General Authority Firsts
| First | Individual | Date | Position | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First second-generation general authority | Joseph Smith, Sr. | December 18, 1833 | Presiding Patriarch | son Joseph Smith, Jr. was President of the Church |
| First non-American general authority | John Gould | April 6, 1837 | president of the Seventy | British subject, having been born in Upper Canada; released on September 3, 1837 |
| First third-generation general authority | John Smith | February 18, 1855 | Presiding Patriarch | father was Hyrum Smith, Assistant President of the Church and presiding patriarch; grandfather was Joseph Smith, Sr., presiding patriarch |
| First fourth-generation general authority | Joseph Fielding Smith | April 7, 1910 | Quorum of the Twelve Apostles | father was Joseph F. Smith; President of the Church; grandfather was Hyrum Smith; great-grandfather was Joseph Smith, Sr. |
| First general authority of Asian descent | Adney Y. Komatsu | 4 April 1975 | Assistant to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles | Joined the First Quorum of the Seventy in 1976; was given emeritus status in 1993 |
| First Native American general authority | George P. Lee | 3 October 1975 | First Quorum of the Seventy | Excommunicated in 1989 |
| First resident of Europe general authority | Charles A. Didier | 3 October 1975 | First Quorum of the Seventy | Native of Belgium; was a member of the Presidency of the Seventy from 1992 to 1995 and from 2001 to 2007 |
| First resident of Asia general authority | Yoshihiko Kikuchi | October 1977 | First Quorum of the Seventy | Native of Japan |
| First resident of the United Kingdom general authority (i.e. resident when called) | Derek A. Cuthbert | March 1978 | First Quorum of the Seventy | |
| First resident of Latin America general authority | Ángel Abrea | 20 March 1981 | First Quorum of the Seventy | Given emeritus status in 2003 |
| First resident of Australia general authority | Robert E. Sackley | April 1988 | First Quorum of the Seventy | transferred to Second Quorum of the Seventy in 1989; died in 1993 |
| First general authority of black African descent | Helvécio Martins | April 1990 | Second Quorum of the Seventy | released in 1995 |
| First Korean general authority | Han In Sang | July 1991 | Second Quorum of the Seventy | released in 1996 |
| First Filipino general authority | Augusto A. Lim | July 1992 | Second Quorum of the Seventy | released in 1997 |
| First Chinese general authority | Tai Kwok Yuen | July 1992 | Second Quorum of the Seventy | released in 1997 |
| First resident of Africa general authority | Christoffel Golden Jr. | April 2001 | First Quorum of the Seventy | Resident of South Africa |
| First black African general authority | Joseph W. Sitati | April 4, 2009 | First Quorum of the Seventy | Native of Nairobi, Kenya |
Read more about this topic: General Authority
Famous quotes containing the words general and/or authority:
“In communist society, where nobody has one exclusive sphere of activity but each can become accomplished in any branch he wishes, society regulates the general production and thus makes it possible for me to do one thing today and another tomorrow, to hunt in the morning, fish in the afternoon, rear cattle in the evening, criticize after dinner, just as I have a mind, without ever becoming hunter, fisherman, shepherd or critic.”
—Karl Marx (1818–1883)
“The government, which is the supreme authority in states, must be in the hands of one, or of a few, or of the many. The true forms of government, therefore, are those in which the one, the few, or the many, govern with a view to the common interest.”
—Aristotle (384–323 B.C.)