Church president, 1995–2008
Gordon B. Hinckley
1910–2008
4 topics · 8 dated events · 3 sources
Their part in each topic
The First Vision
Church president, 1995–2008
Hinckley repeatedly staked the entire truth claim of the Church on the vision's literal historicity, most famously in October 2002: if it did not occur, 'then this work is a fraud.' That formulation is quoted by defenders as testimony and by critics as the reason the documentary differences matter.
Church Finances, Tithing, and the Transparency Question
Fifteenth president
Hinckley gave the two statements that anchor every later argument. In April 1991 he set out the 'two basic and fixed principles' of Church finance — live within its means, and set aside a fixed percentage against a possible 'rainy day.' In April 2003 he told conference that 'tithing funds have not and will not be used' to acquire or develop the City Creek property, which would come instead from commercial entities and 'the earnings of invested reserve funds.' Those words became the central exhibit in the Huntsman litigation.
LGBTQ Latter-day Saints
Church President 1995–2008
Hinckley read the family proclamation publicly for the first time at the general Relief Society meeting on 23 September 1995. He had already taught in 1987 that 'marriage should not be viewed as a therapeutic step to solve problems such as homosexual inclinations or practices,' and in 1998 said the Church loved 'those who consider themselves so-called gays and lesbians' as sons and daughters of God but could not 'stand idle' if they lived in a same-sex marriage. He defended the Church's Proposition 22 campaign from the pulpit in October 1999.
Sexual Abuse and the Institutional Response
Church President, 1995–2008
Hinckley presided when the abuse help line was created in 1995 and was the first Church president to describe it publicly, first in a 1996 interview with Mike Wallace that he read into general conference and again from the pulpit in April 2002. His framing — publications, a telephone line for Church officers, professional help through LDS Family Services — is still the shape of the Church's own account. He also told a 1994 leadership meeting in Calgary that abuse cases were costing the Church millions in legal fees and settlements.
In the timeline
8 events across 4 topics, chronological. Only events this person was actually part of — present at, responsible for, or the subject of — not every event where the name comes up.
Hinckley warns against marriage as a remedy
Gordon B. Hinckley taught that 'marriage should not be viewed as a therapeutic step to solve problems such as homosexual inclinations or practices, which first should clearly be overcome with a firm and fixed determination never to slip to such practices again.' The Church's pamphlet Understanding and Helping Those Who Have Homosexual Problems later stated flatly that 'marriage should not be viewed as a way to resolve homosexual problems' and that encouraging members to cultivate heterosexual feelings 'generally leads them to frustration and discouragement.'
Hinckley states the doctrine of reserves
In 'The State of the Church,' Hinckley named the Council on the Disposition of the Tithes — the First Presidency, the Twelve and the Presiding Bishopric, eighteen men — and stated the two principles: 'One, the Church will live within its means. It will not spend more than it receives. Two, a fixed percentage of the income will be set aside to build reserves against what might be called a possible "rainy day."' He compared it to the food storage the Church asks of families.
Hinckley on the cost of abuse cases
President Hinckley spoke against physical and sexual abuse in the October general conference. At a leadership meeting in Calgary, Alberta, he told local leaders that abuse cases "are costing the Church millions of dollars in lawyers' fees and settlements." The same year a former General Authority, George Lee, pleaded guilty to attempted sexual abuse of a child.
Hinckley reads "The Family: A Proclamation to the World"hinge
President Gordon B. Hinckley read the proclamation publicly for the first time at the general Relief Society meeting in the Salt Lake Tabernacle. Sheri Dew's biography of Nelson records that the general reaction among members was 'almost ho-hum' — in 1995 nothing in it seemed contested. It was later included in a 1997 amicus brief to the Hawaii Supreme Court.
The help line is described publicly for the first time
Reading his interview with Mike Wallace into general conference, President Hinckley answered a question about what the Church was doing to reduce child abuse: "We are doing everything we know how to reduce it. We are teaching our people. We are talking about it. We have set up a course of instruction for our bishops all across the nation. All last year we carried on an educational program. We have set up a help-line for them where they can get professional counseling and help with these problems."
The help line described from the pulpit
In "Personal Worthiness to Exercise the Priesthood," President Hinckley said the Church had "issued publications, established a telephone line where Church officers may receive counsel in handling cases, and offered professional help through LDS Family Services," adding: "Professional counselors, including lawyers and social workers, are available on this help line to advise bishops and stake presidents concerning their obligations in these circumstances." He also acknowledged "some very limited expression of this monstrous evil among us."
Hinckley: 'It either occurred or it did not occur'
In general conference, President Gordon B. Hinckley said: 'Our whole strength rests on the validity of that [First] vision. It either occurred or it did not occur. If it did not, then this work is a fraud. If it did, then it is the most important and wonderful work under the heavens.' He had made the same argument in 1998 and, more starkly, in 1961.
Hinckley on City Creek: 'tithing funds have not and will not be used'
Announcing the downtown redevelopment, Hinckley told general conference that 'tithing funds have not and will not be used to acquire this property. Nor will they be used in developing it for commercial purposes,' and that funds would come from commercial entities owned by the Church 'together with the earnings of invested reserve funds.'
Sources in their own name
Source records in the database whose author line names this person. Each links to the topic that uses it.
"The State of the Church" (April 1991 general conference)
Gordon B. Hinckley
The Church's own stated doctrine of reserves: live within its means, and set aside a fixed percentage against a possible 'rainy day.'
“This Thing Was Not Done in a Corner”
Gordon B. Hinckley
The first public description by a Church president of the abuse help line, one year after it was set up.
Personal Worthiness to Exercise the Priesthood
Gordon B. Hinckley
That the help line was described from the pulpit as staffed by 'professional counselors, including lawyers and social workers,' advising leaders on 'their obligations.'
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