Community of Christ President-Prophet Stephen Mark Veazey will retire effective with the church’s 2025 World Conference. The announcement precedes a period of discernment as church leaders and members consider who might be called to fill the office.
Veazey, who will be 68 when he retires, said, “Serving the church has been a labor of love, bringing deep meaning to my life through relationships with members and friends around the world. I believe my decision to retire is timely for me and my family. It also will create opportunities for younger World Church leaders to share their gifts more extensively, which will bless the church.”
Sometime between December 2023 and February 2024, the prophet-president will name the person called through a letter of counsel to be considered at the 2025 World Conference. The person called will be the president-designate and will be associated with the current First Presidency until the 2025 World Conference, May 30–June 6.
Veazey is the eighth president of the church headquartered in Independence, Missouri, USA. He took office June 3, 2005.
Born in Tennessee, Veazey has been a full-time minister in the church since 1983. He was ordained a member of the Council of Twelve Apostles in 1992. In April 2002, he was set apart as president of the Council of Twelve and assigned by the First Presidency as director of Field Ministries. He has brought leadership to church planting ministries and to young adult and campus ministries. His areas of missionary and administrative work included the southern and eastern USA, Africa, and outreach ministries.
Veazey presented Doctrine and Covenants Section 163 to the 2007 World Conference. It clarifies the theology of scripture, the mission of the church, and other ecclesiastical matters.
A short message of inspired counsel was included in the president’s April 5, 2009, address to the church. On April 14, 2010, Community of Christ voted to affirm the counsel as scripture, and it was added to the Doctrine and Covenants as Section 164. Section 165, from an inspired document of Veazey’s, was canonized in 2016.
Veazey holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Tennessee and a Master of Arts in religion from Park College.
His family includes wife Cathleen Henson Cackler, three children and five grandchildren.
Community of Christ is looking forward to its next World Conference, April 22-28, 2023. The church has about 250,000 members in 60 countries.
###
Contact:
Elaine Garrison
Community of Christ
816-960-0014
[email protected]
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Religion News Service or Religion News Foundation.
