Initial Predictions for the October 2025 General Conference

Hello again, everyone! Yesterday, I took another hiatus from crafting new content on this blog. I will be posting a comment about the Church News, Newsroom, and Church Temples updates ASAP this evening, but for now, I wanted to share my initial predictions for the October 2025 General Conference. Although I will, in general, let them speak for themselves, I am more than happy to engage in answering any questions any of you may have about them.

As usual, we have my projected speaker lineup, an overview of potential changes in general Church leadership, and my latest updated list of prospective locations in which a temple could be announced. I have taken the liberty to expand my net a little bit, based on the trends of Nelsonian temple announcements.

If I am overlooking any potential or likely locations, please let me know. I will also add that I am projecting that 18 new temples will be announced in October, which will bring the number of temples in any phase to an even 400. I will have a more specific list of what to me are the most likely temple announcements by area at some point between now and the October 2025 General Conference weekend.

I will be happy to add any viable locations that I may have missed if there is a strong enough rationale for doing so. I look forward to any feedback any of you have for me. I am pleased to declare that the window for any feedback on these predictions is now open, and it will remain open until Thursday, October 2, 2025 at 10:00 PM. 

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. If you would like to support the work done on this blog, donations in any amount are always welcome and appreciated, but never required. 

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.

UPDATE: Documents Relating to the April 2025 General Conference

 Hello again, everyone! Much later than I had originally planned (and even later than I promised to do so), I wanted to provide a look at my updated documents relating to the April 2025 General Conference. I think I have provided sufficient explanations for these documents previously, so this will just be a quick look at those updated documents. If any of you have any questions about anything, please let me know in the comments below.

We start with my predictions for the April 2025 General Conference, including the speaker lineup, the predicted changes in general leadership (which includes the projected numbers for the statistical report), and my projected prospective temple locations. Based on the scoring methods I have previously outlined, I put together this scorecard to analyze how well I did. 

With that result calculated at 71.05%,even with the curveballs thrown at me this time around (like failing to project that Bishop Causee would speak, or erroneously projecting that Sunday School President Paul V. Johnson would speak), my predictions still surprisingly remained in the middle range of my usual accuracy (60-80%). 

After General Conference weekend, I updated this document showing the total number of addresses given by our current apostles in General Conference, and created this document, which shows the length of each address given by each of our current apostles (16 in total this April, including the sustaining led by President Oaks on Saturday Morning). I also prepared this document, a projected table of contents for the May 2025 Liahona, which was updated with the actual page numbers once the PDF version thereof became available online.

This concludes my proverbial post-mortem for the April 2025 General Conference. I am already hard at work on my projections for the October 2025 General Conference. I also continue to monitor 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. If you would like to support the work done on this blog, donations in any amount are always welcome and appreciated, but never required. 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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: President Nelson Announces 15 New Temples

Hello again, everyone! A short time ago, during his concluding remarks in the Sunday Afternoon Session of General Conference, Church President Russell M. Nelson announced 15 new temples, just as I had predicted. This post has been preset to publish at 4 and will be updated with more particular analysis within the next couple of hours. While those updates are in progress, the ability to comment on this post may be unavailable. With my thanks to you all for your understanding and patience on this, the rest of my complete analysis follows.

A temple was announced for each of the following locations: Reynoso Mexico; Chorillos Peru, Rivera Uruguay, Campo Grande Brazil, Porto Portugal, Uyo Nigeria, San Jose Del Monte Philippines, Noumea New Caledonia, Liverpool Australia, Caldwell Idaho, Flagstaff Arizona, Rapid City South Dakota, Greenville South Carolina, Norfolk Virginia, and Spanish Fork Utah.

Of those 15, I correctly predicted the following 6, down to the exact location: Campo Grande Brazil, Porto Portugal, Uyo Nigeria, Flagstaff Arizona, Rapid City South Dakota, & Spanish Fork Utah.

I had the right general location but the wrong specific city for the following 5 temples: Reynoso Mexico, Chorillos Peru, San Jose Del Monte Philippines, Liverpool Australia, & Caldwell Idaho,

And I wasn't anticipating the following 4 temples at all: Rivera Uruguay, Noumea New Caledonia, Greenville South Carolina, & Norfolk Virginia.

Truly, the Lord's wisdom is superior to mine. I am grateful for each of these newly announced temples. Because of this announcement today, I don't know whether or not to expect any other major temple construction updates tomorrow, or if this will be it for the next week. Stay tuned here for 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. I am grateful for the veritable spiritual feast we have enjoyed this weekend, and for the opportunity I have to share such news as this. Stay tuned here for 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 for the applicable updates. 

If you would like to support the work done on this blog, donations in any amount are always welcome and appreciated but never required. 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.

April 2025 General Conference Predictions (Final Version)

Hello again, everyone! 36 hours before the April 2025 General Conference weekend starts, I wanted to post the final version of my predictions for it. Here is the speaker lineup, the potential changes in general Church leadership (which also includes estimates for the 2024 statistical report), and my list of potential new temple locations. The predictions speak for themselves.

For my part, I continue to monitor updates from the Church News, Newsroom, and Church of Jesus Christ Temples sites and will be sure to pass word of those along to you all as soon as I learn about them. And I am also keeping an eye out for any other major news up to and during General Conference and I will provide those updates here ASAP after I learn of 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 for the applicable updates. 

If you would like to support the work done on this blog, donations in any amount are always welcome and appreciated but never required. 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.

UPDATED: April 2025 General Conference Predictions

Hello again, everyone! I wanted to post an updated version of my predictions for the upcoming April 2025 General Conference. Here is the revised speaker lineup, my revised potential changes in general Church leadership (which also includes my revised estimates for the 2024 statistical report), and my list of potential new temple locations. The information speaks for itself.  The final version of these predictions will be posted at 10:00 PM on Thursday, April 3, 2025, until which time a commenting period remains open.

For my part, I continue to monitor updates from the Church News, Newsroom, and Church of Jesus Christ Temples sites and will 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 for the applicable updates. 

If you would like to support the work done on this blog, donations in any amount are always welcome and appreciated but never required. 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.

UPDATE: October 2024 General Conference Predictions & Results; Introduction to Initial Predictions for the April 2025 General Conference

 Hello again, everyone! Although I anticipate the annousncement of the next major temple construction update during the 2:00 PM MST hour and I will do a new post featuring my analysis of that announcement whenever it is made and whatever it might entail, I have been asked some questions about the results of my predictions for the October 2024 General Conference, as well as some queries about how soon I might have my April 2025 General Conference predictions available for review.

This post comes in response to those inquiries. So let's start with the results of my October predictions. As you might recall, those included the  speaker lineup, projections for changes in general Church leadership, and a list of potential locations in which new temples could be announced. Based on my analysis of those results, I have scored them accordingly per the usual method. Rather than reviewing what that involves and entails, I invite anyone with questions in that regard to post them in the comments, where I would be happy to address them.

With that in mind, we move on to my initial predictions for the April 2025 General Conference. Those include the speaker lineup projections, my predictions for potential changes in general Church leadership and the figures for the 2024 statistical report, and a revised and expanded list of potential locations in which new temples could be announced. Again, I offer an open invitation to any of you to ask any questions you might have about these newest predictions. This is by no means the final version of those projections, so any changes I deem appropriate will be made based on your feedback.

Stay tuned here for 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 for the applicable updates. If you would like to support the work done on this blog, donations in any amount are always welcome and appreciated but never required. 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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: President Nelson Announces 17 New Temples

Note: On October 6, 2024, before President Nelson announced new temples in General Conference, I was rushed to the Emergency Room and had an acute medical crisis that culminated in a month-long hospital stay. This post was originally set to publish at 4:15 PM, but I could not correct it at that time. So today, (January 14, 2024), I am pleased to complete my analysis of the newest announced temples. My thanks once again to you all.

Hello again, everyone! As I had projected, President Nelson just concluded General Conference by announcing new temples. But he announced 17 new temples rather than the 20 I had originally predicted. The temples will be built in the following locations: Juchitán de Zaragoza Mexico, Santa Ana El Salvador, Medellín Colombia, Santiago Dominican Republic, Puerto Montt Chile, Dublin Ireland, Milan Italy, Abuja Nigeria, Kampala Uganda, Maputo Mozambique, Coeur d’Alene Idaho, Queen Creek Arizona, El Paso Texas, Huntsville Alabama Milwaukee Wisconsin, Summit New Jersey, and Price Utah.

Of the newest 20 temples, I had the following temples down to the exact correct location: Juchitan Mexico (though I didn't include the "de Zaragoza" part), Santa Ana El Salvador, Medellin Colombia, Santiago Dominican Republic, Dublin Ireland,  Milan Italy, Abuja Nigeria, Kampala Uganda, Maputo Mozambique, Coeur d’Alene Idaho, Queen Creek Arizona, El Paso Texas, and Price Utah. I got 13 of the 17 correct to the exact location.

I had the correct general area but the wrong specific location for the following temples: Puerto Montt Chile (I had prioritized Osorno/Punta Arenas/Valparaíso), Milwaukee Wisconsin (I had prioritized Green Bay), and Summit New Jersey (I had prioritized East Brunswick), so I got 3 of the 17 halfway correct.

I was not anticipating the following temples:Huntsville Alabama, which wasn't on my radar at all. In view of this announcement, there are now 367 temples in any phase. Of those 367, President Nelson has announced  185 (roughly 50%). I am grateful that our prophet continues to announce new temples, and that he continues to encourage the Temple Department and Special Projects Division to keep the queue moving steadily.

Stay tuned here for 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 for the applicable updates. 

If you would like to support the work done on this blog, donations in any amount are always welcome and appreciated but never required. 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.

October 2024 General Conference Predictions (Final Version)

 Hello again, everyone! Since we are now officially 36 hours away from the next General Conference, I am pleased to be able to post the final version of my predictions for the upcoming weekend. We start, as always, with the projected speaker lineup. 

I fully believe the First Presidency will have three members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles conduct three of the five sessions (and that, for reasons I have outlined previously, the three will be Elders D. Todd Christofferson, Neil L. Andersen, and Ronald A Rasband). I likewise believe that the Sustaining of Church Officers will be at the top of every General Conference going forward.

I am projecting that Elder Patrick Kearon, who has not yet spoken at all in the Saturday Morning Session, will do so this weekend, and that this weekend will see the highest number of black participants ever in any General Conference (my projection is for 4 black speakers). The only other note on the speaker lineup is that I believe that only 5 of the 11 GA Seventies called in April 2024 will speak this time around and that I'm projecting that we will hear from 6 other "veteran" GA Seventies. 

And as has been the case in just about every October General Conference for the entirety of President Nelson's prophetic tenure, the only changes in Church leadership which I am anticipating are that a few area seventies will be released with a few more sustained, while the announcement of new temples is always a given. 

So I have prepared my thoughts on an area-by-area list of all the prospects I could see in the near term, and a more specific list of the top prospects I see being announced this weekend (that list can be found at the bottom of that final document). I hope all of you enjoy following along with these predictions, such as they are.

I continue to monitor 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. 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 be informed of newly added posts and comments, please subscribe. If you would like to support the work done on this blog, donations in any amount are never required but are always welcome and appreciated. 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.

Third Quarter 2024 Temple Construction Progress Update

Hello again, everyone! As September concludes, I am pleased to be able to provide an update on temple construction during this third quarter of 2024. By way of review, this report shows where things stood at the beginning of 2024, while this one reflects the progress made within just a few days of the April 2024 General Conference, this one highlights developments that occurred by the mid-point of 2024 and this one shows where things stand now, just a few days before the October 2024 General Conference.

That would ordinarily, at this point, cap my coverage of temple construction progress, but I have one more link to share. For anyone who wants to track temple construction progress as I provide those updates, you can find that coverage in this document. I don't necessarily update that document right as changes are implemented on the Church Temples site because that would require round-the-clock monitoring. But I do try to the best of my ability to check for updates a few times daily to ensure I'm not missing anything.

And it's also worth acknowledging that even the latest updates will be outdated by this upcoming Sunday, when President  Nelson will announce more new temples to conclude the October 2024 General Conference. Having shared those caveats, this update is concluded. I continue to monitor 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. I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below.

TIf you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly added posts and comments, please subscribe. If you would like to support the work done on this blog, donations in any amount are never required but are always welcome and appreciated. 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.

Initial Predictions for the October 2024 General Conference

Hello again, everyone! Given the weekend lull in major Church news between now and Monday, when the next major temple construction announcement is anticipated, I have taken the time to put together my initial predictions for the October 2024 General Conference and would like to present those to you now. Let's dive right in! We start, as always, with my projected speaker lineup. 

As mentioned, the First Presidency will continue to have members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles conduct 3 of the 5 General Conference sessions. Given that Elders Cook, Stevenson, and Renlund did so last time, I am projecting that Elders Christofferson, Andersen, and Rasband will do so this time. This is because the three junior members of the Quorum are still somewhat "green" and in deference to President Holland's health, because Elder Uchtdorf already has experience doing so, and since it is likely that Elder Bednar will do so in future First Presidencies.

I was a little concerned about balancing the first addresses of new GA Seventies with an adequate number of "veteran" GA Seventies, but I think I struck a good balance. It's also worth noting that since the entire Young Women General Presidency spoke to us over the last two General Conferences, I have left them out of the rotation for this go-round, with the other four General Presidencies represented. Other than these notes, the speaker lineup largely speaks for itself.

We now turn to potential changes in general Church leadership. Because so many changes were presented last April, my prediction is that only a few area seventies will be released, with a few more new ones sustained. There is also a possibility, however remote, that the Church could also take the opportunity to release Elder David S. Baxter, who has been on medical leave from his assignments for the last several years. But since he will turn 70 next year, I think it is far more likely that his release will be presented with those others turning 70 in 2025, which will occur in April of next year.

The final element of my predictions for the next General Conference is, of course, potential temple locations. I have expanded that list somewhat for this go-round. For the record, I believe that 20 new temples are likely to be announced. The upcoming General Conference will be most memorable because it will be the first time the Church has had a centenarian prophet and apostle. And with additional temples to look forward to, and with the prospect of 3 apostles conducting 3 of the 5 sessions again, it's going to be amazing, regardless of how correct or incorrect these predictions may be.

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. 

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below, especially with any questions or comments about any of these predictions. Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly added posts and comments. 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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: President Nelson Announces 15 New Temples To Conclude the April 2024 General Conference

Hello again, everyone! During the final minutes of the April 2024 General Conference, President Nelson announced 15 new temples to be built in the following locations: Uturoa French Polynesia; Chihuahua, Mexico; Florianópolis Brazil; Rosario, Argentina; Edinburgh Scotland; Brisbane Australia South Area; Victoria British Columbia; Yuma Arizona;  Houston Texas South Area; Des Moines Iowa; Cincinnati Ohio; Honolulu Hawaii; West Jordan Utah; Lehi Utah; and Maracaibo Venezuela.

I had the following exact locations correct: Chihuahua Mexico; Florianopolis Brazil; Rosario Argentina; Edinburgh Scotland; Victoria British Columbia; Des Moines Iowa; Cincinattti Ohio; Honolulu Hawaii; West Jordan and Lehi Utah; and Maracaibo Venezuela. I had projected Bora Bora Tahiti, which is just an airplane ride away, so I'll count myself half-right on that. I was also half-right, as I was expecting an Arizona Temple, but not in Yuma. And I wasn't expecting a second Brisbane or Houston temple.

So 11 correct down to the exact location, 2 half-right, and 2 that I wasn't anticipating. I'm apparently getting better at my projected guesses. This brings the total number of temples to an even 350. I will have updated copies of my documents available in the comments section as I can get those updates made. 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. I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly added posts and comments. 

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.

UPDATED: April 2024 General Conference Predictions (Final Version)

Hello again, everyone! We are now just 36 hours away from the first session of the April 2024 General Conference, so I wanted to post the final version of my predictions for this weekend. First up is my projected speaker lineup. I have notes in the document, where applicable, that speak for themselves. Next up is my projections for changes in general Church leadership and the statistical report. 

The former speaks for itself. On the latter, I used known data where available and a complex algorithm where data was not available to determine the relevant figures. The final element of these projections is my list of locations in which a temple could be announced. The list speaks for itself, but I also have a more specific list of what I feel are the most likely specific locations that will have a temple announced. (Note that my April 2024 picks are at the bottom of that second document).

I am looking forward to this General Conference weekend. You can count on me covering the latest news and updates as they are reported this weekend. 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. 

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly added posts and comments. 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.

BREAKING NEWS: Church Will Create 36 New Missions in 2024

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. 

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly added posts and comments. 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.

Initial Predictions for the April 2024 General Conference

Hello again, everyone! Having recently published my documents relating to the October 2023 General Conference, and bearing in mind that I still anticipate several major temple construction updates throughout the last quarter of this year, I wanted to now provide a look ahead and share my initial predictions for the April 2024 General Conference. 

We start with the speaker lineup. The last time that President Nelson spoke in the Saturday Morning Session was in October 2022, when he was the concluding speaker. Given his efforts to reduce and simplify, and give more general leaders the opportunity to speak, I think we may see him do what he did last conference again: only speak in the concluding session and have a full-length address.

I am also operating under the assumption that his two counselors and all 12 members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles will give one talk apiece, although I anticipate that President Oaks will present the Sustaining of Church Officers. Since the Presiding Bishopric only speaks once a year now, and since April has typically seen only 2 female General Officers speaking, I think we will see 11 GA Seventies speak.

Other than these notes, the lineup should speak for itself. Next up is potential changes I'm anticipating in general Church leadership. I still feel strongly that a third counselor in the First Presidency may be warranted at some point, in which case a new apostle would also be called. That in turn would necessitate other changes in general Church leadership. Also, last April, aside from new GA Seventies, the Church also called for a vote of appreciation for the GA Seventies who were granted emeritus status on August 1. This time around, that would include 8 GA Seventies, including 2 remembers of the Presidency of the Seventy. So those changes will likely be noted in advance.

If a new apostle needs to be called, that will lead to other potential changes in general Church leadership. But whether or not that happens, I am also anticipating a new Sunday School General Presidency, the release of at least a few area seventies, a longer list of those who will be released on August 1, and several new area seventies called. That document also contains my estimates for the figures in the statistical report for 2023. I have made estimates based on what I've been able to ascertain and what I was otherwise able to calculate using a rather complex algorithm that would be difficult to explain.

And the final element of my predictions for the April 2024 General Conference is the list of locations in which a temple could be announced. We have seen a total of 35 temples announced each year since 2021. In 2021, 20 temples were announced in April, one more in May, and the remaining 14 in October. In 2022, 17 were announced in April, with 18 more announced in October. And this year, 15 were announced in April, with the remaining 20 in October. 

I would just note here that I project 15-20 new temples to be announced in April 2024. It's also worth noting that this initial April 2024 list includes only those locations that were on my list for October of this year that did not have a temple announced. I will be on the lookout for other prospects and will be sure to add them to my list for subsequent drafts. If any of you are aware of any locations I have failed to consider or omitted, please let me know.

As always, any questions or comments on these predictions are both welcomed and encouraged. I continue to monitor all Church News, Newsroom, and Church of Jesus Christ Temples updates and will be sure to pass those along to you all here as I become aware of 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 the offered 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. Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly-added posts and comments. 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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: President Nelson Announces 20 New Temples

Note: An initial version of this post was published at 4:07 PM as scheduled. Due to circumstances, which I explained here, a full report on this update wasn't published between 5:00-6:00 PM. This post bears the original timestamp.

Hello again, everyone! I am pleased to report that my theory was incorrect. President Nelson didn't speak until Sunday Afternoon, and in his prerecorded remarks concluding General Conference, he announced 20 new temples, the exact number of temples I had theorized would be announced. 

The temples will be built in each of the following locations: Savai’i Samoa, Kahului Hawaii, Fairbanks Alaska, Vancouver Washington, Colorado Springs Colorado, Tulsa Oklahoma, Roanoke Virginia, Cancún Mexico, Piura & Huancayo Peru, Viña del Mar Chile, Goiânia and João Pessoa Brazil, Cape Coast Ghana, Calabar Nigeria, Luanda Angola, Mbuji-Mayi Democratic Republic of the Congo, Laoag, Philippines, Osaka Japan, and Ulaanbaatar Mongolia.

I correctly predicted temples in Savaii Samoa, Fairbanks Alaska, Colorado Springs Colorado, Cancun Mexico, Viña del Mar Chile, Goiânia and João Pessoa Brazil, Cape Coast Ghana, Calabar Nigeria, Mbuji-Mayi DR Congo, Osaka Japan, and Ulaanbaatar Mongolia (12 of the 20) to the exact location. I had the right general area but the wrong specific one for the newest temples in Hawaii, Peru, and the Philippines, but the wrong specific cities. 

Angola had been on my list, but I had removed it, which was also the case for Tulsa. OOPS! I was blindsided by Roanoke Virginia, Vancouver Washington, Piura and Huancayo and Piura Peru. The accuracy calculation will be included in my General Conference predictions results post, which will come out at some point in the next two weeks.

It seems the plans of President Nelson regarding the temple program of the Church have not been exaggerated. I have received feedback that the Church could potentially have 400 temples operating by 2030, but I have not been able to substantiate that further. I anticipate that tomorrow, there will be another major temple construction update. Stay tuned for coverage on that.

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. I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly-added posts and comments. 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.

UPDATE: Third Quarter 2023 Temple Construction Progress Updates

Hello again, everyone! As the final moments of September (and thus the third quarter of 2023) wind down, it is time to take a look at where temple construction stands as of the end of this quarter. So, by way of review, let's look back at where things stood as 2023 began, on the Saturday of the April 2023 General Conference, at the end of the first half of 2023, and where things stand now.

The data largely speaks for itself. I also recognize that the last report will be outdated in about 16 hours, when, at the conclusion of the Sunday Afternoon Session of General Conference, President Nelson will likely announce new temples. The new temples will be added to both the third-quarter report and the main temple construction progress document. I am looking forward to that announcement.

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. I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. 

Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly-added posts and comments. 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.

UPDATED: October 2023 General Conference Predictions (Second Edition)

Hello again, everyone! I have recently, for several reasons, updated my predictions for the upcoming October 2023 General Conference. My primary reasons for doing so were due to further analysis of the different speaker lineup patterns for the April 2023 General Conference vs. the October 2022 General Conference. Particularly, I noted that in April, a comparatively higher number of General Authority Seventies spoke, primarily because the Church changed the date when the three GA Seventies were granted emeritus status (that had previously been effective in General Conference weekend in October, and now, those releases are effective August 1).

By contrast, the October General Conference of last year saw 5 General Officers speak, 4 of whom were females. 4 General Officers of the Church also spoke last April, but only 2 were female. As a result of the change in the Young Women General Presidency that became effective on August 1, I believe we will see two members of the new Young Women General Presidency speak, joined by one member apiece of the Young Men, Primary, and Sunday School General Presidencies. 

Ordinarily, the Young Men and Sunday School General Presidencies alternate, with one presidency represented in April, and the other in October. But because the Church will likely release the Sunday School General Presidency in April, and because the current Second Counselor thereof has only spoken once, I think Brother Jan E. Newman will speak in October, alongside Brother Michael T. Nelson, the newest member of the Young Men General Presidency, the new Young Women General President and her First Counselor, and the Primary General President. Since all 3 of the Relief Society General Presidency members have spoken in the last two General Conferences, it seems unlikely that a Relief Society General Presidency member will be speaking at this conference.

So that was the biggest reason for me to adjust my projections for the speaker lineup. And because the Church has also had the Presiding Bishopric only speak in October for the last two years, since the predictions also include one member apiece of the Presiding Bishopric and the Presidency of the Seventy, I have reduced the number of GA Seventies I have projected will speak. 

Aside from the speaker lineup, there was also a reason to revisit my list of potential locations in which a temple could be announced. I have added a few new locations for the first time based on some additional research I have done. As I mentioned previously, with the Church having presented information about the GA Seventies who were released on August 1, and because they also presented a list of area seventy changes effective August 1, the only changes in general Church leadership that are likely are the potential release of any current area seventies or the sustaining of a few others. 

So my predictions will not include projections for the sustaining process this time around. Having shared the latest revisions to my predictions, by way of reminder, the commenting period on them is open until 10:00 PM on Thursday, September 28. And the Church has not yet confirmed that the Saturday Evening Session will be open to all members, but in the absence of such an announcement, my projection is that the session will not be geared to any particular group.

I welcome any inquiries about any aspect of these predictions. I also continue to monitor all Church News, Newsroom, and temple construction updates, and will be sure to pass word of those along to you all here as I receive it. Additionally, Sunday marks the 68th birthday of Elder Gary E. Stevenson, followed on Wednesday by the 72nd birthday of Elder Neil L. Andersen, with the 91st birthday of President Dallin H. Oaks following on Saturday. Then on Sunday, I will post my latest updated apostolic data update.

I will likewise look forward (hopefully) to additional breaking temple news next week, and perhaps to a hopeful update on Elder Holland's situation. Whatever might happen in that regard, I will be sure to pass that along to you all here as I become aware of it. 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. 

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly-added posts and comments. 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.

UPDATE: Overview of Temple Construction Prgoress During the Second Quarter (and First Half) of 2023

Hello again, everyone! As the final minutes of the second quarter (and first half) of 2023 move toward their inevitable conclusion, I wanted to provide an overview of temple construction progress throughout the last six months. We begin with the document showing where temple construction stood as 2023 began, on the first day of the April 2023 General Conference, and where things stand at this mid-point of 2023.

The data largely speaks for itself. While I am not surprised at the high number of temples that have already been dedicated this year, I have been surprised by the slower pace the Church has taken in announcing subsequent dedications. Again, that seems to simply be the result of supply chain issues, which will not last forever. And the temples currently in the construction queue have moved a lot both forward and backward in terms of their completion orders and estimates.

Quite frankly, I was also surprised that the St. George Utah Temple will be rededicated before the end of this year. With Elder Holland having started to return to his apostolic duties, I believe he will either preside over or accompany whomever presides over both the rededication of the St. George Utah Temple and the dedication of the Red Cliffs Utah Temple.

And I'm cautiously optimistic that once the Saratoga Springs, Orem, Red Cliffs, Layton, and Taylorsville Utah Temples are dedicated, additional Utah temples could be announced.

I was similarly stunned that this first half of 2023 only had 4 temple groundbreakings. I'm cautiously optimistic that we could see over a dozen temple groundbreakings in this second half of 2023. And I'm sure we've got other site confirmations and exterior renderings coming down the pike in the near term, especially if the Church continues its' custom of sharing major temple construction news once a week. So I think we are in for a very busy second half of 2023.

To the best of my ability, I will be sure to track those developments, in addition to all updates from the Church News and the Newsroom, and will be sure to pass word thereof to you all here 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. 

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly-added posts and comments. 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.

Initial Predictions for the October 2023 General Conference

Hello again, everyone! In the absence of any major announcements by the Church this week, I have been able to put together the initial draft of my predictions for the October 2023 General Conference. First up, as always, we have my predictions for the potential speaker lineup. A few notes on that: Last conference marked only the third time that President Nelson didn't deliver any remarks to open the General Conference. 

I don't know if that means he won't be speaking in any of the opening sessions for however many General Conferences he continues to serve as prophet, so I wanted to at least allow for the possibility. Secondly, as acknowledged in the one footnote to these predictions, last conference, President Oaks not only presented new GA Seventies, he also noted the upcoming August 1 release of 3 GA Seventies and led the group sustaining of the changes in area seventies and the advanced sustaining of the incoming Young Women General Presidency.

Since all of the changes effective on or before August 1 were already presented last time, the sustaining in October is likely to only include the First Presidency, the President and Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve, the members of that Quorum, and a motion to sustain all other GA Seventies, area seventies, and general officers as presently constituted. Since that process may only take a couple of minutes, it is possible that more general Church leaders could speak in the Saturday Afternoon Session than I have predicted here.

With the major changes already noted, these predictions mark the first time that they do not include a document showing the likely changes in Church leadership. It's also worth noting that, of course, I am assuming that all apostles will be able to speak in October and that the Saturday Evening Session will again be open to all members and friends of the Church. 

So the only other element remaining are my predictions for the most likely locations in which new temples could be announced. Regarding the likely new temples, if the information I have is correct, President Nelson may announce a minimum of 35 temples per year. If that remains the case for this year, then with 15 new temples announced earlier this month, the Church may look to having a minimum of 20 others announced in October. 

I see no reason to not believe that will be the minimum possible number of temples. With those introductory notes shared, the rest of the predictions largely speak for themselves. I am pleased, therefore, to declare the commenting period for these initial predictions officially opened. That commenting period will remain active until Thursday, October 2, at 10:00 PM, which will then give me 36 hours to finalize these predictions.

Unless the Church continues to take a temporary hiatus on temple construction announcements, I assume the next major announcement will be shared on Monday. In the interim, I continue to monitor all major Church News and Newsroom updates and any other temple construction updates and will be sure to pass those along to you all as they cross my radar. 

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. I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. 

Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly-added posts and comments. 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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: President Nelson Announces 15 New Temples as the April 2023 General Conference Concludes

Hello again, everyone! In all but one of the Church's 10 previous General Conferences held since early 2018, the Sunday Afternoon Session has usually concluded with closing remarks and the announcement of new temples by our beloved prophet, President Russell M. Nelson. Today was no different. I am pleased to report that 15 new templeshave been announced in each of the following locations: 

Retalhuleu Guatemala; Iquitos Peru; Teresina & Natal Brazil; Tuguegarao City & Iloilo Philippines; Jakarta Indonesia; Hamburg Germany; Lethbridge Alberta Canada; San Jose and Bakersfield California; Springfield Missouri; Charlotte North Carolina; Winchester Virginia; and Harrisburg Pennsylvania. Today's announcement brings the total number of temples in the Church to 315, 133 (42% of which President Nelson has personally announced).

I had the following 9 locations exactly correct: Iquitos Peru, Teresina and Natal Brazil, Jakarta Indonesia, Hamburg Germany, Lehtbridge Alberta Canada, San Jose and Bakersfield California, and Charlotte North Carolina. I had the right general location but the wrong specific location for the following temples: Retalhuleu Guatemala & Tuguegaro City & Iloilo Philippines, And the following temples announced were not on my radar, but perhaps they should have been: Springfield Missouri, Winchester Virginia, and Harrisburg Pennsylvania.

As a general note, unless I am mistaken, Sister Wendy Nelson is a native of Raymond Alberta, and the temple in Lethbridge will likely serve the area in which she grew up. Matthew Martinich, who maintains the Church Growth Blog, will likely have more information on this than I could provide here. With today's announcement of new temples, the Church may or may not have another major temple construction update announced at around 2:00 PM tomorrow afternoon. 

But if such an announcement is made, I will be sure to cover it here ASAP once I learn of it. 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. I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below.

Please subscribe if you liked what you read here and would like to be informed of newly-added posts and comments. 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.