Goodbye President Hinckley

Although the passing of President Gordon B. Hinckley was a little bit of a shock, I'm having a hard time feeling sad. For myself as a disciple, for the church as a whole, or even for his family.

Myself, I have lived grateful for his teachings for many years, and thankful that his media savvy has helped make it more "acceptable" to be Mormon. I have felt hugely blessed to have been alive during his tenure as prophet. But I can say that about each of the men who have served as prophet during my lifetime. I still remember going to see Spencer W. Kimball speak at the Hill Cumorah when I was 6 years old and feeling the warmth and love he radiated. During the years when I was reading the Book of Mormon for the first time, and then starting to understand how to apply it to myself, Ezra Taft Benson's teachings were exactly what I needed. And although his time as prophet was short, Howard W. Hunter's counsel on being temple-worthy while I was struggling through the social minefield of high school was particularly timely. So I can only look forward to what I will have the opportunity to learn from the next prophet.

The church will mourn, obviously, but then will get back up and move forward. It's one of the amazing things about how we are organized. Because we experience leadership changes on smaller levels relatively frequently (stake leaders, bishops, auxiliary presidencies, etc.), we understand that the church and it's teachings are the same, no matter who is leading us. Ultimately, Jesus Christ is the head of the church, and he is unchanging.

President Hinckley's family is the group that maybe I should feel sorry for. They have lost their patriarch. But not only do they know that they will be with him again, I'm sure that none of them begrudge him the chance to rejoin his wife. It makes me smile to think of how their reunion must have been.

I guess that is the ultimate reason I just can't be sad. I am so happy for our dear prophet. He finally has the opportunity to rest. He has earned his reward. And he is back in the arms of his love.

Goodbye President Hinckley. Thank you.