The gospel literally changed night to day for Julio E. Davila, sustained April 6 to the Second Quorum of the Seventy.
Before his conversion, Elder Davila was a typesetter who worked many night hours at his printing business in Bogota, Colombia. After he and his wife, Mary, joined the Church, he eventually gave up his nocturnal career in favor of working for the Church Educational System, a mostly daytime job.The gospel brought other important changes that realigned their lives and led to the 58-year-old pioneer of the Church in Colombia to be the first General Authority called from his country.
Elder Davila was also the first Colombian district president, stake president, regional representative and mission president.
His slight build, and 5-foot-7-inch height belie a powerful spiritual presence and unfaltering dedication to his convictions. Graying hair and penetrating eyes complement the imposing presence of this longtime Church servant.
Elder Loren C. Dunn of the Seventy, who served in the South America North Area presidency, said in a recent interview concerning Elder Davila: "While Colombia is undergoing great tensions, Brother Davila portrays the calmness and maturity of outstanding priesthood leaders. He brings a strength and stability to the Church in Colombia.
"Because of these characteristics, he is well-respected among the members of the Church there. He has a demeanor that truly allows him to represent the Church in a most effective way to both members and non-members."
Julio E. Davila Penaloza was born May 23, 1932, in Bucaramunga, Colombia. He lived there only a short time before his parents moved to the resort city of Cartagena, where he was reared. He graduated from high school there, but moved to Bogota to study typography, graphic arts and journalism.
After completing his studies, he was employed as a typesetter. As such, he worked at night and didn't have much social life. His mother cornered him in 1957 and asked, `Why don't you marry and move your life forward?"
"Marry who?" he replied. "I don't have a girl friend."
"What about the young lady next door? She is very nice," she told her son.
"Don't arrange my life," he replied. From then on, however, he paid more attention to the young lady. So much that within a year they were married. It was not only a good match for the pair, but their families seemed to match as well. Eventually, his brother and cousin married two of her sisters.
The young couple lived in Bogota where he later started his own printing business. They had two daughters, Liana and Maritza. Life, however, was rocky with economic stress and other problems inherent in the society.
Ten years after their marriage, the Davilas were visited by missionaries who came knocking on their door.
"My wife was very impressed by them," recalled Elder Davila, "but I was not at home. So the missionaries tried to make an appointment with me. I was not interested in religion.
"They were willing to meet with me in the morning or the evening," he said. "I tried to forget them, but they persisted."
After four months, he relented and agreed to missionary lessons.
"During that time, I felt their love. When they began to teach us, we felt good about the teachings."
The first time the Davilas attended the fledgling Bogota Branch, he was unimpressed. "I began to criticize the meetinghouse grounds because they were very rough," he said. So the branch president, a missionary, assigned him to be supervisor of the grounds.
Then his artistic sense came out and he began to criticize the aesthetics of the landscaping as well.
"So the branch president had me supervise all of the landscaping. This initiated me as an investigator."
During this time, "the missionaries had a lot of patience with me and helped me overcome some difficulties with paying tithing."
They were baptized Aug. 4, 1968. Sister Davila recalled another spiritual experience that day. "The Relief Society president met us at the chapel," said Sister Davila. "She welcomed us, and told me, `Sister, you now belong to Relief Society. We meet on Tuesday and certain Thursday nights for activities. You are cordially invited to attend.'
"It has been marvelous for me, ever since, to be a part of this organization," she said.
Later, he didn't want to be called as a missionary because "I did not want to volunteer myself for missionary work without knowing how to do it."
Instead, he shared the gospel with his family. "After we were baptized, so were our two children, both of our parents, our brothers and sisters and their spouses and their children."
He was first called as branch clerk, then soon became president of the Bogota 1st Branch.
"There were three branches in Colombia at the time," he recalled. "I remember this period with deep feeling. I remember especially the great spirit of sacrifice and dedication of the members. In this period, we had to travel twice each Sunday to the chapel, and none of the members lived nearby. Yet the members arrived on time."
Another thing he remembers is the development of leadership among the early members. "At first we didn't have local leaders - just missionaries. As the Church grew, the leadership was placed in the hands of the local members."
Church membership in Bogota was about 200 at this time, he said.
In 1972 he sold his business and began working part-time for the Church Educational System, helping establish seminary and institute classes among the youth. A year later, his efforts had been so effective that he was hired as the full-time coordinator of seminaries and institutes in Colombia and Ecuador.
The program expanded and he was assigned to also cover Venezuela, Peru and Bolivia. Then, as the program continued to grow, his assigned area narrowed again and he became institute director in Bogota. Then he filled the same job in Quito, Ecuador, and Lima, Peru. By 1976, some 900 youth in Colombia were enrolled in seminary or institute.
In the meantime, he was called as district president in 1971, and then in 1975 as first counselor to the mission president for a year. In 1976, he was called as district president.
On Jan. 23, 1977, the first stake in Colombia was created and he was called as president. At the time, Colombia had nearly 12,000 members and two missions.
Pres. Davila was soon called as a regional representative and later called as president of the Colombia Cali Mission from 1981-84. He served as a regional representative for the second time since then.
His most recent calling came on Friday, April 5, when he and his wife met with President Gordon B. Hinckley. "This calling came as a surprise," exclaimed Elder Davila. "We had no idea."
While the calling wasn't expected, he is well-prepared. "This calling is one of testifying and serving," he said. "Testifying of the veracity of the teachings of the Church, of which I know that Jesus is the Christ, that God lives, and serving by preparing for the Second Coming of the Savior.
"We are teaching the members what their responsibility is."
Elder Davila and his wife are doers of what they believe. During their stay in Salt Lake City, the couple performed temple ordinances for their ancestors, culminating years of research.
"The testimony of this work requires action," he observed. "We were able to do a great deal of work despite the short time that we had."
Other Church members in Colombia are serious about their various responsibilities as well. Because of their actions, the Church in Colombia is well-respected, said Elder Davila.
"We do not have persecution and the government respects the Church very much."
The youth in Colombia are missionary-minded and make up two-thirds of the missionaries in the Bogota, Cali and Barranquilla missions.
"We have a great group of missionaries returning," said Elder Davila. "The youth are very special in that they are marrying among members and their children are being reared in the Church.
"In Colombia, the Church has to gain much more importance to bring about the changes our country needs. It needs to grow also for the expansion of the restored gospel, and the subsequent redemption of the principles of morality."
However, he noted that in Colombia, "The forces of all sectors of the community - religious, political, industrial, professional groups, are uniting to bring back the Colombia that was traditionally peaceful and progressive.
"One thing we look forward to with deep emotion is the construction of a temple in Colombia." He said the temple site that has been selected is very beautiful.
"I do not have one doubt of the truthfulness of the Church, and the origin of the Book of Mormon," he concluded.
"I have a deeply rooted conviction of the mission of Joseph Smith. He was truly a prophet, as is President Ezra Taft Benson. In the conference, I was able to see President Benson closer. It reconfirmed in my heart and my spirit that he is a prophet of God."