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Monday, February 6, 2017

Temple Construction Progress Report Update

Hello all. The purpose of this post will be to share my latest temple construction progress report updates. While not a lot has changed in that regard, those changes that have been made are wonderful to consider. Let me know what you think. Here's the posted report:

Temple Construction Progress Report (current as of 2/6/17)
Current Temple Status: 155 operating; scheduled for dedication; under construction; 1 groundbreaking scheduled; scheduled for rededication; 2 undergoing renovation; 9 announced. NOTE: With one groundbreaking announced already this year, two more have the potential to be announced and scheduled very soon, and there may be several more groundbreakings than that in the year ahead.

Dedication scheduled:
156. Paris France Temple: Interior artwork being shipped for hanging inside the temple; dedication scheduled for Sunday May 21, 2017.
157. Tucson Arizona Temple: Exterior architectural details gilded; installation of interior art glass and millwork nearing completion; president’s home undergoing renovation; dedication scheduled for Sunday August 13, 2017.
158. Meridian Idaho Temple: Interior painting and millwork underway; dedication scheduled for Sunday November 19, 2017.
159. Cedar City Utah Temple: Installing art glass windows; hanging drywall on interior; dedication scheduled for Sunday December 10, 2017.

Under Construction:
160. Rome Italy Temple: Interior work progressing; completion anticipated sometime between early and mid-2018.
161. Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple: Applying waterproofing membrane to exterior walls; setting rebar; roughing in plumbing; completion anticipated sometime between early and mid-2018.
162. Concepcion Chile Temple: Exterior cladding going up on north wall; framing the interior walls; completion anticipated sometime during mid-2018.
163. Durban South Africa Temple: Applying waterproof mastic to temple foundation; pouring exterior walls for missionary housing building; staking site for ancillary buildings; completion anticipated sometime during mid-2018.
164. Barranquilla Colombia Temple: Concrete walls poured for steeple; attaching waterproofing membrane to exterior walls; completion anticipated sometime between late 2018 and early 2019.
165. Winnipeg Manitoba Temple: Groundbreaking held Saturday December 3, 2016; completion anticipated sometime between late 2018 and early 2019.
166. Fortaleza Brazil Temple: Setting concrete forms for parapet walls; completion anticipated sometime during 2019.
167. Lisbon Portugal Temple: Excavation underway for temple; structural framing going up for meetinghouse; completion anticipated sometime during 2019.

Groundbreaking Scheduled:
168. Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple: Preparing for groundbreaking; environmental license issued in November 2016; groundbreaking scheduled for Saturday March 4, 2017.

Rededication Scheduled:
8. Idaho Falls Idaho Temple: Closed for renovation; finish work underway; rededicatiemon scheduled for Sunday June 4, 2017.

Undergoing Renovation:
20. Jordan River Utah Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication anticipated sometime between early-and-mid 2018.
41. Frankfurt Germany Temple: Closed for renovation; some exterior stone removed; foundation exposed; old meetinghouse razed; rededication anticipated sometime between early-and mid-2018.

Announced:
169. Arequipa Peru Temple: Erecting construction barrier; clearing and leveling site; awaiting groundbreaking announcement; groundbreaking anticipated in early 2017.
170. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Approval and construction preparation phase; official site announcement anticipated in 2017, with the groundbreaking anticipated to take place shortly following the site announcement.
171. Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: The LDS Church Temple website indicates that a potential site has been identified, though it has yet to be officially verified.
172. Bangkok Thailand Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: As the above-mentioned website indicates for this temple, while no official temple site has been announced, there may be a possibility that a Church office building may be repurposed to function as a temple, meetinghouse, and office building under one roof, in a similar fashion to those temples in Hong Kong China and Manhattan New York. This is most likely to be confirmed sooner rather than later.
173. Urdaneta Philippines Temple: Stalled in planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.
174. Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.
175. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.
176. Belem Brazil Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.
177. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

Key:
Bolded numbers and text denote temples whose numbers already exists (for renovations), or is certain due to a scheduled dedication, as well as information that is certain, such as dedication or groundbreaking dates.
Italicized numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on the order in which future dedications and groundbreakings are scheduled.
Underlined numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on progress towards planning, approval, and groundbreaking.
Red text denotes changes from the last posted temple progress report. 

Sunday, February 5, 2017

Newest Apostolic Age & Tenure Milestones & Averages

Hello. This will just be a brief update on the latest apostolic age and tenure milestones & averages. This will be a much less detailed report than the one I posted last week. That said, as noted in previous posts, Friday marked one milestone each for our prophet (President Thomas S. Monson) and our President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (President Russell M. Nelson). President Monson marked his 9 year anniversary as Church President yesterday, in addition to President Nelson marking 1 years and 7 months as Quorum President. Nothing much has changed otherwise in terms of how close Presidents Monson and Nelson are to the nearest age and tenure records.

In the meantime, I want to note one thing about the apostolic age averages that's kind of a significant anomaly. Elder Ronald A. Rasband is going to celebrate his 66th birthday on Monday. So while, as of tomorrow, the day on which I am basing this report, he is one day short of that birthday, his decimal age, rounded to the nearest hundredth, is already 66.00 years. So that is unique. Also, the number of days since his birthday is the one and only one left that has not yet been affected by the leap year. As such, I have been dividing the number of days since his birthday by 366 to determine how many hundredths of a year he is on any given Sunday. The remaining 14 are being divided by 365 to determine how many hundredths of a year they are.

That said, as of tomorrow, the average age of the First Presidency members is 83.13. As mentioned, President Monson is above that average, President Eyring is closest to it, and President Uchtdorf is below it.

The average age of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is 74.68. The six above that average are President Nelson, Elder Ballard, Elder Oaks, Elder Hales, Elder Cook and Elder Holland, who is the youngest of that older half and is therefore closest to that average. Elder Christofferson is the closest to the average in the other half of those twelve. The other five under the average are, of course, Elder Rasband, Elder Andersen, Elder Bednar, Elder Renlund, and Elder Stevenson.

The average age of the 15 apostles as a group is 76.37. The seven above that average are Presidents Nelson and Monson (on the older side), President Eyring and Elder Cook (on the younger side) and Elders Ballard, Oaks and Hales (in the middle). Elder Cook and President Uchtdorf are the ones who split the older half from the younger half, with Elder Cook being the youngest of the seven oldest, and President Uchtdorf being the oldest of the eight youngest. In addition the President Uchtdorf, rounding out the younger side are Elders Holland, Christofferson, Rasband, Andersen, Bednar, Renlund, and Stevenson.

Of those apostles who are not yet 90, President Monson is the closest to that, and he will be 90 in 6 months and 16 days (from tomorrow). And among our youngest third of apostles, the youngest, Elder Stevenson, will not be 90 for another 28 years, 6 months, and 1 day. It always interests me how the Lord governs the changing of the apostolic leadership of His Church.

All the apostles called between the apostolic calls of President Monson (in October 1963) and President Nelson (in April 1984) have passed away. We have also lost the two that sat between Elder Ballard and Elder Hales. In the meantime, as Presidents Eyring and Uchtdorf fall in seniority between Elders Holland and Bednar, there is another gap in the Quorum of the Twelve. It is interesting that between President Monson (the 77th apostle in Church history) and President Nelson (the 85th one), there are eight apostles that we have lost.

When taking into account the other two that have died (Elders Wirthlin and Scott), it would only take two more apostles passing before President Monson to mark the loss of a full Quorum's worth since President Monson's call. And as sad as that is to contemplate, it could happen. Elder Hales is just younger than Elder Oaks but seems to have the worst health history of our current 15 apostles. He has looked better these last couple of conferences, but given how precarious things have previously been for him, he could be the next one we lose. I hate to lose any of the Brethren, but I can't shake the feeling that he might not be with us much longer. That said, we have seen the Lord prolong his life many times previously, so he could carry on for years to come. We have had apostles in better health than he has had decline suddenly, so nothing would surprise me at this point.

Elder Ballard is showing signs of his age, being just over a year younger than President Monson. By all reports, he is still healthy, but again, we have seen seemingly healthy apostles decline suddenly, so there is always a chance that he could pass before President Monson.

And while I do hope that President Nelson, who is just under three years older than President Monson, will live to become the oldest living apostle, it is a rare thing to have someone live that long after wearing out his life in the Lord's service. That said, he is still traveling extensively and he has outlived President Packer, who was born one day after him. I fully expect to see President Nelson live a long time and surprise us all with the milestones he will reach towards becoming the oldest apostle. But that will be up to the Lord.

I hope I am correctly understood in what I have expressed in the previous three paragraphs above. I don't enjoy contemplating or speculating about which apostles we might lose and when. I merely mention these factors in view of those who might precede President Monson in death. I for one hope that all of the apostles continue to do very well health-wise, and that it will be many years before the next apostolic death. I am glad the Lord controls and governs that aspect of things. I for one would hate trying to determine when that should happen. I love the leading brethren of the Church, which I hope is apparently by the things I post about them and their travels. I sustain them with all my heart, and I do my best to follow their counsel. May the Lord continue to bless all of his faithful special witnesses.


Friday, February 3, 2017

First Temple Construction Progress Report Update for February

Hello, all! As I indicated in a recent previous post on the infographic released by the Church, the information contained therein is somewhat outdated in terms of the many developments now taking place for temples worldwide. This is clear to me when I compare the personal report I do to that infographic. I am grateful that the Church notes such updates as fast as they can, but I feel that information I find elsewhere is more up-to-date. And I love that I get to share these things with you all. Hope you enjoy this post, which will likely be the last post for today. If it is, more will be coming tomorrow.

Here's my newest report. Enjoy, and let me know what you think.

Temple Construction Progress Report (current as of 2/3/17)
Current Temple Status: 155 operating; scheduled for dedication; under construction; 1 groundbreaking scheduled; scheduled for rededication; 2 undergoing renovation; 9 announced. NOTE: With one groundbreaking announced already this year, two more have the potential to be announced and scheduled very soon, and there may be several more groundbreakings than that in the year ahead.

Dedication scheduled:
156. Paris France Temple: Interior artwork being shipped for hanging inside the temple; dedication scheduled for Sunday May 21, 2017.
157. Tucson Arizona Temple: Exterior lighting tests underway; installation of interior art glass and millwork nearing completion; president’s home undergoing renovation; dedication scheduled for Sunday August 13, 2017.
158. Meridian Idaho Temple: Interior painting and millwork underway; dedication scheduled for Sunday November 19, 2017.
159. Cedar City Utah Temple: Installing art glass windows; hanging drywall on interior; dedication scheduled for Sunday December 10, 2017.

Under Construction:
160. Rome Italy Temple: Interior work progressing; completion anticipated sometime between early and mid-2018.
161. Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple: Applying waterproofing membrane to exterior walls; setting rebar; roughing in plumbing; completion anticipated sometime between early and mid-2018.
162. Concepcion Chile Temple: Exterior cladding going up on north wall; framing the interior walls; completion anticipated sometime during mid-2018.
163. Durban South Africa Temple: Applying waterproof mastic to temple foundation; pouring exterior walls for missionary housing building; completion anticipated sometime during mid-2018.
164. Barranquilla Colombia Temple: Concrete walls poured for steeple; attaching waterproofing membrane to exterior walls; completion anticipated sometime between late 2018 and early 2019.
165. Winnipeg Manitoba Temple: Groundbreaking held Saturday December 3, 2016; completion anticipated sometime between late 2018 and early 2019.
166. Fortaleza Brazil Temple: Setting concrete forms for parapet walls; completion anticipated sometime during 2019.
167. Lisbon Portugal Temple: Excavation underway for temple; structural framing going up for meetinghouse; completion anticipated sometime during 2019.

Groundbreaking Scheduled:
168. Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple: Preparing for groundbreaking; environmental license issued in November 2016; groundbreaking scheduled for Saturday March 4, 2017.

Rededication Scheduled:
8. Idaho Falls Idaho Temple: Closed for renovation; finish work underway; rededication scheduled for Sunday June 4, 2017.

Undergoing Renovation:
20. Jordan River Utah Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication anticipated sometime between early-and-mid 2018.
41. Frankfurt Germany Temple: Closed for renovation; some exterior stone removed; foundation exposed; old meetinghouse razed; rededication anticipated sometime between early-and mid-2018.

Announced:
169. Arequipa Peru Temple: Erecting construction barrier; clearing and leveling site; awaiting groundbreaking announcement; groundbreaking anticipated in early 2017.
170. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Approval and construction preparation phase; official site announcement anticipated in 2017, with the groundbreaking anticipated to take place shortly following the site announcement.
171. Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: The LDS Church Temple website indicates that a potential site has been identified, though it has yet to be officially verified.
172. Bangkok Thailand Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: As the above-mentioned website indicates for this temple, while no official temple site has been announced, there may be a possibility that a Church office building may be repurposed to function as a temple, meetinghouse, and office building under one roof, in a similar fashion to those temples in Hong Kong China and Manhattan New York. This is most likely to be confirmed sooner rather than later.
173. Urdaneta Philippines Temple: Stalled in planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.
174. Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.
175. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.
176. Belem Brazil Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.
177. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

Key:
Bolded numbers and text denote temples whose numbers already exists (for renovations), or is certain due to a scheduled dedication, as well as information that is certain, such as dedication or groundbreaking dates.
Italicized numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on the order in which future dedications and groundbreakings are scheduled.
Underlined numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on progress towards planning, approval, and groundbreaking.
Red text denotes changes from the last posted temple progress report. 


First Presidency marks 9 years of service

This will be the first in a series of several blog posts I plan to do this weekend on various aspects of Church news and developments. First, this is a landmark day for the Church. It was on this day 9 years ago that the First Presidency was organized following the death of 15th Church President Gordon B. Hinckley. As was no surprise to anyone who knows anything about apostolic succession, President Thomas Spencer Monson was ordained and set apart as Church President by the second senior apostle, Boyd K. Packer. President Monson selected as his counselors Henry Bennion Eyring (who had served roughly three and a half months as President Hinckley's new second counselor following the death of James E. Faust), and Dieter Friedrich Uchtdorf (who, with David A. Bednar, had been called to the apostleship about 3.25 years prior).

I enjoyed hearing the reaction of these men to what had happened. President Monson, who had prayed extensively for the extension of President Hinckley's life; I have never met any apostle who had any aspirations of any kind to ascend to the presidency), had a deep soul search and sent up even more prayers following President Hinckley's passing, including for guidance on how he should lead the Church forward, and inspiration regarding whom he should select as his counselor.

Presidents Eyring and Uchtdorf were among the most junior apostles (only Elders Bednar and Cook were more so), but, as President Monson was wryly quoted as saying in his biography, he felt that he had enough apostolic seniority to provide a good balance to the junior status of his counselors, chosen by the Lord.

That being said, it seemed none of the other apostles were surprised by the calls of Presidents Eyring and Uchtdorf, except the two of them themselves. As I said, no one in the Church aspires to those positions if they are sensible. President Eyring reported that he had initially felt relieved at the death of President Hinckley, knowing he could resume his service among the rest of his quorum. And who can forget President Uchtdorf's expression of being "joyfully overwhelmed"? But both expressed their determination to serve to the best of their ability.

As for President Monson, it was not long before the mantle of prophet was visible on him. It could be clearly seen during the press conference introducing the First Presidency the next day. And for the first time in just over 76 years, we had a First Presidency member serving who was born outside of the United States. (President Uchtdorf joined an elite group with that distinction; we have had only six others.

The next most recent is Charles W. Nibley (born in Scotland). He served as second counselor to President Heber J. Grant from May 1925 until his death in December 1931. Before that, we had Charles W. Penrose (born in England). He was second counselor to President Grant from November 1918 to March 2021 and subsequently was first counselor from that month to his death in May 1925.

Prior to that was the service of Anthon H. Lund (born in Denmark). He served as Second Counselor to President Joseph F. Smith from October 1901 to April 1910 and subsequently as First Counselor to President Smith from that month until President Smith's death in November 1918. He only had four days in which he was back in his position in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (which coincidentally, as a side note, is the shortest time period in Church history between the death of one Church president and the setting apart of the next); after that, he served simultaneously as First Counselor to President Grant and also President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles until his death in March of 1921.

Reaching even further back into Church history, we note the service of John R. Winder, another from England. He served as the first First Counselor of President Smith from October 1901 until his death in March of 1910. He was not only an international member of the First Presidency. He is also one of only a few First Presidency members who were never ordained as apostles. I know there have been a few of those, but only a few. As another sidenote (boy, I have many of those), I don't count J. Reuben Clark in that category of First Presidency members who were not apostles. President Clark was ordained an apostle for purposes of establishing his apostolic seniority, putting him in the line of succession.

Anyways, getting back to the subject of international members of the First Presidency, the one before President Winder was George Q. Cannon (from England). He served for many years as a First Presidency member, under 4 Church Presidents (Brigham Young, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, and Lorenzo Snow). His service included being a counselor in the First Presidency under Brigham Young from June 1873 to President Young's death in late August 1877 (President Cannon's official title changed in May of 1874 to assistant counselor). He then went on to serve as the First Counselor to the next three Church Presidents until his death in April of 1901.

Coincidentally, another sidenote. The gap in the First Presidency that was caused by the death of George Q. Cannon was not filled until the next General Conference, where Joseph F. Smith became President Snow's new First Counselor, and Rudger Clawson was sustained to succeed President Smith. The two (Presidents Smith and Clawson) were sustained but not set apart due to the death of President Snow seven days after the announced changes. And President Smith was inspired to not retain President Clawson in the new First Presidency, giving President Clawson the distinction of having the shortest tenure as a counselor in the First Presidency.

Those who have been keeping track (if you haven't gotten lost in the trivia) know that all that remains is to discuss the first international member of the First Presidency. William Law had that distinction. Born in Ireland, he was called to serve in the First Presidency with Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon, when Brother Joseph determined to have his brother Hyrum, his previous Second Counselor, continue serving in the First Presidency in a more minor role, allowing Hyrum to devote his full duties to his appointment as the rightful heir to the position as the Patriarch to the Church, having received that right-by-lineage at the hands of his father, Joseph Sr., who had died the previous year. Unfortunately, President Law's service only lasted until two months before the martyrdom of Joseph Smith. President Law had fallen prey to the widespread belief that the Prophet's teachings regarding plural marriage had caused him (the Prophet) to fall out of God's graces. Disillusioned, he left the Church and became an establishing member of one of the other Latter Day Saint splinter groups, and was appointed that group's first prophet.

In light of studying the history of that time, and in the interests of sharing as much First Presidency trivia as I can within this post, I can tell you that this was a somewhat lonely period for Joseph Smith in terms of being able to rely on his counselors. In addition to President Law's disaffection, President Sidney Rigdon had disregarded instructions from a direct revelation from the Lord and left the Church to relocate to Philadelphia. Brother Joseph had asked the Church members to refuse to sustain President Rigdon, but the Church members were adamant about keeping him in the First Presidency. Joseph voiced his concern over this, saying he was doing his best to rid the Church of the pettiness shown by President Rigdon in relocating due to his opposition to plural marriage. Borther Joseph made it clear that he was not happy about having to retain him because of the common consent principle of the Church. Brother Joseph made his disapproval clear: "I have thrown him off my shoulders, and you have again put him on me. You may carry him; I will not."

That said, I know some who claim that President Rigdon's wanting to move was at the express wish of the Prophet, who was attempting to launch a campaign to be President of the United States. The prevalent story goes that President Rigdon had moved to Philadelphia to qualify him to be the Prophet's vice presidential candidate, as there is a long-standing rule that the candidates for President and Vice President of the United States cannot reside in the same state. But this thoery has been debunked, and the truth has been made know.

As we are all aware, the Prophet's inspiration to try and get the Church beyond the influence of President Rigdon was inspired. Though Brother Joseph had indicated that where he was not, there was no First Presidency over the Twelve, after his martyrdom, President Rigdon tried to convince the Church that he (as President Smith's First Counselor) was the rightful successor to Joseph. There followed the miraculous transfiguration of the appearance and voice of Brigham Young into that of Joseph Smith, which was observed by many, setting the precedent still followed today of succession in the presidency.

After all that trivia about former members of the First Presidency, it is time to get back to the main point of this post. I remember where I was when I heard of the announced reorganization of the current First Presidency when it was made public on Monday February 4, 2008. I was at my physical therapy appointment. I had waited over one of the longest weekends of my life to hear the news. Since my physical therapist is LDS as well, he had the radio tuned in to the press conference as he tried to work on me. I didn't make it very easy for him. I craned my neck, straining to hear the news.

When they were introduced, I didn't quite hear who the counselors were. I asked my mom, who was there waiting for me, to repeat that information. As she did, and as I listened to the rest of the press conference (I was officially able to watch it later on that day), I gained a sure witness that these were the men who needed to serve in the First Presidency at this time. There entered deep into my heart the absolute conviction that their calls came from the Lord. And they fielded questions about how they had been called and what they hoped to accomplish with their service together, however long it would last. President Monson expressed his love, support, and admiration for his counselors and the other apostles. Presidents Eyring and Ucthdorf each expressed the same for President Monson, each other, and their apostolic colleagues.

And so, their service commenced. I don't know what I could say of the last nine years of that service that would be an adequate summary. There have been numerous developments on all fronts of the Church. President Monson has continued the legacy set by President Hinckley of bringing the temples to the people. He has called more apostles in these last 9 years than President Hinckley did in his almost 13 year tenure (only one more; he has added 5 compared to President Hinckley's 4, and there is a possibility that we could have a few more pass before President Monson does; as Elder Hales has not been in very good health for years, despite being just under five years younger than President Monson; it is also possible that Elder Ballard might pass before President Monson does, being just over a year younger than out prophet; and it is anyone's guess whether or not President Nelson will outlive President Monson as well. Right now, it looks that way, but President Nelson is just over three years older than our prophet). There have been policy announcements, worldwide travel, reaching out to the one, many missions created, the adjustment in missionary age, geographical areas realigned, visits with dignitaries at home and abroad, and many changes in Church leadership, just to name a few things. And I could go on.

But as noted before in my post about apostolic age and tenure milestones, President Monson has become the 9th of our 16 prophets to have served for at least 9 years. And his First Presidency is historically significant not only for what they have accomplished, but also because they now rank as the fifth longest serving First Presidency without a change. They will observe more tenure milestones soon if no one passes away before then. They will jump to the fourth such spot on Wednesday June 28 of this year. About 34 days later, they will take the third longest serving slot (Monday July 31). Next year will see them take the second longest serving spot. That will happen on Wednesday September 12. And if they are still all alive on Friday July 3, 2020, they will have become the longest serving unchanged First Presidency.

That said, my thanks to those who have waded through this lengthy post full of Church trivia. I also would like to thank those who amended a statement I had made in an earlier post that claimed that our current First Presidency was on track to become the longest serving First Presidency very soon. In an act of true contrition, I have now done the research to set the record straight. That said, any comments on this milestone in general or the contents of this post in particular are welcome. Thanks to you all for your continued readership.

Thursday, February 2, 2017

Temple Infographic Updated

In light of the recently announced dedications of the final three temples that have been under construction for the last little while in the United States (if that fact alone is not a major indicator of the current international expansion of the gospel, I have no idea what is), the Church today released the latest updates to their temple infographic. I have compared this newest version to some of the previous ones, and it seems that the infographic has recorded some degree of progress in the construction of every temple. That being said, the updates are not as current or nearly as specific as those done on the LDS Church Temples website. Even so, it is a most impressive update. Click here to view that. So inspiring!

One other note. I receive feedback periodically from people who read my posts but may not want to make these insights public. Because of those insights, and without going into detail that I do not have or cannot be properly verified, it appears that the factors determining what makes a temple renovation necessary are more extensive than I originally believed. And the nature of those factors and the thoughts that have been shared, such as they are, have led me to conclude that renovations make more sense at times than building another temple within the same area. I imagine that if there is a good reason for renovation, and if it might be more feasible, reasonable, or more cost effective to expand or change existing temples to fit increased demand and local need, that might be done instead of perhaps announcing other temples elsewhere in such locales. It seems that the issue of determining these things is more involved than I originally thought.

One thing is clear, though: There are some older temples (the one in Salt Lake springs to mind) that will never be renovated at all, regardless of how much "sense" there might be in doing so. There are many older temples that others may feel should be renovated that might not be for a while.

There are also some older temples that are architectural icons, which means that remodeling them would detract from the beauty of the area and alter the feel of it. I honestly don't see the Provo temple being overhauled anytime soon. There is enough respect for the original design there that it is another that likely won't be touched. The renovation in Ogden, which had been the sister temple to Provo, made sense because the surrounding neighborhood had grown out of the old design. So an overhaul there became necessary. The area in which the Provo Temple has been built still seems to very much be architecturally true to that original design.

And it could be that for growing cities like those in the Utah and Salt Lake Valleys, an expansion of the temple might make more sense and be more feasible than the idea of building others in neighboring cities. It would be hard to witness, but I could see my own temple, the Mount Timpanogos Temple, falling into that category. Some who have commented to me have said they could see in Utah county temples announced for Lehi or the Saratoga Springs/Eagle Mountain area. If the American Fork temple was overhauled instead of having other temples built, I could see something like that working.

Since my knowledge of the activity levels in temples is only based on what I have observed in my neck of the woods, I have chosen to use the examples above as indicators of what could possibly happen. That said, I want to be absolutely clear. While I do know for a fact that the Salt Lake temple will never be renovated (that is a prime example of the all too prevalent Mormon myths that have floated around for years), and while I have very good reasons to believe that renovations will likely not happen in either Provo or American Fork, I did use those examples, with which I was familiar, to try and demonstrate how such decisions might be considered on a worldwide scale. Hope that makes sense to everyone.

That said, comments and feedback of any kind continue to be most welcome and always appreciated. If you have particular ideas about temples that might be renovated, or any insights regarding the ongoing developments in temple construction progress, I would appreciate hearing about them. I don't have nearly as much insight into such things as others might. I am reliant mainly on such feedback to fine-tune my thoughts and expressed opinions.

In regards to any comments, I do want you to know that I fully intend to respect the privacy by which those who might have offered more specific feedback have chosen to do so via e-mail rather than formal comments. That feedback, from a wide variety of individuals, has  said volumes to me about how widely read this blog has become. And that is a full credit to those who comment in public and in private. Because I honor requests for confidentially, I cannot and will not betray the trust that has been placed in me. For that reason, and because nothing is definite until a future official announcement happens, I cannot comment above and beyond what I have said here in regards to whether or not a specific temple might be more or less likely for renovation anytime soon.

As with trying to figure out which cities are most imminently likely for a temple in the very near future or  when future temple events might be announced and scheduled, the most unpredictable element of it all is that the Lord's plans in this regard are so vastly different from the way we might think or feel on the issue. We can speculate or predict until we are blue in the face, and make the best estimation we can, but the Lord does know the specifics and will reveal those as needed, according to His divine and perfect plan to perpetuate mankind's ability to be forever bound to their families. He is at the helm, and His hand is over every aspect of His work.

This is especially true of temple-related developments. I have seen things happen that I felt were sure, even though I may have believed that such things wouldn't come within my lifetime. I have been able to anticipate some things that have happened in that regard very precisely at times. And I have equally as often been completely blown away by how very many surprises the Lord throws our way.

I am just thrilled to be as involved with the public discussion of such things, and I am very honored and most humbled to realize that my thoughts, such as they have been, have been so well received that my blog has reportedly ranked for the last little while as one of the top Google search results for all temple-related developments. It also thrills and frightens me to think that my influence may be more widespread than I could ever have imagined or hoped for when I first started posting my thoughts on these things.

And it is not so much because of anything I have said or any research I have done. It is mostly (if not completely) due to the fact that there has been such great discussion threads on these things. Each comment made adds to my understanding and appreciation for the value in the opinions of others, and I hope my constant updates, corrections, and clarifications serve as an adequate monument to the value I place on such contributions to the ongoing discussion.

That said, thank you so much for reading this post, and, if you would like to, please share your insights. I look forward to continuing to follow the direction that has been set by such feedback and insights. Let the discussion begin!

Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Last Post in January--Temple Construction Progress Report

In what will, no doubt, be my last temple construction progress report in January (if not indeed my very last post this month), several important updates have been needed since my last one. That said, here it is. Enjoy, and please do let me know what you think. Thanks.

Temple Construction Progress Report (current as of 1/31/17)
Current Temple Status: 155 operating; scheduled for dedication; under construction; 1 groundbreaking scheduled; scheduled for rededication; 2 undergoing renovation; 9 announced. NOTE: With one groundbreaking announced already this year, two more have the potential to be announced and scheduled very soon, and there may be several more groundbreakings than that in the year ahead.

Dedication scheduled:
156. Paris France Temple: Interior artwork being shipped for hanging inside the temple; dedication scheduled for Sunday May 21, 2017.
157. Tucson Arizona Temple: Exterior lighting tests underway; installation of interior art glass and millwork nearing completion; president’s home undergoing renovation; dedication scheduled for Sunday August 13, 2017.
158. Meridian Idaho Temple: Interior painting and millwork underway; dedication scheduled for Sunday November 19, 2017.
159. Cedar City Utah Temple: Installing art glass windows; hanging drywall on interior; dedication scheduled for Sunday December 10, 2017.

Under Construction:
160. Rome Italy Temple: Interior work progressing; completion anticipated sometime between early and mid-2018.
161. Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple: Applying waterproofing membrane to exterior walls; setting rebar; roughing in plumbing; completion anticipated sometime between early and mid-2018.
162. Concepcion Chile Temple: Exterior cladding going up on north wall; framing the interior walls; completion anticipated sometime during mid-2018.
163. Durban South Africa Temple: Applying waterproof mastic to temple foundation; setting concrete forms for missionary housing exterior walls; completion anticipated sometime during mid-2018.
164. Barranquilla Colombia Temple: Exterior concrete walls completed; completion anticipated sometime between late 2018 and early 2019.
165. Winnipeg Manitoba Temple: Groundbreaking held Saturday December 3, 2016; completion anticipated sometime between late 2018 and early 2019.
166. Fortaleza Brazil Temple: Setting concrete forms for parapet walls; completion anticipated sometime during 2019.
167. Lisbon Portugal Temple: Excavation underway for temple; structural framing going up for meetinghouse; completion anticipated sometime during 2019.

Groundbreaking Scheduled:
168. Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple: Preparing for groundbreaking; environmental license issued in November 2016; groundbreaking scheduled for Saturday March 4, 2017.

Rededication Scheduled:
8. Idaho Falls Idaho Temple: Closed for renovation; finish work underway; rededication scheduled for Sunday June 4, 2017.

Undergoing Renovation:
20. Jordan River Utah Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication anticipated sometime between early-and-mid 2018.
41. Frankfurt Germany Temple: Closed for renovation; some exterior stone removed; foundation exposed; old meetinghouse razed; rededication anticipated sometime between early-and mid-2018.

Announced:
169. Arequipa Peru Temple: Erecting construction barrier; clearing and leveling site; awaiting groundbreaking announcement; groundbreaking anticipated in early 2017.
170. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Approval and construction preparation phase; official site announcement anticipated in 2017, with the groundbreaking anticipated to take place shortly following the site announcement.
171. Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: The LDS Church Temple website indicates that a potential site has been identified, though it has yet to be officially verified.
172. Bangkok Thailand Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement. NOTE: As the above-mentioned website indicates for this temple, while no official temple site has been announced, there may be a possibility that a Church office building may be repurposed to function as a temple, meetinghouse, and office building under one roof, in a similar fashion to those temples in Hong Kong China and Manhattan New York. This is most likely to be confirmed sooner rather than later.
173. Urdaneta Philippines Temple: Stalled in planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.
174. Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.
175. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.
176. Belem Brazil Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.
177. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

Key:
Bolded numbers and text denote temples whose numbers already exists (for renovations), or is certain due to a scheduled dedication, as well as information that is certain, such as dedication or groundbreaking dates.
Italicized numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on the order in which future dedications and groundbreakings are scheduled.
Underlined numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on progress towards planning, approval, and groundbreaking.
Red text denotes changes from the last posted temple progress report.

Grandson of President Gordon B. Hinckley carries on his grandfather's temple building legacy

David Hinckley, son of emeritus General Authority Seventy Richard G. Hinckley and grandson of 15th Church President Gordon B. Hinckley, is very much involved in carrying on his grandfather's legacy of helping bring temples to the people of the world. In an article which was featured in the Deseret News recently, and which appeared in a prominent place in the News section of the LDS Church Temples website, that continuing legacy is explored, explained and detailed. Click here to read that article, which is absolutely amazing and inspiring. Thanks to you all for your interest, support, and continuing comments and discussions.

Two Major Church Announcements

Hello. This is my first chance to report on two very important and major announcements made today by the LDS Church. First, LDS Business  College had its 13th president announced today. The outgoing president, J. Lawrence Richards, has served as its president for the last eight years. The incoming president, Bruce C. Kusch, currently serves as the chief academic officer who has had responsibility over the faculty and any and all academic programs. Click here for more on this change.

In the meantime, in the wake of the announcement by the Boy Scouts of America that they will be allowing transgenders to become boy scouts, the Church issued an official statement. Click here to read that statement.

This has been a landmark day for the Church just in regards to those two announcements. More to come as needed as I check the other Church websites for updates. Stay tuned. Thanks for your readership. Comments continue to be both welcome and appreciated.

Another Emeritus General Authority Has Passed Away

Hello, all! A report in the Church news shared that Elder James M. Dunn, an emeritus general authority, passed away a week ago. His funeral was held yesterday, the same day the article regarding his passing was published. For a look back at this remarkable man's life, please click here. During his seven-year tenure as a General Authority, he served in a wide variety of assignments. Despite only having one opportunity to speak in General Conference as a General Authority, he was one of many mission presidents that was asked to "report" on his service during a general conference of the Church. For both of those remarkable addresses, click here. I remember Elder Dunn's period of service, and I remember reading of some of the things he did during those seven years in updates published in the Church Almanac. I am always so impressed and inspired by the marvelous accounts of service rendered by such amazing men. May God bless the memory of this good brother. Though I never met him personally, I feel certain he received the greeting that the Lord gives all his faithful servants. It is my great hope and prayer that each of us may merit that greeting. Thanks for reading this. Any comments continue to be welcome and appreciated.

Sunday, January 29, 2017

Two tender mercies from the Lord

Events that have happened personally to my wife and me this month have reminded us clearly that the Lord is aware of us, that He is truly a God of miracles, and that in His tender mercy, He puts unexpected events in our path.

As many of you who have followed this blog with any frequency or regularity are aware, in October 2015, we relocated from American Fork and the stake where I had lived for 17 years to Orem. It was so hard for me to move knowing I was leaving behind an area and lots of people I had grown to love very much. This was especially true in terms of the fact that I have not handled change very well in my life.

In the first Church calling we together had served in since our temple service ended in 2012, we were asked to serve as Primary teachers. This we did until some health issues necessitated our release about a year later. We had been shut off from getting to know anyone in the ward. While we are continuing to get our health in order, we had to allow some major things to slip through our fingers. Our temple recommends expired for the first time since either of us had first received one.

When the second week in January found us well enough to attend Church for the first time in about two months, we resolved to find out what was involved in this stake in getting our temple recommends renewed. On January 8, we had our interviews on the ward and stake level within a matter of a few short hours.

Backtrack a bit with me now to when we were preparing to move. It so happened that I had done my research on the leaders of the stake we were moving into. When I heard that the second counselor in the stake presidency (a  man named President Burr) worked for the BYU police department, one clear thought entered my mind. The thought was that my sister Joanna, who worked for several years as a dispatcher for that police department, might know him. I mentioned his name to Joanna, who confirmed that she had worked for him on numerous occasions.

So getting back to our temple recommend renewal, I had hoped for the opportunity to have my interview with that man. We waited in line for a few minutes before I was called back by someone I obviously did not know. When we started the interview, I took the time to explain that I was relatively new to the stake and did not know his name. When he told me what it was, my heart leaped with joy. This was the very man my sister had worked with. So I mentioned that we had a personal connection, but I didn't have time to elaborate on that before he looked at my recommend and said, "Your last name is Stokes? You aren't Lynn Stokes's boy are you?" I told him that no, Lynn was my dad's brother. He was able to tell me that he and Uncle Lynn were still working together, but in a private security company he (President Burr) had started, which was news to me. I had not been aware of that.

But undeterred, I told him we also had another mutual acquaintance. I said, "Joanna Hickman is my sister." He told me that he had loved working with Joanna, and we chatted for a bit about the adventure she is now on with her young family. This was news to him. He knew she was no longer dispatching for BYU, but he hadn't heard why she'd moved on. He thanked me for that, and after the interview, I promised that I would tell Joanna hello from him the next time I saw her, and he pledged to do the same for me to Uncle Lynn.

The way that happened warmed my heart. But the miracle surrounding people we know in our new stake was not limited to that one occurrence. I happened to be looking over the list of the leaders of our stake, searching seemingly in vain for any other familiar name. It was in so doing that I happened upon the fact that there was one other couple in our stake, in addition to those we have become acquainted with in our new ward, that I knew very well. Their names are Lynn and Bonnie Vernon.

I had the happy opportunity to serve alongside them both in the course of my temple service, around the same period of time that my wife started working at the temple herself and as we dated and were married. Additionally, I had found out that Brother Lynn Vernon had grown up with my father-in-law, Gene Nuttall. While we served at the temple, once he knew that I was working with Lynn Vernon, Dad Nuttall would regularly take the opportunity to ask me how he was doing. I was pleased to be able to answer his questions.

One of my greatest regrets in having to be released as a temple worker was that I was thus losing my association with so many good friends. And now, in discovering that Lynn and Bonnie Vernon are members of the stake we moved into almost a year and a half ago, I have this further evidence of what Amy has told me a lot.

She has always said that with my many associates from the temple, we likely couldn't go anywhere in the surrounding area without being sure of running into someone I knew somehow. Once again, big surprise, she was right.

I wasted no time in dashing off an e-mail to Brother and Sister Vernon, and I am hoping to hear from them soon. I hope they are glad to hear from me.

In the meantime, as I said at the beginning of this post, these are two tender mercies from the Lord that I never could have expected or anticipated when this move became necessary. It is amazing to see how the Lord allows us to run again into people who have either associated with other members of our family or with us personally. I now understand more fully what it was Elder David A. Bednar was talking about when he spoke in his second apostolic General Conference address on the subject of the tender mercies of the Lord.

I needed the reminder today that the Lord was mindful of me and will not leave me alone. Thanks for letting me post about this.