Hello again, everyone! I wanted to provide a brief personal update, along with sharing some additional Church news and some temple developments which have crossed my radar recently. First, the personal update. At a doctor's appointment towards the end of last month, my wife, my doctor, and I determined that I have received the maximum benefit I am going to get from the pain medication I have been on for over a decade. I am in the process of tapering off of that medication.
In the meantime, I am also in the process of making a switch with the medication I have been on for anxiety and depression, which has presented an additional challenge for me. But I also had a consult with another of my doctors yesterday, and we determined to go ahead with a procedure I have needed but have been avoiding. I have tentatively planned to have that same-day procedure done in mid-April. So my physical and mental health have been challenged recently with all of that going on.
And for that reason, I wanted to again throw out an apology to any of you (especially first-time or recently-returning readers) if what I have said or the way I have said it has come across as abrupt, rude, or with a seeming lack of compassion, tact, understanding, or courtesy. It will be rough going for me for a while with that going on, but my blogging has provided a source of release for the many stresses I am currently under, and my enthusiasm for reporting the subject matter I have continued to cover on this blog is as strong as it ever has been.
Having indulged that personal moment, I'd like to move on to cover recent temple updates and Church news that has been reported. Today marks both the final day for the Rome Italy Temple dedication, and the first day of public tours for the Kinshasa DR Congo Temple. I have mentioned before my theory that President Nelson could (and likely will) head out on another leg of his Global Ministry Tour within the week following General Conference next month, and that this temple dedication could mark either the start, mid-point, or conclusion of that tour.
In the meantime, a report has come in demonstrating that demolition is underway on the Trujillo Alto Ward chapel, as the Church prepares the ground on which it stands for a new meetinghouse that will be adjacent to the San Juan Puerto Rico Temple, which is 1 of the 3 temples set to have a groundbreaking on Saturday May 4. It is wonderful to see the day-to-day milestones of temple construction progress which have been occurring of late.
Turning in conclusion to Church news items, more articles and coverage have been provided for the Rome Italy Temple, including more videos, a copy of the dedicatory prayer, and some additional context into the circumstances leading up to the Rome Italy Temple dedication which has been held over the last 4-5 days. The Church has released a look at the Kinshasa temple in pictures, biographies of more newly-called mission presidents, and some suggestions from the Sunday School General Presidency about how to effectively teach from General Conference messages (which is the prescribed curriculum for Priesthood and Relief Society on the 2nd and 4th Sundays of each month). Catch those articles via the Church News website.
And more coverage of the Rome Italy Temple, the Kinshasa open house, and other developments can be found on the Church's official Newsroom, which includes the release of a new video featuring the apostles in reverse seniority order reading portions of the Living Christ. As most of you may recall, that document was released by the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve in 2000, in honor of the birth of the Savior "two millenia ago".
The most significant thing about that (aside from prophets, seers, and revelators quoting such scripture as if it were their own words) was that only 5 of the apostles who originally signed that joint apostolic testimony are still living. In the almost-2-decades that have passed between then and now, the apostolic Quorums have seen a 66.667% turnover. I am not sure how that compares in terms of other 20-year periods, but it is significant enough a circumstance to bear mentioning here.
I continue to monitor any and all Church news and temple developments, and will do my level best to keep bringing word of such things to you 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.
Tuesday, March 12, 2019
Personal Update/Additional Church News and Temple Developments Reported
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
4 comments:
In addition to my life-long love for the subjects which I cover in the posts of this blog, I have long held the belief that we can disagree without becoming disagreeable. Differences of opinion are natural, while being disagreeable in expressing those differences is not. And in that sense, I have no desire to close the door on anyone who earnestly desires to contribute to the ongoing dialogue on subjects covered in the posts on this blog.
At the same time, however, I recognize that we live in a time when incivility, discourtesy, unkindness, and even cyber-bullying has regrettably become part of online interactions. With that in mind, while anyone who wishes can comment on anything if they choose to do so, I hereby reserve the right to immediately delete any comments which are critical, unkind, lack civility, or promote prodcuts, services, and values contrary to either the Church, or to the rules of online etiquette.
I'd also like to remind all who comment here that I try to respond personally to each individual comment as I feel is appropriate. Such replies are not meant to end the conversation, but to acknowledge earnest feedback as it is submitted.
And in order to better preserve the spirit and pure intentions for which this blog was established, I also hereby request that anyone not commenting with a regular user name (particularly those whose comments appear under the "Unknown" or "Anonymous" monikers, give the rest of us a name to work with in addressing any replies. If such individuals do not wish to disclose their actual given names, a pseudonym or nickname would suffice.
Any comments made by individuals who opt to not give a name by which they can ber identified may, depending on the substance and tone of such comments, be subject to deletion as well. I would respectfully ask that all of us do all we can to keep the dialogue positive, polite, and without malice or ill-will. May the Lord bless us all in our discussion of these important matters.
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William P
ReplyDeleteHey,
Saw this mentioned earlier here is the full quote of President Nelsons remarks of the Rome temple:
"This is a hinge point in the history of the church. Things are going to move forward at an accelerated pace, of which this is a part," he said, later adding, "The church is going to have an unprecedented future, unparalleled; we're just building up to what's ahead now."
The full article here:
https://www.deseretnews.com/article/900059767/in-rome-on-monday-all-of-the-latter-day-saint-apostles-make-powerful-statement-photos.html
William, thank you for this additional comment. The statement made by President Nelson, as you accurately cited it, is slightly piggy-backed onto his statement made last year at the end of October when he was interviewed in conjunction with the dedication of the Concepcion Chile Temple.
ReplyDeleteDuring that interview, he was quoted as saying: "If you think the Church has been fully restored, wait till next year. And the next year, and the next. Eat your vitamin pills. Get your rest. It's going to be exciting."
The period of time between January 14, 2018 and the same day this year marked the busiest year for Church developments to ever occur during the first year of a new Church president's prophetic administration. And there has been a hastening of sorts. I am particularly thinking of temple progress. Last year, the Church dedicated only 2 new temples total. By the end of this year, there are anticipated to be a total of 7 new temples dedicated, more than 3 times the amount we saw last year. And for the Church to break ground on 8 new temples within the first half of any year is something that may be unprecedented in nature, even during the time when President Hinckley was aiming for the Church to have 100 operating temples before the end of the year 2000.
I should also mention that, while only 3 temples are anticipated so far to be dedicated in 2020, there are at least 5 others which will be dedicated in 2021 that we know of so far. And so the number of temples anticipated to be dedicated within the next 30 months will total somewhere around 14 at minimum and that's without taking into account any other major temple announcements in the near future.
There are, of course, examples of other ways in which President Nelson's two interconnected statements could come to fruition in remarkable and unprecedented ways, but I think focusing on the temple aspect is sufficient enough for now. Thank you again, William, for taking time to comment.
For those interested, President Nelson penned his testimony of the Savior and invited each of his apostolic colleagues to do the same in conjunction with the arrangement to have them all together in Rome for this weekend's events. Anyone who is interested can find those testimonies recorded on the Church's official blog at the web address below:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.lds.org/blog/modern-apostles-bear-witness-of-jesus-christ?lang=eng
My thanks once again to you all.
Hello again, everyone! The Church News shared the following video earlier today, in which the apostles talk more about President Nelson's invitation to all of them to accompany him to the Rome Italy Temple dedication. The Brethren also share some thoughts about the spirit of unity and brotherhood they enjoy in their apostolic association. You can find that article (and the accompanying video) at the following web address:
Deletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders-and-ministry/2019-03-13/video-apostles-share-why-their-brotherhood-is-the-strongest-bond-on-earth-49209
I'd like to draw your attention particularly to what Elder Soares said in that video: He noted he felt a particularly special bond with Elder Holland, since the senior apostle had taken time following Elder Soares' call to the apostleship to provide encouragement and share the insight that the Brethren are blessed individually and particularly through the sustaining votes of all their apostolic colleagues.
Elder Soares had first mentioned being encouraged by "a senior apostle" shortly after his call, as detailed in the article from last year in which all members of that Quorum provided insight into their experiences, thoughts, and feelings relating to their apostolic assignments. You can review that article below:
https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders-and-ministry/2018-06-22/inside-the-quorum-of-the-twelve-apostles-personal-experiences-represent-each-apostles-ministry-47420
I am grateful for the ministry of each of our apostles, and to have learned about the circumstances that brought them all to Italy for the dedication of the Rome Temple. I gladly sustain each of them wholeheartedly. My thanks once again to you all.