From Deseret News archives:
Thousands gather to say farewell to President James E. Faust
The second counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who died Friday at the age of 87, was eulogized during funeral services in the Salt Lake Tabernacle as a man of deep and profound wisdom with "the mind of a lawyer and the compassion of a church leader."
Church President Gordon B. Hinckley said the goodbye was a challenge. "This is a time of deep emotion, and a difficult assignment for me. I've lost a close friend and a wise and able counselor."
He recalled their early association working as stake leaders in the same part of Salt Lake City. From that point, "I watched him as he progressed up the ladder of church administration. And in 1995, when I was called as president of the church, I knew I wanted him for a counselor."
In those days, President Faust was physically "sharp and bright. He was able to get about without difficulty. Then illness hit him. He had trouble with his back. One thing led to another. He had difficulty walking. He maneuvered that Jazzy like a taxi driver."
President Hinckley recalled President Faust's early days as a farm boy, an athlete and a missionary in Brazil, a place that became so dear he "never got over his love for the people of that nation."
Remembering his many accomplishments, President Hinckley said President Faust was scheduled to participate in the Curitiba Brazil Temple dedication early next year, in the place where he baptized the first LDS family in that nation several decades earlier. "Now none of that is possible. It is all behind us. For him it will simply not be."
"His death was a terrible surprise. We miss him terribly. As we meet as a presidency I look to my right expecting to see him and he is not there."
President Hinckley called President Faust's faith "unflagging. There was no doubt in his mind concerning the prophetic calling of Joseph Smith." He called President Faust's most recent General Conference talk on forgiveness "a masterpiece, which will long be remembered."
He credited Ruth Faust and their children for being a "credit to his name."
"Peace be to his memory. All of us are the richer for our association with him. May his memory remain with us to comfort and guide us."
President Thomas S. Monson, first counselor in the First Presidency, said, "Jim knew the Lord, and the Lord knew Jim. I have a firm testimony of this truth."
While not born to worldly wealth, President Monson said, "(President Faust) came from a home where love prevailed."
