No change reported in Church magazine editors/advisers

Hello, everyone! Earlier today, I stumbled across the PDF version of the September 2017 Ensign. There were a couple of surprises there. First of all, the First Presidency message for the month was done by our beloved prophet, who will be 90 on Monday. This suggests to me that there is a very high likelihood President Monson will speak at least once during General Conference, even if that address is only a few minutes long, and even if that is his only talk. It wouldn't surprise me if he gives two shorter talks, though, as he has in the last few general conferences. As I learn more on this, I will pass it along.

In the meantime, I expected that the September magazines would show any changes that have been made in the editors and advisers of the Church magazines as a result of the changes that were made in area leadership. Primarily, I was sure that Elders Christoffel Golden (who is now serving as First Counselor in the Europe Area Presidency) and Larry R. Lawrence (who will celebrate his 70th birthday on August 25 and may thus be granted emeritus status during the October General Conference) would be released from their assignment as advisers. But it could just be that whatever changes were made in the editor and advisers of the Church magazines will only show up in the October magazines. There has at times been a lag of one or two months for such changes, which we have seen before. As always, I will pass more along as I learn of it.

In the meantime, thank you for the privilege of your time. Comments are welcome and appreciated. Until my next post, I wish you all the best.

Minor but significant update reported on the Frankfurt Germany Temple Renovation Process

Hello, all! As you may be aware, there have not been all that many significant milestones in temple construction to be reported lately. However, one significant development, which I learned of earlier today, warrants mentioning: The Frankfurt Germany Temple renovation process has seen a roof slab poured for the basement addition. The last time progress was reported on this temple, the basement addition was merely underway.

So the question now becomes, what might this progress indicate about its potential future completion time frame? I have before ventured my thoughts that the Jordan River Utah Temple rededication would be among the first temple-related events of 2018, and we have seen that be the case with the announcement that a rededication will take place on the third Sunday in May.

It makes sense that the Rome Italy Temple dedication may be scheduled next, and that dedication might be scheduled in June. We could then see the rededication for the temple in Frankfurt sometime in August, following the annual July recess for the General Authorities (though the open house could be held in June, as was the case for the Tucson Arizona Temple this year).

While I have my own thoughts about when other temple-related events might happen during the year (including other dedications and groundbreakings), I am waiting for more information before I post more exact estimates for those. But if what I know about temples is any indication, by all appearances, I would not be surprised if next year is a big year for dedications and groundbreakings.

As always, I will post updates to this line of thought as I find out more. In the meantime, thank you for the privilege of your time. Any comments are welcome and appreciated. Until my next post, I wish you all the best.

Report of Articles Featured on Church Websites to Honor President Monson's 90th Birthday

Hello, all! I am back today to report on articles published on Church websites in honor of President Monson's 90th birthday. There are a lot of them to feature, so let's get right to it.

First, his family members describe what they believe he would want us to do to honor his birthday, and it mirrors the request he gave some years ago on another birthday: Find someone who is having a hard time and help them. For more on this birthday wish, click here.

President Monson's family members shared precious memories they had of experiences with him. To read about that, click here. The Church News also wrote an article summarizing many of his greatest apostolic sermons.. You can read about that here.

The Church News viewpoint was written about how we can honor President Monson on his birthday by praying for him and by serving others. You can find that article here. The Church News also shared a history moment recounting President Monson's role in the progression of the gospel in East Germany. You can read more about that here.

Rounding out these tribute articles are this one sharing tributes of general Church leaders to President Monson as he approaches this milestone birthday, and this one from the Mormon Newsroom website, describing how President Monson will have a quiet family celebration as he observes this milestone and sharing some of the same tributes from Church leaders featured in the first article linked in this paragraph.

For myself, I will say this: Because of how extensive the ministry of our prophet has been, he deserves a chance to celebrate this milestone quietly and without fanfare. I am sure he would love another more public celebration this go-round, but I know for myself how valuable such quiet moments can be. His long life of service, and his continuing to press on in spite of age-related difficulties that limit his ability to function is deserving of our admiration, respect, and deference. I will be taking time next Monday (on the exact day) to put together my tribute to this man for his birthday.

For now, I join in the pleas of the songs written to honor Church Presidents in saying that I hope God will bless our prophet dear from now until whenever he is called home. Until that time, may we continue to follow his example.

Thank you for the privilege of your time. Comments are welcome and appreciated, except for any that are derogatory about our dear prophet or any that imply the Church should let him retire. That is not, never has been, and never will be the Lord's way. That said, with few exceptions, I have found all comments on this blog to be uplifting and inspirational, and I thank you all for that. Until I post again, I wish you all the best.