Some Thoughts Regarding How the Layout of the Women's Session Might Change Starting This October

Hello again, everyone! I am back to pass along some thoughts about how the Church's announcement on October 27 of last year (regarding how the Priesthood Session would now be held each April, and the Women's Session each October as the third sessions of those conferences and would be held two hours following the Saturday Afternoon Session) might change the layout of the Women's Session compared to what it has typically been.

In that regard, I wanted to note first of all that, in doing the research, I figured out that the Women's Session has typically been roughly 15 minutes shorter than the Priesthood Session. But I would anticipate that, since the two sessions will occupy the same time slot every six months, the Church may opt to extend the length of the Women's Session by 15 minutes. I will be addressing how that time might be filled a little later on.

Next, while each member of the First Presidency has generally spoken during the Priesthood Session, and while that will likely still be the case, if we were to hear from the full First Presidency during every Women's Session, there would likely not be time for more than a couple of speakers from the female auxiliaries of the Church, which would be counter to the typical patterns of that session. For that reason, it seems logical to conclude that every October, the Women's Session will continue to feature the First Presidency members speaking in rotation as has been the case up to now.

So, if only one member of the First Presidency does speak during the Women's Session, then I see two potential options: First, the session could remain at its' current length of time and the member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles that would have otherwise spoken during the Priesthood Session will do so during one of the other four sessions.

The second option, in my opinion, is far more likely. If the Church does opt to extend the Women's Session by 15 minutes, then that time could be filled by the member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles that would have otherwise spoken during the Priesthood Session.

There have been times in the past (particularly during the administration of President Kimball) when one member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke during what was then the General Women's Meeting, so that kind of thing is by no means unheard of.

And, in my opinion, that would likely be the easiest course of action. But if that occurs, then that likely means that the two First Presidency members who are not speaking during the Women's Session each October will also have one less address each, unless a revision of the typical patterns for the other four sessions enable them to give that address during one of the other four sessions.

It is interesting to think about all of this, and to consider what might happen. Of course, we could also find 8 months from now that none of these ideas I am suggesting have been proven accurate. But whatever does happen in that regard, you can count on my tracking those developments and bringing them to you here on this blog.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, especially those sharing your thoughts on the ideas I have presented here. 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.

April 2018 General Conference Predictions Alterations: Part Eight--Slight Update to Speaking Order Projections

Hello again, everyone! I am back to add another part to the series of posts I published last month on how the announced and likely future changes in Church leadership would alter my April 2018 General Conference predictions. I wanted to note that I have done more research on the speaking history for general officers of the Church.

Based on what I found there (and also on what I believe the layout of the October 2018 Women's Session might look like, which I will be addressing in another post after publishing this one), my reasoning behind making these changes and what those changes entail follow below.

As some of you may recall, I previously noted we could potentially see the Reyna I. Aburto, Second Counselor in the Relief Society Presidency, and Cristina B. Franco, who holds the same position but in the Primary General Presidency speak to us.

The additional study I have done since that time has led me to now believe that we will instead hear from the First Counselors in those two presidencies, with Sharon Eubank potentially speaking during the Saturday .Morning Session, and Bonnie H. Cordon speaking during the Sunday Afternoon Session.

This change has seemed to be a common-sense choice because of what I believe will occur during the first Women's Session held following the announcement last October that that session would only be held every October.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, especially any addressing your thoughts on this subject. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my net post, which will, barring anything unexpected, address my thoughts on how these changes to General Conference might affect the layout of the Women's Session every October, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Another Update Provided for the Kinshasa DR Congo Temple

Hello again, everyone! I am pleased to be able to report today that another update has been provided for the Kinshasa DR Congo Temple. The latest reports on those construction efforts indicate that scaffolding has been removed from the steeple, and that while roof shingling continues, the driveway and parking area have been outlined.

This update gives me hope that we might see this temple dedicated by the end of this year (rather than the beginning of next year), especially since it seems to be making fairly steady process. With that said, if my memory serves me correctly, other temples have been a bit farther along in their progress when their dedications were anticipated within 8-10 months, so I will be keeping an eye on this temple and its' ongoing progress (or lack thereof), and I will be posting updates on that progress as I am able to do so.

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.