eight years. Howard came to preside over the Pasadena California Stake. During his tenure, The Los Angeles Temple opened. Hunter accepted the call to be an Apostle and was ordained on October 15, 1959 by President David O. McKay. As President of the Genealogical Society of Utah, he oversaw the first uploads of records to computers.[2] He was called to be the Church Historian in 1970. Howard was called to be the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1989 and May 30, 1994, he became the Prophet and President of the Church. He is the first President born in the 20th century. He dedicated two temples and commemorating the 150th anniversary of the martyrdom of Hyrum and Joseph Smith. Howard W. Hunter served for only nine months until his death on March 3, 1995.

## Quotes[edit]

* “I have shed many tears and have sought my Father in Heaven in earnest prayer with a desire to be equal to the high and holy calling which is now mine”
* “Let us be a temple-attending people. Attend the temple as frequently as personal circumstances allow. Keep a picture of a temple in your home that your children may see it. Teach them about the purposes of the House of the Lord. Have them plan from their earliest years to go there and to remain worthy of that blessing.” [3]
* “It is the deepest desire of my heart to have every member of the Church worthy to enter the temple.”

## References[edit]

1. ↑ Howard W. Hunter LDS.org
2. ↑ Howard W. Hunter MormonWiki
3. ↑ “Exceeding Great and Precious Promises,” Ensign, Nov. 1994