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To Be a Friend of Christ: The Life of Marion D. Hanks
Marion Duff Hanks (1921–2011) was one of the most beloved and influential leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the twentieth century, serving as a General Authority (senior leader) for forty years. He was also a leader of national import. As a recognized expert on youth, five US presidents appointed him to their President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. Hanks also served as an executive leader of Rotary International and the Boy Scouts of America.
Author Richard Hanks draws on previously unavailable primary sources—journals, correspondence, notebooks, and recordings—to share this first and only authorized biography of his father. Hanks traces his father’s influence as he advocated for numerous changes in the institutional church, including humanitarian efforts, refugee relief services, missionary community service, a focus on mercy for the sinner, and a churchwide emphasis on “coming unto Christ.” A Renaissance man, Duff Hanks felt comfortable mingling with presidents and world leaders and speaking from pulpits and podiums to huge audiences and on television. But he found his greatest joy in assisting the individual, encouraging each in their personal search for happiness. Once, when asked about his goals, he replied, “My strongest desire is to qualify to be a friend of Christ.”
Author Richard Hanks draws on previously unavailable primary sources—journals, correspondence, notebooks, and recordings—to share this first and only authorized biography of his father. Hanks traces his father’s influence as he advocated for numerous changes in the institutional church, including humanitarian efforts, refugee relief services, missionary community service, a focus on mercy for the sinner, and a churchwide emphasis on “coming unto Christ.” A Renaissance man, Duff Hanks felt comfortable mingling with presidents and world leaders and speaking from pulpits and podiums to huge audiences and on television. But he found his greatest joy in assisting the individual, encouraging each in their personal search for happiness. Once, when asked about his goals, he replied, “My strongest desire is to qualify to be a friend of Christ.”
610 pages, Hardcover
Published September 23, 2024
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July 24, 2025
BOOK REVIEW - When I was in 7th grade a special assembly was announced where we would hear from Marion D. Hanks. I didn’t know who he was. Somehow my Dad learned about the upcoming speech and admonished me to pay close attention. I could not tell you what was said but I do remember being totally engaged, which was unusual for me as a 12 year old. “Duff” Hanks was held in high regard in our home. My Dad and Duff were Navy men. I have no idea if they ever met, but I suspect they may have corresponded some. They both seemed to run in similar intellectual, public service, and community service circles.
Seven years later I was on my mission in New York City. My mission president, Roland Wright was a real life war hero and another contemporary of Duff’s. While reading this book I saw the great influence Elder Hanks had on me without me even realizing it. I learned in the book that Frank Miller (NYC Stake President), Dale Dallon (Regional Rep, NY), Earl Tingey (1Q 70), Marlin Jensen (1Q 70), Jeffery Holland (Q12) all of whom I consider to be among my mentors in church matters and life, were students, missionaries, or colleagues of Elder Hanks. After reading this book I see the influence Elder Hanks had on the some of the men that have shaped me.
This work is unequivocally one of the finest LDS biographies I have read, and I’ve read a lot. Elder Hanks was a once in a generation leader. His influence although mostly unknown to younger generations is evident in so many church initiatives and adjustments. He is probably the only mission president in history that has had two of his missionaries called the to the Q12.
Great men and women almost universally are made not born and that greatness is forged in affliction. Duff lost his father at an early age and lived in modest circumstances. Reading the story you can sense how those early afflictions shaped him. He was attuned to injustice, slights, arrogance, and bigotry. The reader sees this quality throughout his life. You see it in his friendship with Len and Mary Hope, black converts from the south who moved to Cincinnati after they were prevented from attending church in Alabama. Sadly the same exclusion repeated itself in Ohio. A young Elder Hanks continued to visit them and hold sacrament meetings in their home.
I have served as a counselor to several mission presidents and as a mission president and was absolutely absorbed by the mission chapters. Starting with his first mission in the Midwest and culminating in his service in England where he faced the monumental task of cleaning up the mess of the baseball baptism era. I was absorbed by his efforts to restore honest and ethical missionary practices in England. I know just a little about what he faced and have the utmost respect for him. His efforts to lead the mission and later the missionary department to focus on feeding the Lord’s sheep rather than counting them proved to be the correct path. The spirit of missionary work as practiced by Elder Hanks should always be prevailing philosophy. Every mission president in the Church should read this book.
Few members of the Church understand the demands placed on the general authorities. The relentless travel schedule, the problem solving, individual counseling and ministry and the exhaustion. My hat is off to Richard Hanks. Few people will understand the family sacrifices induced by those demands. Elder Hanks was called as a General Authority at the age of 32 and received emeritus status 38 years later.
Elder Hanks efforts to move the missionary work needle to include more service and less proselyting has now borne fruit, especially in the now 6 year old Service Missionary program. The Good ship Zion sails on sometimes in fits and starts. But I see Duff as one of the most inspired and forward thinking general authorities in the history of church generally and missionary work specifically.
I conclude by thanking Richard for this extraordinary contribution to the Church and helping me to see the hand of Duff in my own church development.
QUOTES
“Preach the gospel all the time; when necessary, use words.” “If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?”
“Let others impress and confuse—I’ll try and use what is understood. I remembered what was said about a columnist of the time, that he was ‘Captured by his own cuteness.’ I’ve always remembered that.”
As I looked around the room at the Seventies week after week, I was pretty confident that Duff had forgotten more than most of the other Seventies ever knew. —Elder Glen L. Rudd
“You know how to be happy and how not to be happy. Make up your mind and be happy. You know me well enough to know that I am not suggesting that you close your eyes or your mind, or that the road out isn’t always going to be there. I am just suggesting that your highest happiness will be found lifting and deepening and broadening and loving, and not standing on the edge making noise or asking questions that any fool can ask, while others, with maybe fewer answers, are inside doing the work.”
“To those to whom the sorrow of a child unresponsive to parental instruction has come, be comforted. God understands. He knows what it means to have a rebellious son and wayward children.”
In the temple meeting on Thursday, as we discussed the Lord’s return, I found myself wondering if He would have to shave to meet [the general authority] or to attend BYU. I don’t mean to be cynical; I just mean to say our priorities are questionable.”
“Church leaders should not speak unequivocally about equivocal things.”
“Where doctrine is concerned, there is safety in counsel. When the group of apostles offer advice, better take it; where one speaks, consider it carefully.”
“It is difficult to imagine that a few million, in a world of seven billion, can really be God’s only chosen people and heirs of salvation. That’s because they aren’t. One of the most unfortunate misperceptions about Mormonism is in this tragic irony: Joseph Smith’s view is one of the most generous, liberal, and universalist conceptions of salvation in all Christendom. . . . Mormons do not have a monopoly on righteousness, truth, or God’s approbation.”
God does not want His church to seek its strength in mere numbers. We are making that mistake today. . . . [trying] to make Christianity a big thing in a way that will make everybody like it. The result is a “Best-seller” religion, calculated to win a large following. And it does. It builds beautiful statistics. But, this is not the church that was bought with the blood of the Son of God. This is a church that is counting its members instead of weighing them. . . . We ought to be ashamed . . . aping the method of salesmen and showmen, competing for an audience and “counting the house.” This is far beneath our dignity as Christians, for we are serving one whose people are more numerous than the sands on the seashore and the stars in the sky.
Seven years later I was on my mission in New York City. My mission president, Roland Wright was a real life war hero and another contemporary of Duff’s. While reading this book I saw the great influence Elder Hanks had on me without me even realizing it. I learned in the book that Frank Miller (NYC Stake President), Dale Dallon (Regional Rep, NY), Earl Tingey (1Q 70), Marlin Jensen (1Q 70), Jeffery Holland (Q12) all of whom I consider to be among my mentors in church matters and life, were students, missionaries, or colleagues of Elder Hanks. After reading this book I see the influence Elder Hanks had on the some of the men that have shaped me.
This work is unequivocally one of the finest LDS biographies I have read, and I’ve read a lot. Elder Hanks was a once in a generation leader. His influence although mostly unknown to younger generations is evident in so many church initiatives and adjustments. He is probably the only mission president in history that has had two of his missionaries called the to the Q12.
Great men and women almost universally are made not born and that greatness is forged in affliction. Duff lost his father at an early age and lived in modest circumstances. Reading the story you can sense how those early afflictions shaped him. He was attuned to injustice, slights, arrogance, and bigotry. The reader sees this quality throughout his life. You see it in his friendship with Len and Mary Hope, black converts from the south who moved to Cincinnati after they were prevented from attending church in Alabama. Sadly the same exclusion repeated itself in Ohio. A young Elder Hanks continued to visit them and hold sacrament meetings in their home.
I have served as a counselor to several mission presidents and as a mission president and was absolutely absorbed by the mission chapters. Starting with his first mission in the Midwest and culminating in his service in England where he faced the monumental task of cleaning up the mess of the baseball baptism era. I was absorbed by his efforts to restore honest and ethical missionary practices in England. I know just a little about what he faced and have the utmost respect for him. His efforts to lead the mission and later the missionary department to focus on feeding the Lord’s sheep rather than counting them proved to be the correct path. The spirit of missionary work as practiced by Elder Hanks should always be prevailing philosophy. Every mission president in the Church should read this book.
Few members of the Church understand the demands placed on the general authorities. The relentless travel schedule, the problem solving, individual counseling and ministry and the exhaustion. My hat is off to Richard Hanks. Few people will understand the family sacrifices induced by those demands. Elder Hanks was called as a General Authority at the age of 32 and received emeritus status 38 years later.
Elder Hanks efforts to move the missionary work needle to include more service and less proselyting has now borne fruit, especially in the now 6 year old Service Missionary program. The Good ship Zion sails on sometimes in fits and starts. But I see Duff as one of the most inspired and forward thinking general authorities in the history of church generally and missionary work specifically.
I conclude by thanking Richard for this extraordinary contribution to the Church and helping me to see the hand of Duff in my own church development.
QUOTES
“Preach the gospel all the time; when necessary, use words.” “If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?”
“Let others impress and confuse—I’ll try and use what is understood. I remembered what was said about a columnist of the time, that he was ‘Captured by his own cuteness.’ I’ve always remembered that.”
As I looked around the room at the Seventies week after week, I was pretty confident that Duff had forgotten more than most of the other Seventies ever knew. —Elder Glen L. Rudd
“You know how to be happy and how not to be happy. Make up your mind and be happy. You know me well enough to know that I am not suggesting that you close your eyes or your mind, or that the road out isn’t always going to be there. I am just suggesting that your highest happiness will be found lifting and deepening and broadening and loving, and not standing on the edge making noise or asking questions that any fool can ask, while others, with maybe fewer answers, are inside doing the work.”
“To those to whom the sorrow of a child unresponsive to parental instruction has come, be comforted. God understands. He knows what it means to have a rebellious son and wayward children.”
In the temple meeting on Thursday, as we discussed the Lord’s return, I found myself wondering if He would have to shave to meet [the general authority] or to attend BYU. I don’t mean to be cynical; I just mean to say our priorities are questionable.”
“Church leaders should not speak unequivocally about equivocal things.”
“Where doctrine is concerned, there is safety in counsel. When the group of apostles offer advice, better take it; where one speaks, consider it carefully.”
“It is difficult to imagine that a few million, in a world of seven billion, can really be God’s only chosen people and heirs of salvation. That’s because they aren’t. One of the most unfortunate misperceptions about Mormonism is in this tragic irony: Joseph Smith’s view is one of the most generous, liberal, and universalist conceptions of salvation in all Christendom. . . . Mormons do not have a monopoly on righteousness, truth, or God’s approbation.”
God does not want His church to seek its strength in mere numbers. We are making that mistake today. . . . [trying] to make Christianity a big thing in a way that will make everybody like it. The result is a “Best-seller” religion, calculated to win a large following. And it does. It builds beautiful statistics. But, this is not the church that was bought with the blood of the Son of God. This is a church that is counting its members instead of weighing them. . . . We ought to be ashamed . . . aping the method of salesmen and showmen, competing for an audience and “counting the house.” This is far beneath our dignity as Christians, for we are serving one whose people are more numerous than the sands on the seashore and the stars in the sky.
October 18, 2024
Marion Duff Hanks was a hero to my generation. Never called to the Twelve because of his outspoken progressive views but beloved of for his Christ- and love-centered preaching and unending service So many of his causes are now commonplace in the Church; he was just ahead of his time. Every day reading this was a pleasure and uplift - I highly recommend this for devotional and historical reasons.
December 3, 2024
Insightful biography of a well-loved General Authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The younger generation will not remember him, so I am glad this biography is available.
August 19, 2025
I’ve heard of Marion D. Hanks but am just young enough to not really know who he is. I heard a Faith Matters podcast interview with his son and was intrigued in knowing more about this popular figure. The book is a beautiful tribute to his dad and a lovely effort in documenting his life story, but it's dry, very point A to point B. I didn't sense an arc, something that would make me want to get to know him. It was like listening to someone you're not related to just tell their family stories for hours. This book is obviously a huge labor of love for the author and it's wonderful that he documented his dad's stories for the family and the historic record, but I just lost interest after a while. Too bad.
June 3, 2025
I sort of knew who Marion D. Hanks was before I picked up this book, but was constantly getting him confused with Marion G. Romney. But I listened to a podcast with his son, Rich Hanks, the author of this book and knew immediately I wanted to pick it up. I'm so glad I did. Marion D. Hanks is now an example of a person I want to emulate.
Duff - I will call him this because the book does - loved and knew the scriptures. He was deeply committed to the gospel despite being open about his doubts. He saw clearly that there was a difference between the gospel and the church, and he was bold in speaking out against policies he didn't agree with or practices he found ridiculous. He was encouraged several times in blessings to "let his voice be heard." And he did!
In the 1950s when missionary work in England got so out of control that missionaries were baptizing kids without their parents permission, who often didn't even realize they'd been baptized, guess who got called to turn it around? Duff. He shifted the entire focus from "statistics to souls," despite several prominent general authorities not being on board.
He eventually found himself as an assistant to the 12, without ever being an apostle himself, despite people betting he'd be next whenever a member of the twelve died. Who knows - part of that might've been his outspokenness, but his inside-outside position put him in constant contact with the men who directed the church and had no qualms about speaking out when he didn't agree. He struggled mightily with the ban on black people getting the priesthood, AND spoke his mind about it.
He was supportive of women, merciful to those with same-sex attraction, and advocated for programs and policies that were progressive at the time but many of which have been enacted today.
I will say - the book is long, clocking in over 600 pages. I skipped some of the more biographical chapters or sections that I didn't find as interesting (like his time in the rotary club). I would expect no less from a biography written by a son (I heard him tell an interviewer his initial draft was 1500 pages!). I knocked down a star for the length, but honestly they're short sections that read pretty fast.
Mostly, this book gave me hope - that it's possible to be deeply committed to the gospel and stay very much in, all while still struggling with certain principles, speaking out against things in the church that might cause harm, and advocating for different ways of doing things. I recommend!
Duff - I will call him this because the book does - loved and knew the scriptures. He was deeply committed to the gospel despite being open about his doubts. He saw clearly that there was a difference between the gospel and the church, and he was bold in speaking out against policies he didn't agree with or practices he found ridiculous. He was encouraged several times in blessings to "let his voice be heard." And he did!
In the 1950s when missionary work in England got so out of control that missionaries were baptizing kids without their parents permission, who often didn't even realize they'd been baptized, guess who got called to turn it around? Duff. He shifted the entire focus from "statistics to souls," despite several prominent general authorities not being on board.
He eventually found himself as an assistant to the 12, without ever being an apostle himself, despite people betting he'd be next whenever a member of the twelve died. Who knows - part of that might've been his outspokenness, but his inside-outside position put him in constant contact with the men who directed the church and had no qualms about speaking out when he didn't agree. He struggled mightily with the ban on black people getting the priesthood, AND spoke his mind about it.
He was supportive of women, merciful to those with same-sex attraction, and advocated for programs and policies that were progressive at the time but many of which have been enacted today.
I will say - the book is long, clocking in over 600 pages. I skipped some of the more biographical chapters or sections that I didn't find as interesting (like his time in the rotary club). I would expect no less from a biography written by a son (I heard him tell an interviewer his initial draft was 1500 pages!). I knocked down a star for the length, but honestly they're short sections that read pretty fast.
Mostly, this book gave me hope - that it's possible to be deeply committed to the gospel and stay very much in, all while still struggling with certain principles, speaking out against things in the church that might cause harm, and advocating for different ways of doing things. I recommend!
February 2, 2025
A nice biography of a great example. Elder Hanks was most active in the LDS Church a little before my time, so I don’t have personal memories of his talks or teachings. In reading this, I wanted to hear his so-called “progressive” views and how he influenced the church and church leadership for good. That came through very well, and I appreciated the candor and details that were shared. It was nice to hear more about the inside discussions behind some church policy changes, initiatives, and emphases. It was also nice to hear a bit more of the views of various prophets and apostles, and to see their growth in the church, through their interactions with Elder Hanks. Over the years, Elder Hanks’s sense of what needed to happen in the church seemed spot on, and it was great to see the way that so many of the ideas he championed were later adopted. I hadn’t realized all the things he’d had a hand in, from early-morning seminary to refugee outreach. Overall, the biography was interesting and enjoyable, though also lengthy, sometimes folksy in tone, and a bit too self-congratulatory (maybe we didn’t need quite so many praiseworthy letters). Also, I really disliked the way the labels “Blacks” and “Blacks and the Priesthood” were used, as they felt dehumanizing. Despite that, I enjoyed the book, learned a lot, and found many similarities between Duff (Elder Hanks) and my own father, which was fun to discover.
January 16, 2025
This book provides a fascinating look not only at an incredible man but at the not-easy-to-find-out-about internal goings on of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the late 20th century. The book’s subject, Marion D. Hanks, was as high-ranking and influential as a person could be in the church without being named one of the church’s apostles. Unlike many of the church’s leaders, his focus was more on grace and mercy than on following the checklists of church membership, and on a variety of theological issues and behavioral expectations he was decades ahead of his time.
As I read, I couldn’t help but wonder how the church would be different today if he had eventually come the church’s top leader. So many of the issues that raise concerns among the church’s more progressive members — such as how church support is given to humanitarian efforts and how too often the focus can be more on perceived institutional needs than on personal spiritual growth — were ones that were of particular interest to Hanks.
The book was obviously a labor of love, and it does get bogged down at times in a wealth of detail. But it nevertheless is an inspiring account of how one man gave it all to be fully in as a follower of Jesus Christ in a way that transcended the perceived duties of the many church and secular positions that he held.
As I read, I couldn’t help but wonder how the church would be different today if he had eventually come the church’s top leader. So many of the issues that raise concerns among the church’s more progressive members — such as how church support is given to humanitarian efforts and how too often the focus can be more on perceived institutional needs than on personal spiritual growth — were ones that were of particular interest to Hanks.
The book was obviously a labor of love, and it does get bogged down at times in a wealth of detail. But it nevertheless is an inspiring account of how one man gave it all to be fully in as a follower of Jesus Christ in a way that transcended the perceived duties of the many church and secular positions that he held.
January 19, 2025
Words simply cannot express how much this book has meant to me. Reading it has felt like an extended stay in a desert oasis. I don’t remember how I learned about it but I am beyond grateful that I did. I knew that Marion D. Hanks was a leader in the Church but I had no idea of all the ways that he impacted the Church and the world. He was not afraid to go against the grain of culture, and many of the improvements in our culture over the last few decades are thanks to him. His writings on gospel truths and principles are so refreshing and beautiful. His experiences and example of service and leadership caused me to think about my own life and people who have helped me. Even years after passing away, he will continue to bless countless individuals, including mine, after reading his biography. This book and his life has given me more strength and courage to do what is right. Thank you Duff and all who contributed to putting this book together! What a life!!!
October 19, 2025
I loved this biography and wanted to learn more about this remarkable man after listening to a podcast with his son.
What struck me the most was how he exemplified love and kindness to others throughout his life and embraced those who had questions especially those on the margins of our faith.
To Duff, “Open dialogue and discussion of different viewpoints was essential to creating an atmosphere of faith” (p.152).
"It is difficult to imagine that a few million, in a world of seven billion, can really be God's only chosen people and heirs of salvation.
That's because they aren't. One of the most unfortunate misperceptions about Mormonism is in this tragic irony: Joseph Smith's view is one of the most generous, liberal, and universalist conceptions of salvation in all Christendom... . Mormons do not have a monopoly on righteousness, truth, or God's approbation."
He lived St. Francis of Assisi’s maxim, “Preach the gospel all the time, when necessary, use words.”
What struck me the most was how he exemplified love and kindness to others throughout his life and embraced those who had questions especially those on the margins of our faith.
To Duff, “Open dialogue and discussion of different viewpoints was essential to creating an atmosphere of faith” (p.152).
"It is difficult to imagine that a few million, in a world of seven billion, can really be God's only chosen people and heirs of salvation.
That's because they aren't. One of the most unfortunate misperceptions about Mormonism is in this tragic irony: Joseph Smith's view is one of the most generous, liberal, and universalist conceptions of salvation in all Christendom... . Mormons do not have a monopoly on righteousness, truth, or God's approbation."
He lived St. Francis of Assisi’s maxim, “Preach the gospel all the time, when necessary, use words.”
January 4, 2025
Meticulously written, this was fascinating for me, as I remember Elder Hanks being my favorite general authority during my youth. Now that I've read his biography I am even more amazed at
his insight and his unwavering devotion to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
This is a very long book, but worth it for me.
his insight and his unwavering devotion to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
This is a very long book, but worth it for me.
July 10, 2025
Learn how to live!
What a detailed and persuasive account of a remarkable man, ahead of his time in many ways. His insights and philosophy of living and serving are needed in the church and world today. This biography inspires me to be a better neighbor, friend, husband, citizen. So glad this story has been told!
What a detailed and persuasive account of a remarkable man, ahead of his time in many ways. His insights and philosophy of living and serving are needed in the church and world today. This biography inspires me to be a better neighbor, friend, husband, citizen. So glad this story has been told!
July 17, 2025
Marion D. Hanks was just about my favorite GA during my youth and young adulthood. Reading this biography reminded me of why that's so. It's wonderful to see his ideas take form in the present-day church.
This loving biography is written by Elder Hanks's son. It is not analytical. But reading it is still rewarding.
This loving biography is written by Elder Hanks's son. It is not analytical. But reading it is still rewarding.
December 27, 2024
Thorough and engaging biography of the life of this important church leader. Marion Hanks ministry started before I was born, but he was an ever present leader as I grew and matured. I enjoyed learning and was inspired as I read about his life and priorities.
March 11, 2025
This is a great biography of a great man! The world needs more people like Marion D. Hanks, who set an example of kindness, humility and grace throughout his life. I loved learning more about him.
January 18, 2025
A beautiful biography. The title says it best. Duff Hanks was indeed a Friend of Christ and I was inspired and delighted as I read this careful and thoughtful biography by his son.
April 9, 2025
Excellent biography of a great man.
June 3, 2025
A man before his time. Many of the changes that have come about in the church he advocated for well ahead of when they occurred. Thoroughly enjoyed reading the biography of this remarkable man.
July 12, 2025
I can't remember the last time I enjoyed a biography this much. Glad to have my own copy so I could mark it up. Legendary great man. Truly.
August 24, 2025
I appreciated learning much of his forward thinking and his patience when his progressive ideas took a long time to be adopted.
December 5, 2025
Love this book. It has helped me understand the church culture I grew up with in the 1960s and 1970s. I love the church and I am always trying to understand how leadership, obedience, humility, testimony, etc. meet. Marion D. Hanks brought a special love of Christ to all he did. Helps me keep Christ at the center of my life.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews