Elder David A. Bednar has served as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since Oct. 7, 2004. He was born on June 15, 1952, in Oakland, California, and served as a young full-time missionary in Southern Germany,
Elder Bednar received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Brigham Young University, and a doctorate in organizational behavior from Purdue University. He was a professor of business management at Texas Tech University and at the University of Arkansas and later served as the president of Brigham Young University–Idaho (formerly Ricks College) from 1997 to 2004.
He married Susan Kae Robinson on March 20, 1975, in the Salt Lake Temple, and they are the parents of three sons.
In honor of his 71st birthday today, here are nine quotes from Elder Bednar in the past year.
1. Returning to Arkansas for the temple
“It is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, to come back to a place where we lived, where we thought we would never leave — to be with these people who are such dear friends and to have all of these experiences. It is just remarkable.”
— Leading tour groups through the new Bentonville Arkansas Temple, June 13, 2023
2. No small temples
“There is no such thing as a small temple — they are just temples. There’s no such thing as small covenants or small ordinances.”
— Church News video, April 27, 2023
3. Access to the power of God
“The great blessing is that in a world that grows increasingly dark, … access to the power of godliness, through the covenants and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ is one of the greatest spiritual resources and blessings the members have.”
— Church News podcast, April 25, 2023
4. Abiding in Jesus Christ
“I testify that as we press forward in faith and walk in the meekness of the Lord’s spirit, we are blessed with power, guidance, protection and peace.”
— “Abide in Me, and I in You; Therefore, Walk With Me,” April 2023 general conference
5. Individual blessings from covenants
“The yearning of my heart is that every person participating in this leadership meeting tonight, will come to know by the power of the Holy Ghost that the blessings of making and keeping covenants with the Savior apply to him or her individually, personally and powerfully,”
— Temple and Family History Leadership Instruction, March 2, 2023
6. Change and revelation
“The natural man and the natural woman dislike and avoid change. Men and women of Christ learn to love change and the lessons they learn in the process of being ‘born again.’ One of the fundamental aspects of overcoming the natural man and the natural woman is not resisting change but embracing change and learning from it.”
— Ensign College Q&A, Jan. 31, 2023
7. ‘It is unreasonable to claim that faith in Jesus Christ is unreasonable’
“I comprehensively reject the proposition that the believers at the time of Samuel the Lamanite ‘guessed right,’ that seeing is the best and only way of knowing, and that it is unreasonable that such a being as a Christ should come. In fact, I believe it is unreasonable to claim that faith in Jesus Christ is unreasonable.”
— Devotional at BYU–Idaho, Oct. 30, 2022
8. Individual access
“Each of you individually one by one has access to the blessings of the gospel. Individually and personally, it’s for you.”
— Devotional with the Saints in Switzerland, Oct. 10, 2022
9. A covenant connection with the living Lord
“As we appropriately seek for the spiritual gift of eyes to see and ears to hear, I promise that we will be blessed with the capacity and judgment to strengthen our covenant connection with the living Lord.”
— “Put On Thy Strength, O Zion,” October 2022 general conference
