KSL.com story: Hikers evacuated after Ensign Peak fire breaks out

Ensign Peak, a significant LDS historical site here in Utah, broke out in a fire that led to the evacuation of hikers. Click here for details. Thanks.

Church Public Affairs Leader Speaks Out About Kindness Towards Critics

A spokeswoman for the Church who is a prominent part of the Church Public Affairs Department as well as having previously served as a spokeswoman for the governors' office spoke at the annual FairMormon gathering about the importance of kindness and civility in engaging Church critics in public discourse. For a full account of what she said, please click here.

Temple construction update

Some important temple construction developments have taken place, which I have noted on this list. After I give the updated list, I have one more update to announce.

Temple Construction Progress Report (current as of 8/7/16)

Current Temple Status: 150 operating, 16 under construction (5 scheduled for dedication), 11 announced (2 groundbreakings anticipated to be announced soon), 4 undergoing renovation (1 scheduled for rededication).

Dedication scheduled:

151. Sapporo Japan Temple: Open house concluded; preparing for dedication, which is on Sunday August 21, 2016.

152. Philadelphia Pennsylvania Temple: By-invitation tours underway; public open house scheduled August 10-September 9; dedication scheduled on Sunday September 18, 2016.

153. Fort Collins Colorado Temple: Accepting reservations for public open house, which is scheduled August 19-September 10; dedication scheduled on Sunday October 16, 2016.

154. Star Valley Wyoming Temple: Open house tickets available beginning Wednesday August 17, 2016 at 10:00 am; dedication scheduled on Sunday October 30, 2016.

155. Hartford Connecticut Temple: Roofing nearing completion; more scaffolding coming down; landscaping continues; president’s residence progressing; dedication scheduled on Sunday November 20, 2016.

Under Construction:

156. Paris France Temple: Exterior cladding of visitor’s center wing nearing completion; stained glass installation underway; courtyard pavers laid; completion estimated sometime in mid-2017.

157. Meridian Idaho Temple: Angel Moroni placed on July 20, 2016; completion estimated sometime in late 2017.

158. Cedar City Utah Temple: Monument sign installed; completion estimated sometime in late 2017.

159. Tucson Arizona Temple: Scaffolding removed from dome; completion estimated sometime in late 2017.

160. Rome Italy Temple: Interior work underway including some material replacement and rework; completion estimated sometime in the first half of 2018.

161. Concepcion Chile Temple: Exterior walls poured; completion estimated sometime in 2018.

 162. Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple: Foundation poured; forms going up for exterior walls; completion estimated sometime in 2019.

163. Barranquilla Colombia Temple: Pouring the substructure; completion estimated sometime in 2019.

164.  Fortaleza Brazil Temple: Excavation for foundation underway; completion estimated sometime in 2019.

165. Durban South Africa Temple: Site grading and clearing underway; completion estimated sometime in 2019.

166. Lisbon Portugal Temple: Ground broken on Saturday December 5, 2015; completion estimated sometime in 2019.

Rededication scheduled:

33. Freiberg Germany Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication scheduled on Sunday September 4, 2016.

Undergoing Renovation:

8. Idaho Falls Idaho Temple: Closed for renovation; installing marble trim; repainting fence; rededication estimated sometime in early 2017.

41. Frankfurt Germany Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication estimated sometime in mid-2017.

20. Jordan River Utah Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication estimated sometime in late 2017.

Announced:

167. Arequipa Peru Temple: General contractor selected; construction anticipated to begin in October 2016.

168. Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple: Construction preparation phase; plans approved by local government; announcement of groundbreaking pending and not likely to take place until after the Summer Olympics.

169. Urdaneta Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

170. Winnipeg Manitoba Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

171. Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

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

173. Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

174. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

175. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

176. Belem Brazil Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

177. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

Key:

Bolded numbers and text denote temples whose number already exists (for renovations), or is certain due to a scheduled dedication, as well as information that is certain, such as dedication or groundbreaking dates.

Italicized numbers and text denote temples whose number may change based on the order in which future dedications and groundbreakings are scheduled.

Underlined numbers and text denote temples whose number may change based on the order in which their future groundbreakings are announced.

Red text denotes changes from the last posted temple progress update.

Now the unexpected but welcome news. In a news story on KSL about the Rio Olympics, one of the things discussed was the temple announced for Rio. It was stated that the Rio Saints were looking forward to welcoming the commencement of the construction of their temple soon after the Olympics is over. I wanted to post a link to that story, but apparently it's not up online yet. I will keep an eye out for it and do a post about that later.

For now, as always, thanks to you all for your readership and friendship.