LeGrand Richards

LeGrand Richards (February 6, 1886 – January 11, 1983) was a prominent missionary and leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He served as the seventh presiding bishop of the LDS Church from 1938 to 1952, and was then called as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles by church president David O. McKay. Richards served in the Quorum of the Twelve until his death in Salt Lake City, Utah, at the age of 96.

Early life Richards was born in Farmington, Utah Territory, to George F. Richards and Alice Almira Robinson. His father also served in the Quorum of the Twelve. As a young boy, Richards had several accidents that could have taken his life, including as a small child, when he was struck in the head by an axe as he approached from behind while his father was chopping wood. A few years later, Richards was thrown from a wagon by an agitated horse and both the wagon wheels rolled over his head. As a child, Richards attended the 1893 dedication of the Salt Lake Temple. His church service began when he served a proselytizing mission to the Netherlands from 1905 to 1908.

After returning from his mission, Richards lived in Portland, Oregon for a short time before moving to Salt Lake City where he held various jobs, including doing audits in the office of the Presiding Bishopric. In 1909, he married Ina Jane Ashton (who normally went by Jane) in the Salt Lake Temple. They were the parents of eight children.

Church service

In 1909, Richards served for a short time as a branch president over the Portland Branch in Oregon. The commonly referenced work contains a comprehensive teaching outline designed to assist missionaries in their study and presentation of Mormonism. Based on a document titled, "The Message of Mormonism", which Richards developed in 1937 for missionaries during his tenure as president of the Southern States Mission, the book contains explanations and interpretations of many doctrinal positions of the LDS Church.

In 1955, Richards published Israel! Do You Know?, an effort to demonstrate the links between Jewish traditions and beliefs and Mormonism; this document was produced in conjunction with an LDS Church program aimed at proselyting Jews living in Southern California.

Israel

Richards also played a role in Mormon connections with Israel. He was head of the Orson Hyde Foundation, which coordinated the donations that were used to purchase the land in Jerusalem that became the Orson Hyde Memorial Garden.

Tributes

In a memorial address read by his personal secretary after Richards died, church president Spencer W. Kimball paid tribute to Richards as one of the greatest missionaries of our time. He reminded me of a modern-day Apostle Paul. I can think of no one who has borne his testimony to the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ with deeper conviction or with greater fervor. With it all, LeGrand Richards was a perennial optimist and his words were a rare combination of wit and humor, comfort, encouragement, and wisdom. He rarely, if ever, delivered a message from a written text. He just spoke from his heart, drawing upon a lifetime of experience, study, and inspiration.

Place in history Richards was the longest-lived LDS apostle until David B. Haight; both his father, George F. Richards, and grandfather, Franklin D. Richards, served as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Franklin D. Richards was also the nephew of Willard Richards, an earlier church apostle. LeGrand Richards is the grandfather of Tad R. Callister, a 21st-century leader in the LDS Church.