Gospel Art Picture Kit
President of the Church, 1945–1951
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George Albert Smith was the fourth generation of his family to serve as a General Authority. He and his father, John Henry Smith, served in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles at the same time—the only time in Church history for this to occur.
He developed a creed that included the following ideals: “I would be a friend to the friendless and find joy in ministering to the needs of the poor. … I would not seek to force people to live up to my ideals but rather love them into doing the thing that is right. … I would not knowingly wound the feeling of any, not even one who may have wronged me, but would seek to do him good and make him my friend. … I would not be an enemy to any living soul” (quoted in Bryant S. Hinckley, “Greatness in Men: Superintendent George Albert Smith,” Improvement Era, Mar. 1932, 295).
He served the youth of the Church as superintendent of the YMMIA for over a decade and as a member of the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America.
He repeated many times these words of his grandfather George A. Smith, for whom he was named: “There is a line of demarkation, well defined, between the Lord’s territory and the devil’s. If you will stay on the Lord’s side of the line you will be under his influence and will have no desire to do wrong; but if you cross to the devil’s side of the line one inch, you are in the tempter’s power, and if he is successful, you will not be able to think or even reason properly, because you will have lost the spirit of the Lord” (Sharing the Gospel with Others, sel. Preston Nibley [1948], 42–43).
Summary
George Albert Smith was the eighth President of the Church. His father, grandfather, and great-grandfather also served as General Authorities. He enjoyed Scouting and camping. He developed a creed that was a guide for his life: “I would be a friend to the friendless. … I would not be an enemy to any living soul.”
Artist, Lee Greene Richards
© 1997 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA
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