The head of the Mormon church Thomas Monson has died aged 90 at his home in Salt Lake City, officials have announced.
‘Mr Monson served as president of the Church since February 2008, and leaves behind a legacy of service and good works,’ a statement said.
‘A successor is not expected to be formally chosen by the Church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apostles until after his funeral.’
Mr Monson spent more than five decades serving in top church leadership councils
Members of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing during the opening session of the two-day Mormon church conference in Salt Lake City in 2014 – Mr Monson provided over a period of huge church growth, much of it outside the U.S.
Mr Monson served as president of the Church since February 2008, and leaves behind ‘a legacy of service and good works,’ a statement said
The job is expected to go to next longest-tenured member of the church’s governing Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Russell M Nelson, as church protocol dictates.
Mr Nelson is 93 and is described as an internationally renowned surgeon and medical researcher. His official profile says he has held ‘numerous positions of responsibility in the Church’.
During Mr Monson’s time as one of ‘the longest-serving apostles in Mormon history’, membership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS) expanded from 2.1 million members to about 16 million. The number of temples grew from 12 to 159.
Based in Utah, half of the LDS membership is now drawn from outside the United States.
Church officials say Mr Monson – a World War II navy veteran – will be best remembered for his individual ministry, ‘a relentless drive to help the poor and the downtrodden’.
Mr Monson spent more than five decades serving in top church leadership councils – making him a well-known face and personality to multiple generations of Mormons.
Commentators say his presidency was characterised by his noticeably low profile during a time of intense publicity for the church, including the 2008 and 2012 campaigns of Mormon Mitt Romney for President.
His most public acts were appearances at church conferences and devotionals as well as dedications of church temples.
A low point in Mr Monson’s ministry came in 2014, when a court case in the UK was brought against him which centred around claims that some of the church’s teachings amounted to fraud and that it sought to raise money by using ‘untrue or misleading’ statements.
But the case, brought by a former follower of the church, was thrown out as an ‘abuse’ of court process.