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2025. General Conference by the Numbers: President Russell M. Nelson By Scott Brown · September 29, 2022, In Meridian Magazine

 

General Conference by the Numbers: President Russell M. Nelson

By Scott Brown · September 29, 2022

Cover image via Gospel Media Library.

President Russell M. Nelson has had an outsized impact on the Church in the short time that he has been President.  Some of his most impactful accomplishments as President of the Church include:

  1. His consistent message that the gathering of Israel is the most important work on the face of the earth. He has taught that the gathering is taking place on both sides of the veil.
  2. The Come Follow Me program of home-centered, church-supported gospel learning
  3. Emphasis on temple work and the construction of new temples
  4. Calling the church by its correct name
  5. Urging members of the Church to keep their covenants and to Let God Prevail in their lives.

Gathering Israel on both sides of the veil

Throughout his service as a general authority, President Nelson has taught the importance of the gathering of Israel[i].  Perhaps his most eloquent effort was in Let God Prevail when he said:

The Lord is gathering those who will choose to let God be the most important influence in their lives.

For centuries, prophets have foretold this gathering, and it is happening right now! As an essential prelude to the Second Coming of the Lord, it is the most important work in the world!

Unique to President Nelson is his emphasis on gathering Israel on both sides of the veil.  Borrowing the phrase from President Ezra Taft Benson, President Nelson has enthusiastically taught that the gathering is taking place on both sides of the veil.  This helps everyone to understand that you can participate in the gathering by doing missionary work, family history work and temple work.  As a result of his effort, many of the general authorities are now also teaching this concept.  The phrase ‘both sides of the veil’ has been spoken in 11% of all conference talks in the Nelson era as shown in the following chart:

Come Follow Me

When President Nelson introduced the Come Follow Me program at the April 2019 General Conference, we did not realize the true importance of the program.  With the benefit of hindsight, we can clearly see the Lord working through His prophet to prepare the church for the COVID pandemic.  Beyond the pandemic, this inspired program continues to bless our lives as we study the scriptures in our homes.

As a result of this program, there are many more gospel resources available than there have ever been.  There is a wide variety of Come Follow Me podcasts, web sites and blogs available that cater to all levels of learning and interest.  This includes the excellent Meridian Magazine podcast.

The phrase Come Follow Me is a quote from Luke 18:22. Since the April 2019 conference, the phase ‘Come Follow Me’ has been used in 28 of 208 conference talks[ii].

Temples

Throughout his time as a general authority, President Nelson has consistently emphasized the making and keeping of sacred covenants.  In his October 2021 general conference address, The Temple and Your Spiritual Foundation, President Nelson emphasized the importance of the temple in the tumultuous times that we live in.

Since becoming president of the church, President Nelson has announced 100 new temples – an astonishing 21 per year.  Since the time of President Gordon B. Hinckley, temple construction has greatly accelerated.  The following table shows the rate of temple announcements and construction:

[iii]

The Name of the Church

For three decades President Nelson has been focusing attention on the correct name of the church as revealed by the Lord in D&C 115:4:

For thus shall my church be called in the last days, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Changing the name of the church was difficult and inconvenient especially with internet technology based on domain names and hashtags.  By this action, President Nelson demonstrated the importance of obeying the Lord with exactness even when it is difficult.

Here is the timeline:

  • In April 1979, Marion G. Romney gave a talk titled We, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In that talk, President Romney explained why the name Mormon was frequently used when referring to the church and he exhorted everyone to use the name the Lord has designated.
  • In April 1990, Elder Russell M. Nelson gave a talk titled “Thus Shall My Church Be Called”. In his talk, Elder Nelson carefully explained the significance of the name: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
  • On Feb. 23, 2001, the First Presidency sent a letter to the membership of the Church on how to refer to the name of the Church. The letter said: “As the Church grows across boundaries, cultures and languages, the use of the revealed name, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Doctrine and Covenants 115:4), is increasingly important in our responsibility to proclaim the name of the Savior throughout all the world,”.  The letter discouraged use of the terms “The Mormon Church,” “The Latter-day Saints Church” or “The LDS Church.”
  • In April 2011, President Boyd K. Packer quoted 3 Nephi 27:2-6 and emphasized the importance of using the correct name for the church.
  • In October 2011, Elder M. Russell Ballard restated the importance of using the correct name for the church.
  • On August 16, 2018, President Russell M. Nelson announced that the Lord had impressed on his mind, the importance of calling the church by its correct name.
  • In October 2018, President Nelson explained the importance of the name change in general conference.
  • In October 2021, Elder Neil L. Andersen, reinforced the message in his talk: The Name of the Church Is Not Negotiable

Covenants

In his conference talks, President Nelson boldly declares our lineage as children of Israel and the importance of making and keeping sacred covenants.  Nearly all of his conference talks include covenant language.  Early in his presidency, he introduced the term ‘covenant path’ as a shorthand way of referring to covenants[iv].  We now hear phrases like “stay on the covenant path” or “get on the covenant path and stay there”.

Language is important and President Nelson has been effective at using language to emphasize his teachings.  As a result of his effort, the phrase ‘covenant path’ has been used in nearly one third of all conference talks (92 of 307) in the Nelson era.

President Nelson taught the importance of covenants in Let God Prevail – one of the most impactful conference talks in recent memory.

Statistics for the April 2022 conference:

  • 34 talks by 32 different speakers
  • First-time Speakers:
o   Adeyinka A. Ojediran – The Covenant Path: The Way to Eternal Life
o   Amy A. Wright – Christ Heals That Which Is Broken
o   Rebecca L. Craven – Do What Mattereth Most
  • 1,137 scripture references – the conference average since 1971 is 731
  • Most referenced verse: Matthew 11:28, Mosiah 3:19 (referenced in 6 talks each)
  • Most referenced chapter: Alma 5 (referenced in 12 talks)
  • Since 1971, there have been 3,770 conference talks given by 508 different speakers.  In those talks there are 75,318 scripture references.
    • The most frequently referenced verse continues to be Moses 1:39 (referenced in 220 talks)
    • The most frequently referenced chapter is  Doctrine and Covenants 88 (referenced in 424 talks).
  • In the Nelson era, there have been 307 conference talks by 124 different speakers.  In those talks there are 9,666 scripture references.
    • The most frequently referenced verse in the Nelson era is Alma 7:12  (referenced in 29 talks)
    • The most frequently referenced chapter in the Nelson era is  Doctrine and Covenants 88 (referenced in 58 talks).

[i] President Nelson’s emphasis on the gathering of Israel has been previously discussed in General Conference by the Numbers

[iii] Source: churchofjesuschristtemples.org

[iv] Previously discussed here in General Conference by the Numbers

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