Hello again, everyone! The First Presidency has made a stunning announcement this morning. In order to accommodate an ever-growing missionary force, effective July 1 of next year, 36 new missions will be created. The total number of missions will thus rise to 450, the highest it has ever been in the Church. While I'm sure Matthew Martinich will cover this himself on the Church Growth Blog, and I will defer to him for better analysis of this stunning development, I wanted to break down the details:
Each new mission will be created from an existing mission. Each of the following Church areas will see the addition of the following missions:
Africa Central
Democratic Republic of the Congo Kinshasa South
Democratic Republic of the Congo Kolwezi
Kenya Nairobi East
Africa South
Madagascar Antananarivo North
Africa West
Ghana Accra North
Ghana Takoradi
Nigeria Calabar
Nigeria Port Harcourt North
Sierra Leone Bo
Asia
Cambodia Phnom Penh East
Thailand Bangkok East
Asia North
Japan Sendai
Brazil
Brazil Manaus South
Caribbean
Dominican Republic Santo Domingo North
Europe Central
Germany Hamburg
Europe North
Portugal Porto
México
México Mexicali
México Puebla East
North America Central
Montana Missoula
North America Southeast
Florida Tallahassee
South Carolina Charleston
North America Southwest
Nevada Henderson
Texas Dallas South
Texas El Paso
North America West
California Modesto
Philippines
Philippines Dumaguete
Philippines General Santos
Philippines Tuguegarao
South America Northwest
Bolivia Cochabamba South
Ecuador Quito West
Perú Lima Northeast
South America South
Argentina Tucumán
Chile La Serena
Utah
Utah Salt Lake City East
Utah Saratoga Springs
Utah Spanish Fork
I will just add a note here that the creation of new missions may also point to a major realignment in area boundaries in August of next year, and that I anticipate some of these locations with new missions might soon have temples announced (if temples are not already announced there). The missionary force is increasing in direct response to President Nelson's call for more missionaries, and it is good to see this development.
I continue to monitor any and all Church News, Newsroom, and Church of Jesus Christ Temples updates and will be sure to pass word of those along to you all as they cross my radar. In the meantime, that does it for now. All comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated on any post at any time, as long as the offered feedback is made per the established guidelines.
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This is really wonderful news. My mission in Helsinki, Finland was one of the greatest gifts I have received from God during my life. I am grateful that so many people continue to answer the call to serve a mission. I believe most missionaries receive many more blessings back than what they must sacrifice to serve. This is great news for the people of the Church and the world!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Andre! I agree with everything you said. My own mission impacts me every day because it directly led me to my sweet wife. A great announcement indeed.
DeleteHello again, everyone! The PDF version of the November 2023 Liahona was finally made availale today. Here's a look at how my projected table of contents compared with the actual thing. In the interim, yesterday, the Newsroom shared one new report that I missed.
ReplyDeleteAside from that, the Church News has shared multiple new updates which focused on Nigeria, Chile, a violinist and videographer, Mexico's "Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead), and Brazil. My thanks once again to you all.
There has been a change noted in the queue of temples anticipated to be completed in 2026. Those changes are as follows:
DeleteEarly 2026: Yorba Linda California; Montpelier Idaho; Miraflores Guatemala City Guatemala
Early-to-mid 2026: Port Moresby Papua New Guinea; Freetown Sierra Leone
Mid-2026: Queretaro Mexico
Mid-to-late 2026: Modesto California; Belo Horizonte Brazil; Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo
Here are the highlights: The Montpelier Idhao Temple has swapped places with the Miraflores Guatemala City Guatemala Temple, and the Modesto California Temple has swapped places with the Belo Horizonte Brazil Temple. Additionally, as shown above, full scale construction is finally underway on both the Port Moresby Papua New Guinea Temple (which is in the queue between the Miraflores Guatemala City Guatemala Temple and the Freetown Sierra Leone Temple) and the Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple (which is now the last temple in the current construction queue). Full-scale efforts are still pending on both the Heber Valley Utah and Fort Worth Texas Temples. My thanks once again to you all.
New information of which I was just made aware indicates that the Europe East Area has been renamed the Eurasian Area. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteHello again, everyone! On this Thursday, the Church News has shared two new reports. President Henry B. Eyring, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, took to social media for the first time to address his wife's passing. The Church News also provided a preview for this weekend's Luz de Las Naciones (Light of the Nations) celebration of Latin American culture and heritage.
ReplyDeleteAnd additional changes have been noted in the queue of temples anticipated to be completed between now and mid-2024:
Late 2023-early 2024: Manti Utah; Mendoza Argentina
Early 2024: Tallahassee Florida
Early-to-mid 2024: Abidjan Ivory Coast; Desert Peak Utah
Mid-2024: Salvador Brazil; Pittsburgh Pennsylvania
Tallahassee has been moved ahead of Abidjan, with the estimate for the latter being pushed back, and Salvador Brazil has been moved ahead of Pittsburgh, also with the latter estimate being pushed back. My updated thoughts on the timing for those dedications as a result of these changes will be reflected in my year-end 2023 temple construction progress recap. My thanks once again to you all.
And speaking of temple news, the first leaders have been called for the Deseret Peak Utah Temple. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteThe Church has provided official details on the First Presidency's Christmas Devotional for this year, which will be held on the first Sunday in December. A 13-year-old BYU-Provo study on sibling relationships has gained newfound interest and attention. And FamilyServices counseling has helped a single mother. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAnd the Church News has shared their coverage of the aforementioned arrangements for the 2023 First Presidency's Christmas Devotional. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteThe Church News just reported a short time ago that President M. Russell Ballard, Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, is convalescing at home following a short stay in the hospital for brief stay in the hospital for "minor respiratory issues". My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteA new Church News video has been released. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteThe Newsroom also covered yesterday's update on President Ballard. Meanwhile, today, the Church News has shared one new report. My thanks once again to you all.
ReplyDelete