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Brigham Young (1 June 1801 – 29 August 1877) was the second President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the architect of the Mormon settlement of the American West. Born in poverty in Whitingham, Vermont, he had only eleven days of formal schooling but became an accomplished carpenter and craftsman. Young joined the Church in 1832 after two years of examining the Book of Mormon, and was called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1835. Following Joseph Smith’s assassination in 1844, Young assumed leadership of the Church and organized the epic westward migration. In 1847, he led the first group of pioneers 1,300 miles across the Great Plains to the Salt Lake Valley, declaring upon arrival, “This is the right place.” Nicknamed “American Moses,” Young supervised the overland trek of 60,000 to 70,000 pioneers and founded 350 to 400 settlements across the western territories. Four days after arriving in the barren Salt Lake Valley, he designated the exact location for the Salt Lake Temple. He established the Perpetual Emigration Fund, which helped some 30,000 immigrants reach America. Despite limited formal education, he founded the institutions that became Brigham Young University and the University of Utah. Young served as the first governor of Utah Territory from 1850. He practiced plural marriage, with at least 20 wives who bore him 57 children. At his death, he was the wealthiest man in Utah. His extraordinary organizational abilities and vision transformed a persecuted religious community into a thriving civilization in the desert.

David Allan Bednar (born 1952) is an American religious leader who has served as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since 2004. Born in Oakland, California, Bednar earned a PhD in organizational behavior from Purdue University. He served as president of Brigham Young University-Idaho from 1997 to 2004, overseeing significant innovations in higher education including year-round enrollment and online learning initiatives. His teachings emphasize covenant-making, the role of technology in hastening the Lord’s work, and the connection between generations in family history work. He has spoken about how hearts turning to family history reflects the prophesied work of Elijah.

Elias L. T. Harrison (1830–1900) was an early Latter-day Saint leader and writer who served missions in Great Britain and contributed thoughtful writings on priesthood responsibility and the nature of godliness. His 1858 essay in the Millennial Star articulated a profound vision of priesthood holders as representatives of God’s spirit and actions upon earth. He taught that ordinations alone do not make one godlike—rather, the priesthood calls individuals to put down evil and embody the virtues of the eternal God. Harrison emphasized that the world is to comprehend God through the lives of those who hold the priesthood. True priesthood, he taught, means becoming images of the living God, blessing and helping the weak and downtrodden until such service becomes natural.

Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772) was a Swedish pluralistic scientist, philosopher, theologian, and mystic. His theological writings describe a detailed structure of the spiritual world and emphasize the importance of useful service. Born in Stockholm to a prominent family, Swedenborg was one of the most learned men of his age, making significant contributions to mining engineering, anatomy, and other sciences before turning to spiritual matters in his fifties. His theological works, including Heaven and Hell , describe the afterlife as a realm of continued activity, purpose, and progression. His emphasis on useful service and continued growth after death has influenced many religious movements, including some aspects of Latter-day Saint thought about the nature of heaven and eternal progression.

Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994) was an American farmer, government official, and religious leader who served as the 13th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1985 until his death. Born in Whitney, Idaho, Benson served a mission to Great Britain and later earned degrees in agriculture. He served as United States Secretary of Agriculture under President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1953 to 1961, the only Cabinet member to serve all eight years of that administration. He taught that God uses people of the earth, especially good people, to accomplish His purposes—a principle reflected throughout history and continuing today. His presidency emphasized the Book of Mormon and its role in bringing people to Christ.