Formal, written proclamations issued by the First Presidency or Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have been issued on six occasions, most recently April 5, 2020. They are similar to yet distinct from other official statements such as official declarations, doctrinal positions, epistles, and testimonies.[1]
Proclamations | ||||||||
| Proclamation | Issuing body | Date | Noted place | Addressed to | Signed by | First publication or meeting presented in | Read by during presentational broadcast | Topic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Proclamation of the First Presidency of the Church to the Saints Scattered Abroad | First Presidency | January 15, 1841 | Nauvoo, Illinois | "to the Saints scattered abroad"[2] | Joseph Smith, Sidney Rigdon, Hyrum Smith | Times and Seasons | N/A | review the progress of the church and the prospects of settling in Nauvoo, Illinois |
| Proclamation of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Quorum of the Twelve | April 6 (New York City) and October 22 (Liverpool), 1845 | "To all the Kings of the World; To the President of the United States of America; To the Governors of the several States; And to the Rulers and People of all Nations"[3] | self-published pamphlets | N/A | announce to the world that God has spoken and provides a warning to all nations | ||
| Proclamation of the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles | First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve | October 21, 1865 | "ye Latter-day Saints, and all ye inhabitants of the earth who wish to be Saints, to whom this writing shall come"[4] | Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Hyde, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, Amasa M. Lyman, Ezra T. Benson, Charles C. Rich, Lorenzo Snow, Erastus Snow, Franklin D. Richards, George Q. Cannon | Deseret News | N/A | correct doctrinal errors about the nature of God and officially establish the First Presidency as the source of new doctrine | |
| Proclamation of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve | April 6, 1980 | Fayette, New York | (not specified) | Spencer W. Kimball, Nathan Eldon Tanner, Marion G. Romney, Ezra Taft Benson, Mark E. Petersen, LeGrand Richards, Howard W. Hunter, Gordon B. Hinckley, Thomas S. Monson, Boyd K. Packer, Marvin J. Ashton, Bruce R. McConkie, L. Tom Perry, David B. Haight, James E. Faust | General Conference | Gordon B. Hinckley | commemorate the sesquicentennial of the Church's founding and restate its basic principles to the world |
| First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve | September 23, 1995 | Salt Lake City, Utah | "responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere"[5] | Gordon B. Hinckley, Thomas S. Monson, James E. Faust, Boyd K. Packer, L. Tom Perry, David B. Haight, Neal A. Maxwell, Russell M. Nelson, Dallin H. Oaks, M. Russell Ballard, Joseph B. Wirthlin, Richard G. Scott, Robert D. Hales, Jeffrey R. Holland, Henry B. Eyring | General Relief Society Meeting | Gordon B. Hinckley | define the nature of family and relationship with God | |
| First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve | April 5, 2020 | The Sacred Grove (prerecorded) | "all"[6] | Russell M. Nelson, Dallin H. Oaks, Henry B. Eyring, M. Russell Ballard, Jeffrey R. Holland, Dieter F. Uchtdorf, David A. Bednar, Quentin L. Cook, D. Todd Christofferson, Neil L. Andersen, Ronald A. Rasband, Gary E. Stevenson, Dale G. Renlund, Gerrit W. Gong, Ulisses Soares | General Conference | Russell M. Nelson | commemorate the bicentennial of the First Vision and restate its basic principles to the world | |