First Presidency Announces Area Leadership/Presidency of the Seventy Changes

Earlier today, the Church News put out a report of the changes in area leadership that will be effective as of August 1 of this year. You can read about  those changes here. I will be posting an analysis later today on what these changes mean in terms of new area leadership.

In the meantime, among the reported changes is this interesting tidbit: there will be changes in the Presidency of the Seventy. Elder Donald L. Hallstrom, who is second in seniority in that presidency and has been serving since the April 2009 General Conference when Elder Neil L. Andersen was called to the apostleship, will be released, as well as Elder Richard J. Maynes, who has served in the Presidency of the Seventy since January of 2012, when his call was the result of Steven E. Snow's call from that Presidency to become the Church's new historian and recorder.

Called in place of these two brethren were Elders Juan A. Uceda and Patrick Kearon, who were both sustained as General Authority Seventies at the same time as Elder Gerrit W. Gong. This change marks the first time of which I am aware within which 4 General Authority Seventies born outside the United States have all served together in the Presidency of the Seventy. How wonderful it was to be able to read about that. More coming on general Church news and the specific area leadership changes very soon. Thanks to you all.

Tokyo Japan Temple President Passes Away/Minor Construction Developments Reported

Hello, all! Before sharing some minor updates on temple construction, I wanted to note the report today that the president of the Tokyo Japan Temple died during his active service on April 28, and his funeral services were held earlier today. It is therefore logical to assume that a new president will be called within the next couple of days, and that new president will most likely be one of the counselors of the deceased president. More to come on that once more is known. I am also actively working on a list of temples that have had or will have a new president this year and the long-promised update on the latest apostolic statistics.

For the moment, I wanted to share some minor but still significant updates on temple construction progress, updates which  I have added to my report. While I had reported previously that exterior floodlighting was being installed at the Cedar City Utah  Temple grounds, and while that update was featured on the main and news pages of the LDS Church Temples site, that detail has not subsequently appeared on the construction status page of that site, so I have felt it advisable to restore the status that was most recently reported on that temple, which is that, in addition to trees and flowers being planted on the grounds, interior paint and millwork installation is underway.

Meanwhile, at the Kinshasa DR Congo Temple, steel roof trusses are nearing completion. At this point, it appears that either that temple, or the Barranquilla Colombia Temple could be completed first. A lot will depend on what happens with the construction of both over the next several months.

Also, there has still not been any reports that the construction of the Winnipeg Manitoba Temple has started in earnest. Canadian seasons tend to follow those of the US pretty closely, as they are neighboring nations. That said, Canadian winters in some places, Manitoba being one of them, have been historically known to be very bad. So full-scale construction could begin anytime this month or next month. I have been very surprised that no progress has happened with that temple as of yet. I do know that, here in Utah County, winter conditions cleared a while ago. Rain and snow is still possible within the next month or so, but Utah has not seen a bad storm for a while. So I am not sure how much prior winter conditions might still figure in to progress on this temple. But it should start anytime now.

As always, I am trying my best to keep a faithful eye on  all developments, and will pass along news and updates as I find them out. In the meantime, any and all comments are appreciated. Thanks so much, friends, for taking an interest in things about which I "sound off." I know that my efforts to put such posts together would be a lot more difficult if I didn't know that my thoughts were important to so many of you. Readership of my posts continues to be more than I ever could have imagined when I started out. And I always treasure comments that are made, which, more often than not, change the direction of my thought patterns and future posts. I particularly appreciate all of you who have pointed out incorrect information I have posted previously. I always strive to be as accurate as possible, and I thank all of you for helping me continue to do so. Thanks again!

Church News Update, including an article about New General Authority Elder Joni L. Koch

Hello, all! I am posting today with yet another Church News update. There is much to share, so let's get right to it. Comments, as always, are most welcome and always appreciated.

First, a major Church news item of some significance, at least in my mind. Sister Gerry Avant, who has served so well for so many years as the editor of the weekly-published Church  News, which is more often than not updated several times per day, is retiring after her long career in journalism. Filling the assignment of editor will be Sarah Jane Weaver, another longtime Church News writer who will be the second woman to serve in this capacity. In tribute to Sister Avant's distinguished career in journalism, the Church News ran two articles about her service. This one talks about the length, breadth, and depth of Sister Avant's career and serves as the Church News's send-off to this well-respected woman. This one contains tributes from many people who know her and wanted to express their thoughts  about her distinguished career.

Before moving on, I would like to recount some personal interactions I have had with Sister Avant. On at least a few occasions that I can remember, I had been reading a Church News article when something caught my eye: whether that was incorrect information, or anything else, about which  I had a question. After double-checking the sources I had which confirmed that my thinking was correct, I reached out to Sister Avant about the issue. I remember distinctly at least two times when that happened that I did so. She kindly responded by thanking me for letting her know about the issue, and said that she would ensure that a clarification or correction was printed, which it subsequently was.

One other time, I had similar concerns about material in the Church Almanac, and she again kindly responded by giving me the contact information of the Church News staff member I could correspond with on the matter. And I am pleased to share that she has instilled that same kindness in her staff members. Whenever I have seen and pointed out such  an error, I have been thanked for doing so, and assured that the information would be remedied in a subsequent edition of that Almanac, which it was. Sister Avant is truly a gracious lady with the utmost journalistic integrity, and she will be greatly missed by all of us who  regularly read the Church News. Best of luck in your retirement, Sister Avant, and may the Lord bless you for your  wonderful work!

The Church News also pretty much confirmed my expressed opinion that President Uchtdorf will be the one to dedicate the Paris France Temple next month by running an article about  his lifelong connection to other European Temples and his special affinity for the temples in Rome and Paris. That article can be found here.

This article describes some additional resources the Church has lately made available to those actively serving in the military. It is wonderful to hear of that outreach.

In the meantime, the Church is making it easier for local leaders to stay in contact with them. Except for leaders who do not have access to e-mail, the Church will be communicating with  all other leaders via that method. This article describes how that will be done.

And, as part of the continuing series of articles written by general auxiliary leaders to help strengthen their local counterparts worldwide, Brother Brian K. Ashton  represented the Sunday School General presidency in describing how teacher councils can be most effective in strengthening and supporting teachers. You can find that article here.

Finally, this article provides an introduction to new General Authority Seventy Joni L. Koch. I  love these articles that tell us more about our new leaders.

Hope you enjoyed this update. Thanks for your readership and for any comments you might like to share.