The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church, while the Savior leads The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, through a living prophet ordained by priesthood authority, and whose members are sometimes called Mormons. There are both similarities and differences between the two positions.

To understand the role of a prophet, one must first understand how the highest levels of the Mormon church is organized. At the head of the church is the prophet. He is assisted by two counselors (advisors) who share the workload and are chosen by the prophet himself. No one seeks for the position or campaigns for it. The prophet alone makes the choice through prayer and inspiration. These three, known as the First Presidency, oversee the workings of the worldwide church.

The next level of leadership is the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. They, like the First Presidency, are seen as prophets and they also have an intense workload in helping to lead the church. They are organized by seniority based on how long they’ve been an apostle.

One way in which the Catholics and Mormons differ is in how their highest leader is chosen. For the Mormons, there is no suspense, no voting, and no ceremony. While Catholics watch for smoke to let them know a choice has been made, Mormons already know who will lead them the moment the previous president dies. The process follows an established pattern and offers no surprises.

The first presidency is dissolved at the moment the president of the church dies, and the apostles are then officially leading the church as a body. At this moment, there are generally fourteen apostles, not twelve, since the two counselors are apostles as well, and they return to their place in the quorum. The highest ranking apostle, known as the president of the Quorum of the Twelve, leads the apostles. A meeting is held among the apostles, in which they discuss two options. One is to reorganize the First Presidency immediately. The other is to wait, and allow the apostles to continue leading for a time.

Once the decision is made to reorganize, the new prophet is selected in a unanimous decision by the apostles. The new prophet has always, from the beginnings of the church, been the longest serving apostle, which is why there is no surprise. Everyone knows who to expect, long before the need arises. The prophet chooses his new counselors and the First Presidency is organized and the apostle who has served the longest after the prophet is the new head of the Quorum of the Twelve. If that person was chosen as a counselor, the longest serving apostle not in the First presidency becomes the acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Later, the new prophet will select a new apostle to fill the vacancy in the Quorum.

Prophets have been authorized to speak for God from the earliest days of the Earth. Through Noah, Moses, Elijah, and others, God has communicated the teachings and requirements of His gospel through those chosen by Him.

Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. (Amos 3:7, King James version of the Holy Bible)

When the Church was restored, it naturally required a prophet, and there has been one leading the church continuously since its restoration in modern times.

The prophet is the only person who can receive revelation for the entire church. Each person in the world can, if he or she is worthy, receive personal revelation for his own life and anything he is responsible for, but the prophet alone is given the right to receive it for the church as a whole.

Although the prophets and apostles carry out various administrative duties, their primary purpose is to testify of the Savior. Just as Jesus’ apostles served as special witnesses to Him when He lived on earth, apostles today, and in every generation before and since, are instructed to testify of the divinity of Christ and to teach the people of His mission and His atonement.

Joseph F. Smith, a former prophet, said:

These twelve disciples of Christ are supposed to be eye and ear witnesses of the divine mission of Jesus Christ. It is not permissible for them to say, I believe, simply; I have accepted it simply because I believe it. Read the revelation, the Lord informs us they must know, they must get the knowledge for themselves. It must be with them as though they had seen with their eyes and heard with their ears and they know the truth. That is their mission, to testify of Jesus Christ and Him crucified and risen from the dead and clothed now with almighty power at the right hand of God, the Savior of the world. That is their mission, and their duty, and that is the doctrine and the truth that it is their duty to preach to the world and see that it is preached to the world.” (In Conference Report, Apr. 1916, p. 6; or Gospel Doctrine, p. 178.)

The president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a prophet, seer, and revelator. Each of these terms has a specific meaning attached to it.

Although anyone who is worthy may receive personal revelation, the prophet of the church must be specifically called of God to hold that position. Bruce R. McConkie said:

“Bruce R. McConkie said:

A true prophet is one who has the testimony of Jesus; one who knows by personal revelation that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God, and that he was to be—or has been—crucified for the sins of the world; one to whom God speaks and who recognizes the still small voice of the Spirit. A true prophet is one who holds the holy priesthood; who is a legal administrator; who has power and authority from God to represent him on earth. A true prophet is a teacher of righteousness to whom the truths of the gospel have been revealed and who presents them to his fellowmen so they can become heirs of salvation in the highest heaven. A true prophet is a witness, a living witness, one who knows, and one who testifies. Such a one, if need be, foretells the future and reveals to men what the Lord reveals to him.” (The Mortal Messiah, 2:169.)

A seer is a higher gift than the gift of prophecy. He is one who sees things we can’t see with our natural eyes. This describes Moses when he saw God, for instance. It describes prophets who have seen visions.

A revelator helps people to know of something that wasn’t known before. When a prophet explains a doctrine the people hadn’t previously heard of, he is being a revelator. When Joseph interpreted the dreams of the pharaoh.

The president of the Mormons is all of these things, as well as a witness of Christ and the president of the Church. The prophet isn’t considered holy or divine in any way and he is not worshipped. He is honored and respected, but only God and Jesus Christ are worshipped.

Revelation is how God communicates with us, His children, while we’re away from His presence. There are many different levels of revelation and many different ways it can be received.

No one may receive revelation for a level of gospel structure higher than the one he is called to carry out. For instance, a child who is trying to decide how to overcome his struggles in math class can receive personal revelation to help him with that problem. A mother can receive revelation to help her understand how to care for her children. A leader who oversees the program for teenagers at church can receive revelation to help her know how to best serve the youth in her program. A bishop (the Mormon equivalent of a lay pastor) can receive revelation about how to best meet the needs of his congregation. Each person may receive personal revelation related to his or her own responsibilities in life.

However, only the prophet may receive revelation for the entire church, since that is his sphere of

responsibility alone. Since the very beginning of time on earth, God has utilized prophets to receive and share His messages to His children:

Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. (Amos 3:7)

Revelation is not fortune telling. When Mormons receive revelation from their prophets, it is always about matters critical to eternal salvation, and is predicated on the behavior of the people of the world-not just the Mormons. For instance, when Noah was told to warn the people to repent or they would be destroyed, the warning was sincere and they were given a way to be protected. As a people, they could repent and the storm would not begin. Or some of them could repent and help to build the ark, which would hold anyone who chose to sincerely repent-before the rain began to fall. They chose to do neither, and so they were destroyed. Noah, because of his righteousness, and his family because of him or because of their own worthiness, was saved.

Personal revelation is available to every person who lives on earth and chooses to do what is necessary to receive it. It is not open only to members of God’s church. Those beginning their journeys can rely on the Spirit of Christ and periodic counsel from the Holy Ghost. Later, those who have been baptized and confirmed by a person who has authority from God may receive the gift of the Holy Ghost to be with them at all times, as long as they’re living righteously.

LDS.org, the official website for the Mormons, offers these steps to help people prepare to receive personal revelation:

Pray for guidance. Be reverent. Be humble. Keep the commandments. Partake of the sacrament worthily. Study the scriptures every day. Take time to ponder. When seeking specific guidance, we should study the matter out in our minds. Patiently seek God’s will.

Personal revelation comes through a cooperative effort between man and God. He is always willing to share the truths we need to navigate life, but he also expects us to do our part. Notice that the steps above require us to learn the gospel and then to live it, in order to have enough knowledge to understand the answers given us and to entitle us to the companionship of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost can’t be where wickedness is, so we have to work to be worthy of His presence and have a humble and worthy spirit in order to “hear” the answers we receive.

Joseph Smith, the first prophet of the modern day church, demonstrates the correct procedure for gaining personal revelation. He was, in general, a good person. He wasn’t perfect, of course, but he worked hard, obeyed his parents, and tried to do what was right as far as he understood it.

As the area in which he lived became caught up in a wave of conversions and missionary efforts by many churches, he began to pay attention to the teachings of the various churches. He had a desire to join a church, but was unwilling to make the decision lightly. We’re taught that if we need a specific answer, we should first study the issue out for ourselves. Joseph did this by visiting the churches and the revivals, and thinking through the teachings he learned there. He questioned some of the ministers, trying to understand what they taught and why they all taught different things but claimed that either they alone were right or that all the churches were equally right, even if they contradicted each other. He spent time thinking through (pondering) the problem.

This process was not giving him the answers he needed. He couldn’t figure out how to know which ministers were telling him the truth or how to know which church to join. He turned to the Bible for help. While reading on his own, one day, he found a scripture in the book of James, in the New Testament. James was the brother of Jesus Christ.

James offered logical advice on how to solve this problem. He said, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. (James 1:5, King James version of the Bible)

Joseph realized this was the only way he would ever know what was true. Only God knew for sure. He himself was incapable of making this choice. The realization that we cannot reason out every problem alone and must have help is a part of humility, which is required for receiving revelation. We have to acknowledge that some truths are beyond the scope of our abilities to gain intellectually.

He decided to go into the woods by his home and pray for help with his problem. At this point, he had fulfilled each requirement that was available to men on earth at that time. He was ready to receive personal revelation.

The answer Joseph Smith received-a personal visit from God and Jesus Christ-is not typical of the way people receive personal revelation. A prayer that will lead to dramatic changes in Heaven and on Earth requires a dramatic answer. For most of us, the answers will be quieter and more subtle.

Richard G. Scott, an apostle of the Lord, explained how prayers are answered:

To help each of us recognize answers given, the Lord said: “If you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things.

“Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter?” (D&C 6:22-23; italics added).

The Lord provides further insight by counseling us to study a problem out in our mind and then to ask if it be right: “If it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.

“But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought.” (D&C 9:8-9; italics added.)

It is vitally important to recognize that the Lord also responds a third way to prayer by withholding an answer when the prayer is offered. Why would He do that?

He is our perfect Father. He loves us beyond our capacity to understand. He knows what is best for us. He sees the end from the beginning. He wants us to act to gain needed experience:

When He answers yes, it is to give us confidence.

When He answers no, it is to prevent error.

When He withholds an answer, it is to have us grow through faith in Him, obedience to His commandments, and a willingness to act on truth. We are expected to assume accountability by acting on a decision that is consistent with His teachings without prior confirmation. We are not to sit passively waiting or to murmur because the Lord has not spoken. We are to act.

Most often what we have chosen to do is right. He will confirm the correctness of our choices His way. That confirmation generally comes through packets of help found along the way. We discover them by being spiritually sensitive. They are like notes from a loving Father as evidence of His approval. If, in trust, we begin something which is not right, He will let us know before we have gone too far. We sense that help by recognizing troubled or uneasy feelings.” Richard G. Scott, “Learning to Recognize Answers to Prayer,” Ensign, Nov 1989, 30