Upcoming Temple Events (Text in parentheses indicates what the status of temples will be following the event listed):
2017
1. Saturday
March 4—Rio de Janeiro Brazil and Arequipa Peru Temple Groundbreakings
(155 operating; 4 scheduled for dedication; 10 under
construction; 1 rededication scheduled; 2 undergoing renovation; 1 renovation
scheduled; 8 announced. NOTE: Several
other groundbreakings may take place soon.)
NOTE: According to the LDS
Church Temples website, Elder Claudio R. M. Costa, who serves as President of
the Brazil Area of the Church, has been asked to preside at the groundbreaking
in Rio. It is a pretty safe bet that his counselors in the area presidency,
Elder Marcos A. Aidukaitis and Elder W. Mark Bassett, will also be in
attendance along with a representative from the Church’s Temple Department.
However, assignments to preside at groundbreakings have been known to change as
needed. For what it’s worth, when the 10:00 am groundbreaking takes place in
Rio, it will be 5:00 am MST. The groundbreaking in Arequipa will be presided
over by Elder Carlos A. Godoy, President of the South America Northwest Area,
and it is more than likely that his counselors in the area presidency, Elder
Enrique R. Falabella and Elder Hugo Montoya will also be in attendance. While
no specific time has been announced for that groundbreaking, it might be that
the groundbreaking in Peru will be held at 10:00 am Peruvian time, which would
be 8:00 am MST. What is not so likely, however, is that the same Temple
Department representative will be in attendance at both events. It makes more
sense, logically and logistically speaking, to have two different brethren in
attendance at these two events.
2. Sunday
May 21—Paris France Temple Dedication (156 operating; 3 scheduled
for dedication; 9 under construction; 1 rededication scheduled;
2 undergoing renovation; 1 renovation scheduled; 8 announced. NOTE: Several other groundbreakings may take
place soon.)
NOTE: As to who might be asked
to preside at this dedication, previous precedent indicates it may be any
member of the First Presidency (with my vote going to President Uchtdorf, as he
is a European native) or any of the apostles.
3. Sunday
June 4—Idaho Falls Idaho Temple Rededication (156 operating; 3 scheduled
for dedication; 9 under construction; 1 rededication scheduled;
2 undergoing renovation; 1 renovation scheduled; 8 announced. NOTE: Several other groundbreakings may take
place soon.)
NOTE: Since the health of the
brethren remains unclear, it is anyone’s guess who might be asked to preside at
this dedication. I could see three possibilities at this point: President Henry
B. Eyring, a former Ricks College president; Elder David A. Bednar, a former
BYU-Idaho president; or Elder Neil L. Andersen, who is an Idaho native that has
personal ties to the area.
4. Sunday August 13—Tucson Arizona Temple
Dedication (157 operating; 2 scheduled for dedication; 8 under construction; 2
undergoing renovation; 1 renovation scheduled; 8 announced. NOTE: Several
other groundbreakings may be possible soon.)
NOTE: The question of who might preside at
this dedication may not be easy to resolve. Both President Henry B. Eyring and
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf have accompanied President Monson to previous
dedications in Arizona, with the question of who may have actually presided at
the most recent one in Gilbert still being largely unresolved. Technically,
since President Monson was present for at least one of the sessions, and since
all three were under his direction, he presided there. However, with that said,
it appears that President Eyring was the one who read the dedicatory prayer in
the first session, opening the argument that he was the one to preside. For a
similar anomalous situation, I cite the dedication of the Provo City Center Temple,
where Elder Dallin H. Oaks was listed as presiding even though President
Russell M. Nelson was present at the final session, which made him the
presiding authority for that session. If President Eyring does preside at the
previous dedication, it is not unlikely that President Uchtdorf will be asked
to represent the Church at this dedication, especially considering that
President Eyring, an Idaho native, will most likely be the one to preside at
the next dedication in Meridian. Also, the choice of President Uchtdorf makes
even more sense when remembering that he was the one who presided at the
groundbreaking in 2015. It is also not impossible to believe that Elder Lynn G.
Robbins of the Presidency of the Seventy, who oversees the North America
Southwest Area of the Church, under which Arizona falls, might be in attendance
as well.
5. Sunday November 19—Meridian Idaho Temple
Dedication (158 operating; 1 scheduled for dedication; 8 under construction; 2
undergoing renovation; 1 renovation scheduled; 9 announced. NOTE: Several
other groundbreakings may be possible soon.)
NOTE: If President Uchtdorf is asked to
preside at the previous dedication, and given the fact that President Eyring is
an Idaho native, it would make sense if he (President Eyring) is asked to
preside at this one. Another choice could be Elder David A. Bednar, who
presided at the groundbreaking for the temple and was asked to preside at the
dedication of the Star Valley Wyoming Temple, due to his wife’s personal
connection to the area. Yet another option would be Elder Neil L. Andersen, who
is an Idaho native. But the Church has never tapped such a junior apostle to
preside at a temple dedication. It is not out of the question, however. It is
also reasonable to believe that Elder Ulisses Soares of the Presidency of the
Seventy, who oversees the Church’s Idaho Area, will be in attendance as well.
6. Sunday December 10—Cedar City Utah Temple
Dedication (159 operating; 8 under construction; 2 undergoing renovation; 1
renovation scheduled; 8 announced. NOTE: Several other groundbreakings may be
possible soon.)
NOTE: If President Eyring is asked to
preside at the previous dedication, it would make sense if President Uchtdorf
is asked to preside at this one. That said, it would not surprise me either in
any way if Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, a St. George native, is assigned to
officiate at this dedication. After all, for all intents and purposes, the two
are essentially neighboring cities, and it is not at all unprecedented for a
senior member of the Quorum of the Twelve to officiate at a temple dedication.
Whoever does preside, it is a near certainty that multiple apostles may be in
attendance, as has been the usual custom for temple dedications in Utah. It is
not unreasonable to also believe that Elder L. Whitney Clayton, who is the
Senior President of the Seventy and who presided at the groundbreaking, will be
in attendance, along with Elder Craig C. Christensen, another member of the
Presidency of the Seventy, who currently has supervisory responsibilities for
the Utah South Area, within which the temple has been built.
NOTE: A
site announcement is anticipated at some point during the early part of this
year for the Harare Zimbabwe Temple, with a groundbreaking to follow at the
temple site within 4-6 weeks afterward. Additionally, there is a possibility
that we may have any number of additional temple groundbreakings sometime
during 2017. I will keep my eye out for such developments and share those
as I learn of them.
2018
1.
February 1—Oakland California Temple Renovation (159 operating; 8 under construction; 3 undergoing
renovation; 8 announced. NOTE: Several other temple groundbreakings may be
scheduled soon.)
NOTE: The closure of this
temple for extensive renovation was mentioned on the temple’s Facebook page,
though the fact of the scheduled renovation has yet to be confirmed by the
Church. The renovation is anticipated to last at least a year. For that reason,
I anticipate that the renovation might last until mid- or late-2019.
