Elder Patrick Kearon has been called as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Filling a vacancy left in the quorum after the death of President M. Russell Ballard, Elder Kearon, 62, was ordained on Thursday, Dec. 7, by President Russell M. Nelson and the other members of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
After being ordained, Elder Kearon flew to Hawaii, where he is expected to speak today at BYU–Hawaii’s December commencement.
“The call to the holy apostleship is one of witness to the world of the divinity of the Lord Jesus the Christ,” said President Russell M. Nelson, at the time of his call to serve in that capacity in 1984.
“This sacred call is so very daunting and humbling to me,” said Elder Kearon in a statement published on ChurchofJesusChrist.org. “I will need to place all my trust in the Savior as I seek to become what He needs me to be and share my witness of His love and light. The abundance and grace of Jesus Christ have brought immense joy into my life, as well as healing balm in times of trial. I love Him. I will strive to serve Him to the best of my ability.”
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‘I learned the Church is true’
Born in Carlisle, Cumberland, England, on July 18, 1961, Elder Kearon was sustained as a General Authority Seventy on April 3, 2010. He has served as a member of the Presidency of the Seventy since 2017, following five years in Germany as a member of the Europe Area presidency. He was named senior president of the Seventy in August 2020.
First introduced to the gospel while working in Laguna, California, Elder Kearon later met missionaries on the streets of London, England, and was baptized on Christmas Eve in 1987. “I learned the Church is true, that our Savior lives and that we can live joyfully here and hereafter too,” he later said.
You can read more about Elder Kearon’s life and Church service on Church News.