Miscellaneous Church News Items

Hello again, everyone! I am coming to you in the early morning hours of April 20 in order to briefly pass along additional Church News articles that have been published within the last 24 hours and are well worth reading. Let's dive right in and talk about those.

First of all, with all else that has gone on, I hadn't realized that the privately-scheduled rededication for the Houston Texas Temple by President M. Russell Ballard will be occurring this upcoming Sunday. This article was released in advance of that event.

Next, the Church News ran a comparison between London England and Nairobi Kenya, describing how their differences and similarities played into the significance of President Nelson visiting both cities this last week.

The Church News also continues its' series of articles about those who were called to leadership positions during General Conference earlier this month. In introducing Elder Steven R. Bangerter, an article described how his personal and professional interactions with people of other faiths has uniquely prepared him for his service as a General Authority who will be given assignments to minister in various areas of the world to people of this and other faiths.

From Sarah Jane Weaver, who is now the editor of the Church News, comes an article highlighting the international ministry of presidents of the Church.Another article shares information about a new website which will allow prospective senior missionaries a more effective way to find assignments that match their unique circumstances and needs.

For any of my readers who may be working with the young men in your wards and stakes, the Church News shared some insights into how the Church's newly reemphasized focus on ministering can be effectively implemented for the teacher- and priest-age young men who are assigned to minister alongside their Melchizedek Priesthood counterparts.

And finally, Sarah Jane Weaver brings us another article highlighting President Nelson's ministry among Church members in India. The article not only highlights the story I shared earlier about how President Nelson wound up announcing a temple for Bengaluru and his announced hope of being able to come back to India and preside over dedicatory services for that temple (which I fully believe the Lord will honor), but also shared some comments from Sister Nelson.

Sister Nelson noted that, since her husband was ordained and set apart as Church President in January, the man she greets at the end of each work day is not the same man who bid her goodbye that morning, and that she has seen years literally fall off of him as he has been out on this tour, mingling with and addressing Church members. She particularly stated that during those addresses, he appeared as vigorous as if he were 63 or 73, and not 93.

With that in mind, while the length of President Nelson's life is up to the Lord, it will not in any way surprise me if President Nelson is still living and actively leading the Church six years from now, at which time President Nelson will be 3 months and 2 weeks or so short of marking his 100th birthday. In so saying, I recognize that President Monson had expressed a wish to dedicate the Star Valley Wyoming Temple, since "there's good fishing up there", and by the time of its' dedication, he was in declining health.

The Lord knows the times and seasons of His prophets, and when their tenures end is entirely in His hands. That said, with the comments I have heard from others, and with what I have observed in reports of his ministry, I will say that President Nelson's career as a heart surgeon has likely helped him figure out what to do to remain healthy and vigorous, and when we add that to the sustaining influence with which the Lord blesses His prophet, however long President Nelson lives, I am sure he will be as active as he can be for as long as he is able to do so.

The one other comment I would like to make on this article is something Elder Holland said that, to me, demonstrates the gift of seership is active in the Quorum of the Twelve as well. The article quotes Elder Holland as saying to the Saints in India: "You can't imagine what is going to happen in India: Your loftiest dreams will be painfully shortsighted."

I have heard from a few sources that President Nelson's choice of President Oaks as a counselor in the First Presidency and of Elder Holland as the apostolic companion for this world tour may be his way of giving these Brethren who may one day be Church president themselves experiences that will uniquely prepare them, and I concur with that assessment.

I hope that these thoughts and article links have been helpful to some of you. 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.

First Presidency Calls 16 New Temple Presidents; List of Temples That May Also Get a New President During 2018

Hello again, everyone! In a surprise move, the Church News reports that the First Presidency has called 16 new temple presidents that will begin their service later this year. The Church usually starts to announce new temple presidents at around this time every year, but 16 new presidents announced right off the bat is very unusual. And, in another surprising development, one of those 16 is assigned to the Provo City Center Temple. The reason I find that surprising is that the temple will only be marking its' two year anniversary next month, and the standard service length for temple presidents is 3 years.

I have taken time to look over the presidents of the 159 temples currently in operation and those that will likely be dedicated within the next 1.5 years, and I have assembled a list of the temples that may be getting a new president later this year. The full list follows below.

So as not to disturb its' flow, I will end now as I always do: 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.

New presidents have been called for the following temples:

1.      Manaus Brazil

2.      Boise Idaho

3.      Denver Colorado

4.      The Hague Netherlands

5.      Oquirrh Mountain Utah

6.      Helsinki Finland

7.      The Gila Valley Arizona

8.      Brigham City Utah

9.      Stockholm Sweden

10.  Palmyra New York

11.  Accra Ghana

12.  Papeete Tahiti

13.  Sao Paulo Brazil

14.  San Jose Costa Rica

15.  Albuquerque New Mexico

16.  Provo City Center

The first presidents will likely be announced for the following new temples:

1.      Concepcion Chile

2.      Barranquilla Colombia

3.      Rome Italy

4.      Kinshasa DR Congo

5.      Fortaleza Brazil

6.      Port-au-Prince Haiti

New presidents may also be announced for the following temples:

1.      Atlanta Georgia

2.      Billings Montana

3.      Boston Massachusetts

4.      Bountiful Utah

5.      Brisbane Australia

6.      Buenos Aires Argentina

7.      Cardston Alberta

8.      Cebu City Philippines

9.      Colonia Juarez Chihuahua Mexico

10.  Cordoba Argentina

11.  Draper Utah

12.  Fukuoka Japan

13.  Guatemala City Guatemala

14.  Helsinki Finland

15.  Hermosillo Sonora Mexico

16.  Houston Texas

17.  Indianapolis Indiana

18.  Kansas City Missouri

19.  Laie Hawaii

20.  Las Vegas Nevada

21.  Manti Utah

22.  Montevideo Uruguay

23.  Monticello Utah

24.  Oaxaca Mexico

25.  Payson Utah

26.  Porto Alegre Brazil

27.  Recife Brazil

28.  Redlands California

29.  Regina Saskatchewan

30.  Sacramento California

31.  St. Louis Missouri

32.  Sydney Australia

33.  Taipei Taiwan

34.  Tegucigalpa Honduras

35.  Tijuana Mexico

36.  Trujillo Peru

37.  Vancouver British Columbia

38.  Veracruz Mexico

39.  Villahermosa Mexico

40.  Washington D. C. Temple (Note: The Church may opt to wait on calling a new president for this temple until 2020 when it is rededicated)

BREAKING NEWS: President Nelson in Bengaluru India

Hello again, everyone! There has been a lot of Church news (some of it temple-related) which I hope to report on later this evening. But KSL just aired a story about President Nelson being in Bengaluru India, and a couple of things stood out to me that I just had to share.

First, it was mentioned that President Nelson is looking for a site for the temple he announced in that city. But KSL shared an interview with President Nelson as he was there, and he indicated in that interview that he had felt impressed to announce the Bengaluru India Temple the day before General Conference began.

It is impressive that, with all that President Nelson was preparing for during General Conference, the Lord indicated to him that the time was right to announce an India temple, and that he did so within 48 hours of receiving that impression.

This would also seem to verify that Bengaluru was likely not on the list of 80 potential temples that Elder Wilson referenced almost a year ago. But without knowing which locations were on that list to begin with, I cannot say for sure that that location was not on the list.

Stay tuned for more on these developments as I learn of it. 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 everyting you do.