When Spencer Condie was a teenager, he had an image
problem. An aspiring athlete who had two cousins on the University of Utah
basketball team, he realized early on, “I wasn't destined for greatness
in that sport.”
Deciding what should become number one in his life,
however, was a different matter. “If you seek first the kingdom of God
instead of just putting the gospel in your top ten, you can then study
almost any field or be employed in almost any area and still remain faithful
in the kingdom.”
Elder Spencer J. Condie, of
the Seventy, studied many fields, worked in
many areas, and managed to keep his commitment to the gospel his top
priority.
Born on 27 August 1940 in Preston, Idaho, to Spencer
C. Condie and Josie Peterson Condie, Spencer Joel Condie received his patriarchal
blessing shortly after his ninth birthday. “I was too young to appreciate
or even understand it at the time,” he recalls of the experience, “but
it gave me direction that helped me decide what's important in life.”
The opportunity to serve as a stake missionary at
seventeen further directed Elder Condie’s priorities. He went on to serve
in the Southern Germany Mission, from 1960 to 1963, where he became acquainted
with Sister Dorthea Speth, a native missionary from Dresden, Germany. They
married one and a half years after Elder Condie returned from Germany,
a decision he calls, “the wisest I've made. She has been the driving force
behind our family, and to this day I am in spiritual awe of her.”
Elder Condie also attributed to his wife's influence
his ability to put the gospel first during the following years of academic
study that took him from Brigham Young University to the University of
Pittsburgh for a doctorate in medical sociology, and
finally back to BYU in 1969 as a professor of sociology and ancient
scripture. He has been honored as Honors Professor of the Year and as a
recipient of the Karl G. Maeser Distinguished Teaching Award.
“I guess one experience that typifies my wife's example
to me occurred during those early years,” he explained. “One night I came
home at 1:00 A.M. exhausted from working on my dissertation, fell into
bed, and felt a distinct thump on my chest. ‘You forgot to say your prayers,’
she said.”
Elder Condie’s Church service throughout his schooling
and career included work as a Young Men president, as a bishop and a stake
president, and, from 1984 to 1987, as president of the Austrian mission
that included Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, and Greece.
Upon his return in 1987, Elder Condie was called to be a Regional Representative.
Elder and Sister Condie had five children, who were raised
in a home “with many books and no videocassette recorder.”
Elder Condie explained his philosophy about families:
“The gospel must be number one and used in its fulness: scripture study,
family home evening, father's blessings—the whole recipe. Some families
leave out certain ingredients and then wonder why they get chocolate chip
cookies without the chips.”
Elder Condie often told his students, “The gospel
isn't just true, it's vitally important!” His life of service constantly
focuses on that importance, and he has an optimism that stems from an awareness
of what changes the gospel can bring about:
“We saw in the Eastern European countries, especially
in Hungary, the Red Sea virtually part to let the missionaries in. I know
from experiences I've had, especially within the last five years, that
Jesus is the Christ and that God has not ceased to be a God of miracles.”
Elder Condie served in the Second Quorum until 1992
when he was called to the First Quorum of the Seventy where he serves until
this day.
