Hello again, everyone! This afternoon, the First Presidency officially confirmed the site location and preliminary details for the Puerto Montt Chile Temple, which was originally announced by then-Church President Russell M. Nelson in October 2024. Let's get right on into the details:
A single-story temple of nearly 18,500 square feet will rise on a 5.8-acre site at Avenida Chamiza Lote 2 2015, Pelluco, Comuna de Puerto Montt. An exterior rendering and groundbreaking date will be announced later, when the time is right for that announcement. As a result of this update, there are now only 14 temples from the 17 originally announced during that conference. And this means that the number of temples with no official information announced is now down to 55, with that number hopefully continuing to go down before the April 2026 General Conference.
And speakingof that General Conference, I need to issue a correction to what I have stated in the past. When the First Presidency announced the Portland Maine Temple in December through the area president, I had stated my opinion that this new method of announcing temples might not necessarily mean no temples would be announced in General Conference anymore. But as many of you know, President Oaks was interviewed by the media in conjunction with his presiding at the Burley Idaho Temple dedication.
During that interview, he was asked the following questions, with theanswers following:
President Oaks, you recently announced a temple for Portland, Maine, at a devotional, not in general conference. Why did you announce that temple?
President Oaks: That was a strong impression that came to me early in my knowledge that President Nelson had transferred to heaven. It has occurred to me for a long time that the best place to announce a temple is in that temple district. And the best person to announce it is the file leader in that area, which can be an Apostle on assignment to a stake conference or another meeting, or it can be the area president if there’s no Apostle in the district when a decision is made by the First Presidency to have a temple there.
So, this is a pattern we can expect to see again?
President Oaks: It’s a pattern that we will follow as long as I have influence in determining those things. This does not change the pattern of decision-making or gathering facts and determining the agreeable timing and the need. And all those things will continue to be analyzed. But when it comes to making a decision from all those facts, the First Presidency will continue to make the decisions. But they’ll assign someone else to make the announcement in the place where the temple will be built.
So it appears from that interview that any other temple announcements made while President Oaks is the prophet will be announced locally. That makes sense in a big way. While President Nelson loved to announce new temples in General Conference, I know I was bothered by the audible vocal reactions to those announcements. If new temples are instead announced unexpectedly and locally under the direction of the First Presidency, that particular problem goes away.
I am sharing all of this to note, with my apologies, that I now assume temple announcements in General Conference will go away, and the local announcements, as approved, will be the status quo. I had believed and asserted that we could still see temple announcements in General Conference, but that assertion was, simply put, incorrect. I will look forward to hearing more of these local announcements going forward.
In the interim, I am nire than a little surprised that we only got an announcement about one temple today. I had hoped we'd perhaps see 1 or 2 temple dedications, 1 or 2 groundbreakings, the release of 1 or 2 renderings, and more than 1 site confirmation. But it occurs to me to wonder if there might be something else coming down the pike in terms of major announcements this week. Will that happen? Only time will tell.
I invite you all to stay tuned here for my coverage of the latest updates from the Church News, Newsroom, and Church of Jesus Christ Temples sites. I’ll be sure to pass word of those along to you all as soon as I learn about them. 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 all such feedback is made per the established guidelines.
I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. If you liked what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added posts and comments, please subscribe to receive the applicable updates. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
The Church News has also covered today's update. My thanks once again to you all.
ReplyDeleteThe Church News shared information about 18 stake presidencies (6 new stakes, and 12 reorganized stake presidencies). My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteMaybe I am talking too soon but I thought we would see a significant increase of temple news after what President Oaks said in his october speech. I wonder if they share temple updates as soon as they have them or they have a schedule influenced by marketing or other reasons (I wouldn't see a problem with it). For example, I'm from Guatemala and I am so excited for the temple open house of the Miraflores temple or the groundbreaking ceremony of the Retalhuleu temple because it'll be my nearest temple but perhaps they're waiting until the groundbreaking of the Huehuetenango temple is done. I don't know how this works but I'll be patient haha
ReplyDeleteHey, A. J. Merlos. Thanks for stopping by to comment. There has been somewhat of a significant increase in temple news between when President Oaks was called and now. By my count, there were 18 such announcements between his October 14 ordination and the end of last year, which can be verified here, and there have been 8 so far this year, as verified here.
DeleteBut some of those announcements included multiple temples, which does suggest a significant uptick in temple news. There were several occasions, like today, when there was only an update on a single temple, but if you look at the announcements overall, it appears, by my rough check just now, that most of those announcements involved multiple temples.
Unfortunately, it takes time to arrange open houses and dedications, groundbreakings, the release of exterior renderings, and even site announcements like the one we saw today. A variety of factors can delay information or even updates about any temple. And I'm sure there would be more movement in the queue if all the First Presidency had to worry about was announcing those updates. But they've also been busy calling new mission and temple leaders, filling vacancies in Church leadership, and preparing for the April 2026 General Conference.
With their weighty responsibilities in mind, I'm grateful we're getting any temple news at all. I don't know what, if any, methodology may be in place in terms of which temples are prioritized. But I'm sure a lot of consideration goes into that as well. There's no marketing involved, insofar as I am aware. But the Church is committed to moving temples along as soon as possible. I would estimate, based on known factors, that the dedication of the Miraflores Guatemala City, Guatemala Temple will only occur in August, at the earliest, which would put its open house in late June-early July or so. I would also estimate that a groundbreaking forthe Retalhuleu Tuatemala Temple will occur sometime either later this year or possibly early next year.
Hope these thoughts, such as they are, are helpful. Thanks, A. J. Merlos, for taking time to comment. I always appreciate hearing from you.
A new English branch has been created in Cape Verede; one family recently discovered1,600 Italian ancestors; and the latest edition of the Church News podcast focused on the youth theme for 2026'. My thanks once again to you all.
ReplyDeleteAnd the latest updates to the completionorderoftemplesunder constructionshows afew surprising elements. My thanks once again toyou all.
DeleteAside from the adjustments in the completion order for temples under construction, the Church Temples site has shared status updates for the Managua Nicaragua and Tarawa Kiribati Temples. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAnd late yesterday, there was yet another update on the Knoxville Tennessee Temple, in addition to updates for the Tarawa Kiribati Temple. And in addition, new updates on the Lehi Utah Temple appear to indicate that a groundbreaking is getting closer. I do not have any other updates to confirm this, but my hope is that the groundbreaking will occurin the short term (perhaps within the next several weeks or months). My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAside from the temple updates, on this Wednesday, the Church News has shared two additional updates, which speak for themselves. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAlso, the Newsroom shares this report from the African Newsroom that was posted a few days ago, but is still worth noting here. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteThe Church News has shared <this additional report. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteElder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who is now the fifth in seniority in that Quorum, and was recently called as the Chairman of the Church's Missionary Executive Council, spoke today to missionaries in a broadcast that originated in the Provo MTC but was carried to all MTCs around the world, where he offered keay counsel. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAnd the Newsroom shares how, as it's marking its' 30th anniversary Church member's around the world have recently benefitted from the Perpetual Education Fund. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteOn this Thursday thus far, with no new reports from the Church News, the Newsroom has shared this update, which speaks for itself. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteThe Church News has shared the same report from the Newsroom. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteOne update apiece has been shared by the Newsroom and the Church News. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAnd one final Church News report has been provided for Thursday. And the Newsroom has shared two additional reports, which speak for themselves. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteOn this Friday, the Church News has announced that Church President and Prophet Dallin H. Oaks will speak at BYU in February, in one of his first major public addresses since he became the Church President. The Church News also shared the biographies of another 16 new mission leaders couples, with the latest crop of biographies including 3 current area seventies. Other than that, I will let those biogphaies speak for themselves. My thanks once again to you all,
DeleteA construction status update has been reported on the Queretaro Mexico Temple. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteThe Newsroom has shared two new reports, while the Church News has shared one new report about how the Church is celebrating the 250th anniversary of American Independence, in addition to the latest edition of "This Week on Social", which featured posts from the following general Church leaders:
DeletePresident D. Todd Christofferson, Second Counselor in the First Presidency; Acting President Dieter F. Uchtdorf (from whom two posts were shared) and Elders David A. Bednar, Neil L. Andersen, Ulisses Soares, Patrick Kearon, and Gérald Caussé of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles; Sister J. Anette Dennis, First Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency; Sister Andrea Munoz Spannaus, Second Counselor in the Young Women General Presidency; Sister Tracy Y. Browning, Second Counselor in the Primary General Presidency; and Brother Sean R. Dixon, Second Counselor in the Young Men General Presidency. My thanks once again to you all.
The Newsroom also apparently was the first source to report on the upcoming BYU-Provo devotional featuring President Oaks: My apologies for not noting that sooner. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteOn this Saturday thus far, the Church News has shared two updates thus far that speak for themselves. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteThe Church News has also shared the text of the message that will be given by Brother Derrick Porter during tomorrow's 5,029th episode of "Music & the Spoken Word", in addition to the inspiring story of a Navy Chaplain. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAs this Sabbath Day draws to a close, the Church News has covered the origin story of the new Sacrament hymn, "As Bread Is Broken". The latest edition of "In Case You Missed It: Week in Review" covers the top 9 stories covered this past week. And with our "Come., Follow Me" study centering on Moses 7, see what Church leaders have said about that chapter. And the Church has recently called 30 new stake presidencies, for both new and reorganized stakes. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteAlso on Sunday, the Newsroom shared this neew report. My thanks once again to you all.
DeleteHello again, everyone! I had another minor procedure on Monday afternoon, which is why I haven't posted any updates recently. I will be sure to cover any breaking news but would refer you to the links in the sidebar for the latest updates (aside from any breaking news or preset updates) for at least the next few days while I recover. I do have a birthday tribute to Elder Rasband preset to publish on Friday. I will be back online and posting regular updates ASAP. My thanks once again to you all.
ReplyDeleteJames, is there somebody impersonating you on the Growth blog? I see a James G. Snokes. What do you know about this?
DeleteIt is an account originally set up to impersonate/mock me on the Church Growth Blog, continuing a years-long trend of online harassment of me. Now they are posting what I can only assume is accurate information about Church Growth in an effort to appear sincere. I've been dealing with this long enough that it's not worth either my time or effort to do anything about it.
DeleteI just wanted to note here some interesting anomalies I noticed recently. Last month, when President Uchtdorf was officially announced as the Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the news articles covering that change noted he had been set apart by President Oaks on January 8, and that this was in view of Quorum President Henry B. Eyring serving in the First Presidency, but noted nothing about when President Eyring was formally set apart as Quorum President.
ReplyDeleteFast forward to today. I happened to be perusing the biographies of the Presidency of the Seventy for any updates on their assignments, and I noticed that the biography for Elder Michael T. Ringwood had an increased number of assignments listed, while all of the assignments for Elder Edward Dube had been removed, both as of the end of last month.
Not sure what exactly to make of any of this, but wanted to note these interesting anomalies I'd noticed in the last month. My thanks once again to you all.
This just in from the Church Temples site: the Utah Supreme Court has ruled that construction on the Heber Valley Utah Temple can proceed. According to the Church of Jesus Christ Temples site: "The Court has not yet issued a ruling in the lawsuit filed against Wasatch County for approving plans for the temple in November 2023, but the Church may proceed with construction at its own risk. The suing residents failed to identify the irreparable harm construction would cause, and the Church has promised to restore the site to its original condition if it loses the case."
DeleteSo for now, construction is good to go. I don't know when or how soon the Utah Supreme Court will subsequently rule on the legality of the temple approval, but at least there is this ruling in the Church's favor. My thanks once again to you all.
Today, the one key development I want to highlight from what's been reported today is the released biographies for six new temple leader couples, all for currently-operating temples, and all for temples in the United States. Each of those six temples have now been noted on my document tracking these changes, and each of the incoming couples are replacing couples that have served together in these temples for the last three years.
DeleteUnless any additional temple dedications are announced in the next couple of weeks, it is more likely than not that the next set temple dedications won't take place until August 2026 at ealriest. The one exception I would note is the San Diego California Temple, as its' opening arrangements are easier to schedule than opening arrangements for new temples.
Aside from the new temple leaders, the only other updates shared by the Church News are based on recently shared Newsroom reports. And the Newsroom appears to be having a glitch in terms of showing the correct dates for news releases on that page, but if you go to the individual reports, the correct dates are almost visible. My thanks once again to you all.