Hello again, everyone! This just in from the Church's official Newsroom. The open house, youth devotional, and dedication arrangements for the Winnipeg Manitoba Temple have been postponed until large public gatherings are deemed safe once COVID-19 conditions ease. At this point, due to the unpredictable naturue of COVID-19, it appears that the Church will likely defer all temple open houses and dedications/rededications until large public gatherings are once again deemed safe.
On the upside, however, with President Nelson extending opportunities to his fellow apostles to preside at temple dedications or rededications, it seems certain that, once COVID-19 is under control globally, apostles could be sent out individually, or iin various groups, to dedicate or rededicate temples in the queue. My personal thought was that with Winnipeg being a smaller temple, a smaller-scale open house and dedication could occur, but obviously, the Church doesn't feel comfortable about doing that.
As a consequence, it may be almost impossible for any of us to gauge how soon each dedication/rededication may be able to occur. I am not personally worried about this, however, because the Lord's hand has obviously been involved and His inspiration present in this decision. Whenever the dedication is reset to occur, I am sure that Elder Gerrit W. Gong will preside thereat as previously arranged. In the meantime, I continue to monitor all Church news updates and temple developments, and will be sure to bring word of those to you all here as I become aware of them.
That does it for now. 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.
Hello again, everyone! The Church News has shared the following report:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/members/2020-09-02/byu-navy-football-kalani-sitake-ken-niumatalolo-191921
My thanks once again to you all.
The Church News has shared the following report on relief efforts following Hurricane Laura:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/members/2020-09-02/hurricane-laura-helping-hands-volunteers-lousiana-texas-191917
Thanks again, all!
The Church News has provided coverage on a new Church video, with remarks from Elder Holland's address during last April's General Conference as a backdrop to photos and videos of conditions in various areas of the world due to COVID-19 and other global crises which are currently in flux:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2020-09-03/covid-19-elder-holland-video-hope-april-general-conference-191978
And although I had thought (and indicated) that the Church News had capped this round of personal counsel to Church members from the apostles of the Church (which I have noted on at least two recent occasions here), I was again proven incorrect in that ep. The new (and finally correct) capstone to this round of coverage of that counsel has been provided by the current members of the First Presidency, Church President Russell M. Nelson, and his respective First and Second Counselors in the First Presidency, Presidents Dallin H. Oaks and Henry B. Eyring:
https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders-and-ministry/2020-09-03/nelson-oaks-eyring-covid-19-coronavirus-faith-fear-conflict-isolation-191902
I'd just add here that it didn't occur to me until President Nelson noted in the article that the current apostles collectively claim ancestry from four of the seven total continents in the world. Although it was not explicitly stated, unless I am mistaken, those four are Asia, Europe, and North and South America.
With that being said, both of the articles I mentioned herein, including the new video highlighting Elder Holland's remarks, are well worthy of your time and attention, and I recommend them to you all accordingly. I will be back shortly to pass along any other updates, including new temple developments, if any. In the meantime, my thanks once again to you all.
I am back, as previously promised, with additional Church news developments. Just a few minutes after my last posted comment, the Church News published a timeline looking back at how COVID-19 and governmental regulations relating thereunto impacted day-to-day operations for the Church:
Deletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/history-revisited/2020-09-03/covid-19-church-response-timeline-missionaries-temples-191247
And although I had thought that additional temple updates had been noted, apparently, I was mistaken in that respect. I continue to monitor all Church news and temple updates and will pass word of those developments along to you all as I become aware of them. In the meantime, thanks again, all.
I have not left a comment in a while. Keep up the good work on sharing church news.
ReplyDeleteHey, Chris! Great to hear from you again. Hope you and yours are staying happy, healthy, and well during the whole COVID-19 craziness. Thanks for your continued readership and for weighing in with your continued insights when you can. I appreciate you!
DeleteHello again, everyone! The Church News and the Newsroom have today shared the latest video in the ongoing "How I #HearHim" series:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2020-09-04/hear-him-elder-uchtdorf-video-savior-love-192007
https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/elder-uchtdorf-says-gratitude-and-love-make-it-possible-to-hearhim
My thanks once again to you all.
I am back now with some temple updates. Firstly, courtesy of a few of the sources I use to provide such updates, there has been a major reshuffling in the queue of temples now under construction. The general estimated completion periods which have changed for temples include the following:
DeleteLate 2021-early 2022: San Juan Puerto Rico and Quito Ecuador Temples
Early-to-mid 2022: Belem Brazil and Abidjan Côte d'Ivoire Temples
So I will be considering those changes when making my next updates to the specific estimates for known temple events, which are still in progress.
Additionally, status updates have been provided for the following temples:
Pocatello Idaho:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/pocatello-idaho-temple/
San Juan Puerto Rico:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/san-juan-puerto-rico-temple/
Quito Ecuador:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/quito-ecuador-temple/
Belém Brazil:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/belem-brazil-temple/
Abidjan Côte d'Ivoire:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/abidjan-cote-d'ivoire-temple/
I continue to monitor all temple updates and Church news. If nothing else comes up between now and then, I will be sure to bring you all reports on the groundbreakings for the Orem Utah and San Pedro Sula Honduras Temples tomorrow in some form once those are available. For now, my thanks once again to you all.
And the latest edition of "This Week on Social" has been published:
Deletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/living-faith/2020-09-04/covid-19-forever-different-bednar-uchtdorf-young-women-primary-friend-hearhim-savior-jesus-christ-holy-ghost-192063
The latest installment in that ongoing series featured posts from the following general leaders: Church President Russell M. Nelson; Elders Dieter F. Uchtdorf, David A. Bednar, and Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles; Relief Society General President Sister Jean B. Bingham and her Second Counselor, Sister Reyna I. Aburto; Sister Michelle D. Craig, First Counselor in the Young Women General Presidency; and Sister Lisa L. Harkness, First Counselor in the Primary General Presidency.
My thanks once again to you all.
Hello again, everyone! On this Saturday afternoon, I have some temple updates to pass along. An update has been provided on the Richmond Virginia Temple:
ReplyDeletehttps://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/richmond-virginia-temple/
And, as previously arranged, the groundbreakings for both the Orem Utah and San Pedro Sula Honduras Temples were held today. For the former, photographs and video of the ceremony are anticipated to be released early next week. For the latter, a rebroadcast of the event is scheduled to be held today at 3:00 PM Honduran time, which, as previously noted, is equivalent to the time here in Utah, though Utah and Honduras are in different time zones. For confirmation of those updates, see the following articles:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/orem-utah-temple/
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/san-pedro-sula-honduras-temple/
Also, just by way of a quick note, from what I can gather on my end, full-scale construction is anticipated to begin on both of these temples at some point within the next week or two, if not sooner. As a result, the completion estimates for the following temples have changed in the following ways:
Late 2022-early 2023: Layton Utah and Richmond Virginia
Early-to-mid 2023: Feather River California
Mid-2023: Bangkok Thailand
Mid-to-late 2023: Orem Utah and San Pedro Sula Honduras
Late 2023-early 2024: Lima Peru Los Olivos and Alabang Philippines
The reason some of my sources have shifted the estimate for the Alabang Philippines Temple appears to be that those in the queue now or those scheduled to have a groundbreaking over the next two months may be placed ahead of that temple, which now appears to be behind in progress by comparison to the Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple.
An update on the status of the Alabang Philippines Temple appears to confirm the rationale for its' completion estimate being pushed back:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/alabang-philippines-temple/
Also, another new update appears to indicate that full-scale efforts may soon be able to begin on the Auckland New Zealand Temple:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/auckland-new-zealand-temple/
Once more is known about that update, a completion estimate will likely be provided. If full-scale efforts do begin soon on that temple, then for the next three weeks between today and Saturday September 26 (on which date the groundbreaking for the Brasilia Brazil Temple is scheduled to occur), that will leave the Puebla Mexico Temple as the only one in the queue to have full-scale construction pending.
As I am still updating my temple files, in addition to working on the latest adjustments to my predictions for the October 2020 General Conference, there will be a lot to take into account and think about as that process continues. I hope to have something published here on the blog in terms of both the temple documents and the revised predictions within the next 10-14 days, if not sooner. Stay tuned for all of that. In the meantime, my thanks once again to you all.
Hello again, everyone! I wanted to post another comment here now to let you all know that the groundbreaking video for the San Pedro Sula Honduras Temple will be available in less than an hour via the Honduras edition of the Newsroom website. The web address at which that video can be found is as follows:
Deletehttps://noticias-hn.laiglesiadejesucristo.org/articulo/palada-inicial-del-templo-de-san-pedro-sula
Additionally, an update has been provided on the status of the Tooele Valley Utah Temple:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/tooele-valley-utah-temple/
And new information provided on the Antofagasta Chile Temple suggests that official information might be coming down the pike for that temple in the near future:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/antofagasta-chile-temple/
Thanks again, all!
As another example of how quickly developments can occur, while I was composing my two latest comments here, at some point, the main Newsroom page provided initial coverage on the groundbreaking for the Orem Utah Temple:
Deletehttps://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/groundbreaking-held-orem-utah-temple
On-site attendance was limited. Elder Craig C. Chirstensen, president of the Utah Area, presided at the event and offered the dedicatory prayer. But there is something interesting. When the 2020 area leadership assignments were announced, the counselors which were listed at that time for Elder Christensen in the area presidency were Elders Mark A. Bragg and Walter F. Gonzalez as First and Second Counselors respectively. But the article notes that Elder William K. Jackson, a General Authority Seventy called last April, was in attendance at the groundbreaking, and that Elder Evan A. Schmutz, who grew up in Orem, was also in attendance, and the article identifies Elder Schmutz as the Second Counselor in the Utah Area Presidency. Per the area leadership assignments released by the Church, Elder Jackson wasn't listed with an area assignmnt, and Elder Schmutz had been called to serve as Second Counselor in the North America Southwest Area Presidency.
So it's possible that the Newsroom article is in error on that information, but it's also possible that the area presidencies here in North America may have been reshuffled, or that previous assignments may have been otherwise changed by necessity. I will keep my eyes open for more information on that for sure. Thanks again, everyone!
And the Newsroom has just provided coverage of the San Pedro Sula Honduras Temple's groundbreaking ceremony:
Deletehttps://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/ground-broken-for-san-pedro-sula-honduras-temple
The video thereof, which was delayed in its' broadcast until 4:00 PM this afternoon (one hour later than originally planned), was aired in Spanish.
Hello again, everyone! Several hours ago, the Church News provided coverage on the newest temple groundbreakings:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/temples/2020-09-05/orem-utah-temple-groundbreaking-consecration-construction-covenants-192081
https://www.thechurchnews.com/temples/2020-09-05/san-pedro-sula-honduras-temple-groundbreaking-192117
I have been busy working on some things. In addition to updating my temple documents and predictions for next month's General Conference, I've also been swamped with research.
In the midst of covering the groundbreaking news, I noticed that some of the area presidency assignments in the size North America Areas had apparently been shuffled, so I was sitting through my resources to get all of that figured out.
Anyways, researching that has consumed much of my focus in the last 12 hours. My thanks once again to you all.
Sorry. I just now realized there was a typo in my comment above. The second-to-last paragraph thereof should read "some of the area presidency assignments in the six North America Areas". I apologize for the unintentional error and any confusion that may have caused. Also, I wanted to draw some attention if I could to information noted in the article about the Orem Utah Temple groundbreaking from the Church News. That article notes that full-scale construction is anticipated to begin on the Orem temple on Tuesday, the day after Labor Day is observed here in the United States.
DeleteAbove and beyond that, however, Brother Brent Roberts serves as the managing director of the Church's Special Projects Division, with a large portion of his focus being placed on temple construction plans. In the article, Brother Roberts was quoted as saying that this temple is the latest in a total of 55 active projects his division oversees. While I can't say for certain that every one of those projects is directly related to the temples of the Church, I imagine the bulk of them are.
I will have more Church news to pass along today, but will share that in a new comment unconnected to the coverage of the most recent temple groundbreakings. In the meantime, my thanks once again to you all.
Just wanted to note here as well that, per the following Deseret News article, an accelerated construction process is planned for the Orem Utah Temple, with the Church looking to complete it in 22-24 months:
Deletehttps://www.google.com/amp/s/www.deseret.com/platform/amp/faith/2020/9/5/21423005/orem-utah-latter-day-saint-temple-mormon-lds-groundbreaking-2022
Thanks again, all!
Hello again, everyone! I am back to share some additional Church news updates. Firstly, as I have previously mentioned recently, two of our apostles will be celebrating their birthdays within this next week. On Tuesday, Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve will be marking his 80th, and one day later, our beloved prophet, President Russell M. Nelson, will be observing his 96th birthday. In advance of the prophet's upcoming birthday, the Church News has shared a prerecorded video:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders-and-ministry/2020-09-06/president-nelson-prophet-birthday-96-years-ministry-192149
Meanwhile, another new report indicates that the president of the Birmingham Alabama Temple has passed away from complications due to COVID-19. He and his wife had only been serving in that assignment since November of last year:
https://www.thechurchnews.com/members/2020-09-06/birmingham-alabama-temple-president-dies-covid-19-gary-pettus-192154
Meanwhile, the final new Church news report shares some information about new and reorganized stakes in the Church, indicating that the process of reorganizing stake presidencies continues to occur as needed in the midst of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic:
https://www.thechurchnews.com/callings/2020-09-06/stake-presidents-new-arizona-colorado-mexico-peru-philippines-lds-191676
My thanks once again to you all.
And from retired Church News editor Sister Gerry Avant comes another article highlighting an inspirational story she covered during her prestigious career:
Deletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/history-revisited/2020-09-06/gerry-avant-korea-first-general-authority-book-of-mormon-translate-mission-president-191784
Thanks again, everyone!
Meanwhile, the Newsroom has reported on the efforts of Helping Hands volunteers over this holiday weekend (for Labor Day here in the United States). Those efforts were focused on Louisiana, which is still reeling from the aftermath of Hurricane Laura:
Deletehttps://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/helping-hands-work-over-holiday-weekend-to-provide-relief-in-louisiana
My thanks once again to you all.
Hello again, everyone! On this Labor Day in the United States, I am pleased to bring you the Church's sole update on COVID-19 reopenings. That update relates to the phased reopning of temples. The Church News and the Newsroom have shared different data on the latest reopenings, which will go into effect one week from today:
ReplyDeletehttps://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/first-presidency-limited-reopening-temples
https://www.thechurchnews.com/temples/2020-09-07/lds-temples-open-worldwide-phased-reopening-183918
So first, all seven of the Church's temples in California and the Mexico City Mexico Temple have temporarily closed again, with each going back into phase 1 as local conditions permit in the future.
Next, 5 temples will reopen under phase 1 next Monday, including 3 in Mexico (Monterrey, Veracruz, and Villahermosa), 1 in Central America (San Jose Costa Rica), and 1 in the United States (Chicago Illinois, the last of the United States temples to reopen).
Phase 1 allows living husband-and-wife sealings where both have been previously endowed. And Phase 2 allows all living ordinances in the following priority order: First, living husband-and-wife sealings; second, currently-serving missionaries who have not yet received their own endowment; third, those who are preparing to go out into the mission field; and fourth, anyone else who has not previously been endowed and is preparing for a temple sealing.
The following 10 temples will open under phase 2 next week: 4 in Brazil (Campinas, Curitiba, Recife, and Sao Paulo); 3 in Africa (Durban and Johannesburg South Africa and Kinshasa DR Congo); and 1 each in the Caribbean, Europe, and the United States (Santo Domingo Dominican Republic, Madrid Spain, and Albuquerque New Mexico).
Based on the latest temple developments, there is an even greater need for me to reevaluate the thoughts I have previously offered through documents about the temple construction program of the Church. Stay tuned for that as I can make those updates. In the meantime, my thanks once again to you all.
Here are two Church News articles:
Deletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/members/2020-09-07/byu-navy-annapolis-latter-day-saints-foottball-192093
https://www.thechurchnews.com/members/2020-09-07/byu-navy-football-sitake-niumatalolo-win-192191
Thanks again, all!