PRESIDENT SPENCER W. KIMBALL — unfazed by disturbance
This remarkable story of the very Christ-like response of President Kimball in the face of rude opposition was reported by Gerry Avant in the Church News of December 31, 2017.
In July of 1975, President Spencer W. Kimball visited the state of Tennessee to hold various church meetings, and also to be honored by the mayor of Chattanooga, Mayor Pat Rose. At an evening meeting held in a downtown theater, Mayor Rose presented President Kimball with a certificate that named him an ambassador of goodwill for Chattanooga. As President Kimball began to respond to this honor, two men in the audience stood and pounded on chairs with broom handles and yelled to the mayor, “Are you going to sell out Jesus Christ to this apostate crowd?” The men were ushered from the theater in short order. President Kimball, with dignity and assurance, remained standing at the lectern during the entire scene. When the auditorium was again quiet, he continued his remarks and thanked the mayor for his kindness. He made no mention of the rude men or their outcries, but calmly proceeded as if nothing had occurred. He praised and complimented the residents of the area for their beautiful city, and expressed appreciation for the growth of the Church in the South. President Kimball was appropriate, dignified, unflappable, just as Christ was in similar circumstances.
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