Church News article about New General Authority Seventy Elder Evan A. Schmutz

The Church News ran an article this weekend about new General Authority Seventy Elder Evan A. Schmutz. To read that introduction of him, please see this article. Enjoy!

Apostolic News Update

Here is an overview of the latest apostolic news:

As the featured speaker at the Freedom Festival Patriotic Service on Sunday June 26, 2016, Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said that religious freedom is "under fire". For an account of what he said at that event, please see this article.

Elder Ronald A. Rasband recently visited the Barranquilla Colombia temple site recently, As evidenced by the previous blog post I did, temples are making astounding progress worldwide, and it was good to hear of Elder Rasband's visit.

The members of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles recently spoke at the Seminar for New Mission Presidents. For an overview of what was said during that seminar, please see this article. More Church News articles will be released in the near future with further information about the seminar, and you can be sure and find information about all of that on this blog.

That's a brief summary of the latest apostolic news to cross my radar.

Yet Another Update on Temple Progress

There have been further strides in temple-related progress, so I am reposting my list describing these important strides. As always, I welcome any and all feedback.

Temple Construction Progress Report (current as of 6/28/16)

Current Temple Status: 150 operating, 16 under construction (5 scheduled for dedication), 11 announced (2 groundbreakings anticipated to be announced soon), 4 undergoing renovation (1 scheduled for rededication).

Dedication scheduled:

151. Sapporo Japan Temple: Accepting free reservations for public open house; dedication scheduled on Sunday August 21, 2016.

152. Philadelphia Pennsylvania Temple: Accepting free reservations for public open house; dedication scheduled on Sunday September 18, 2016.

153. Fort Collins Colorado Temple: Open house tickets available beginning Monday July 11 @ 10 AM MDT; dedication scheduled on Sunday October 16, 2016.

154. Star Valley Wyoming Temple: Facing landscape structures with ledge rock; installing fence posts around temple; dedication scheduled on Sunday October 30, 2016.

155. Hartford Connecticut Temple: Granite being attached to front façade; building entrance plaza and temple president’s residence; dedication scheduled on Sunday November 20, 2016.

Under Construction:

156. Paris France Temple: Planting trees shrubs, and flowers; awaiting art glass installation; completion estimated sometime in early 2017.

157. Meridian Idaho Temple: Stained glass windows installed; pouring parking lot curbing; completion estimated sometime in late 2017.

158. Cedar City Utah Temple: Exterior panels attached; work continues on interior and grounds; completion estimated sometime in late 2017.

159. Tucson Arizona Temple: Angel Moroni placed atop temple on July 7, 2016; completion estimated sometime in late 2017 .

160. Rome Italy Temple: Interior work underway including some material replacement and rework; completion estimated sometime in 2018.

161. Concepcion Chile Temple: Exterior walls poured; completion estimated sometime during 2018.

162. Fortaleza Brazil Temple Site preparation phase; building permit sign posted; completion estimated sometime in either 2018 or 2019.
163. Durban South Africa Temple: Site fence erected; full-scale operations pending; completion estimated sometime in either 2018 or 2019.

164. Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple: Site clearing and preparation phase; completion estimated sometime in either 2018 or 2019.
165. Barranquilla Colombia Temple: Building the substructure; completion estimated sometime in 2019.
166. Lisbon Portugal Temple: Ground broken on Saturday December 5, 2015; completion estimated sometime in 2019.

Rededication scheduled:

33. Freiberg Germany Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication scheduled on Sunday September 4, 2016.

Undergoing Renovation:

8. Idaho Falls Idaho Temple: Closed for renovation; installing marble trim; rededication estimated sometime in early 2017.

41. Frankfurt Germany Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication estimated sometime in mid-2017.

20. Jordan River Utah Temple: Closed for renovation; rededication estimated sometime in late 2017.

Announced:

167. Arequipa Peru Temple: Construction preparation phase; groundbreaking date anticipated to be announced soon.

168. Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple: Construction preparation phase; plans approved by local government; groundbreaking may be announced soon and scheduled sometime after the summer Olympics.

169. Urdaneta Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

170. Winnipeg Manitoba Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

171. Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

172. Bangkok Thailand Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

173. Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

174. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning phase; awaiting official site announcement.

175. Harare Zimbabwe 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 number 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 number may change based on the order in which future dedications and groundbreakings are scheduled.

Underlined numbers and text denote temples whose number may change based on the order in which their future groundbreakings are announced.