Further Update Provided on the Concepcion Chile Temple

Hello again, everyone! I received an update earlier today on the status of the Concepcion Chile Temple. It would appear that the cladding on the temple is nearing completion, that lamp-posts are being installed on the temple grounds, where plants and trees are also being put in. Because this is a significant update compared to what I knew 12 hours ago about this temple, I am still in the process of analyzing all of this and trying to determine how (if at all) these developments will affect the most  recent estimate I offered for this temple's dedication.

Just by way of review, I had voiced my opinion last week that this temple, currently anticipated to be the first new one dedicated next year, might actually have its dedication 3-5 weeks after the Kinshasa DR Congo Temple (with Kinshasa on either August 19 or 26, and Concepcion following on either September 16 or 23). But in light of these newly reported developments, I may need to rethink that.

Also, another factor I will be considering in revising my thoughts about the timeline for future temple-related events is the fact that the Church will not be having the Women's Session one week before the others. With that session and the priesthood session alternating on the same Saturday, that opens the possibility that the First Presidency could (and probably will) opt to have some future temple dedications or rededications on the weekend that would have otherwise been reserved for the Women's Session.

One thing has been made abundantly clear to me in studying the potential future timeline for temple-related events: except for those factors that are dependent on the choices and actions of governmental leaders worldwide or on those working on the construction process for any temples, the Lord is clearly directing how and when temples make progress. Even the weather and climate worldwide is within His control.

And that is amazing to consider. We have heard statements from past and present Church leaders to the effect that each temple dedicated on the earth lessens the power of the Adversary over the hearts of the people of the Lord's Church. The progress that has been made on temples within the last 20 years since President Hinckley announced his revelation to build smaller temples and more than double the number of temples have seen the number of temples go up substantially within that period from just under 50 to almost 160 by the end of this year.

And if Elder Wilson is anywhere near correct in his assessment that 80 or so temple sites under active consideration will be announced within the 15 year time span between late April 2017 and late April 2032, we will be entering another unprecedented era for temple announcements, progress, and dedications.

In that regard, the one thing I can definitively say is that, whatever does happen in terms of future temple progress, to the best of my ability, I will be monitoring all of that and passing it along to you all in future posts.

That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Thanks

Hello again, everyone! I am posting again right now to just say thanks. As many of you know, I was in a bad place on Friday, having been without the medication I needed, not knowing when things would be resolved, or how everything might come together.

I did the post about my need for your prayers, and over the weekend, things normalized quite a bit. I have now determined that, if I am able to continue to use the medication I have access to that is approved, with perhaps an adjusted dosage to compensate for not having the other medication, I will be in a much better place. I have seen the Lord's hand in my life, and I have certainly felt the influence of your prayers in my behalf. Everything happens for a reason.

If nothing else, the one thing that was accomplished was that I was able to determine I am better off without that medication, and I am doing so much better on less medication overall. So, I have reached out to my neurologist's office, explained what I am hoping to do, and I anticipate hearing something from them by the end of the day today or sometime tomorrow.

In the meantime, I found out that there was a lot that has been wrong with me physically for a while now that was probably due to using the medication, and, as it turns out, my frustration over the situation, as expressed to the department head of my neurologist, was the catalyst needed to really allow them to discuss what is and is not working in the current arrangement, and hopefully the situation will be remedied going forward so that none of her other patients in any of her clinics, especially Primary's, will need to go through any of this again.

The long and the short of it is that I see a way forward now where I didn't before, and the Lord is working actively to tie up the necessary loose ends. And if I am able to do what I have in mind going forward, I will be able to get back to a normal life sooner rather than later, something I have not had for a majority of this year. I will try to remember to keep you posted on how all of that is going, though, as I observed earlier, I have been more focused lately on posting about Church and temple news.

That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything that you do.

Input needed on General Conference Predictions: When might new temples and the new apostle be announced?

Hello again, everyone! I will be continuing my post series on potential future temple locations later on this week, but I wanted to ask for input on another element of my predictions for next General Conference. If, as I assume will be the case, new temples and the new member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles are both announced during the next General Conference in April, how and when might that happen? A review of apostolic announcements may be helpful.

In April 1995, President Hinckley's first apostolic appointment (of Elder Henry B. Eyring) was announced during the Saturday Morning session Solemn Assembly, and that was also true in April 2008 for President Monson's first apostolic appointment (Elder D. Todd Christofferson). The other apostles appointed during President Hinckley's presidency (Elders Dieter F. Uchtdorf, David A. Bednar, and Quentin L. Cook) were also all sustained in the Saturday Morning Session, with President Hinckley leading out in just the announcement and sustaining of Elders Uchtdorf and Bednar, and taking the role of leading the entire sustaining of Church officers when Elder Cook was sustained. In like manner, President Monson conducted the sustaining of Elder Neil L. Andersen, his second apostolic appointment, during his opening address in the April 2009 General Conference.

Six and a half years later, because he was reducing the number and length of his addresses, President Monson did not speak until the Priesthood Session of the October 2015 General Conference, but he did authorize President Uchtdorf to mention that three new apostles would be sustained during the conference, and President Eyring led out in the sustaining of those three at the beginning of the Saturday Afternoon Session.

Additionally, in terms of temple announcements, President Monson had also habitually announced new temples during his opening remarks at General Conference, which was true until 2015. The new temples announced in the last three Aprils have all been announced during President Monson's main address during the Sunday Morning Sessions of General Conference.

There has also been a general precedent in place for what has happened at times when Presidents Kimball and Benson were having health-related difficulties. During those times, it has generally been the most senior member of the First Presidency announcing temples.

So, having explained all of this, it is my theory that President Monson will authorize President Eyring to announce and lead out in the sustaining of the new apostle and also announce any new temples at the beginning of his remarks in the Saturday Morning Session, and that that will be reiterated in the Saturday Afternoon Sustaining of Church Officers.

But that's just my opinion. That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Correction: New Stakes in Sierra Leone

Hello, everyone! In a blog post done late last night, I stated that both of the Sierra Leonean districts that were upgraded to stakes yesterday were established less than a year ago. It turns out that this is the case for the Bo Sierra Leone North Stake, but the other, the Bo Sierra Leone West Stake, was established as a district in early November 1991, and not upgraded to a stake until yesterday. I apologize for the unintentional misinformation. In the coming days, analysis of these developments will be done on the LDS Church Growth Blog, among others. In the meantime, I did want to reiterate my firm belief that there is more reason now than ever before to believe that Freetown Sierra Leone will get a temple, and that this will happen sooner rather than later. That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Elder Dale G. Renlund celebrates his 65th birthday today

Hello again, everyone! Last week, I gave a summary on this blog regarding the remaining apostolic birthdays for this year. Among those I mentioned was President Uchtdorf, and I referenced that Elder Dale G. Renlund would celebrate his 65th birthday today. In that regard, the one apostolic birthday remaining this year is that of Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, who will turn 77 on Sunday December 3. That said, let's talk about  Elder Renlund in honor of his birthday today.

Elder Dale Gunnar Renlund was born in Salt Lake City, Utah to Mats Ake and Marianna Andersson, who had emigrated from Finland and Sweden respectively in order to be married in the temple. In view of that, Elder Renlund grew up primarily speaking Swedish (the fact that he did not speak English as a primary language gives him international appeal). In his  teenage years, Elder Renlund lived with his family in Sweden while his father was a building missionary.

Several years later, Elder Renlund returned to Sweden, this time as a full-time missionary. Following his missionary service, Elder Renlund continued his scholastic endeavors at the University of Utah, where he earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry and his M. D. Approximately 3 or 4 years after he concluded his missionary service, he met and married his eternal companion, Ruth Lybbert, who was the daughter of another General Authority Seventy, Merlin R. Lybbert. Elder Renlund went on to do a three-year cardiology residency and a three-year fellowship in cardiology, both at Johns Hopkins University, and served as a bishop while he did so. Simultaneously, his wife was earning her law degree. During that same busy time period, they gave birth to their only child, a daughter, Ashley.

At some point in 1986, Elder Renlund became a professor at the University of Utah. From five years later to the time of his call as a General Authority Seventy in 2009, he served as the medical director of the Utah Transplantation Affiliated Hospitals Cardiac Transplant Program. In 2000, he was also appointed the director of the Heart Failure Prevention and Treatment Program at Intermountain Health Center headquartered in Salt Lake. At the same time, his wife served as a law partner in the firm of Dewsnup, King and Olsen.

In addition to his service as a bishop, Elder Renlund also served locally as ward Sunday School president, high councilman, and as a stake president. From 2000 to 2009, Elder Renlund served as an area seventy. He became a general authority in April 2009, at the same conference Elder Neil L. Andersen was sustained as an apostle.

The August after his call, Elder Renlund began serving in the Africa Southeast area presidency, headquartered in Johannesburg South Africa. He concluded that service by serving as the area president from 2011 to 2014. Just over a year after concluding that service (during which time he served in other general capacities at Church headquarters), he was the third man to be called to fill the three vacancies in the Quorum of the Twelve in the wake of the passing of President Boyd K. Packer and Elders L. Tom Perry and Richard G. Scott. Some have claimed (rightfully so, in my opinion) that since Elder Scott was the last of the three to pass away, Elder Renlund, as the last of the three new apostles called, was the one filling the apostolic vacancy occurring from the death of Elder Scott. Others may disagree on that, as is their right, but I think it fair to say.

Elder Renlund's apostolic call was significant for a few reasons. His call (in conjunction with those of his senior seatmates Elders Ronald A. Rasband and Gary E. Stevenson), made them the 98th, 99th, and 100th members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles called in this dispensation. There have been more men ordained as apostles, but only 100 have served in the Quorum of the Twelve. 

Additionally, and more significantly, Elder Renlund was the last apostle called prior to the announcement on May 23 of this year that President Monson would be stepping back from an active role in Church leadership. President Monson will need to approve the new apostle that will be called to fill the current vacancy (in view of the death of Elder Robert D. Hales), but, as with the times when Presidents Kimball and Benson were in their declining years, the calling, sustaining, and setting apart will be done by one of his counselors (likely President Eyring, though I imagine that President Uchtdorf will be present when all of that takes place).

All of that aside, there was a third aspect of significance in Elder Renlund's call. As most of you are probably aware, at times in the past where 2 or more apostles have been called, tradition is that they will be called, sustained, and ordained according to their age, from oldest to youngest. That tradition, as has been the case a couple of times before, was slightly adjusted, as Elder Stevenson, almost three years younger than Elder Renlund, was called, sustained, and ordained as the senior apostle to Elder Renlund. That kind of thing is not in any way unprecedented, but it is a significant anomaly to note.

That said, it is also significant to me to note that Elder Renlund has only been the junior apostle for two years, and another apostle has passed. This is not at all uncommon. Elder Cook had been the junior apostle for six months prior to the call of Elder Christofferson, and Elder Christofferson had in turn been the junior apostle for a year at the time Elder Andersen was called. I have previously observed the interesting fact that, by the time President Hinckley had served as long as President Monson has (9 years and 9 months or so), he (President Hinckley) had appointed four apostles, and whomever is appointed to succeed Elder Hales will be the sixth apostle appointed during President Monson's prophetic tenure.

I know that Elder Renlund may never read this personally, but for my part, I thank him for his service and wish him all the best on his 65th birthday. I additionally wanted to observe that, since Elder Renlund grew up speaking Swedish and has served as a missionary in Sweden and in an area presidency in Africa, he has had plenty of international experience. Some have observed, as is their privilege to do so, that the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles needs to be more diverse. But the fact is that, to a man, every currently serving apostle has had a wide-scoping amount of experience ministering throughout the world, and, as so many of them have observed, they are called to represent the will of the Lord to the people of the Church, and are called to be apostles to all the world, not just to represent those of different races or ethnic backgrounds.

So while I fully believe that the Quorum of the Twelve will see more apostles born outside the US in the years ahead, it does not in any way break my heart when the Lord feels a need to call someone seasoned through years of service in His Church, over and above filling whatever "status quo" many people feel the Church should be observing.

This has been a wide-ranging post, which has not necessarily stuck to the main objective of honoring Elder Renlund's birthday. Thanks for sticking through all the deviations from the original topic I set out to cover. That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. I continue to keep my eye out for any updated Church and temple news and will pass those along as I am able to after I learn of them. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Small But Significant Progress Reported on Temples Worldwide

Hello again, everyone! With the progress that has been made on temples around the world (which has been seen in small but very significant developments in various locations), I felt a need to devote a blog post to reporting on the latest news in that regard. Let's dive right in to what has changed since I last did a post on such progress (a couple of days ago).

First, I wanted to note that the Church now has 12.39 years within which to get 18 more temples announced, along with the 25 others currently in various stages, if, as I suspect will be the case, the Church has 200 temples by or before the 200th anniversary of its reestablishment. That bumps the average number of temples that would need to be dedicated per year to around 3.5. It should be easy to get that done. After all, as I have said, the Church will add two others within the next 27 days.

And in that regard, I wanted to again reiterate that the Meridian Idaho Temple has now completed its open house process. The cultural celebration will be held this Saturday, with President Uchtdorf presiding at that and at the dedicatory services the next day.

In the meantime, the Church is entering the final week of the Cedar City Utah Temple's open house. Following the conclusion of that (this Saturday), there will be a 3-week period of preparation (which will coincide with the Thanksgiving holiday and within which the First Presidency will hold their annual Christmas devotional), and the cultural celebration will be held on December 9, with the dedication occurring the next day. With that dedication being held for a temple in Utah, I am anticipating it will be widely-attended by Church leadership.

That said, the one notable update on temples currently under construction is that, at the Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple site, rebar is being set for the upper center facade wall. And in terms of temples that are being renovated, the temple in Memphis has seen a completion of the removal of its exterior stone. In Oklahoma City, the process of dismantling the temple continues. I have not heard whether any progress has been made with the Asuncion Paraguay Temple since its closure over two weeks ago, nor have I heard whether or not its design will be similar in concept to what is being done with the other two temples. As soon as I have word on that, I will pass it along.

All of that aside, and while noting that there has not yet been any reported progress on the Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple, and that, depending on what is determined later this month, we may know more about the exact site that will be used by the Church for the Pocatello Idaho Temple. there has been no other progress reported at this time. I will continue to keep an eye on such things and pass updates along as I make them.

That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Two Districts Headquartered in Bo Sierra Leone Upgraded to Stakes; Likelihood Increases for a temple in Sierra Leone

Hello again, everyone! I am posting in the early hours of November 13 (on the same day Elder Renlund is celebrating his 65th birthday; stay tuned later today for a post on that subject) to report that two districts headquartered in the city of Bo in the African nation of Sierra Leone (both of which would have otherwise marked the 1st anniversary of their being established on the 27th of this month) were reportedly upgraded to stakes. Now, before any of you ask, I will not be providing information about the units involved. That is the specialty and privilege of others (such as Matthew Martinich on his excellent Church Growth Blog; I am sure he will be posting a thorough analysis of this later this week, if he has not already done so). What I did want to mention is that this significant development for the nation of Sierra Leone solidifies my opinion that we could see a temple announced there sooner rather than later; with this development alone, a temple in that nation makes sense. I have not forgotten my promise to continue my post series on this blog about the potential temple sites in the other geographical areas of the Church which I have not covered, and hopefully I will be able to get back to doing that later this week.

That does it for this post, Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Open House for the Meridian Idaho Temple Concludes Today/Other Notable Developments

Hello again, everyone! In dealing with my personal crises (as I mentioned in my last post), it slipped my mind that today was the last day for the Meridian Idaho Temple Open House. After tours conclude tonight, the temple will undergo an additional week of preparation prior to the cultural celebration one week from today, and the dedication the day after that. As previously mentioned, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf will be the one presiding at next week's events, and I imagine that Elder David A. Bednar, who is the apostle junior to President Uchtdorf and who, because of his ties to Idaho, presided at the groundbreaking, will be accompanying him. And I imagine that, at very least, Elder Ulisses Soares will be in attendance as well, as he presides over the business of the Church in the Idaho area, and that at least one representative from the Church's Temple Department will also be in attendance, along with perhaps a member of the Presiding Bishopric, as the Temple Department and the Presiding Bishopric both have different roles working with temples undergoing the construction process.

Additionally, I also wanted to note that the Cedar City Utah Temple is entering its final week of tours, which will end on the same day that the cultural celebration takes place in Meridian. A few weeks of preparation will follow, culminating in the cultural celebration (to be held on Saturday December 9) and the dedication the day after that. Utah temple dedications are always widely attended by Church leaders, and I anticipate that this dedication will be no different.

Next, I wanted to report that, if, as I suspect will be the case, the Church will have a minimum of 200 temples in operation by or before the 200th anniversary of the Church's reestablishment, 43 temples will additionally need to be dedicated within the next 12.40 years between today and Saturday April 6, 2030 (which would include 18 new temples that would need to be announced, in addition to being completed during that same amount of time). That works out to just under 3.5 temples per year between now and then.

So, how might that happen? As I have mentioned elsewhere, if the Church stays on track between now and then, there will be, of course, the 2 dedicated during the remainder of this year, 3 or 4 the next year, and 6 or 7 the year after that, And if, as I suspect, several other temples have a groundbreaking within the next two years, then the odds are very good that the Church will continue to complete an average of 3 or 4 temples per year.

Additionally, as I have also mentioned, Elder Larry Y. Wilson stated in late April of this year that the Church was actively considering the feasibility of 80 locations for a future announcement within the 15 years after that. If we assume that no other temples are announced before next General Conference, then the Church would only have 14 years to announce those 80, assuming Elder Wilson is taken at his word, and also understanding that while many (or even most) of these locations may indeed go on to an announcement, some will be replaced with more feasible locations (either one or many, as has been the case previously) and new locations will be added as well, some of which may go on to an announcement and be built while others are stalled in various stages.

So what does all of this mean? The Church will end this year having 159 temples in operation. By the end of 2018, that number will increase to either 162 (most likely) or possibly 163. In 2019, all going well, that number will jump to 169 by the of the year. By the time the Church marks its 190th birthday, there could be a minimum of 170 temples, leaving the Church to complete the remaining 30 in the next 10 years that follow, or just about 3 a year.

It will be interesting to see what happens in terms of that progress. And whatever might occur, you can depend on hearing the latest from me as soon as I can make that happen. That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in all that you do.

Prayers Would Be Appreciated

Hello, everyone! I hope you will all indulge me for a moment as I do a personal post. As some of you may be aware, I have had life-long health challenges, one of which has been pretty severe and significant daily head and bodily pain. I last saw the doctor who monitors that part of my health on the third Friday of last month, and I am scheduled to meet with her again this next Friday. When I tried last month to get a prior authorization processed through my insurance, I was subjected to three weeks of having to live without that medication. There was an issue getting my doctor to complete the process necessary to get that approval. While all of that was very difficult to deal with, one thing it did accomplish was to help me figure out what I could cut out of my daily medication. After three weeks of trying to figure out how soon I would be able to get that medication, I got word from my insurance earlier today that the prior authorization has been denied. The good news is that, if I can get past the symptoms I've been dealing with from not having access to the medication, I could be considerably better off not having to take it. Now that we have word from my insurance that they will not be covering the medication, I assume that they will suggest alternatives that would cover my pain well enough without having to be on a medication that would create additional health challenges. In the coming week, I will need to talk to my doctor, most likely even before the visit Friday, and figure out what the plan will be going forward. If it would be all right for me to ask for it, prayers in my behalf would be appreciated that my doctor and I will be able to figure out the best plan going forward.

I am very much appreciative of the support I get from those who have read my posts here in the past. I am also humbled by the fact that the latest reports about the readership of this blog show that I have gained readers from various countries all around the world. It touches me that the things I have felt a need to "sound off" about, especially those related to the faith I have loved and to which I have been devoted for my entire life, are of interest to so many. In fact, it is because of the faith I have that I have been able to deal with the life-long health issues I have had. The Lord has blessed me abundantly, and my blogging to share information about the faith that has sustained me through so much is a very small way to thank the Man who has experienced vicariously all that I have gone through, am going through, or will ever have to deal with. I hope that this offering on my part, meager though it may be, is an acceptable portion of the infinite gratitude I feel, not just for His having suffered the severest degree of the tribulations I have experienced in the almost 31 years I have lived, but also for blessing me with such an enthusiasm for learning about and passing along the developments related to His Church and kingdom in these latter-days. I know that one day I will stand accountable before Him for the way I have borne such tribulations and have moved along His work, and I hope that in that day, He will find those offerings acceptable. If it can be so, it will all have been worth it.

Thank you again for indulging me in sharing these thoughts with you all, and for your ongoing interest and support. That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless each one of you in all that you do.

Article About Probable Location for the Pocatello Idaho Temple/Further Changes Made to the Announced Temples Section of My Report

Hello again, everyone! Within the last few days, an Idaho news organization ran an article stating that, the Church could still opt to use any one of currently three sites that have been mentioned as potential locations for the Pocatello Idaho Temple, it appears that the location annexed into Pocatello City two days following the long-awaited announcement of that temple may be the best option. Of course, nothing is official until the Brethren make it so, but I thought that was worth mentioning. You can read more about that here. Because it is very likely that will be the location, and also because I needed to do so, I have again revisited the order in which I have listed announced temples on my temple construction progress report. A copy of those changes follows. That does it for this post. Any comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless each one of you in all that you do.

NOTE ON ANNOUNCED TEMPLES: While I once felt confident in projecting potential groundbreaking estimates for these announced temples, on October 28, 2017, I determined that it would be best to simplify this section by listing these temples in their announced order, with the exception of those that are farther along. Then on November 10, 2017, I took another look at new information on these temples and reordered them further. I will keep an eye out for any developments and reorder this list again as often as that becomes necessary going forward. Additionally, where I have felt it would be appropriate, I have provided notes about some of the factors that may affect how soon future groundbreakings will occur. Since we already know that 2018-2020 are going to be busy years for temple-related developments, it would not surprise me at all if, in view of Elder Wilson’s statement referenced above, we have at least ten more announced during that same time, nor would it surprise me if many of the temples in this section progress to a groundbreaking (and perhaps even a dedication) during that time as well. I am keeping an eye on all of this and will let you know once I find out more information.

Announced temples:

171. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Planning and preliminary construction phase; awaiting official site announcement.

NOTE: As previously noted, the contractor for this temple said that a year of preliminary work would be needed prior to this temple’s groundbreaking. If, as previously indicated, that year began in March 2017, this temple could easily have its groundbreaking in the early-to-middle part of next year.

172. Brasilia Brazil Temple: Planning and approval; site inspected by Church engineers on June 21, 2017.

NOTE: This temple is this far up on the list because it has had a site identified and inspected. How soon a groundbreaking might happen is unclear. But since a site has been identified and inspected, it may be sooner rather than later.

173. Greater Manila Philippines Temple: Planning and approval; awaiting official name announcement.

NOTE: As with the Brasilia temple, this temple is in this position on this list because a site has been identified. An official name is anticipated to be announced for this temple at some point in the near future. How soon a groundbreaking might happen is anyone’s guess. But with a site identified already, it may be sooner rather than later/

174. Pocatello Idaho Temple: Planning and approval; probability increases for likely temple site; official confirmation is pending.

NOTE: On November 10, I received word of additional evidence that is indicative that the land annexed into Pocatello two days after its April 2017 announcement would indeed be the location for the temple.  I am keeping my eye on all of this and will continue to pass along any and all updates as I make them.

175. Bangkok Thailand Temple: Planning and approval; awaiting official site announcement.

NOTE: If, as some members have speculated, an existing Church office building is reconstructed into a multi-purpose building that will serve as not only an office building, but a chapel and the temple as well, and if that is confirmed, we could easily see a groundbreaking for this temple sooner rather than later.

176. Urdaneta Philippines Temple: Awaiting government approval and official site announcement.

NOTE: This temple, announced in October 2010, has been subjected to numerous delays. While I hope to see a groundbreaking for it sooner rather than later, there could be more delays in store for this temple. That said, the reports I have received indicate that a site announcement and groundbreaking could occur in short order next year. If that does happen, we could see a groundbreaking sooner rather than later.

177. Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple: Planning and approval; awaiting official site announcement.

178. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning and approval; awaiting official site announcement.

NOTE: While the first Ecuadoran Temple had a 14-year waiting period between its announcement and its subsequent groundbreaking, this temple is not anticipated to take anywhere near that long between its 2016 announcement and whenever its groundbreaking occurs. As with everything else, I am keeping my eye out for devel

179. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Planning and approval; awaiting official site announcement.

NOTE: Shortly after this temple was announced (in April 2016), Elder Kevin S. Hamilton, who presides over the Church in the Africa Southeast Area, stated that a site announcement and groundbreaking would occur in short order during 2017. Since that time, no progress has been made in that regard. Hopefully that will change soon.

180. Belem Brazil Temple: Planning and approval; awaiting official site announcement.

181. Nairobi Kenya Temple: Planning and approval; awaiting official site announcement; media event held June 14, 2017.

NOTE: While the media event is a good initial step for providing information on this temple, in his remarks at this event, Elder Sitati (our native Kenyan GA Seventy, who also has a role as an Assistant Executive Director of the Temple Department (both of which make it understandable that the Church would ask him to represent them for the event), Elder Sitati indicated that it usually takes the Church 2-3 years after an announcement to locate a suitable site (whether owned by the Church or not) plan and conduct a groundbreaking, and start the construction progress. With that in mind, it may be 2019 or 2020 before the groundbreaking occurs for this temple. I hope we will not have to wait that long to have all of that happen for this temple, but time will tell.

182. Saratoga Springs Utah Temple: Planning and approval; awaiting official site announcement.

NOTE: Though Utah temples (particularly those in Utah County) have been known to have a site announcement, groundbreaking, and construction process much more quickly than temples elsewhere, until a site is announced, it has felt wise to have this temple at this spot on this list. As soon as anything changes in that regard, I will pass such news along.

ADDITIONAL GENERAL NOTE: As I have repeatedly emphasized, Elder Wilson stated in late April 2017 that the Church had a list of 80 potential temple sites that are under active consideration for a subsequent announcement during the 15 years following that statement.

Unless the First Presidency elects to do so between now and then, General Conference in April 2018 would be the next opportunity for such announcements. And though not all of the 80 currently on the list will go on to be announced within that time, and while others may be added to that list in the coming years, with 14 years remaining, if anywhere close to 80 temples are announced, that works out to around 6 new temples per year. I am keeping an eye on all of this, and will be sure to post any additional news once I hear of it.