President Uchtdorf: "Encounter at the Empty Tomb"
This page is our own summary. The original belongs to Church of Jesus Christ (Gospel Library); please read it there.
In his Easter talk, President Uchtdorf invites listeners to encounter the empty tomb, know that Christ lives, and share that witness.
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, gave the Easter talk “Encounter at the Empty Tomb” in the April 2026 general conference. The full text is on the Church's Gospel Library. He invites listeners to encounter the empty tomb, understand what it means, and then share that witness.
The women who came anyway
He pictures the women who went to the tomb in the dark, grieving and confused, with unanswered questions. They did not come expecting a miracle, he says. They came out of love and reverence for Jesus Christ, and what they found changed the world.
He lives
President Uchtdorf stresses that the empty tomb means Jesus is not just a figure from history or a traveling teacher. We can speak of Him in the present tense: He lives, and He is an active influence in His Church and in the lives of those who follow Him. Because He overcame death, he teaches, He can help us with any danger, confusion or doubt.
Come and see, go and tell
He notes that the heavenly messengers gave the women two invitations: to come and see, and to go quickly and tell the disciples. That pattern, he says, continues today as the Church's work reaches more than 150 countries. We were not with Mary that morning, but we can ask what we ourselves have seen, felt and experienced, and then become witnesses.
Walk toward the light
He encourages members to step forward in faith even when questions remain, to consider full-time missionary service, and to let consistent acts of love and service speak. Like the rising sun, he says, Christ's light leads through sorrow and uncertainty and back to our Heavenly Father. He closes with his own witness that the Savior lives.
How we wrote this: we read the source page linked above and summarized it in our own words, quoting at most a short line with attribution. We have not added facts from outside that source. If anything here differs from the original, the original is correct.