'Solid, Strong, True'

His greatest contribution I think is defining the nature of deity. He saw the Father and the Son. He spoke with them. They were beings of substance. They were in form like a man. And they could express themselves and he could speak with them. Such an interpersonal relationship. And such a warm and reassuring thing to know the nature of God.

How does revelation come for you--what's the process for receiving it?

Every righteous man or woman is entitled to revelation concerning his own affairs. But, one [the church president] is entitled to revelation concerning the whole church. And I can say that I don't have any question that I have had experiences that I feel were not of my will or understanding, but of direction, impressions, which came from the Lord.

Some of the controversial revelations in Mormon history--banning polygamy, letting blacks hold the priesthood--were those revelations by your predecessors affected by the world around them?

That's the purpose of a prophet. To answer the questions of the times, of the problems [with] which he's faced. You go through the Old Testament, you find that to be the case.

Could you talk about religious intolerance and conflict around the world? It is a difficult age.