Longevity and Latter-Day Saint Leaders: As President Nelson Turns 100, These Prophets Lived the Longest
President Russell M. Nelson will become a centenarian on Monday, his 100th birthday, when the church will honor him with a 75-minute broadcast at 4 p.m. MT.
No previous president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has lived longer. He and his predecessors have said age is a feature of church leadership.
“The apostle with the longest seniority in the office of apostle presides,” President Nelson said in 2014. “That system of seniority will usually bring older men to the office of president of the church. It provides continuity, seasoned maturity, experience and extensive preparation, as guided by the Lord.”
For the record, 100 years equals 36,525 days or nearly 52.6 million minutes.
60 Minutes reporter Mike Wallace asked President Gordon B. Hinckley about the age of church leaders in 2008.
“Isn’t it wonderful to have a man of maturity at the head, a man of judgment who isn’t blown about by every wind of doctrine?” President Hinckley said.
In a 1986 talk, President Hinckley described how years of service in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles prepares one who later serves as prophet-president.
“The years pass. He is schooled and disciplined in the duties of his office. He travels over the earth in fulfilling his apostolic calling. It is a long course of preparation, in which he comes to know the Latter-day Saints wherever they may be, and they come to know him. The Lord tests his heart and his substance. In the natural course of events, vacancies occur in that council and new appointments are made. Under this process a particular man becomes the senior apostle” ... and church president.
President Nelson was set apart and ordained as the 17th Latter-day Saint prophet on Jan. 14, 2018, when he was 93 years and 127 days old. That made him the second oldest apostle to become church president, yet his tenure has been notably vigorous.
Here’s a list of the five longest-living prophets since the church’s founding in 1830:
President Russell M. Nelson: 100 years (as of next Monday)
President Gordon B. Hinckley: 97 years and 218 days
President David O. McKay: 96 years, 132 days
President Joseph Fielding Smith: 95 years, 359 days
President Ezra Taft Benson: 94 years, 201 days
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The number of centenarians is growing. U.N. population projections for 2024 estimate there now are 722,000 centenarians around the world. The number has been steadily growing in the United States since 1950, when the Census Bureau estimates there were 2,300 Americans ages 100 and older. That rose to:
37,300 in 1990.
50,500 in 2000.
53,400 in 2010.
80,100 in 2020.
Today, the Census Bureau estimates there are 101,500 centenarians in the United States. Analysts estimate that number will quadruple to more than 400,000 in 2054. Read more from the Pew Research Center here.
Here are some images from President Nelson’s 99th birthday celebration at the Church Administration Building in Salt Lake City in September 2023.
President Russell M. Nelson, celebrating his 99th birthday, poses with his wife, Sister Wendy W. Nelson, and eight of his 10 children. (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
President Russell M. Nelson, celebrating his 99th birthday on Sept. 9, 2023, poses with birthday cards. (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
President Russell M. Nelson sits with his counselors, President Dallin H. Oaks and President Henry B. Eyring, during his 99th birthday party at the Church Administration Building on Friday, Sept. 8, 2023. (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)
