Francis Henry Edwards (4 August 1897 – 1 December 1991) was a British leader in the

Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. The churc ...

(RLDS Church). Edwards was an apostle and a member of the church's

Council of Twelve Apostles In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Quorum of the Twelve (also known as the Council of the Twelve, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Council of the Twelve Apostles, or the Twelve) is one of the governing bodies or ( quorums) of the church hie ...

from 1922 to 1946 and was a member of the First Presidency from 1946 to 1966.

Early life and imprisonment

Edwards was born to a

Latter Day Saint The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...

family in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

.Paul M. Edwards (1995). ''F. Henry Edwards: Articulator of the Church'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) . During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Edwards, as a

conscientious objector A conscientious objector (often shortened to conchie) is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, or religion. The term has also been extended to object ...

, refused to serve in the

British military The British Armed Forces, also known as His Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, su ...

when conscripted. Having been denied recognition by his local Military Service Tribunal, he was arrested, brought before a

magistrates' court A magistrates' court is a lower court where, in several jurisdictions, all criminal proceedings start. Also some civil matters may be dealt with here, such as family proceedings. Courts * Magistrates' court (England and Wales) * Magistrate's Cour ...

and handed over to the army. At a

court-martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Englan ...

on 21 December 1916 he was sentenced to 112 days imprisonment with hard labour, which he served in

Wormwood Scrubs Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs (or simply Scrubs), is an open space in Old Oak Common located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the borough, ...

. On 30 January 1917 he was interviewed by the Central Tribunal, sitting in the prison, who found him to be a "genuine" conscientious objector, after all, and offered him admission to the Home Office Scheme, whereby conscientious objector prisoners could be released on condition of performing civilian work under civilian control. Edwards was transferred to Princetown Work Centre, set up in the erstwhile

Dartmoor Prison HM Prison Dartmoor is a Category C men's prison, located in Princetown, high on Dartmoor in the English county of Devon. Its high granite walls dominate this area of the moor. The prison is owned by the Duchy of Cornwall, and is operated by ...

, where he remained until the Scheme was wound up in April 1919.

RLDS Church leadership

Edwards immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

to join the main gathering of RLDS Church members in

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

and became a full-time

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

in 1920. On 13 October 1922, RLDS Church president

Frederick M. Smith Frederick Madison Smith (January 21, 1874 – March 20, 1946), generally known among his followers as "Fred M.", was an American religious leader and author and the third Prophet-President of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter ...

selected Edwards as an apostle of the church. Upon joining the

, he was selected as the organization's secretary. Frederick Smith died in 1946 and his brother

Israel A. Smith Israel Alexander Smith (February 2, 1876 – June 14, 1958) was the fourth son of Joseph Smith III and a grandson of Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Israel A. Smith succeeded his brother, Frederick M. Smith, as ...

was selected to succeed him. Israel Smith chose John F. Garver and Edwards as his counselors in the First Presidency. When Smith died in 1958 and was succeeded by his younger brother

W. Wallace Smith William Wallace Smith ( – ) was a grandson of Joseph Smith Jr. and Prophet-President of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (now known as Community of Christ), from October 6, 1958, to April 5, 1978, when he retir ...

, Edwards was retained as a member of the First Presidency.Doctrine and Covenants 145:2
On 18 April 1966, Edwards was honorably released from membership in the First Presidency and replaced by Duane E. Couey.Doctrine and Covenants 148:1–2
At this time, Edwards was officially encouraged to "pursu his talents of writing and teaching".

Author and editor

In 1938, Edwards published the first edition of his ''Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants'', a resource that was updated and republished throughout Edwards's life and is still used today in the

Community of Christ The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. The churc ...

in studies of the church's

Doctrine and Covenants The Doctrine and Covenants (sometimes abbreviated and cited as D&C or D. and C.) is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. Originally published in 1835 as Doctrine and Covenants of the Chur ...

. From 1967 to 1976, Edwards updated the ''History of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints'' to include material from 1896 to 1976, which comprises volumes 5 through 8 of the work.

Family and personal life

On 27 June 1924, Edwards married Alice Smith, a daughter of RLDS Church president

. In 1938, Edwards became a citizen of the United States. Edwards attended

Graceland University Graceland University is a private university with campuses in Lamoni, Iowa, and Independence, Missouri. The university offers degree completion and master's degree programs at satellite campuses in Centerville and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Trento ...

, the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

and the University of Missouri–Kansas City. Today at Graceland University, there is a F. Henry Edwards Chair of Religious Studies.

Publications

*F. Henry Edwards (1932). ''A Study of the Doctrine and Covenants'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1933). ''Life and Ministry of Jesus'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1936). ''Fundamentals: Enduring Convictions of the Restoration'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) econd Edition published in 1948*—— (1938). ''A Commentary on the Doctrine and Covenants: A Brief Historical Treatment of Each Section, Stating the Conditions under which It Was Given, Its Import for the Time It Was Given, and Its Application to the Problems and Needs of the Church Today'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) eprinted and revised in 1986 as *—— (1940). ''Missionary Sermon Studies'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1943). ''God Our Help'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1950). ''Studies in the Life and Ministry of Jesus'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *

Elbert A. Smith Elbert Aoriul Smith (8 March 1871 – 15 May 1959) was an American leader in the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS Church). He was a member of the church's First Presidency from 1909 to 1938 and the Presiding Patriarch ...

, F. Henry Edwards, and Herbert M. Scott (eds., 1951). ''Compendium of the Scriptures Including Texts of the Standard Books of the Church'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *F. Henry Edwards (1951). ''Overviews of Church History'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1953). ''Challenges of the Restoration'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1956). ''Authority and Spiritual Power'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1959). ''The Whole Wide World'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1962). ''All Thy Mercies'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1963). ''For Such a Time'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1965). ''The Divine Purpose in Us'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1975). ''The Joy in Creation and Judgment'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House) *—— (1987). ''The Power that Worketh in Us'' (Independence, Mo.: Herald House)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, F. Henry 1897 births 1991 deaths Apostles of the Community of Christ British conscientious objectors Latter Day Saint missionaries in the United States Community of Christ missionaries English Latter Day Saint missionaries English emigrants to the United States English Latter Day Saints English Christian religious leaders Graceland University alumni Members of the First Presidency (Community of Christ) People from Birmingham, West Midlands University of Kansas alumni University of Missouri–Kansas City alumni Prisoners and detainees of the British military English prisoners and detainees Doctrine and Covenants people English members of the Community of Christ