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Tuesday, October 31, 2017

Who might preside at/attend the dedication of the Meridian Idaho Temple?

Hello again, everyone! Here is yet another late-night post from me, this one to explore the question of who might preside at (and who else might attend) the Meridian Idaho Temple dedication, which will take place on Sunday November 19th. As I have previously stated, Elder David A. Bednar presided at the 2014 groundbreaking ceremony for this temple. So it seems evident that he will be in attendance at its dedication, whether he is sent to preside over it, as he did for the Star Valley Wyoming Temple, or whether he will be accompanying the senior apostle who does so.

While any of the leading Brethren could be in attendance, I know of two who will likely not be: Elders Dallin H. Oaks and M. Russell Ballard. Why do I think so? Because they have been asked to be part of a Face-to-Face regional gathering for the young single adults of the Church that evening at 6:00 PM MST. I don't know where that event is taking place, but I am assuming from Church headquarters in Salt Lake City. That being the case, with the last dedication session for the Meridian temple taking place at 3:00 PM, and with Meridian being nearly 400 miles from Salt Lake, it would be impossible for them to participate in the dedication and make it back on time for the event.

Since Elder Ulisses Soares is the Presidency of the Seventy member who currently supervises the Idaho Area of the Church, he will likely be in attendance as well. It is also sure that one or two representatives from the Temple Department will be on hand for this event as well.

Having shared these thoughts, I would love to hear from some of you. Who do you think might participate in this upcoming dedication? I look forward to your feedback. That does it for this post. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each of you all the best and pray the Lord's blessings upon you all.

Monday, October 30, 2017

Updated Thoughts about completion estimates for new temples and those undergoing renovation

Hello again, everyone! While it may be too early to know for sure, I thought I would post again, with my updated thoughts about the potential time-frames for future dedications and rededications between 2018 and 2020. These thoughts will, of course, change as additional information is provided, but I will give my best estimates, based on what is currently known.

Potential Timeline for temple-related events in 2018:
Monday January 1-Saturday June 30: Full-scale construction begins on Winnipeg Manitoba Temple
NOTE: This temple, which had a groundbreaking in December of 2016, did not progress at all in 2017. At present, plans are being modified, and full-scale construction could begin at any point during the first half of 2018. I hope that will happen sooner rather than later.
January: Raleigh North Carolina Temple Renovation Closure (already confirmed; exact date may not be as set in stone as I once believed.
February: Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple Renovation Closure (already confirmed; exact date may not be as set in stone as I once believed)
Monday February 19: Oakland California Temple Renovation Closure (already confirmed)
Sunday March 4: Washington DC Temple Renovation Closure (already confirmed)
May: Mesa Arizona Temple Renovation Closure (closure confirmed; comfirmation of exact date pending)
Sunday May 20: Jordan River Utah Temple Rededication (already confirmed)
Sunday June 3 or 10: Houston Texas Temple Rededication (private)
Sunday August 12 or 19: Concepcion Chile Temple Dedication (160th operating temple)
Sunday September 9 or 16: Kinshasa DR Congo Temple Dedication (161st operating temple)
Sunday October 21 or 28: Frankfurt Germany Temple Rededication
Sunday November 11 or 18 or December 9 or 16: Barranquilla Colombia Temple Dedication (162nd operating temple)
NOTE: While I had been hoping with all my heart that the Rome Italy Temple might be dedicated during 2018, and while that might still be possible, I learned from a few sources available to me that it is more likely that it will be dedicated in the early months of 2019. If that changes, I will pass that information along.

Potential Timeline for temple-related events in 2019:
Early-to-mid March: Rome Italy Temple Dedication (163rd operating temple)
Mid-to-late March: Memphis Tennessee Temple Rededication
Mid-to-late April: Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temple Rededication
Early-to-mid May: Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple Dedication (164th operating temple)
Mid-to-late May: Asuncion Paraguay Temple Rededication (NOTE: As reported in an earlier post, it appears that this temple has not yet officially closed. Depending on when it actually does so, I may need to adjust this estimate.)
Early-to-mid June: Durban South Africa Temple Dedication (165th operating temple)
Mid-August: Raleigh North Carolina Temple Rededication
Late August-early September: Fortaleza Brazil Temple Dedication (166th operating temple)
Mid-to-late September: Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple Rededication
Mid-October: Rio de Janeiro Temple Dedication (167th operating temple)
Late October-early November: Oakland California Temple Rededication
Mid-November: Lisbon Portugal Temple Dedication (168th operating temple)
Mid-December: Arequipa Peru Temple Dedication (169th operating temple)
NOTE: With all the new and renovated temples that could be completed during 2019, it appears the year will be full of such events. But I also wouldn't be surprised if some of those were moved into 2020. I will keep my eyes out in that regard and pass along any new information I get.

Potential Timeline for temple-related events in 2020:
Mid-to-late March: Winnipeg Manitoba Temple Dedication (169th operating temple)
Mid-May: Tokyo Japan Temple Rededication
Early-to-mid September: Mesa Arizona Temple Rededication
Early-to-mid November: Washington DC Temple Rededication
NOTE: If, as I suspect, we have several temple groundbreakings in 2018 and 2019, then we could see a lot more temple-related events during 2020. It will be interesting to see what happens in that regard,

Until more is known, the information above reflects my best efforts to determine a probable time-frame for temple related events. As with everything else related to His Church, the Lord is in control of such things, including worldwide weather (though obviously, such things will also depend on any political obstacles, those working on such projects, and whether or not the correct equipment and resources are available). One thing of which you can be sure: to the best of my ability, I will do everything in my power to keep track of all such developments, and to relay those ASAP as I get news of them.

That does it for this post. Any comments are welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, I wish each of you all the best and pray the Lord's blessings upon you all.

BREAKING NEWS: Completion estimate provided for the Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple

Hello again, everyone! I have some exciting news to report, which is a real game changer. According to many sources available to me, while we do not know when full-scale construction may begin for the Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple, it is anticipated that it will be completed sometime during early-to-mid 2019, the same time-frame given for the completion of the Durban South Africa Temple, and for the rededications of the Memphis Tennessee, Oklahoma City Oklahoma, and Asuncion Paraguay Temples. As you can see, I have also confirmed the closure of the Asuncion Temple. With all of that in mind, it seems likely that the first few months of 2019 are going to be jam-packed with temple-related events. Since I just discovered this information, I have not yet had time to put together my thoughts about the potential sequence of events for next year. But I wanted to pass this news along, for what it may be worth. That does it for this post. Any comments are welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my next post, which will, barring anything else unexpected, be another in the series that will discuss temple possibilities in the Asia Area of the Church, I wish each one of you all the best and pray the Lord's blessings upon you all.