Stokes Sounds Off: 1600th Blog Post: BREAKING TEMPLE UPDATE: Groundbreaking for Praia Cape Verde Temple Anticipated in 2019

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Saturday, February 2, 2019

1600th Blog Post: BREAKING TEMPLE UPDATE: Groundbreaking for Praia Cape Verde Temple Anticipated in 2019

Hello again, everyone! I am here with my 1600th blog post written to cover a breaking temple update. I call it an update rather than breaking news because as of yet, it is still subject to official confirmation by the First Presidency. As most who read this blog regularly will recall, so far, the Church has scheduled two temples announced last October by President Nelson for a groundbreaking later this year. New information received today seems to indicate that the groundbreaking for the Praia Cape Verde Temple may be held later this year.

That information is confirmed through consulting the construction status page on the Church of Jesus Christ Temples site. A word by way of a cautionary disclaimer seems appropriate: Until an official announcement is made on this matter by the First Presidency, the groundbreaking for Praia is merely anticipated to be held in 2019, which is not definitive at this point. But in light of the fact that that page of the aforementioned site correctly projected the timing (which was later confirmed) for the groundbreaking of both the San Juan Puerto Rico and Yigo Guam temples, I think official confirmation will likely come about this development within the next two weeks, but possibly less, if all goes well.

This development also serves to illustrate and further support my previously-offered opinion that many of the temples President Nelson announced last year (particularly in October) are going to be on the smaller side of the scale of temple sizes. And if that proves to be the case, then several more of those 12 locations may also have a groundbreaking announced.

I should also note that new information received over the last couple of weeks seems to point to the idea that other temples which were in the queue President Nelson inherited from President Monson may also have a groundbreaking scheduled in the near future. To illustrate what has changed, I will provide again the completely reworked sections of my report for temples that have a groundbreaking anticipated, and announced temples for which more information is needed before they are relocated to that first section. That newly-revised data will be presented in that order.

Preliminary note on groundbreaking anticipated section: During the weekend of February 1-4, with all temples previously listed in the section below having had a groundbreaking officially confirmed, I moved other temples into this category, based on what I know about the imminent likelihood of the timing for their groundbreaking. Most of that knowledge comes from sources I have available for temple information, or from members living in or near the cities of these temples who have knowledge of their status.

Groundbreaking anticipated:
177. Praia Cape Verde Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking anticipated in mid-2019
178. Saratoga Springs Utah Temple: Government approval phase; awaiting official site confirmation and release of artist’s rendering; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2019.
179. Auckland New Zealand Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2019.
180. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Existing institute building and meetinghouse closed on January 27, 2019 in preparation for demolition; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2019.
181. Puebla Mexico Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in late 2019.
182. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; President Nelson visited potential site on April 17, 2018; groundbreaking anticipated in late 2019.
183. Brasilia Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; property fence installed around temple site; groundbreaking could occur in late 2019-early 2020.

Note on announced temples: During the weekend of February 1-4, 2019, I again reevaluated the information I had available, and made further adjustments to this section following the completion of the revision process for the “Groundbreaking anticipated” section. The following estimates represent my best efforts to predict the timing for the future groundbreaking of each of these temples based on what I currently know about them.

Announced Temples (for which sufficient information has me confident enough to venture a general groundbreaking estimate):
184. Greater Manila Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official name announcement; groundbreaking could occur in late 2019-early 2020.
185. Nairobi Kenya Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; media event held June 14, 2017; groundbreaking could occur in late 2019-early 2020.
186. Layton Utah Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in early 2020.
187. Richmond Virginia Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in early 2020.
188. Salvador Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in early-to-mid 2020.
189. Salta Argentina Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; groundbreaking could occur in early-to-mid 2020.
190. Mendoza Argentina Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2020.
191. Phnom Penh Cambodia Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2020.
192. Yuba City, California Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2020.
193. Lagos Nigeria Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2020.      
194. Davao Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2020.
195. Managua Nicaragua Temple: Announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in late 2020.
196. Phnom Penh Cambodia Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in late 2020.
197. Bengaluru India Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; President Nelson toured potential locations on April 19, 2018; groundbreaking could occur in late 2020-early 2021.
198. Cagayan de Oro Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in late 2020-early 2021.
199. Belem Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in early 2021.
200. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in early-to-mid 2021.
201. Russia Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official city and site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in early-to-mid 2021.

It appears that there will likely be a need to again completely redo, revisit, and revise the estimates offered above in both sections as more becomes known. It is wonderful to see how quickly things can change for the temple construction progress of the Church. The data I have at this time indicates that, in addition to the two temple groundbreakings held last month, and also the three for which groundbreakings are anticipated by the end of the first week in May, there are at least 7 others for which I anticipate more information will be provided in the near future, and 2 or 3 more that may also have a groundbreaking occur this year.

I will continue to keep my eyes open for more information in this regard, and will do my level best to pass word of those developments along to you all as I become aware of it. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly-added content, please feel free to subscribe. 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.


12 comments:

  1. Hey James. I noticed you have Phnom Penh listed twice (191 and 196). One of them should be Washington County which is the one missing. Just wanted to make you aware. :)

    Excited to see what other temples will have a groundbreaking announced this year.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you, Eric, for taking time to comment and for alerting me to this error. You are correct that one of them should be Washington County, and given that the Washington County temple is another one in Utah, I have a feeling that may take the first spot. I will remedy that immediately, and I thank you for catching that error.

      As to your comments about which other temples might have a groundbreaking announced this year, I believe we will see President Nelson continuing to methodically clear the current queue from both ends (by which I mean that he will work towards a groundbreaking for the 8 remaining temples that had not progressed to that point prior to the beginning of his prophetic administration, in addition to getting expedited approval for more of the smaller temples, as those would be in the vein of the Yigo Guam and San Juan Puerto Rico Temples.

      In terms of which temples might also have a groundbreaking before the end of 2019, the four Monson-era temples listed above under the "Groundbreaking anticipated" section heading are very likely to see a groundbreaking announced and held soon, along with the other 4 temples in that category, which were announced last October by President Nelson.

      And I cannot in good conscience rule out the prospect that several other temples could have a groundbreaking in the near future as well. Either way, the Church conducting groundbreakings for 5 temples before the end of May (which is what will be occurring this year) means that 2019 was already shaping up to be a big year for such developments, and we may have no idea about just how many others announced by either Presidents Monson or Nelson might potentially have a groundbreaking during this year as well. Perhaps that is part of why the Church got that "prescription" from President Nelson in which he said, speaking in relation to 2018 being an exciting year, "Eat your vitamin pills. Get your rest. It's going to be exciting.

      Since I also believe that clearing the backlog of that queue is more likely to be done than holding another hiatus on the announcement of any new temples this year, then we are certain to see many other temples announced during the two General Conference weekends this year, and I can't wait to see all of that unfold. Thanks again, Eric!

      Delete
  2. Hello again, everyone! Two updates have been reported on temples undergoing renovation. Those updates are for the Memphis Tennessee and Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temples, which, as previously noted on this blog, will both be privately rededicated in one session in May. So what are the new developments? For Memphis, it has been reported that the scaffolding has been removed from around the temple's exterior, and that interior work continues to progress at a steady rate. For the OKC temple, exterior lighting tests are underway, while stone cladding continues on the entrance, and landscaping is progressing.

    I continue to monitor all temple progress and reports of Church news and will bring you all word of those as I become aware of them. My thanks again to you all for your ongoing interest and support.

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  3. Someone found something that was not announced, a subtle change on the online donation form. Under Other, they had the General Book of Mormon Fund along with the Temple Construction Fund, now the Book of Mormon Fund is more hidden and the Temple Construction Fund appears as the only item when you sonate tithes and offerings online. May be another sign that something big is coming.
    that fund sarted less than a couple months after the Nauvoo Temple rebuilding was announced and everyone started trying to contribute to its building and the fund now helps with any temple announced or under construction.

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    Replies
    1. James Anderson, I attempted to reply to your comment earlier, but apparently that reply did not go through. Thanks, as always, for taking time to comment. What you described above appears to be the culmination of a process that began last year. An article (which I may or may not have mentioned here previously), to which I share the web address below, describes how the Church began consolidating the options in May of last year. I include the source below:

      https://www.calledtoshare.com/2018/05/09/perpetual-education-and-temple-patron-funds-removed/

      I find no fault in the information or accuracy of that article. The one thing that remains unclear is whether or not that process began being initiated prior to or after President Monson's passing, but even if President Nelson, as I have theorized before, took action to both initiate and expand those plans, doing so beginning four months after his ordination would have enabled the Church to build up a reservoir of resources for a high number of temple announcements beginning in the October General Conference. With all of this in mind, I am more convinced than ever that something big is coming down the pike. The fact that we have seen/will see 3 Nelson-era temples being built on the smaller side and being able to begin construction more rapidly may be the next of many steps that will accomplish the plans the Lord has prompted him to begin to implement.

      And with that in mind, it makes sense that he would leave it to his apostolic Brethren to give some indication of the extent of those plans, while letting other things we have seen in the last year fall into place, which would give him the ability to confidently go before the Church with that plan and the resources before it in mind. If that turns out to be the case, then it is wise that President Nelson is waiting to detail his plans until he is sure the Church can do it in a fiscally and financially responsible way.

      So perhaps the biggest question of all is, could that occur in April? Maybe, but if he feels impressed to wait longer, that will not surprise me either. Again, James Anderson, my thanks to you for sharing these game-changing insights.

      Delete
    2. Sorry. In the second-to-last paragraph of my comment above, the second-to-last paragraph mentions the phrase "go before the Church with that plan and the resources before it in mind." What I meant to say was "go before the Church with that plan and the resources for it in mind. I apologize for my unintentional typo.

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  4. I wanted to mention here as well a couple of articles from the Church News. Last year, I mentioned President Oaks' attendance at a devotional for young married couples, during which time he explained that the Brethren understand and are aware of the stress and time that the callings of newly-married couple can cause, and that something was coming shortly that would enable them to spend more time together. A few months after President Oaks' remarks, we had the announcement last October of the 2-hour block of Church meetings.

    My purpose in referring again to that is to share that President Oaks recently spoke to another group of young married couples, this time in Chicago, and he addressed those serving on the "frontline" of the changing Church demographic on the subject of how to tell whether information we read about the Church online is reputable or not.

    I count myself among those of the millennial generation, and as such, I am one who relies on a lot of information online to form my opinions. I am one who at least has cultivated the ability to sort out good information from misinformation. And the counsel President Oaks gave to young married couples is pretty much the practice I have used to gain that skill. You can read more about President Oaks' specific counsel at the web address below:

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders-and-ministry/2019-02-04/president-oaks-advice-to-young-married-couples-in-chicago-on-how-to-tackle-faith-threatening-questions-48930

    The questions we face can lead us to doubt what we know, but by taking time to carefully evaluate where the information comes from, and the motivation behind someone sharing that information, we will be better equipped to handle such questions when they arise.

    In other news, a new exhibit at BYU illustrates parallels between the destruction of the Provo Tabernacle and its' preservation as a temple to how souls can be improved, rebuilt, and constructed into something that we may not see as we stand in some of the ashes life throws at us. More on that can be found in the following article:

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2019-02-02/new-byu-exhibition-teaches-souls-can-be-constructed-rebuilt-and-improved-just-like-the-provo-city-center-temple-48907

    Another story demonstrating courage in adversity was shared, and it focused on a blind wood carver who survived the experience of being a prisoner of war (POW) during World War II. That article is also worthy of your time and attention:

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2019-02-03/courage-in-adversity-the-story-of-a-blind-wood-carver-who-survived-as-a-pow-during-wwii-48912

    I continue to keep my eye on all Church news updates and temple developments and will be sure to pass word of those along to you all here through either new posts or comments on previous posts as I receive them. Thanks again, everyone!

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  5. One additional Church news article and a couple of temple updates have been brought to my attention. Here in Orem, Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles addressed a group of students and teachers from the Utah Valley Institute program. Elder Cook focused his remarks on the different counsel Alma the Younger gave his three sons: Helaman, Shiblon, and Corianton, and discussed how to apply that counsel to our lives. You can find a summary of that counsel in the Church News article below:

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders-and-ministry/2019-02-05/4-principles-to-help-latter-day-saints-make-righteous-choices-according-to-elder-cook-book-of-mormon-48932

    The other updates I wanted to share are for two temples currently undergoing renovation. At the Washington DC Temple, interior and exterior work continues to progress at a steady rate. Meanwhile, at the Mesa Arizona Temple, while work to refurbish the exterior walls continues, sections of the roof are being replaced, while footings are being poured and electrical wiring is being run for the new landscaping elements.

    I do continue to monitor all Church news and temple updates on an ongoing basis, and will do my level best to bring word of those to you all here (in either new posts or the comments section) as I become aware of them. In the meantime, at some point tomorrow, i will be back with a new post in honor of Elder Ronald A. Rasband's 68th birthday. My thanks again to you all.

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  6. And the Church's official newsroom just shared the following report on the BYU-Provo devotional address given this morning by Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. A more complete report of that address may be made available via the Church News website later today, and both transcript and video archives of that address will be available in the days ahead. The link to that report follows below:

    https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/elder-soares-remembering-savior-happiness

    Thanks again, everyone!

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  7. As anticipated, the Church News shared a report on Elder Soares' devotional address roughly half an hour ago. You can read more about what he said in his message in the following article:

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders-and-ministry/2019-02-05/how-can-you-keep-the-sacramental-covenant-to-always-remember-christ-here-are-elder-soares-tips-48934

    My thanks once again to you all.

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  8. Praia CV groundbreaking announced for 04 May.

    It's in Europe area which is a shock to me. I thought it was in Africa West.

    For my temple Puebla the Area President looked at a few sites. They are aiming for a groundbreaking at the first part of 2020 and the temple will be a medium sized temple a la Tijuana, Barranquilla, or Concepción. A minimum of 15 stakes and 3 districts will go.

    It is possible that they peel off parts of Hidalgo and Morelos states too.

    For Russia, things are getting worse for the members there. Restrictions are getting more draconian there I honestly do not see how a temple is going to be built there.

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    Replies
    1. Hello, Bryan! Thanks for taking time to comment. Cabo Verde (as it is known to the natives) is an interesting case. Geographically, it is closer to Africa, but the Church (which has somewhat weirdly-drawn boundary lines for all branches, wards, districts, stakes, missions, temple districts, and areas) has always defined that nation as falling within the Europe Area.

      That said, my thanks to you also for the additional information on the Puebla Mexico Temple. I will keep that in mind when molding my thoughts about time-frames in the future (which need to be revisited anyways thanks to some newly-received information which came to my attention).

      As to your comments on Russia, I know from what I have seen that that nation has issues (mostly due to their current leadership), but President Nelson oversaw the work of the Church in Eastern Europe before becoming Church President, and he thereby may have connections to open doors that would otherwise have remained closed. Might that involve a somewhat arduous and lengthy process? Of course, but the Lord has moved in mysterious ways before to deal with similarly restrictive situations in the furthering of His work, and I have no doubts He will be able to do so again. I also have a strong feeling that President Nelson would have never been impressed to announce a temple in Russia unless the Lord had told him that He will open the way for that to occur. It will be interesting to see. But the promise of the Lord (as found in Mark 9) is sure and certain: "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth."

      In this case, that means to me that, if we retain our belief that the announcement of that temple was inspired of the Lord, He will open the way for the promise of a temple to be fulfilled to the Russian Saints. Elder Uchtdorf, who, as a result of his extensive service in Europe, may have some influence in opening such doors as well. It will be interesting to see all of that unfold. Thanks again, Bryan, for taking time to comment.

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