William Wallace Smith ( – ) was a grandson of Joseph Smith Jr. and

Prophet-President In the Latter Day Saint movement, the President of the Church is generally considered to be the highest office of the church. It was the office held by Joseph Smith, founder of the movement, and the office assumed by many of Smith's claimed succe ...

of 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 ...

(now known as Community of Christ), from October 6, 1958, to April 5, 1978, when he retired to " emeritus" status.

Biography

W. Wallace Smith was born in

Lamoni, Iowa Lamoni is a city in Decatur County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,969 at the time of the 2020 Census. Lamoni is the home of Graceland University, affiliated with the Community of Christ, and the city was the church's headquarters fro ...

, on November 18, 1900, to

Joseph Smith III Joseph Smith III (November 6, 1832 – December 10, 1914) was the eldest surviving son of Joseph Smith (founder of the Latter Day Saint movement) and Emma Hale Smith. Joseph Smith III was the Prophet-President of what became the Reorganized Chu ...

and his third wife Ada R. Clark. Smith graduated from the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus University of Missouri System. MU was founded in ...

in 1924. He entered the ministry of the RLDS Church in 1928 and was ordained an apostle and joined the

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 ...

on April 7, 1947, after the honorable release of John W. Rushton. On April 2, 1950, Smith was called as counselor to Israel A. Smith, his

half brother A sibling is a relative that shares at least one parent with the subject. A male sibling is a brother and a female sibling is a sister. A person with no siblings is an only child. While some circumstances can cause siblings to be raised separat ...

, in the First Presidency, and was replaced in the Quorum of the Twelve by Donald O. Chesworth. Smith died in Independence, Missouri on August 4, 1989.

President of the Church

Smith was the third of his father's sons to succeed to the presidency of the church, assuming the presidency after the deaths of his brothers Frederick M. Smith and Israel A. Smith.

Church Growth

Following a 1960 worldwide missionary tour, W. Wallace Smith's tenure as church president saw substantial overseas growth in the church, especially in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

, and the

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

. Also during his administration, the church saw significant doctrinal and practical changes, characterized by vigorous efforts in ecumenism,

liberalism Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for c ...

and

internationalization In economics, internationalization or internationalisation is the process of increasing involvement of enterprises in international markets, although there is no agreed definition of internationalization. Internationalization is a crucial strateg ...

of the group's message.

The Independence Temple of Zion

The building of temples is part of the overall tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement. For several decades the idea of building of an " Independence Temple of Zion" had been part of RLDS Church tradition.Steven C. Kellogg, "Temples of the Restoration," Saints Herald 118 (September 1971):10-12, 30-31; (October 1971):15-17, 48-49; (November 1971):18-20, 32-34. However, nothing specific had been said or done by the leadership of the RLDS Church for several decades. In 1972, W. Wallace brought the concept to the forefront in a document that called for "defining the purpose and selecting the place for erecting a temple."

Breaking with lineal succession

In 1958, instead of calling Lynn Smith to replace his father in the office of

Presiding Patriarch In the Latter Day Saint movement, the Presiding Patriarch (also called Presiding Evangelist, Patriarch over the Church, Patriarch of the Church, or Patriarch to the Church) is a church-wide leadership office within the priesthood. Among the duties ...

, W. Wallace Smith named

Roy Cheville Roy A. Cheville (October 2, 1897–April 6, 1986) was a religious leader, theologian and educator in the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS Church), which became Community of Christ in 2001. Cheville graduated from ...

to the office, in a break with an

RLDS 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 ...

traditional doctrine of lineal succession.

Retirement

Smith designated his son, Wallace B. Smith as his successor in 1976, and on April 5, 1978, he became the first president of the church to retire to " emeritus" status — all previous presidents had served until their deaths. To ensure a smooth transition, W.W. Smith read a letter of resignation shortly before his son was ordained.

References

Other sources *Richard P. Howard, ''The Church Through the Years,'' Herald House: 1992.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, W. Wallace 1900 births 1989 deaths American Latter Day Saints American leaders of the Community of Christ Apostles of the Community of Christ Doctrine and Covenants people Members of the First Presidency (Community of Christ) People from Lamoni, Iowa Prophet-Presidents of the Community of Christ Religious leaders from Iowa Smith family (Latter Day Saints) University of Missouri alumni