A couple of weeks ago, Sister Patricia Holland, wife of Elder Jeffrey R Holland, passed away. Her funeral was held in the Conference Center Theatre on July28, 2023. The Church News published a lengthy article about her passing and the funeral. I was really surprised that most of photos in the Church article was focused on President Nelson instead of Sister Holland.
First of all, I am not quite sure at her funeral for Sister Holland that the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve have to sit in their enormous red chairs front and center on the stage at the funeral. Why does this funeral look like General Conference? In my opinion, a funeral should be more focused on the life of the loved one who died and not the Church Hierarchy. Why the need to have all these men on the stage especially when none of them spoke except President Nelson who was the concluding speaker? Personally, I don't' thing there should be anyone on the stand but a large photo of Patricia Holland. She should be the main focus. Period. Even in this article there should have been a least one photo of Sister Holland. I didn't see one.
Here are a few of the photos that were published and the link: THE CHURCH NEWS
President Nelson, Front and Center on the stage
President Nelson was the concluding speaker at the funeral.
A photo of President Nelson with his all to familiar posing with his arms outstretched.
Also, I am not sure why a funeral needs to a a CHURCH MEETING. In addition, why is the Bishop the one who needs to conduct and oversee the planning of the service? Why can't tributes to the loved one dominate the service? Why does the a member of the Stake Presidency, or Area Seventy or General Authority need to be recognized during the service?. Why does the presiding leader need asked if he would like to be the final speaker as well?
All of these rules and requirement for an LDS funeral are in the Handbook of Instructions:
From the Handbook of Instruction:
29.5
Funerals and Other Services for the Deceased
A funeral conducted by the bishop, whether in a Church building or elsewhere, is a Church meetingand a religious service. It should be a spiritual occasion. The bishop urges participants to maintain a spirit of reverence and dignity.
When a bishop conducts a funeral, he or one of his counselors oversees the planning of the service. He considers the wishes of the family, ensuring that the funeral is simple and dignified, with music and brief addresses centered on the gospel. The comfort offered by Jesus Christ because of His Atonement and Resurrection should be emphasized. Family members are not required to speak or otherwise participate in the service.
Funerals are an opportunity to pay tribute to the deceased. However, such tributes should not dominate the service. A special family gathering, separate from the funeral service, is usually a better setting if the family wants more time to share tributes or memories.
Video presentations should not be part of a funeral service held in a chapel.
If a member of the stake presidency, an Area Seventy in his area, or a General Authority attends the funeral, he presides. The person conducting consults him in advance and recognizes him during the service.The presiding officer should be invited to offer closing remarks if he desires.
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In contrast, I attended a funeral for a close friend. The service was beautiful. Projected on the screen above the casket was an photo of my friend. The focus was on him. His sisters and his brother spoke. His wife and his four children spoke. The entire funeral was a tribute to him. It was not a Church meeting where a presiding church authority was sitting on the stand. No Church leader needed to be the concluding speaker. A funeral should not be a church meeting.
I post this in tribute to him. He stood up for truth and what is right. My heart goes out to his family especially his wife and his four children. He will be sorely missed.
Historically, the Temple Cornerstone ceremony is when the first stone is set during the building process of sacred Temples. Temple builders would carefully measure the stone to make sure it is exact and the angles were right. This was so important because it was from that stone that all other stones in the edifice especially the foundation would be organized and would be aligned. Cornerstones have been around for Millennia. Ancient cultures also had ceremonies around placing the cornerstones to their sacred temples like in ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamia. We have continue that ritual and have what we might call a groundbreaking ceremony. In this ceremony, the people would ask God to protect the building. It was this kind of dedicatory type of ceremony around the laying of the Cornerstone. Buildings were often designed in relation to constellations and stars astronomical points on the compass. Ancient cultures would often believe that how you position these buildings in relation to these Heavenly Bodies would form a connection to the cosmos.
However, in the latest change made by President Neilson, we are now discontinuing that connection and sacred ceremony. Apparently from the First Presidency's news release, the construction techniques of men are more advanced that we no longer need to symbolically align ourselves to the heavens and making that sacred connection that has been done for centuries with the Temple Cornerstone Ceremony.
Joseph Smith understood the importance of the cornerstone ceremony. Examples of past cornerstone ceremonies are as follows:
Kirtland Temple
Joseph Smith saw the building of the Kirtland Temple in vision in 1833. He presided over the laying of the temple cornerstone at a ceremony held on July 23, 1833. We do know that 24 priesthood holders met on the temple site July 23, 1833, to lay stones from the quarry. The First Presidency - Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon and Frederick G. Williams - and three others laid the southeast cornerstone. Six additional priesthood holders stood at and laid each of the remaining three cornerstones according to what some called `the order of the Holy Priesthood.'
Nauvoo Temple
The cornerstones for the original Nauvoo Temple were laid on April 6, 1841. As described in History of the Church 3:326-331, the southeast cornerstone was set in place under the direction of and dedicated by Joseph Smith. Thereafter, the other cornerstones were ceremonially placed under the direction of the Prophet Joseph Smith. The account records that the Nauvoo Legion was present to add an air of ceremonial splendor to the occasion.
Rebuilding of the Nauvoo Temple
The symbolic laying of cornerstones at the Nauvoo Temple took place on Sunday, Nov. 5, 2000, at noon in Nauvoo, Ill.
"We want to imitate, insofar as possible, what was done at the original cornerstone laying on April 6, 1841," said President Gordon B. Hinckley. This is particularly significant because the Nauvoo Temple will be constructed to appear almost as a replica of the original temple built on this same site in the early 1840's.
Participating in the ceremony will be General Authorities of the Church as well as local Church leaders and women of the Church's Relief Society. Four large stones will be set in place, one at each corner, beginning with the southeast corner of the temple. LINK
Here are a few other examples of the importance of the Temple Cornerstone Ceremony in the past couple of years given in talks by Quorum of the Twelve and the First Presidency.
"The importance of Christ as the head of the church and the cornerstone of members’ faith was also highlighted during Elder Quentin Cook Talk
At the time of the original dedication of the Suva Fiji Temple in 2000, members of that nation’s parliament were taken hostage by a group of rebels. Due to the potential danger of violence, President Gordon B. Hinckley was told it was safest to do a small dedication with no events outside the temple.
President Hinckley agreed to a small dedication with one condition. If the dedication was to occur, the cornerstone ceremony would as well. President Hinckley said, “‘If we do dedicate the temple, we will have the cornerstone ceremony because Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone, and this is his church.'”
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"Just after the start of the first dedicatory session, the choir sang “The Morning Breaks" as President Oaks and the other Church leaders came outside for the symbolic cornerstone ceremony. President Oaks invited young children from Maryland, Virginia and Georgia to participate in placing mortar around the cornerstone.
“The most important idea about a cornerstone is that Jesus Christ Himself is the chief cornerstone, setting the direction for the building at the key position in the foundation,” President Oaks said. “So it is with this temple.” LDS CHURCH NEW LINK
So I find it so surprising that President Nelson has made the decision to discontinue this sacred and symbolic Temple ceremony. And the reason for doing so because of the "advancement of construction techniques."
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Another Temple Symbol has been changed. The Direction of Angel Moroni.
Historically, the Angel Moroni statue faces east, the direction that Christ is to come from when he returns to earth at His Second Coming, as a symbolic herald of that return. all but a few temples have Angel Moroni facing due east.
Some of the newer temples being built, the Angel Moroni no longer is facing east but actually facing west like the Saratoga Temple which will be dedicated next month. Or even more common now, the Angel Moroni is longer being placed on our temples.
Losing the symbolism of the importance of the East: the direction of the rising sun; a symbol of the resurrection as well as the coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ; a sign of renewal and rebirth and new life. Facing West is symbolic of losing light, decline, death, and destruction.
Below are photos of the sun setting behind the new Saratoga Temple. Angel Moroni is facing the setting sun instead of the facing East towards the direction of rising Sun. Most people when that are buried placed in the ground facing East (not West) in the direction of Christ's Second Coming the hope of the resurrection
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Sidenote:
New spires have been built and are starting to be placed back onto the top of the Salt Lake Temple. From the photos I took, I do not think they are the original ones. I wonder how much of the Salt Temple after is completed will be original. So much for preserving a historical building. It is quite possible that it might have cost less take it down and rebuild it, since it looks a lot of it is being rebuilt anyway.
In a general sense, greatness; that quality or combination of qualities in an object, which elevates or expands the mind, and excites pleasurable emotions in him who views or contemplates it.
This week I hiked to the top of Grandeur Peak in observance of the Summer Solstice. The day before the Summer Solstice on June 20, I saw the sun rays shining down on the ridge line of the trail that ascends to the top of the Grandeur Peak. For me, it was a confirmation that this was the trail to hike.
Here are a few photos on that morning hike to see the sunrise. Indeed, Grandeur Peak is well named.
an act that goes against a law, rule, or code of conduct; an offense
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The photo below was taken in downtown Salt Lake City at the annual PRIDE PARADE last Sunday featuring:
A toddler wearing a "TRANS-KIDS" T-Shirts
A woman wearing a "I LOVE HOT TRANS BABY DADDIES" T-Shirt
A woman now a "man" wearing a "TRANS BABY DADDY" T-Shirt
This week, my wife and I watched the documentary called "What is a Woman." You can watch the movie for free now on Twitter. Here is the LINK . I don't really have the words to express how I felt while watching the movie. As a father of all daughters, I am outraged that an underage girl can undergo medical procedures to become a boy without needing parental consent. It is so ironic that we have laws prohibiting children under the age of 18 to get a tattoo (which can be removed) but yet underage children can get irreversible treatment to change from one gender to another. If a parent tries to stop the procedure, he can be put in jail? It is unbelievable. The documentary is a must see.
Elon Musk tweeted, "Consenting adults should do whatever makes them happy, provided it does not harm others, but a child is not capable of consent, which is why we have laws protecting minors."
Another photo of downtown Salt Lake of our UTA public transit system buses. They are being wrapped using tax payer money in support of this transgender movement.
Here are a few comments regarding the newly decorated Salt Lake buses:
"I was disappointed to see UTA putting wraps around their equipment supporting a controversial social position that is very (divisive),"
"This is not an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars"
"Why spend the funds and political capital on this effort? What other social issues have you not supported, but now are supporting this? I am shaking my head at this decision."
"I think public funds should never be used to promote private agendas, especially those that contradict our state ideals."
Starting in 2021, President Russel M Nelson has donated millions and millions of dollars to the NAACP and the United Negro Fund. After generous donations equally close to $10,000,000.00 dollars of Church funds, Nelson recently received the prestigious Gandhi-King-Mandela Peace Prize from the black community at Morehouse College. The college is a private, historically Black men's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia.
A special portrait was painted to commemorate President Nelson receiving the award. The oil painting of himself in front of Jesus will hang in the International Hall of Honor at Morehouse College. Below is a photo of Rev. Lawrence Carter shaking hands with Nelson in front of the portrait.
The new oil painting of President Nelson standing in front of Christ's Triumphant Entry
Back in 2018, right after President Nelson was sustained as the new President of the Church, there was as strategy created at Church Headquarters to promote Nelson as a world faith leader. The Church was hoping people around the world would view President Nelson on the same level as other world religious leaders like the Pope. There were many public events held around the globe to help with this campaign. When Nelson was touring all of the countries, the church news made a series of videos documenting his trip. The videos focused on all of the adoring crowds and how they had waited hours to see Nelson. They didn’t focus much on what he said, just the crowds. In essence the videos highlighted that Nelson was almost just like the Pope with all of the adoring crowds from all over the world. Nelson even visited local people and handed out photos of himself. See video excerpt below.
It seems like for a while now, the message is not always using the Church to bring people to Jesus as instructed in 3 Nephi 27, but it is almost as if it is the reverse by using Jesus to bring people to the Church and essentially to President Nelson. I find it interesting that in the paintings, visual images and videos of Nelson that Jesus is in the distant background and Nelson is in the foreground. Oftentimes, Nelson is striking the same pose as Christus statue of Christ used in the Church Logo—which seems to be all part of the choreographed strategy. The message is almost like, "if you believe in Jesus, you will believe in Nelson and the Church". While subtle, it is though Nelson is essentially showing that he is a stand in for Christ.
Here are some links to examples of the Church's PR and Media strategies to promote Nelson:
It is interesting to see the Church’s Public Relations Department execute this strategy that began just over five years ago. While they have all right intentions and most likely see themselves as promoting the gospel of Christ, but from the outside is appears they are instead promoting a man.
A picture of the First Presidency that hangs in one of the cubicle offices in the Jordan River Temple.
President Nelson using the common pose with his arms outstretched.
While more could be said, I want to conclude with an excerpt from the book, Eighteen Verses- A Discussion of the Book of Mormon:
The lowest state of glory, the Telestial Kingdom, will include those who say they followed God’s properly ordained, authentic messengers of the Gospel. Though the messengers they claimed to follow were authentic, the faith of these followers was not. This is one of the great reasons why true messengers do not focus attention on themselves. They do not make themselves idols. They do not seek fans, nor welcome personal adulation and vainglory.
Religious leaders and teachers who want the adulation of their followers are leading them to a Telestial state. Those who encourage others to adore men are furthering a false religion which can only damn its followers.
The Lord’s true messengers would never want reverence or demand honor to be bestowed upon them. They do not want people to be awed by them, rise when they enter a room, or claim their salvation is derived from any mere man. Instead they want Saints to be awed by the Lord, show reverence to Him, and look to Him alone for their salvation.
All who succumb to the temptation to follow a personality, rather than the Lord, will suffer damnation, and then be resurrected to the Telestial glory. For anyone who invites people to “follow them,” it “were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.” (Matt. 18: 6.) The Book of Mormon calls such acts “priestcraft.” We call such folks scholars, professors, inspirational speakers, great performers, inspiring speakers, heroes, etc. We should make no mistake about it; these forms of “hero” worship are currently going on among the Saints. And we seem to be blind to it. Some folks magnify their egos rather than their callings. That is one of the problems with this second estate. We can clearly see the mistakes of past generations, but our own lives are so blighted by the chaos of culture, tradition, and group-think, we cannot properly see our own failings.
In the Church, there are many men whose devotion to Church leaders goes beyond hero-worship. They make themselves “ladies in waiting” hoping to secure for themselves favorable attention from Church leaders who can “call” them to positions which they covet. Their slavish focus on Church leaders, and desire to get noticed, makes them fit decidedly within the Telestial description given here. It is no wonder such people are only capable of handling Telestial glory, for they have failed to face the fearsome responsibility of acting before God as an agent for themselves. Agency has done them little good, since they have surrendered it in favor of following men to their damnation,
I recently saw this painting entitled "Fragile" in a museum that I thought Iwould share today being Good Friday. I appreciated the symbolism of what the creator was trying to convey.
Some beautiful quotes for the book, Come Let us Adore Him.
Crucifixion was also destined to become the symbol of God’s salvation. This type of death for Israel’s Messiah was foreshadowed by earlier events. Moses led his people through a wilderness infested with poison adders. Israelites were stung by the deadly snakes, whose venom felt like fire to the victims. The cure came through a symbol which pointed to Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Those who looked in faith at the brass serpent hung upon a pole would live.
His final act of devotion to the Father was also the final act of perfecting His love for mankind. He could develop and show “greater love” in no other way than to “lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15: 13.) For Christ, this final altar upon which He offered His body and shed His blood, was so that in turn men may have every reason to “always remember him, and keep his commandments which he hath given them, that they may always have his Spirit to be with them.” (Moroni 4: 3; 5: 2.) The crucifixion was the moment of His Sacramental sacrifice of His flesh and blood.
Christ’s crucifixion was at the same time the symbol of cursing and redemption. Christ being accursed and us being redeemed. It was the culminating event in Christ’s triumph as the true Son of God.
When President Nelson announced that the Salt Lake Temple will close in 2019, he said the Temple is expected to reopen in 2024 with a public open house. See highlighted screenshot and link:
It was reported today that the renovations will not be completed until 2026. From the article:
The current estimated completion date is now in 2026, according to a Thursday news release from the church.
When the construction began, church leaders said it was estimated to be completed in 2025. It includes renovations to the temple — including a seismic upgrade — and changes to the grounds and other buildings. Thursday's statement said church leadership, project consultants and the general contractor support the new estimate.
At a minimum the Salt Lake Temple will have been closed for Six Years.
The news article is actually wrong to report that the church leaders said it would be completed in 2025 when the above news room article quotes President Nelson that it would be done in 2024.
The first "official" day of spring arrives today. At 3:24 PM here in Utah, the sun will be shining directly down on the equator at a point over the Pacific Ocean, roughly 1,900 miles (3,100 km) southeast of the Hawaiian Islands.
I usually try and go on a sunrise hike on this day, but the weather forecast for this entire week was not looking good so I went a couple of days ago on a clear night and morning.
Woke up around 4:00 in the morning to drive up into the mountains and began hiking at 5:30 AM.
Here are some photos from the hike:
Moon rising above the mountain early in the morning on March 16,2023
It has snowed about a foot the day before. We had to plow our own trail to the summit.
Guardsmas Pass. The large pipe sticking out the snow is the "chimney" of the restroom facility that is buried under at least 10 feet of snow.
Sunrise around 7:40 AM
Beautiful morning.
On that morning we were observing rebirth of spring, later that night one of our friends passed away.
The Conjunction of Venus and Jupiter on March 1, 2023
Spectacular: beautiful in a dramatic and eye-catching way.
Miraculous: highly improbable and extraordinary and bringing very welcome consequence
After attending a lecture in Provo on the evening of March 1, my wife and I were driving around to find a good place to see what some called, the 'kissing' of Venus and Jupiter (or what the astronomers call the Conjunction) The two planets appear so close to one another, some called it a kiss. In reality, the never touch but the closest they'll ever come from our perspective is about the diameter of a full moon apart.
It has been snowing the entire day and even though the snow had stopped that evening, it was still very cloudy. I wasn't sure if it was going to be possible to view the conjuction of the two brightest planets. Doubt started to set in as well as disappoint since it was important for me to observe this Heavenly Sign and I was unable to see anything through the heavy clouds.
I thought, if this sign is important surely it was meant to be seen and not be veiled behind clouds. sSo, we started to drive back home hoping maybe Salt Lake had clearer skies. We were somewhere near American Fork, when I thought I saw a break in the clouds. I took the next exit and got out of my car looking West.
What happened next was amazing. For a very brief moment, Venus appeared from behind the clouds and then Jupiter appeared right beside her. Both planets visible side by side before they disappeared again for the rest of the night. Very grateful to be able to see this Spectacular and to me, miraculous event.
Here are the three photos to bear record of the event.
Photo of the Planets behind the clouds at 8:33 PM on March 1, 2023
Photo of Venus appearing from the clouds at 8:33 PM on March 1, 2023
Photo of both Venus and Jupiter at 8:33 PM on March 1, 2023
At the LDS Church Office Building today there was a large team of disaster cleanup workers. All of them had on protective clothing and wearing gas masks. I quickly took this photo before having to leave the area due to health concerns. I assume it was a sewage problem due to the stench. It is an unfortunate mess (no pun intended). This is a little bit of bad timing since this is a HUGE weekend for Salt Lake City. Tens of thousands of visitors are in town for the NBA All-Star Game. Hope that the Church can get things cleaned up quickly.
Photo taken on February 16, 2023
Sidenote:
This weekend is also President's Day. In honor of this holiday, in this second part of this blog post I want to write briefly about a few amazing men who have been given the title of President.
PRESIDENTS: THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY
THE GOOD INFO
This year we will observe Presidents Day on February 20th. The holiday is now always celebrated on the third Monday in February, thanks to the 1968 Uniform Monday Holiday Act. It was established in 1885 in honor of President George Washington's birthday. Washington's birthday was actually on February 22, 1732. President Abraham Lincoln's birthday, February 12, is also near this date and is often honored on President's day. Washington was the only president unanimously elected. (meaning all of the States Representatives voted for him) I have a great love for Washington and Lincoln.
Both Washington and Lincoln set high bars for any President of the United States to follow after them.
I have for the most part admired and had a deep respect for our United States Presidents
In 2007, I read a book that rocked my world. At that time, I loved our current President of the United States, George W Bush as well as his father, former President George Bush Senior) I thought that we were justified to attack Iraq due to terrorist attacks on 9-11. I thought everything was great in the United States.
All was well in my world. Until I read this book, "Awakening to our Awful Situation- Warnings from the Nephite Prophets." The book examines the secret combinations happening in our day that the LDS members are warned about by Moroni in Ether 8:23-25.
A quote from the book:
"Indeed the worst kind of evil is not to be found in any single rogue individual. What is much worse is s a combination of power, wherein many evil persons unite their efforts under a central guiding hand - a secret combination."
I learned about a few modern day "secret combinations" that are alive and well in our society today. Here are a few of them.
The Federal Reserve
Council of Foreign Relations (CFR)
Trilateral Commission
Bilderbergers
The United Nations
Skull and Bones Society
THE BAD INFO
So, when I found out that our current President of the United States was a member of many of these organizations (especially a member of the Skull and Bones Society) I was devastated. What I found so interesting was that President Bush didn't even tried to hide it.
George W. Bush wrote in his autobiography, "[In my] senior year I joined Skull and Bones, a secret society; so secret, I can't say anything more." When asked what it meant that he and Bush were both Bonesmen, former presidential candidate John Kerry said, "Not much, because it's a secret."
Even the former President George Bush senior was also a member of the Skull and Bones.
For those who don't know much about the Skull and Bones, it is also referred to as The Order, or The Brotherhood of Death. It began as an undergraduate senior secret student society at Yale University. There are only two chapters of this secret society in the United States. The one at Yale University. and the other is at the University of Utah. Since the organization is extremely secretive, not much can be talked about. (Kind of like how we treat what happens in the LDS Temples) A few things we do know. the building that they meet in is called The Tomb. The Skull and Bones's membership developed a reputation with the "power elite." There A rare interview was given to a reporter in 2018 in Salt Lake and the article and photo of the interview was published in the Daily Utah Chronicle. Link here:
George W. Bush is not the only one to write in his autobiography that he was a member of the Skull an Bones. Here is another autobiography of a President. The autobiography is not about a US President, but a different kind of President. Not political President but religious President.
Since I didn't believe this to be true. I called down to the Church History Library to see if they had any available copies of President Nelson's autobiography for me to read. The Church Library told me that I needed to schedule an appointment to check out the book in the Special Archives since it has been pulled off the public shelves at the request of the author. They called me back after I made an appointment request and they told me that they could not give me access to the book because under the direction of the author, the book is no longer to be circulated. I checked on Amazon to possibly buy the book but was shocked to see that the price was thousands of dollars. The lowest price listed was a used copy selling for 1,600.00
Fortunately I was able to get access to the special collection library at the J Willard Marriott Library as the University of Utah Campus. They allowed me to take a few photos of the book and the pages I was interested in seeing with my own eyes.
It appears on page 48:
Owl and Key is a “senior” level of Skull and Bones.
Now I realize that some people reading this post might not believe the information, or think it is good to expose such information. I understand that. However, we are commanded to waste and wear out our lives in bringing to light all the hidden things of darkness. D & C 123:13
"Therefore, that we should waste and wear out our lives in bringing to light all the hidden things of darkness, wherein we know them; and they are truly manifest from heaven."
The Church announced this week that all of President Kimball’s journals are now available in the Church History Library catalog under call number MS 21541. Due to the huge quantity of journal pages, it has taken several years since the journals’ donation for them to be ready for access.
In 1975, President Spencer W. Kimball taught the Latter-day Saints: “Get a good notebook […] a journal that will last through all time, and maybe the angels may quote from it. Begin today and write in it”. President Kimball practiced what he preached. For more than 60 years, he kept a detailed journal.
Most of the 34 journals are typed, and many pages include underlining, usually in red pencil with brief annotations and marginalia written in his distinctive hand.
Below is a screenshot of some of President Kimball journal entries in February 1979.
The above yellow highlight addition to the journal was added by Spencer W Kimball's son. For those of you who don't know the definition of 'fulsome"... here is how Webster defines it.
Fulsome: complimentary or flattering to an excessive degree. Offensive to good taste, esp. as being excessive; overdone or gross.
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Here is the full foreword to President Nelson's autobiography that Spencer W Kimball gave approval to use with his name attached. It is not uncommon for a foreword to be written by someone else ( a ghost writer) with the permission to use it. But probably very uncommon for the foreword to an autobiography to be written by the actual autobiographer.
Here is the foreword.
Foreword
This book, the engaging record of the life and experiences of Russell Marion Nelson, is a fulfillment of a great dream. In these pages he has set forth a chronicle of his noble parentage and crystallized the many experiences of himself and his adorable family. This work will bring joy and peace and happiness to its readers.
The first time I saw the Nelson family was at a stake conference meeting in 1964. Eight daughters were singing a song, accompanied by their mother, Dantzel. I was amazed and pleased, and I thought, “What a perfect family! What beautiful parents! And what delightful children to grow up in one household.” I have known them from that time forward, and now there are nine daughters and one son. Brother Nelson has always been a family man first, and now all his family unite to bring him honor.
I owe much to him as a doctor. It was in 1971 in England that I first spoke to him of my heart problems. When we returned to the United States, investigation showed that I had problems with a deteriorating valve in my heart and an obstruction in an artery. I felt my life slipping away, and I wondered if perhaps the time had come for a younger man to enter the Quorum of the Twelve and do the work I could no longer do. But at the inspired insistence of President Harold B. Lee, I was prompted to press on. Therefore, my life was placed in the hands of this young doctor, in whom we noted a sweet Spirituality. Because of his skill as a surgeon—one who trusts in the power of the priesthood and relies on the Spirit of the Lord—my life was spared, even though the risks were very great for a man of my seventy-seven years.
We became close as I recovered from the open-heart surgery that he performed perfectly. Whenever I became discouraged, there was always his sweet, understanding spirit to buoy me up.
Then President Lee died in December 1973. We never thought it could happen, for he was younger than I and seemingly in good health; therefore, we were all taken by surprise. Brother Nelson, of his own accord, came to my side immediately in case he should be needed. I appreciated his thoughtfulness very much...
It pleases me very much to note that he has done a superb work in assembling the information to bring this book into existence...It seems to me that it has been done beautifully and without flaw.Long will his children and their posterity honor this great man, and long will they remember that he followed the precepts of his Lord through his prophets...
President Spencer W. Kimball Salt Lake City, Utah March 1979
