SALT LAKE CITY — Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his wife Sister Susan Gong have tested positive for COVID-19, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced Tuesday.
Elder Gong did not attend the church’s general conference last weekend, presenting his remarks in a prerecorded talk for the international broadcast.
“As shared in general conference this weekend, Elder Gerrit W. Gong was recently exposed to COVID-19 and did not participate in conference in person,” church spokesman Eric Hawkins said. “He and Sister Gong have now tested positive for the virus. Their condition is mild, but they are being cautious and their health is being carefully monitored by doctors.“
Hawkins said the church is taking precautions to keep the coronavirus from spreading among the ranks of its senior leadership.
“The church will follow all appropriate health protocols for contact tracing and will continue to follow health guidelines for this virus to protect church leaders, including self-isolation, as appropriate,” he said. “We continue to encourage all church members to take steps to protect themselves and one another during this global pandemic.”
Elder Gong joined the Quorum of the Twelve in March 31, 2018. His conference talk on Saturday was his sixth as an apostle.
Elder Gerrit W. Gong speaks in a prerecorded message broadcast during the 190th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Saturday, Oct. 3, 2020. Elder Gong did not speak live because he was self-quarantining due to a possible exposure to the coronavirus. The church announced Tuesday that he and his wife, Sister Susan Gong, had tested positive for COVID-19.
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“As we come to trust God, sometimes through pleading in our darkest, loneliest, most uncertain moments, we learn he knows us better and loves us more than we know or love ourselves,” he said. “This is why we need God’s help to create lasting justice, equality, fairness, and peace in our homes and communities. Our truest, deepest, most authentic narrative, place, and belonging come when we feel God’s redeeming love, seek grace and miracle through His Son’s Atonement and establish lasting relationships by sacred covenants.”
He noted that the church’s 16.5 million members live in 196 nations and territories.
“As we increase our faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ; live restored gospel truths and receive sacred covenants; and study, ponder and share about the ongoing Restoration, we participate in fulfilling prophecy,” he said. “We are changing ourselves and the world in a gospel pattern that blesses lives everywhere.”