In the LDS understanding, the 12 are special witnesses of Christ. They are "set appart" from the world and elevated ( if you want to use that word) to lead the church after he left the earth. They are given important revelation and in this case personal witness of Jesus and his divinity and the truth of his gospel. How else could they testify to the world that Jesus was risen?
For LDS people, the twelve are essential to the original organization of Jesus Christ's church. We have them today as part of our leadership. We believe that without their special preisthood authority and priesthood "keys" they would be just as everyone else. But they have a special mission and power to perform that mission. For the rest of us, it is up to us to follow them and we can receive our own witness of the truth -- even a personal visit from the Savior if one is worthy of such a sacred experience.
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