BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: Phased Process of Reopening Templex Continues Into October

Note This post was published at around 10:30 AM ias originally scheduled, with further analysisa and context added thereunto between 12;00-1:45 PM.

Hello again, everyone! The final Tuesday before General Conference has rolled around, as a result of which the latest information about temple reopenings has been released by the Church. Since there is just over a week of September left, the latest update shares some details about reopenings that are planned through the rest of September and into October. The updates are, as always, detailed in the updated Newsroom release, and through the Church News, with the latter also linking to the area-by-area temple reopening status tracker.

I will have a more complete analysis on the latest announced adjustments at some point later today. (Note: I was able to post content on the announced change as indicated at the top of this post, so the content between this paragraph and the traditional closing of my post was added at around that time.) I am back to provide additional analysis on the latest temple reopening updates provided by the Church earlier today.

This morning, the Church announced that the Arequipa Peru and Bogota Colombia Temples will shift from phase2 to phase 2-B as early as next Tuesday. Additionally, today's update was the first to mention anything about the status of the Manti Utah Temple, which, as we know, is scheduled to close for its' formal renovation at some point on or around Friday October 1. 

That temple, becoming the ninth in the current queue of those undergoing renovations, will retain its' phase 3 designation, which will allow those served by that temple district to schedule living and proxy work at the closest temples to Manti. As we know, the adjusted plans for that temple renovation will cut the amount of work needing to be done, and will also cut the time needed to do it. The temple is anticipated to conclude its' renovation within 18-24 months of its' closure. 

With that in mind, the renovation of that temple could wrap up in either April or October 2023, with the temple reopening events being held a couple of months after that. As we also know, the Columbus Ohio and Hong Kong China Temples are anticipated to wrap up their renovations at some point next year. The renovation process for the St. George Utah Temple is now anticipated to wrap up at some point in 2023, perhaps within a similar window as is expected for the temple in Manti.

We also know that, before the announcement of changed plans for the Salt Lake Temple, the first full-scale multi-year renovation of that temple was originally anticipated to be complete at some point in 2024. With official Church resources noting that the additional work on the Salt Lake Temple, which was not part of the original plan, now being included, the Church has only acknowledged that the additional work will extend the length of time for that prospect. As a result, I have adjusted my general estimate for that temple's completion to sometime during late 2024-early 2025.

Additionally, the Church has confirmed that plans are well underway for the renovation process of the Logan Utah Temple. Depending on when those plans are announced, that could be another temple completed in 2023 or 2024. It will be interesting to see what happens in terms of those historic temple renovations.

Returning now to the latest temple reopening announcements from today (sorry about my unintended detour), the Church also noted again today that the Medford Oregon Temple, which had been originally planned to transition to phase 3 operations in August of this year, will still do so this year on a yet-to-be-determined date. The Church also again shared the list of 10 temples not yet open for any proxy work, which again included 2 in the renovation queue.

So, as of next Tuesday October 5), the current status of temple reopenings in the Church will stand as follows: 9 remain closed for major renovations (2 of which have dedications scheduled, with 2 more anticipated to have reopening arrangements announced in the relatively near term; in addition to which, 7 of those 9 have been granted phase 3 designations). 3 temples have paused in their reopening process due to factors relating to COVID-19 (2 of those 3 had been in phase 3 at the time the pause became necessary, while the other temple was in phase 2 when its reopening was paused).

And for the final four phases, there will be 3 in phase 1, 4 in phase 2, 5 in phase 2-B, and the remaining 144 temples of the Church are in phase 3. The Church continues a cautiously-coordinated plan, with a long-term view of the process that will, in due course, result in all temples of the Church being open for normal operations. 

COVID-19 is the huge variable here, and for that reason, I'm grateful to know that, as plans for the latest temple reopening announcements are made each week, the Brethren in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who have roles in supervising each of the 22 Church areas with the assistance of members of the Presidency of the Seventy, are regularly meeting with area leaders virtually to determine the best courses of action for temples worldwide. on a week-to-week basis.

My hope is that, as each of the Church's temples eventually resume normal operations, that the members of the Church around the world will not forget what it was like to not have access thereunto during the COVID-19 pandemic. I similarly hope as well that the closure of all temples and the subsequent reopening adjustments will also fill those of us living very close to a temple with more gratitude for that blessing, and will instill in each of us a greater appreciation for the plight of those who do not currently live anywhere near a temple.

On Sunday of this week, my ward's Elders' Quorum discussed President Eyring's talk from the Saturday Morning Session of the April 2021 General Conference.

In the course of that lesson, I felt impressed to share the experience my mom, her siblings, and her parents had in having to sell off nearly everything they owned just to enable them to make the journey from South Africa to the temple in England (which was the closest one at that time). I then made the observation that, while all the temples of the Church had closed for a time, all members of the Church had likely understood what not being able to go to a nearby temple is like. And it's something that I hope none of us take for granted going forward. 

With that in mind, I'm grateful to have been able to learn about these latest updates and to pass them along to you all here. While I don't know if any breaking news (whether that is related to temples or not) might be reported before General Conference weekend, I remain committed to bringing those updates to you as I become aware thereof. I am also monitoring all other Church News reports and temple construction updates and will likewise pass those along as I find myself able to do so. 

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.