Madsen was born in
Salt Lake City, Utah. He was the second son of Axel A. Madsen and Emily Wells Grant; his parents were members of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). His mother was a daughter of
Heber J. Grant; she died when Madsen was about two years old. He was raised in the home of his aunt Deseret Grant Doyle and her husband Ashby Douglas Doyle, where his father also resided. This—as well as the home where Madsen had lived previously—were in the
Avenues area of Salt Lake City. Madsen served as a
Mormon missionary in the
New England Mission with
S. Dilworth Young as his
mission president. After his marriage and the start of his academic career, he was called in 1961 to serve as president of the New England Mission. He served in this position until he was replaced by
Boyd K. Packer in 1965. Madsen received his Ph.D. from
Harvard University. He also studied at the
University of Utah receiving his bachelor's degree in speech and master's degree in philosophy. He also studied at the
University of Southern California before being accepted into the Ph.D. philosophy program at
Harvard. Madsen wrote several philosophical theses, including
Four Essays on Love. He also wrote a paper "Are Christians Mormon?", as well as a biography of
B. H. Roberts. While at BYU, Madsen held the
Richard L. Evans Chair of Religious Understanding for over 20 years. He also served as the director of the
BYU Jerusalem Center from 1991 to 1993. Madsen most recently served in the LDS Church as the
patriarch of the
Provo, Utah, Sharon East
Stake. Madsen died at his home on the morning of May 28, 2009, from
bone cancer. Madsen also served as a
stake president of a BYU student stake, with James Fillmore and Dennis Harper as counselors. Towards the end of his service, the stake included 14
wards. During Madsen's tenure as stake president, the stake met in the
Harris Fine Arts Center on the BYU Campus. He encouraged worship services to include inspirational music. Since the stake met in the building with concert halls several stake conferences were held there which included a full orchestra. He asked for and received permission to include brass instruments. During this time as stake president, Madsen also delivered and recorded a lecture series on the
presidents of the LDS Church, from
Joseph Smith to
Gordon B. Hinckley. ==References==