A. Roger Merrill
Encyclopedia
Ariel Roger Merrill was the general president of the Sunday School
organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 2004 to 2009. He was the nineteenth head of the LDS Church's Sunday School.
Born in Salt Lake City, Utah
, to Ariel Carden Merrill and Edith Horsley, Merrill grew up in Carmel, California and served as a missionary
for the LDS Church the Texas
MIssion
of the church in the 1960s. Merrill married Rebecca Rippy in the Salt Lake Temple
on June 7, 1967; they are parents to seven children.
On April 3, 2004, LDS Church President Gordon B. Hinckley
asked that Merrill become the general president of the church's Sunday School
auxiliary. It was the first time since Russell M. Nelson
was called to hold the same position in 1971 that a person who was not a general authority
of the church had become the Sunday School general president. Merrill asked Daniel K Judd
and William D. Oswald
to be his counselors in the Sunday School presidency. In April 2009 Merrill was released from his position and succeeded by Russell T. Osguthorpe
.
Previous to his call as general Sunday School president, Merrill served as an area seventy of the church.
Sunday School (LDS Church)
Sunday School is an official auxiliary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . All members of the church and any interested nonmembers, age 12 and older, are encouraged to participate in Sunday School.-Purpose:...
organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 2004 to 2009. He was the nineteenth head of the LDS Church's Sunday School.
Born in Salt Lake City, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, to Ariel Carden Merrill and Edith Horsley, Merrill grew up in Carmel, California and served as a missionary
Mormon missionary
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over 52,000 full-time missionaries worldwide, as of the end of 2010...
for the LDS Church the Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
MIssion
Mission (LDS Church)
A mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative area to which church missionaries are assigned. Almost all areas of the world are within the boundaries of an LDS Church mission, whether or not Mormon missionaries live or proselytize in the area...
of the church in the 1960s. Merrill married Rebecca Rippy in the Salt Lake Temple
Salt Lake Temple
The Salt Lake Temple is the largest and best-known of more than 130 temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is the sixth temple built by the church, requiring 40 years to complete, and the fourth operating temple built since the Mormon exodus from Nauvoo,...
on June 7, 1967; they are parents to seven children.
On April 3, 2004, LDS Church President Gordon B. Hinckley
Gordon B. Hinckley
Gordon Bitner Hinckley was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from March 12, 1995 until his death...
asked that Merrill become the general president of the church's Sunday School
Sunday School (LDS Church)
Sunday School is an official auxiliary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . All members of the church and any interested nonmembers, age 12 and older, are encouraged to participate in Sunday School.-Purpose:...
auxiliary. It was the first time since Russell M. Nelson
Russell M. Nelson
Russell Marion Nelson is a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and an internationally renowned cardiothoracic surgeon.-Medical career:...
was called to hold the same position in 1971 that a person who was not a general authority
General authority
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a general authority is a member of certain leadership organizations who are given administrative and ecclesiastical authority over the church...
of the church had become the Sunday School general president. Merrill asked Daniel K Judd
Daniel K Judd
Daniel K Judd was the first counselor to A. Roger Merrill in the general presidency of the Sunday School of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 2004 to 2009...
and William D. Oswald
William D. Oswald
William Duncan Oswald has been a counselor to A. Roger Merrill in the general presidency of the Sunday School of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since 2004. Oswald was also a counselor in the same organization to Russell M. Nelson in 1978 and 1979.Oswald was born in Salt Lake...
to be his counselors in the Sunday School presidency. In April 2009 Merrill was released from his position and succeeded by Russell T. Osguthorpe
Russell T. Osguthorpe
Russell Trent Osguthorpe has been the general president of the Sunday School of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since April 2009. He is the twentieth leader in the history of LDS Church Sunday School. Osguthorpe is also the author of books on education.Osguthorpe has multiple...
.
Previous to his call as general Sunday School president, Merrill served as an area seventy of the church.