Hello again, everyone! I have some breaking temple news to report. The LDS Church Temples Facebook page reported at around 1:00 PM today that site clearing activities were underway for the Urdaneta Philippines Temple, and that an artist's rendering and groundbreaking date are anticipated to be officially released in the not-too-distant future. The Lord works in mysterious ways.
Apparently at some point within this last week, all hurdles that have continued to hold up construction on this temple since its' October 2010 announcement were unexpectedly cleared. This may be for a couple of reasons. As I recently reported on this blog, Elder Christofferson was in the Philippines Area recently conducting Church business, some of which may have been related to the issues that were preventing progress on this temple. I have also noticed that the Philippines Area has recently been visited by several other apostles as well, which makes me think that this development is as a result of their ongoing attention to this matter.
But above and beyond that, President Nelson has repeatedly emphasized his administration's focus on the temple, and also, as I reported on this blog late last month, Sister Joy D. Jones was late to a recent speaking assignment at a devotional on the grounds of the Manti Utah Temple because her meeting with the Temple and Family History Executive Council unexpectedly lasted 3 hours.
Now that this development has been announced, I intend to move the Urdaneta Philippines Temple to nearly the top of my list of recently announced temples. I say "nearly the top" because until a site rendering is released and a groundbreaking is announced, the groundbreaking for the Bangkok Thailand Temple may be announced first. Either way, it seems more than likely that both will have a groundbreaking at some point before the end of this year, even if they are the only two temples to have groundbreakings in 2018. But this surprising development means that we could still see one or two others in addition as well.
I continue to monitor all temple developments and will pass word of those along to you all as I receive it. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post (which will come in the next half hour or so and will be sharing the latest edition of my temple construction progress report), I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
Friday, July 6, 2018
BREAKING NEWS: Urdaneta Philippines Temple Site Being Cleared; Artist's Rendering and Groundbreaking May Soon Be Announced
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
BREAKING NEWS: Church To Release Come Follow Me Curriculum for Adults, Children, and Home Study
Hello again, everyone! I am posting right now with a breaking news development. In an earlier post, I had referenced a visit made by members of the Sunday School and Young Men General Presidency to African nations, during which time, they referenced new curriculum that would be coming in 2019. Today, we got a look at what that will involve.
The Church announced today that it was replacing the typical Primary, adult Sunday School, and home curriculum resources with another "Come Follow Me" set of curriculum, which will place emphasis more on individual preparation and responsibility for learning than on sticking to a manual. You can read more about these developments here,
I also previously referenced that President Nelson, by virtue of his previous experience as a heart surgeon, has kept very much in touch with modern technology advances. We saw evidence of that when the August 2018 Area Leadership Assignments were announced several weeks in advance of when they typically had been, when we have seen the Church magazine content approved and published on the website much more quickly than they have been, and again today, when the Church released this document, which shows the 2019 Instructions for Curriculum. Those had typically not been released until mid-August or so each year.
This is an outstanding and welcome development. I continue to monitor all Church and temple updates and will do my best to bring those to you as I receive word of them. I should note that I became aware late last night of several new updates on temples, which I am anxious to pass along to you all, but because I have a doctor's appointment later today that will take most of the afternoon, the earliest I may be able to pass those along will be later this evening. Stay tuned for that.
That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
The Church announced today that it was replacing the typical Primary, adult Sunday School, and home curriculum resources with another "Come Follow Me" set of curriculum, which will place emphasis more on individual preparation and responsibility for learning than on sticking to a manual. You can read more about these developments here,
I also previously referenced that President Nelson, by virtue of his previous experience as a heart surgeon, has kept very much in touch with modern technology advances. We saw evidence of that when the August 2018 Area Leadership Assignments were announced several weeks in advance of when they typically had been, when we have seen the Church magazine content approved and published on the website much more quickly than they have been, and again today, when the Church released this document, which shows the 2019 Instructions for Curriculum. Those had typically not been released until mid-August or so each year.
This is an outstanding and welcome development. I continue to monitor all Church and temple updates and will do my best to bring those to you as I receive word of them. I should note that I became aware late last night of several new updates on temples, which I am anxious to pass along to you all, but because I have a doctor's appointment later today that will take most of the afternoon, the earliest I may be able to pass those along will be later this evening. Stay tuned for that.
That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
Thursday, July 5, 2018
Report on Additional Addresses From the Seminar for New Mission Leadership
Hello again, everyone! After trying and failing to make the alterations I had in mind for this blog, we are back to the previous design. And I am back to report on two other addresses from the recent Seminar for New Mission Leadership. The addresses were given by two more members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, both of whom also serve on the Missionary Executive Council.
Elder D. Todd Christofferson gave an address with his wife, and they highlighted the importance of missionaries owning their personal and companionship gospel study. The Christoffersons also said that, in addition to applying to missionary companionships, married couples of the Church can benefit from studying the scriptures together. So mission presidents and their wives were urged on a personal level to set the example for their missionaries. You can read more of what the Christoffersons said here.
In the meantime, our Brazilian junior apostle, Elder Ulisses Soares, drew on the example of Brazil's winding Amazon river as an analogy for the membership of the Church. He explained that that river is created at the point where the Solimoes River, which starts in Peru, and the Negro River from the Amazon Basin, converge into a single body of water.
In similitude to the river, the membership of the Church is comprised of those who have been lifelong or multi-generational members who combine and converge in various ways and settings with those who may be newer to the Church. Just as the converged river could not succeed without its' two distinct bodies of water, so too do converts need the support of their lifelong member counterparts.
He also reemphasized what the Church has taught about what all converts need: A friend, a responsibility, and nourishing by the good word of God. As members work together to make converts feel welcome (which is an effort that, by extension, includes the vital role of missionaries), and as all members draw from the strengths of their fellow Saints, the Church will be strengthened as a complete body of our Heavenly Father's worldwide family. You can read more about what Elder Soares said in this article.
The reports of this year's seminar continue to come in, so I will be sure to keep passing those on to you as I receive word of them, and I also will be posting any other important Church and temple news as I become aware of those developments as well.
That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
Elder D. Todd Christofferson gave an address with his wife, and they highlighted the importance of missionaries owning their personal and companionship gospel study. The Christoffersons also said that, in addition to applying to missionary companionships, married couples of the Church can benefit from studying the scriptures together. So mission presidents and their wives were urged on a personal level to set the example for their missionaries. You can read more of what the Christoffersons said here.
In the meantime, our Brazilian junior apostle, Elder Ulisses Soares, drew on the example of Brazil's winding Amazon river as an analogy for the membership of the Church. He explained that that river is created at the point where the Solimoes River, which starts in Peru, and the Negro River from the Amazon Basin, converge into a single body of water.
In similitude to the river, the membership of the Church is comprised of those who have been lifelong or multi-generational members who combine and converge in various ways and settings with those who may be newer to the Church. Just as the converged river could not succeed without its' two distinct bodies of water, so too do converts need the support of their lifelong member counterparts.
He also reemphasized what the Church has taught about what all converts need: A friend, a responsibility, and nourishing by the good word of God. As members work together to make converts feel welcome (which is an effort that, by extension, includes the vital role of missionaries), and as all members draw from the strengths of their fellow Saints, the Church will be strengthened as a complete body of our Heavenly Father's worldwide family. You can read more about what Elder Soares said in this article.
The reports of this year's seminar continue to come in, so I will be sure to keep passing those on to you as I receive word of them, and I also will be posting any other important Church and temple news as I become aware of those developments as well.
That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
Wednesday, July 4, 2018
Altered Blog Layout
Hello again, everyone! While I have no desire to detract from the focus of my readers in the United States (as today is the anniversary of our nation's independence from England), I wanted to just quickly post to note that I am testing another new blog layout. I have been working periodically on finding ways to make this blog more user-friendly, so I'd like to know if that is working better.
And in the interests of being fully transparent, part of the reason for these changes is because I have also been looking into ways to improve my earnings from this blog. This new layout was one of a few suggestions I have looked into that I am hoping will help in that process.
As always, I continue to monitor all news and developments relating to the Church, General Conference, and temples worldwide, and I do my best to continue to bring those to you as I receive word of them. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
And in the interests of being fully transparent, part of the reason for these changes is because I have also been looking into ways to improve my earnings from this blog. This new layout was one of a few suggestions I have looked into that I am hoping will help in that process.
As always, I continue to monitor all news and developments relating to the Church, General Conference, and temples worldwide, and I do my best to continue to bring those to you as I receive word of them. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
Tuesday, July 3, 2018
Apostolic Ministry Updates
Hello again, everyone! I learned of some updates that have been provided on the ministry of our apostles a short while ago, and wanted to pass those along to you all now. We begin with a discussion of the Seminar for New Mission Leadership, for which the Church News shared this article highlighting remarks made by President Oaks on 10 of the many ways that Joseph Smith inspired Christian doctrine.
In the meantime, on the Church's official website (lds,org), remarks made by Elder Andersen during that seminar were summarized. As some of you may recall my mentioning a few days ago, we recently got a complete list of names of our Church leaders who serve on the Missionary Executive Council, and Elder Andersen is one of four members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles who is serving on that committee.
He focused his remarks on how repentance, rather than being a backup plan that is provided in case it is needed, actually is the plan which our Heavenly Father put into place because He knew that, aside from His Only Begotten Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, "all [would sin] and fall short of the glory of God." That is a sobering and yet very inspiring thought.
Since our Father knew that we, without memory of our Heavenly home, or recollection of what the plan was, and being flawed and imperfect as a consequence of living in an imperfect world, He not only provided a Savior to redeem us from what has been termed as "our lost and fallen state", but He and His Son also patiently give us every opportunity to recognize our shortcomings and failings, show genuine remorse and regret for those mistakes, make amends for them, and try again.
So I appreciated reading about Elder Andersen's comments on that subject. You can find those remarks summarized here. Additionally, on the Church News section of lds.org, there have been a number of other articles well worthy of your review, which I may summarize more fully in another post within the next couple of days.
But just within the last 18 hours or so, a number of very interesting stories fitting that description have been published. You can find that news page here, and it is worth noting that the number of stories posted there just today take up most of the first page of that link, and part of the second.
That said, I have one more article to report on that is directly related to the ministry of our apostles. Elder Holland is currently in England, where he spoke at Chatham House during a meeting of the Royal Institute of International Affairs at the invitation of Baroness Emma Nicholson of Winterbourne, who chairs the AMAR International Charitable Foundation. Elder Holland's ties to England in view of his missionary service there as a young man has resulted in his frequently being invited by Baroness Nicholson to address various topics with various groups.
Elder Holland highlighted the important role faith- and non-faith based groups should have in the current ongoing refugee crisis around the world. In his remarks, he drew parallels between the persecution of the Saints in the early days of the Church to the persecution currently being levied towards that Yazidi people of Iraq.
He said that in drawing those parallels, he had no desire to minimize what was occurring for the Yazidi people, but was instead hoping to underscore the fact that persecution based on religion, especially when that is tied to and results in political oppression, is wrong, and he also touched on the current crisis many nations, including the US, is seeing regarding the treatment of those currently fleeing either religious persecution or political oppression. His remarks are well worthy of review, which you can read more about here.
I have been somewhat intrigued by one thing, however. As many of you may be aware, July marks the typical one-month annual recess for General Authorities. While I am confident that some of the news I have reported in the last two or three days has been for developments that occurred prior to the end of June, the story of Elder Holland being in England was posted today and referred to events that are occurring right now.
So at least for the moment this year, we may be hearing of Church news relating to our apostles well into July. And I am not ruling out the prospect that the Church could continue to make any major announcements even during the traditional break, which we have seen occur at least a few times previously.
Whether on the subjects of the ministry of our apostles, general Church news, or temple developments, you can depend on my bringing word of those developments to you as I receive them.
That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
In the meantime, on the Church's official website (lds,org), remarks made by Elder Andersen during that seminar were summarized. As some of you may recall my mentioning a few days ago, we recently got a complete list of names of our Church leaders who serve on the Missionary Executive Council, and Elder Andersen is one of four members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles who is serving on that committee.
He focused his remarks on how repentance, rather than being a backup plan that is provided in case it is needed, actually is the plan which our Heavenly Father put into place because He knew that, aside from His Only Begotten Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, "all [would sin] and fall short of the glory of God." That is a sobering and yet very inspiring thought.
Since our Father knew that we, without memory of our Heavenly home, or recollection of what the plan was, and being flawed and imperfect as a consequence of living in an imperfect world, He not only provided a Savior to redeem us from what has been termed as "our lost and fallen state", but He and His Son also patiently give us every opportunity to recognize our shortcomings and failings, show genuine remorse and regret for those mistakes, make amends for them, and try again.
So I appreciated reading about Elder Andersen's comments on that subject. You can find those remarks summarized here. Additionally, on the Church News section of lds.org, there have been a number of other articles well worthy of your review, which I may summarize more fully in another post within the next couple of days.
But just within the last 18 hours or so, a number of very interesting stories fitting that description have been published. You can find that news page here, and it is worth noting that the number of stories posted there just today take up most of the first page of that link, and part of the second.
That said, I have one more article to report on that is directly related to the ministry of our apostles. Elder Holland is currently in England, where he spoke at Chatham House during a meeting of the Royal Institute of International Affairs at the invitation of Baroness Emma Nicholson of Winterbourne, who chairs the AMAR International Charitable Foundation. Elder Holland's ties to England in view of his missionary service there as a young man has resulted in his frequently being invited by Baroness Nicholson to address various topics with various groups.
Elder Holland highlighted the important role faith- and non-faith based groups should have in the current ongoing refugee crisis around the world. In his remarks, he drew parallels between the persecution of the Saints in the early days of the Church to the persecution currently being levied towards that Yazidi people of Iraq.
He said that in drawing those parallels, he had no desire to minimize what was occurring for the Yazidi people, but was instead hoping to underscore the fact that persecution based on religion, especially when that is tied to and results in political oppression, is wrong, and he also touched on the current crisis many nations, including the US, is seeing regarding the treatment of those currently fleeing either religious persecution or political oppression. His remarks are well worthy of review, which you can read more about here.
I have been somewhat intrigued by one thing, however. As many of you may be aware, July marks the typical one-month annual recess for General Authorities. While I am confident that some of the news I have reported in the last two or three days has been for developments that occurred prior to the end of June, the story of Elder Holland being in England was posted today and referred to events that are occurring right now.
So at least for the moment this year, we may be hearing of Church news relating to our apostles well into July. And I am not ruling out the prospect that the Church could continue to make any major announcements even during the traditional break, which we have seen occur at least a few times previously.
Whether on the subjects of the ministry of our apostles, general Church news, or temple developments, you can depend on my bringing word of those developments to you as I receive them.
That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
Monday, July 2, 2018
Church News Highlights
Hello again, everyone! I mentioned a day or two ago that I was hoping to do another post devoted to the latest Church news that had been published on the LDS Church News website and on the Church's official website. There are a number of new articles that have been published, all of which are worthy of mention here on this blog, but due to the voluminous amount of articles involved, this post will merely share what, to me, are the most significant highlights, and readers of this blog are welcome to consult either of the two links above for any articles not listed here.
Before we dive into the articles I will be featuring here, I also wanted to mention that I am still very much committed to continuing my series of posts discussing the most likely prospective locations that may have a temple announced in the upcoming General Conference, and that I will be starting the earnest work on putting together posts in that series hopefully later this week.
But my wife and I have also been under the weather again (or, to put it in a better way, still) so I will be focusing on those posts (and any others covering topics of interest) as my current circumstances will allow.
That said, let's get this update started. Several of the women auxiliary leaders of the Church recently represented the Church in presenting a donation to Utah's Children's Justice Centers to aid in the work done by those centers to prevent child abuse (where possible) and to enable them to help previously-abused children have access to the tools they need to recover (where necessary).
The Church has been more proactively involved in such issues lately, and so the acknowledgement of all that those centers do in such situations was wonderful to hear about. You can find more information on that via this Church News article or from this official release from Mormon Newsroom.
On June 29, the Church News published another article covering summaries of content posted to social media by several Church leaders. In this most recent article, some of those posts covered thoughts on Joseph Smith in conjunction with June 27 having marked the 174th anniversary of the Prophet's martyrdom in Carthage Jail, while others spoke of how we as Church members can strengthen our relationship to and our testimony of the Savior.
The Church News and Mormon Newsroom also covered stories on how the filming of the Church's Book of Mormon video project has recently wrapped up. Bishop Dean M. Davies, who currently serves as First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric of the Church, was the featured speaker at the commencement exercises for BYU-Hawaii's recently-held graduation ceremony, and during his remarks, he talked about the process the Church goes through to get temples built, which at times includes a lot of patience and trust that the Lord knows what needs to happen and when. His remarks are well worthy of review.
Retired Church News editor Gerry Avant continued her retrospective articles examining the many experiences she had witnessed during her career, with this look back at President Monson's strong connection to Germany, and how many apostolic promises he made to the German Saints were fulfilled to the letter.
Continuing the tradition that has been observed for a while, another article written by general officers has been published. The Primary General Presidency shared these thoughts regarding how parents can and should help their children from a very early age to have a relationship with God.
Both Mormon Newsroom and the Church News continue to carry articles about the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's "Classic Coast Tour", and there are many articles covering highlights from their travels. The Church has become the first religious organization to ever receive the Good Neighbor Award from the United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce. More details on that are provided in this article.
The Church News shared this report, which noted the results of a recent survey taken by several Church members regarding the changes that will be coming to the hymnbook. For those not satisfied by those results, as previously noted, feedback will continue to be accepted for the next year, until the end of July 2019.
Those of you who follow the LDS Church Growth Blog in addition to this one are no doubt aware that this recent post highlighted a three-milestone record that was being observed within the Church's Africa West Area. The Church News published their own article providing additional context regarding that same subject. It is wonderful to read about what the Lord has done for that area of the Church.
It is also plain to see why Matthew Martinich, who publishes the LDS Church Growth Blog, has shared his opinion that the Africa West Area, which currently has two operating temples and one other announced, is likely to have 13 temples either in various stages or dedicated by 2030. If the ongoing growth is any indication, that is a very reachable prospect that we are sure to see.
And, to round out my coverage of the latest Church news, I want to note some updates on the recent ministry of our apostles. Elder D. Todd Christofferson just returned a short while ago from a visit to the Philippines Area of the Church, and this report shares his thoughts and observations on all that transpired during his time there.
Finishing my coverage of recent news, I have highlighted in previous posts the efforts and contributions the Church is making to prevent suicide. Articles from the Church News and Mormon Newsroom highlight new resources the Church has released on that subject, which includes video clips with thoughts from Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and Sister Carol F. McConkie, who was released as First Counselor in the Young Women General Presidency last April.
I should mention that the Church will continue to publish highlights from the recent Seminar for New Mission Leadership, but at the time I was putting this post together, no additional reports have been provided. I continue to monitor all Church and temple news and developments and will do my level best to bring word of those to you as I receive them.
That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
Before we dive into the articles I will be featuring here, I also wanted to mention that I am still very much committed to continuing my series of posts discussing the most likely prospective locations that may have a temple announced in the upcoming General Conference, and that I will be starting the earnest work on putting together posts in that series hopefully later this week.
But my wife and I have also been under the weather again (or, to put it in a better way, still) so I will be focusing on those posts (and any others covering topics of interest) as my current circumstances will allow.
That said, let's get this update started. Several of the women auxiliary leaders of the Church recently represented the Church in presenting a donation to Utah's Children's Justice Centers to aid in the work done by those centers to prevent child abuse (where possible) and to enable them to help previously-abused children have access to the tools they need to recover (where necessary).
The Church has been more proactively involved in such issues lately, and so the acknowledgement of all that those centers do in such situations was wonderful to hear about. You can find more information on that via this Church News article or from this official release from Mormon Newsroom.
On June 29, the Church News published another article covering summaries of content posted to social media by several Church leaders. In this most recent article, some of those posts covered thoughts on Joseph Smith in conjunction with June 27 having marked the 174th anniversary of the Prophet's martyrdom in Carthage Jail, while others spoke of how we as Church members can strengthen our relationship to and our testimony of the Savior.
The Church News and Mormon Newsroom also covered stories on how the filming of the Church's Book of Mormon video project has recently wrapped up. Bishop Dean M. Davies, who currently serves as First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric of the Church, was the featured speaker at the commencement exercises for BYU-Hawaii's recently-held graduation ceremony, and during his remarks, he talked about the process the Church goes through to get temples built, which at times includes a lot of patience and trust that the Lord knows what needs to happen and when. His remarks are well worthy of review.
Retired Church News editor Gerry Avant continued her retrospective articles examining the many experiences she had witnessed during her career, with this look back at President Monson's strong connection to Germany, and how many apostolic promises he made to the German Saints were fulfilled to the letter.
Continuing the tradition that has been observed for a while, another article written by general officers has been published. The Primary General Presidency shared these thoughts regarding how parents can and should help their children from a very early age to have a relationship with God.
Both Mormon Newsroom and the Church News continue to carry articles about the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's "Classic Coast Tour", and there are many articles covering highlights from their travels. The Church has become the first religious organization to ever receive the Good Neighbor Award from the United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce. More details on that are provided in this article.
The Church News shared this report, which noted the results of a recent survey taken by several Church members regarding the changes that will be coming to the hymnbook. For those not satisfied by those results, as previously noted, feedback will continue to be accepted for the next year, until the end of July 2019.
Those of you who follow the LDS Church Growth Blog in addition to this one are no doubt aware that this recent post highlighted a three-milestone record that was being observed within the Church's Africa West Area. The Church News published their own article providing additional context regarding that same subject. It is wonderful to read about what the Lord has done for that area of the Church.
It is also plain to see why Matthew Martinich, who publishes the LDS Church Growth Blog, has shared his opinion that the Africa West Area, which currently has two operating temples and one other announced, is likely to have 13 temples either in various stages or dedicated by 2030. If the ongoing growth is any indication, that is a very reachable prospect that we are sure to see.
And, to round out my coverage of the latest Church news, I want to note some updates on the recent ministry of our apostles. Elder D. Todd Christofferson just returned a short while ago from a visit to the Philippines Area of the Church, and this report shares his thoughts and observations on all that transpired during his time there.
Finishing my coverage of recent news, I have highlighted in previous posts the efforts and contributions the Church is making to prevent suicide. Articles from the Church News and Mormon Newsroom highlight new resources the Church has released on that subject, which includes video clips with thoughts from Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and Sister Carol F. McConkie, who was released as First Counselor in the Young Women General Presidency last April.
I should mention that the Church will continue to publish highlights from the recent Seminar for New Mission Leadership, but at the time I was putting this post together, no additional reports have been provided. I continue to monitor all Church and temple news and developments and will do my level best to bring word of those to you as I receive them.
That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
Sunday, July 1, 2018
October 2018 Temple Site Possibilities: Series Overview
Hello again, everyone! As long-time readers of this blog may recall, between each General Conference, I have offered my thoughts and invited comments from all of you about the most likely locations in which a temple might be announced in the near future. Between the October 2017 and April 2018 General Conferences, the course of that dialogue came as a series of posts I did which discussed the most imminent such prospects in each of the Church's 25 geographical areas.
Given the fact that the October 2018 General Conference is just over 3 months away, I want to revisit that series to discuss the most likely prospective locations that could be announced during that General Conference.
In kicking off this iteration of that series, I would hope that those of you who will read and participate in the discussion of the locations currently on my list will keep the following information in mind:
1. As it is next to impossible to identify every single location that may ever get a temple at any point, this series will focus on the most imminent prospects that seem most likely to be announced this October.
2. If a certain location seems to be missing from this list, it may either be on a second list, which I am holding in reserve for when the possibility of that location becomes more imminent, or may be on a third list of locations that may have a temple announced at some point, but may be more of a long-shot possibility.
3. If a location is mentioned that is not on any of the three lists I referenced above, that does not in any way mean it is out of the question, nor does it mean that (in my opinion), a temple in such locations will never be announced. The Lord reveals to His prophets where to announce and build His temples, and I embrace the news of all new temples whether or not they are on any of those three lists I am keeping. And since President Nelson already surprised most of us (including himself) with one or two of the locations he announced in April 2018, any location may be fair game.
4. For any comments made on the posts in this series, I may post responses to most (if not all) of them. This is not in any way meant to end or limit the discussion, but rather will constitute my efforts to acknowledge the feedback I receive, and will include any observations I have in response to those comments.
5. This series may be slightly different in content from the information I provided in the first edition of that series, primarily because, at the moment, some of the information I would ordinarily use (such as the current composition and size of the Church's temple districts) is currently unavailable to me.
6. While the prospects I will discuss this go-round are based on a few factors with which I have successfully predicted previous temple locations, I do not have the capability nor the time at present to consider every possible factor. Few if any lay Church members have a complete list of all criteria the Church and its' prophets use to make such determinations. That said, if there are any factors I have clearly overlooked or failed to consider when assembling the current list of locations, the order in which they are listed or in consideration of changes I should make to any of the three lists I referenced above, please let me know.
That said, let's dive into the current layout of my list, such as it is. You can find it below. So as not to disturb the flow of information within it, I will end here as I always do: That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
Given the fact that the October 2018 General Conference is just over 3 months away, I want to revisit that series to discuss the most likely prospective locations that could be announced during that General Conference.
In kicking off this iteration of that series, I would hope that those of you who will read and participate in the discussion of the locations currently on my list will keep the following information in mind:
1. As it is next to impossible to identify every single location that may ever get a temple at any point, this series will focus on the most imminent prospects that seem most likely to be announced this October.
2. If a certain location seems to be missing from this list, it may either be on a second list, which I am holding in reserve for when the possibility of that location becomes more imminent, or may be on a third list of locations that may have a temple announced at some point, but may be more of a long-shot possibility.
3. If a location is mentioned that is not on any of the three lists I referenced above, that does not in any way mean it is out of the question, nor does it mean that (in my opinion), a temple in such locations will never be announced. The Lord reveals to His prophets where to announce and build His temples, and I embrace the news of all new temples whether or not they are on any of those three lists I am keeping. And since President Nelson already surprised most of us (including himself) with one or two of the locations he announced in April 2018, any location may be fair game.
4. For any comments made on the posts in this series, I may post responses to most (if not all) of them. This is not in any way meant to end or limit the discussion, but rather will constitute my efforts to acknowledge the feedback I receive, and will include any observations I have in response to those comments.
5. This series may be slightly different in content from the information I provided in the first edition of that series, primarily because, at the moment, some of the information I would ordinarily use (such as the current composition and size of the Church's temple districts) is currently unavailable to me.
6. While the prospects I will discuss this go-round are based on a few factors with which I have successfully predicted previous temple locations, I do not have the capability nor the time at present to consider every possible factor. Few if any lay Church members have a complete list of all criteria the Church and its' prophets use to make such determinations. That said, if there are any factors I have clearly overlooked or failed to consider when assembling the current list of locations, the order in which they are listed or in consideration of changes I should make to any of the three lists I referenced above, please let me know.
That said, let's dive into the current layout of my list, such as it is. You can find it below. So as not to disturb the flow of information within it, I will end here as I always do: That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
Temple Predictions: 3+ temples announced, with the most likely locations (in my opinion), on the list below.
Preliminary note: With seven temples having been
announced last April (the second-highest number of temples ever announced at
once), it may be that President Nelson will opt to wait until April 2019 to
announce any others. But in view of President Nelson’s expressed intention to
continue to bring temples to the people, there may be at least a few announced
during this conference. The locations listed below represent my best efforts to
anticipate such announcements, and I have requested feedback on this list on my
blog. The Lord can and does continue to inspire temple announcements in the
right locations at the right time, and if any new temples are announced, I will
be just as happy if none of them are for the locations listed below as I will
be if any or all of the temples that are announced are for locations on this
list. Also, as I prepared to request initial feedback for the locations on this
list, it made more sense to me to once again group the locations on this list
by the geographical area under which they fall, then by potential likelihood
within those areas.
Asia: Phnom Penh Cambodia[vii]
Brazil: Belo Horizonte/Salvador[viii]
Caribbean: San Juan Puerto Rico[ix]
Mexico: Puebla Mexico[xvi]
United States[xxi]
North America Southwest: Bentonville Arkansas[xxvi];
Elko[xxvii]/Ely[xxviii]
Nevada; Fort Worth Texas[xxix];
Las Cruces New Mexico[xxx];
Flagstaff Arizona[xxxi]
Utah Salt Lake City: Herriman[xxxii];
[i]The African continent is
experiencing substantial and significant growth. That has proven particularly
true for the this area of the Church, in which 1 temple is currently operating,
but 4 others have been announced (2 of which are under construction, and the
other 2 of which are anticipated to start construction at some point within the
next 3 years or less.
[ii]Since Madagascar is
disconnected from the rest of the African continent, anywhere in Africa to
which the Saints might journey will be somewhat of a challenge for those in
Madagascar. For that reason, I have added Antananarivo to this list for the
first time. Madagascar is currently the last of the top ten nations with the
strongest Church presence that does not have a temple in any phase, which adds
to the rationale for building a temple there. The only other African nation
within this area that is in the top ten is Uganda at #6 on that list. But since
a temple has been announced for the neighboring nation of Kenya, Uganda may not
get a temple until the one in Kenya is either under construction or dedicated,
as the Church will probably want to gauge how busy the temple in Kenya is
before announcing one for Uganda. Thus, Madagascar is the only prospect on this
list for this area.
[iii]The Church in the Africa
West Area has also experienced massive and rapid growth. The LDS Church Growth
Blog recently reported that, if current growth trends in the Africa West Area continue
as they have been, the Church could go from the 2 operating and 1 announced
temple to 13 in operation by sometime during 2030. With that in mind, several
possibilities have a lot of merit to the rationale behind my belief that they
could each get a temple in the near future, as I will explain in the subsequent
references for the locations I have listed for this area.
[iv]Sierra Leone is now the
fourth of the top ten nations that have the strongest Church presence but do
not yet have a temple in any phase. With the recent expanded growth in Sierra
Leone (particularly with so many districts that have been upgraded to a stake),
a temple there may simply be a matter of time.
[v]Since the dedication of the
Accra Ghana temple in January 2004, Ghana has seen sufficient enough growth (in
my opinion) to potentially get a second temple. And Kumasi has emerged as the
most likely city for such a temple.
[vi]Since the dedication of
the Aba Nigeria temple in August 2005, Nigeria has seen extensive Church
growth. While many have offered their opinions that Benin City might be a more
likely prospect, the elements I have studied leads me to conclude that when
Nigeria gets a second temple, it will likely be in Lagos.
[vii]Cambodia is now the
seventh of the top ten nations having the strongest Church presence without a
temple in any phase. So the idea of a temple in Phnom Penh makes sense. But
with the Bangkok Thailand Temple planned to be on the larger side, and with
another temple announced for Bengaluru India, the question will be whether a
temple might be needed in Cambodia as well in the near future. For now, I am
confident enough to include it here, but that could change.
[viii]Brazil has also seen
extensive Church growth, and rapid expansion. With temples currently under
construction in Fortaleza (which is anticipated to be dedicated in 2019) and in
Rio de Janeiro (which is anticipated to be dedicated in 2020), and with two
others announced (for Brasilia and Belem, both of which may be under
construction within the next few years), it is not hard to believe that
additional Brazilian temples may be needed. Salvador and Belo Horizonte seem to
be the cities most mentioned as having the best prospects for a temple
announcement in the near future. Of the two, a temple in Salvador seems to be
more imminently likely, but we have seen unexpected things occur, so for now,
both locations are on my list.
[ix]Puerto Rico now ranks as
the second of the top ten nations with the strongest Church presence that does
not have a temple in any phase. And now that the construction of the
Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple is underway, and since that temple is on the
smaller side, it makes sense that the Church might opt to announce a temple for
San Juan in the near future. Time will tell how safe it is to so assume, but
for now, it has made my list.
[x]With a temple having been
announced in April for Managua Nicaragua, it may be some time before we hear of
other temples being announced for the Central America Area of the Church. The
case in favor of the locations on my list being announced is a strong one, so
for that reason, they have made the list, but it would not surprise me in any
way if the Church waits on these potential locations until the temple in
Managua is further along.
[xi]The Church in Honduras has
seen extensive growth in recent years, so a third temple in that nation seems
likely. And while there may be many good potential locations where one could be
built, the consensus appears to be that San Pedro Sula is the most likely
prospect, and that a temple for that city could be announced sooner rather than
later.
[xii]As noted above in
relation to Honduras, Guatemala has also seen significant Church growth in
recent years. And there are likewise many potential locations where a third
temple could be built to serve the Guatemalan Saints. But the city of Senahu
has emerged as the most likely prospect for that honor, and the consensus seems
to be that a temple there may simply be a matter of time.
[xiii]Europe, particularly in
the eastern countries of its’ continent, has seen some stagnation in terms of
the growth of the Church. With temples currently under construction in Rome
Italy and Lisbon Portugal, and another announced for a major yet-to-be
determined city in Russia, the Church may opt to wait to construct other temples
on the European continent until those 3 are either dedicated or at least
further along in the process. That said, on the off-chance the Church does not
so opt, the cities in this section, for the reasons I will explain in the
subsequent notes that will follow this one, have the greatest chance of being
announced in the near future.
[xiv]When I began sharing my
thoughts on potential future temple locations, someone who has knowledge of the
growth of the Church in Europe indicated that Budapest would likely be the next
European city to get a temple. My study on the matter confirms that opinion, so
it has been on my list for a while.
[xv]Cape Verde now ranks as
the eighth of the top ten nations with the strongest Church presence that does
not have a temple. Based on that fact, a temple in Praia is likely just a
matter of time.
[xvi]The growth of the Church
in Mexico has somewhat stagnated to the point where Church leaders began last
year to do a mass consolidation of the Church units there. That said, many
people (including one of the readers of my blog who lives in Mexico) concur
that the next temple in Mexico will likely be in Puebla, and that such a temple
will likely be announced sooner rather than later.
[xvii]Papua New Guinea now
ranks as the nation with the strongest Church presence that does not yet have a
temple. I also learned several years ago that land has been held in reserve in
Port Moresby for a temple for a while now. With that in mind, it may simply be
a matter of time before a temple is announced there.
[xviii]As with Papua New
Guinea, I had heard years ago that land has been held in reserve in Auckland
for a temple. How soon that might actually occur will depend on if the
renovation of the Hamilton New Zealand Temple involves any kind of expansion
for that temple. If it does, that might potentially eliminate the immediate
need to use the land in Auckland. I have felt confident enough to keep it on my
list for now, but will be watching for any developments that could change my
mind.
[xix]The entire South American
continent has seen extensive growth, as manifested by the fact that, of the 19
temples currently announced, 5 of them are in South American nations. And of
the 11 temples currently under construction, Brazil has 2 (with two others
announced), this area (South America Northwest) has 2 under construction (1 of
which has a dedication announced), and 2 others announced, and the South
America South area has 1 temple announced, 1 with a dedication scheduled, and 1
that is currently closed for renovation. Based on these numbers, the Church may
opt to wait until all temples under construction or being renovated are
finished, or Church leaders could (and in my opinion, likely will) opt to
announce more temples as they are needed. In a previous note above, I shared my
rationale behind two temple locations that may be used for future Brazilian
Temples. While the Church could surprise us and announce other temples for the
South America South Area (which would not be unheard of by any means), it is my
feeling that the most likely prospect for South American temples in the near
future is this area, for the reasons I will explain in the notes below.
[xx]Since the dedication of
Bolivia’s first temple in Cochabamba, the Church in Bolivia has seen
significant growth and expansion. That has been especially true of regions that
would be served by temples in Santa Cruz or La Paz. Of the two, although I
favor La Paz (since a good friend served a mission there), my research
indicates a Santa Cruz temple may be more imminent. But I fully anticipate
temples in both cities within the next 15 years or less, thus both are on this
list.
[xxi]While it has been
repeatedly observed that the growth of the Church has stagnated somewhat here
in the United States, 4 of the 19 temples that have currently not had a
groundbreaking were for the United States. This gives me hope, however slight
that hope might be, that other locations within the US that have a compelling
case in their favor for a temple (as outlined in the remaining notes). While
there are literally hundreds of these potential locations with a strong
likelihood, the locations on this list are those that, in my opinion and for
the reasons outlined, have the highest likelihood.
[xxii]According to reports I
received through the comments on my blog, Elder David A. Bednar publicly
proposed a Missoula Montana Temple while on assignment to a stake conference in
that city. My subsequent research indicates that land has been held in reserve
for such a temple for several years now, and that an official announcement will
occur once the right conditions are met. For that reason, Missoula has been on
my list for a while now, and I could see an official announcement in the near
future.
[xxiii]Although South Dakota
only has 2 stakes and one district, and although the districts of the Bismarck
North Dakota and Winter Quarters Nebraska, which cover South Dakota, may not be
inordinately large, the Saints in Rapid City travel almost 300 miles to worship
at the Bismarck temple, so it seems likely that the Church will opt to build a
temple there sooner rather than later.
[xxiv]Mississippi is one of
the few states in the US that does not have a temple in any phase. My recent
study points to the idea that a temple in Jackson may just be a matter of time.
[xxv]The Saints in Shreveport
currently travel just under 200 miles to their assigned temple in Dallas, but I
have still felt confident enough that this city could get a temple sooner
rather than later.
[xxvi]A good friend with
connections to Arkansas told me a while ago that the Church has held land in
reserve for a temple in Bentonville for a while now, and that an official
announcement was likely once the right conditions were met. For that reason, I
believe we will see this temple announced sooner rather than later. Some have
opined that Rogers might be a more likely location for the first temple in
Arkansas, but my study confirms that a temple is likely in Bentonville sooner
rather than later.
[xxvii]The Saints in Elko
currently travel just over 200 miles to their assigned temple (Salt Lake). It
is enough of a commute that a temple there may just be a matter of time.
[xxviii]The note above applies
to the Saints in Ely as well, as they commute just over 200 miles, but their
assigned temple is in Cedar City. A temple in Ely would cut the commute
substantially. And I fully believe that temples in both Elko and Ely are
possible in the near future, since the distance between the two is just under
200 miles.
[xxix]In sharing my thoughts
about potential future temple locations, I learned from someone living in Texas
that Fort Worth would likely be the best prospective city for the next temple
in Texas, and a temple there would be the best way to break up the current
Dallas Texas district.
[xxx]The Saints in Las Cruces
currently travel 224.6 miles to the temple in Albuquerque, so a temple there
may just be a matter of time. A temple in that city could also likely serve the
Saints in El Paso Texas, if they are unable to access their currently assigned
temple (in Ciudad Juarez Mexico).
[xxxi]At the dedication of the
Tucson Arizona Temple, Elder Larry Y. Wilson, who serves as the Executive
Director of the Temple Department, stated that that dedication had Arizona
pretty well covered for temples. But I have heard from many sources that
Flagstaff will likely be the next Arizona city to get a temple, and that this
could happen sooner rather than later. Thus, I am confident enough to put it on
my list.
[xxxii]In 2005, President
Gordon B. Hinckley noted that land was being held in reserve for a temple in
the Southwestern Salt Lake Valley, which would have an official announcement
when that became necessary. Subsequent study on my part in late 2017 and early
2018 pointed me to the conclusion that the land in question was in Bluffdale,
but that it has since been annexed into the city of Herriman, although it has
been the subject of more than a few border disputes. I am confident enough to
list it here, and since President Monson announced temples publicly proposed
during President Hinckley’s tenure, I feel that President Nelson may likely do
the same. Thus, a temple there may just be a matter of time.
[xxxiii]A temple in Heber City
(the prospect of which has been suggested a few times) would help provide a
closer option for Saints in the Heber Valley, and it would likely split the
district of the Provo Utah Temple, which, by all reports, is still one of the
busiest in the Church.
[xxxiv]Tooele has also been
mentioned repeatedly as a potential prospective city for a temple. While the
Saints in Tooele do not have to drive an inordinate distance to reach their
assigned temple in Salt Lake City, I feel a temple there may simply be a matter
of time. And since a temple in Herriman would still create a drive (along a
U-shape) for those Saints, it seems safe to assume that Tooele could (and
likely will) get a temple soon.
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
First Presidency Calls New President for the Taipei Taiwan Temple
Hello again, everyone! Among the many interesting Church News stories I have referenced which I want to mention here on this blog is one published late yesterday noting that the First Presidency had called a new president and matron for the Taipei Taiwan Temple.
This brings the number of temple presidents called this year so far to a grand total of 57, and, excluding the 3-6 new temples that are likely to have a new president announced prior to the end of this year, there are 2 others remaining on my list of currently operating temples that may still have a new president announced at some point this year, namely: Veracruz Mexico and (possibly) Washington D. C., though it wouldn't surprise me if the Church held off on calling a new president for the latter until either next year or the year after, just before that temple is rededicated.
I continue to monitor all Church news and temple developments and will do my level best to bring word of those to you as I become aware of them. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
This brings the number of temple presidents called this year so far to a grand total of 57, and, excluding the 3-6 new temples that are likely to have a new president announced prior to the end of this year, there are 2 others remaining on my list of currently operating temples that may still have a new president announced at some point this year, namely: Veracruz Mexico and (possibly) Washington D. C., though it wouldn't surprise me if the Church held off on calling a new president for the latter until either next year or the year after, just before that temple is rededicated.
I continue to monitor all Church news and temple developments and will do my level best to bring word of those to you as I become aware of them. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
Latest Apostolic Statistics: Part Two--Updated Ages & Other Important Information
Hello again, everyone! Having set the stage in the first part of this apostolic age update, we now move on to talk specifics regarding the long-form and decimal ages of our current apostles, which will also include updated information on the average ages of the First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and the 15 apostles as a group, current and future nonagenarians, and any other pertinent information. So let’s get right into all of that. Again, all data is current as of today.
We start with the First Presidency. As noted near the end of my previous post, President Nelson is now 93 years, 9 months, and 22 days old, which is 93.81 decimal years. President Oaks, who will have his 86th birthday by the time I provide my next update, is now 85 years, 10 months, and 19 days old, with a decimal age of 85.88 years. President Eyring, who observed his 85th birthday on the last day of May, is now 85 years, 1 month, and 1 day old, putting his decimal age at 85.08 years.
The three now have a combined 264.77 years of life experience, which puts their average age at 88.26 years as of today. President Oaks remains closest to that average, with his age now being 2.38 years below that average. Obviously, Presidents Nelson and Eyring are still respectively above and below the average.
We move on now to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. As I did for the first time in the update posted six weeks ago, I will again be sharing the data about these 12 Brethren in groups of three.
President Ballard has now reached a long-form age of 89 years, 8 months, and 23 days old, with a decimal age of 89.73 years. Elder Holland is now 77 years, 6 months, and 28 days old, which puts his decimal age at 77.58 years. Elder Uchtdorf, at just under a month older than Elder Holland, is now 77 years, 7 months, and 25 days old, or 77.65 in decimal years.
As noted previously, Elder Bednar recently celebrated his 66th birthday, which puts his long-form age at 66 years, 0 months, and 16 days, which is 66.04 in decimal years. The oldest but least-senior of our three apostles born in 1940 is Elder Cook, who is now 77 years, 9 months, and 23 days, which is 77.81 years. His seatmate, Elder Christofferson, is 73 years, 5 months, and 7 days old, or 73.43 in decimal years.
Elder Andersen, who, as mentioned in the previous post, will have his birthday in just over a month, is currently 66 years, 10 months, and 22 days old, making his decimal age 66.89 years. Elder Rasband, who is only about six months older than Elder Andersen, has a long-form age of 67 years, 4 months, and 25 days, which puts his decimal age at 67.40 years. Elder Gary E. Stevenson, whose birthday is a mere three days before that of Elder Andersen, is currently 62 years, 10 months, and 25 days old, or 62.90 decimal years.
We now come to the final three apostles. Elder Renlund’s long-form age now stands at 65 years, 7 months, and 18 days old, with a decimal age of 65.63 years. Elder Gong is now 64 years, 6 months, and 8 days old, which puts him at 64.52 decimal years. Elder Soares, whose 60th birthday is now 3 months and 1 day away, has a long-form age of 59 years, 8 months, and 29 days old, making his decimal age 59.75 years.
The current members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles have a combined 849.33 years, which averages out to 70.78 years. What I noted in my last update 6 weeks ago in terms of who is closest to that average and how many apostles fall above and below that average remains true today.
Among all 15 apostles, there is a combined 1114.1 years of life experience, which averages out to 74.27 years. The corrections I provided 6 weeks ago regarding how many of those 15 fall above and below that average, and the two apostles who are closest to it, remain unchanged.
We now move on to the nonagenarians. President Nelson remains the 7th oldest apostle in Church history, and now has just over a year before he moves up on that list. President Ballard will join that list 3 months and 1 week from now. Elder Soares, who marks his birthday six days before President Ballard, will mark his 90th birthday in roughly 30.25 years, with the other 12 apostles doing so at various times in between now and then.
I continue to track all of this information, and will do my level best to pass updates on to you regularly. As I mentioned in my previous post, my hope is to post on this subject once every month or two. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best, and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
We start with the First Presidency. As noted near the end of my previous post, President Nelson is now 93 years, 9 months, and 22 days old, which is 93.81 decimal years. President Oaks, who will have his 86th birthday by the time I provide my next update, is now 85 years, 10 months, and 19 days old, with a decimal age of 85.88 years. President Eyring, who observed his 85th birthday on the last day of May, is now 85 years, 1 month, and 1 day old, putting his decimal age at 85.08 years.
The three now have a combined 264.77 years of life experience, which puts their average age at 88.26 years as of today. President Oaks remains closest to that average, with his age now being 2.38 years below that average. Obviously, Presidents Nelson and Eyring are still respectively above and below the average.
We move on now to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. As I did for the first time in the update posted six weeks ago, I will again be sharing the data about these 12 Brethren in groups of three.
President Ballard has now reached a long-form age of 89 years, 8 months, and 23 days old, with a decimal age of 89.73 years. Elder Holland is now 77 years, 6 months, and 28 days old, which puts his decimal age at 77.58 years. Elder Uchtdorf, at just under a month older than Elder Holland, is now 77 years, 7 months, and 25 days old, or 77.65 in decimal years.
As noted previously, Elder Bednar recently celebrated his 66th birthday, which puts his long-form age at 66 years, 0 months, and 16 days, which is 66.04 in decimal years. The oldest but least-senior of our three apostles born in 1940 is Elder Cook, who is now 77 years, 9 months, and 23 days, which is 77.81 years. His seatmate, Elder Christofferson, is 73 years, 5 months, and 7 days old, or 73.43 in decimal years.
Elder Andersen, who, as mentioned in the previous post, will have his birthday in just over a month, is currently 66 years, 10 months, and 22 days old, making his decimal age 66.89 years. Elder Rasband, who is only about six months older than Elder Andersen, has a long-form age of 67 years, 4 months, and 25 days, which puts his decimal age at 67.40 years. Elder Gary E. Stevenson, whose birthday is a mere three days before that of Elder Andersen, is currently 62 years, 10 months, and 25 days old, or 62.90 decimal years.
We now come to the final three apostles. Elder Renlund’s long-form age now stands at 65 years, 7 months, and 18 days old, with a decimal age of 65.63 years. Elder Gong is now 64 years, 6 months, and 8 days old, which puts him at 64.52 decimal years. Elder Soares, whose 60th birthday is now 3 months and 1 day away, has a long-form age of 59 years, 8 months, and 29 days old, making his decimal age 59.75 years.
The current members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles have a combined 849.33 years, which averages out to 70.78 years. What I noted in my last update 6 weeks ago in terms of who is closest to that average and how many apostles fall above and below that average remains true today.
Among all 15 apostles, there is a combined 1114.1 years of life experience, which averages out to 74.27 years. The corrections I provided 6 weeks ago regarding how many of those 15 fall above and below that average, and the two apostles who are closest to it, remain unchanged.
We now move on to the nonagenarians. President Nelson remains the 7th oldest apostle in Church history, and now has just over a year before he moves up on that list. President Ballard will join that list 3 months and 1 week from now. Elder Soares, who marks his birthday six days before President Ballard, will mark his 90th birthday in roughly 30.25 years, with the other 12 apostles doing so at various times in between now and then.
I continue to track all of this information, and will do my level best to pass updates on to you regularly. As I mentioned in my previous post, my hope is to post on this subject once every month or two. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each one of you all the best, and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
Latest Apostolic Statistics: Part One--Updated Data for President Oaks, President Nelson, and Longest-Serving Apostolic Groups
Hello again, everyone! It has been 6 weeks since I last
posted updated information on the latest apostolic statistics (which was done
on May 20, 2018). So I have determined that today would be the best day to do
so again. First, as always, I wanted to again mention that I will not be in any
way offended if those of you who are not interested in this information skip
over the data I will share in this update. Also, as I have previously done, I
will split this update into two parts. That said, let’s get right into this
first part.
With the birthdays of President Eyring and Elder Bednar
having come and gone within this last 1.5 months, the next apostolic birthdays
will not occur for another 5 weeks or so (36 days, to be exact). In light of
the deaths of 2 apostles that had their birthdays in August, only 3 of those
remain (for Elders Stevenson and Andersen and President Oaks, which will occur
in the course of a 6-day period on August 6, 9, and 12 respectively).
As usual, all data is current as of today (Sunday July 1,
2018). This update will again feature the data in the same order as previous
updates. We will start with some data about the Presidents of the Quorum of the
Twelve Apostles, then turn our attention to the Presidents of the Church. After
discussing those things, the first post will end, and the second (to be
published shortly after the first) will then highlight the latest data about
all 15 of our apostles.
So let’s address President Oaks’ current tenure length as
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, which will include exploring
how soon he will move up on this list. The length of his service has currently
spanned 5 months and 17 days. As noted in previous updates, he will be marking
2 additional tenure milestones before the end of this year, and will be marking
5 others in 2019.
To review the milestones he will reach by the last day of
2018, on Sunday September 16, he will become the 26th
longest-serving Quorum President, as by that time he will have served longer
than President David O. McKay. Just over a month later, on October 22, he will
become the 25th longest-serving Quorum President, having served
longer in that capacity than President Gordon B. Hinckley. Then in 2019, he
will mark 5 milestones, one in April, two others in July (which will be
observed two days apart), and the remaining two in November, and December. I
will mention the specifics of those milestones closer to that time.
Moving on now to President Nelson, since he was ordained
and set apart as Church president on the same day he set apart President Oaks
as Quorum President, his tenure has spanned 5 months and 17 days as well. He
has now reached the age of 93 years, 9 months, and 22 days old. Nothing has
changed since my last report regarding where he stands among the 16 other
Church presidents in terms of his tenure length or age rank.
He will observe the first tenure length milestone of his
presidency roughly 3.5 months from now, on Thursday October 11 (when he will
have served longer than President Howard W. Hunter). He will observe both
another tenure-related and his first age-related milestone two days apart in
July of 2019, with subsequent milestones more spread out in the years following
that. And again, I will be detailing those more specifically closer to the time
when they will be reached.
Let me now close out this portion of the update by
reiterating very briefly some of the information I shared for the first time in
the previous update. By all accounts, President Nelson remains healthy,
vigorous, and fully involved in the day-to-day work of moving the Church
forward. And as far as I know, neither of his counselors (who are both around
7-9 years younger than he is) are suffering from any major health issues.
With that in mind, I have no doubt these Brethren will be
serving together for at least the next several years, and I could easily see
them at least making the list of the longest-serving First Presidencies in the
Church, which will, as previous noted, occur on Sunday April 1, 2024.
And by the end of that same year, not only will the
current First Presidency reach a couple of other milestones, but President
Nelson will by then have become the first centenarian apostle and Church
president.
As for the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, except for
President Ballard (who will be 90 on October 8, which is 3 months and 1 week
from today, and who appears to be in good health as well), all other apostles
are younger than 80. With that in mind, the
current members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who have served together
since March 31 of this year, will most likely easily make the list of the
longest-serving apostles on that same day in 2021. By the end of that year,
same year, they will have moved up 3 spots on the list. I will give more
specific data in this regard closer to that time.
By the end of 2021, the current group of apostles in the
First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles will have made and moved up
on the list of other apostolic groups to become the 12th longest-serving such
group in Church history, and other milestones will be reached in the years
following. All of those milestones will depend on how long Presidents Nelson
and Ballard live and serve, and on how much they (or anyone else) are affected
by health issues. I continue to track the health and ministry of these Brethren
and will keep you posted.
With that said, I want to conclude this portion of the
update. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always,
welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my
next post (which should be the second one on this subject and will be published
here within the next few minutes), I wish each one of you all the best and pray
that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
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