In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Council of the Church is the supreme governing body of the church which holds the power to make the final decision on any spiritual matter that will affect any member of the church. Its existence and status are uncertain and controversial, and the body has not been formally convened since the presidency of John Taylor. The Council of the Church is sometimes confused with the Common Council of the Church

Common Council of the Church

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Common Council of the Church is a body of the church that has the power to discipline or remove the President of the Church or one of his counselors in the First Presidency due to misbehavior. Its existence and status are uncertain and...

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Origin

The council was first spoken of in a revelation

Revelation (Latter Day Saints)

Latter Day Saints teach that the Latter Day Saint movement began with a Revelation from God . They also teach that revelation is the foundation of the church established by Jesus Christ and that it remains an essential element of His true church today...

 that was given to Joseph Smith, Jr. on March 28, 1835:

[T]he most important business of the church, and the most difficult cases of the church, inasmuch as there is not satisfaction upon the decision of the bishop of judges, it shall be handed over and carried up unto the council of the church, before the Presidency of the High Priesthood. And the Presidency of the High Priesthood shall have power to call other high priests, even twelve, to assist as counselors; and thus the Presidency of the High Priesthood and its counselors shall have power to decide upon testimony according to the laws of the church. ... [T]his is the highest council of the church of God, and a final decision upon controversies in spiritual matters. There is not any person belonging to the church who is exempt from this council of the church.

History

When the council has been convened, it has usually been composed of the First Presidency

First Presidency (LDS Church)

The First Presidency is the presiding or governing body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . It is composed of the President of the Church and his counselors. The First Presidency currently consists of President Thomas S. Monson and his two counselors, Henry B...

 of the church and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. However, the council has been convened with non-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...

 high priests serving as the twelve counselors at least once.

The council in the church today

The Council of the Church has not been formally convened in the church for many years. For this reason, few Latter-day Saints have heard of the council or are familiar with its potential powers. However, in the church today, the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles hold weekly combined meetings 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,...

. This meeting acts in the church as the de facto highest governing council. Thus, the joint meetings of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles may be said to be the de facto, if not the de jure, Council of the Church.