J. Reuben Clark

J. Reuben Clark

1871–1961 (90 years)

Hometown: Grantsville, Utah

Biography

J. Reuben Clark was an apostle from 1934 until his death in 1961 and served in the First Presidency under three prophets. A distinguished diplomat and lawyer, Clark served as U.S. Ambassador to Mexico and Undersecretary of State.

Clark was known for his conservative political views and his strict interpretation of church teachings. His 1954 address “When Are Church Leaders’ Words Entitled to Claim of Scripture?” addressed questions of prophetic authority that remain relevant.

He was unique among apostles for his high-level government service before his church calling. His political conservatism influenced church positions for decades.

Served Under

Church presidents during this leader's apostolic service:

Heber J. Grant Heber J. Grant 1856–1945 (88 years) George Albert Smith George Albert Smith 1870–1951 (81 years) David O. McKay David O. McKay 1873–1970 (96 years)

Wives (1)

#NameMarriage DateHer AgeHis AgeAge DiffChildren
1 Luacine Annetta Savage Sep 14, 1898 202774

Children (4)

With Luacine Annetta Savage (4 children)

Related Posts (12)

Related Images

“Furthermore, insofar as the authorities of the Church are concerned, since this pretended revelation, if ever given, was never presented to and adopted by the Church or by any council of the Church, and since to the contrary, an inspired rule of action, the Manifesto, was (subsequently to the pretended revelation) presented to and adopted by the Church, which inspired rule in its term, purport, and effect was directly opposite to the interpretation given to the pretended revelation, the said pretended revelation could have no validity and no binding effect and force upon Church members, and action under it would be unauthorized, illegal, and void.” - Official Statement from the First Presidency (Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, J. Reuben Clark) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Deseret News, June 17, 1933. | wasmormon.org “The First Presidency have recently received letters making inquiry concerning the position of the Church regarding the contracting of polygamous or plural marriages. It is evident these letters, a well as from certain published material—some of it distributed during our last General Conference—that a secret and, according to reputation, an oath-bound organization of misguided individuals is seeking to lead the people to adopt adulterous relations under the guise of a pretended and false polygamous or plural marriage ceremony.” - Official Statement from the First Presidency (Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, J. Reuben Clark) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Deseret News, June 17, 1933. | wasmormon.org “While the position of Church since 1893 has been repeatedly set forth, namely that polygamous or plural marriages are not and cannot now be performed, yet in order that there may be no excuse for any Church member to be misled by the false representations or the corrupt, adulterous practices of the members of this secret and (by reputation) oath-bound organisation (of which the history of the Nephites and Lamanites show so many counterparts), it is deemed wise again to set out the position of the Church on this matter, at the same time tracing the outlines of the historical facts lying behind the Church's position, of which many young Church members might not be fully aware.” - Official Statement from the First Presidency (Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, J. Reuben Clark) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Deseret News, June 17, 1933. | wasmormon.org “As to this pretended revelation it should be said that the archives of the Church contain no such revelation; the archives contain no record of any such revelation, nor any evidence justifying a belief that any such revelation was ever given. From the personal knowledge of some of us, from the uniform and common recollection of the presiding quorums of the Church, from the absence in the Church archives of any evidence whatsoever justifying any belief that such a revelation was given, we are justified in affirming that no such revelation exists.” - Official Statement from the First Presidency (Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, J. Reuben Clark) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Deseret News, June 17, 1933. | wasmormon.org "It seems to us that it ought to be possible to work this situation out without causing any feelings on the part of anybody. If the white sisters feel that they may not sit with them or near them, we feel very sure that if the colored sisters were discreetly approached, they would be happy to sit at one side in the rear or somewhere where they would not wound the sensibilities of the complaining sisters. We will rely upon your tact and discretion to work this out so as not to hurt the feelings on the part of anyone." - Letter to President Ezra T. Benson, Washington D.C. Stake President, From the First Presidency Heber J. Grant, J. Reuben Clark, Jr., and David O. McKay, Dated 23 June 1942 | wasmormon.org