BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: 9 More Temples Will Transition to Phase 4

Hello again, everyone! The Church News shared yet another new report on temple reopenings this morning. The latest update indicates that 9 more temples of the Church will begin to transition to phase 4 (normal operations). Let's get into the details: 162 of the Church's 171 dedicated temples are operational. With 8 closed for major renovations, 1 other (the Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple) has been dedicated and is anticipated to begin operations soon.

The 9 temples moving toward normal operations include: 4 in the United States (Boston Massachusetts, Hartford Connecticut, Louisville Kentucky, and Nashville Tennessee);  2 in Europe (Madrid Spain and Preston England) and 1 each in Canada (Montreal Quebec); Central America (San Salvador El Salvador); and Asia (Seoul Korea).

As a result of these details, the status of the Church's 171 temples stands as follows: 1 (Rio de Janeiro Brazil) will begin operations soon; 8 are closed for major renovations (with all 8 having been granted phase 3 status, allowing patrons in those districts to schedule phase 3 living and proxy work at the nearest temple); 1 (Kyiv Ukraine) has had operations paused/suspended in phase 3 out of an abundance of caution due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine; and 1 (Suva Fiji) remains in phase 1.

With no temples currently in phases 2 or 2-B, of the remaining temples, 26 are in phase 3 (those 26 do not include the 8 temples undergoing renovation, which are being separately categorized for the time being), and, with the changes announced today, the total number of temples now in phase 4 is 134. The Church News has also updated the temple reopening status tracker, which shows an area-by-area breakdown of temples worldwide.

Incidentally, on that status tracker, if you look at the Brazil Area specifically, there is an entry for the Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple. The text on that entry reads: "Dedicated May 8, 2022. Ordination work for patrons begins May 19, 2022." I assume that "Ordination work" was supposed to be "Ordinance work" because otherwise, it doesn't make much sense. But if the temple is officially open for ordinance work on May 19, I assume that it will be granted phase 4 status right away, since all other Brazilian temples are now in phase 4. 

Either way, the status of that temple is likely to be clarified by the Church News in the update next week. I will continue to monitor all updates from the Newsroom and the Church News, along with any updates on the status of temples in the construction queue (under construction, undergoing renovation, or those in various other phases) and pass those along to you all here as I become aware thereof.

In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such feedback offered is consistent with the established guidelines.  I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. 

Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. 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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: August Groundbreakings Set for Ephraim Utah and Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo Temples

Hello again, everyone! I have breaking temple news to report today. Two temples of the Church will have groundbreakings in August. This morning, the First Presidency announced the arrangements for such ceremonies for the Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo and Ephraim Utah Temples. In conjunction with today's announcement, the general location, artist's rendering and details were announced for the Democratic Republic of the Congo's second temple.

Let's break down the details: The groundbreaking for the Lubumbashi DR Congo Temple will take place on Saturday August 20, 2022, under the direction of Elder Matthew L. Carpenter, the current First Counselor in the Africa Central Area presidency who, by the time of the groundbreaking, will transition to being the Area President. The temple will be built on a 2.57-acre site near the intersections of Av. Kashobwe, Av. Biyayi, and Av. Du Lac Kipopo. Plans call for a single-story temple of 19,300 square feet. Ancillary buildings (note the plural) of 31,000 square feet will house a distribution center for the Church and patron and missionary housing. We have another temple announced in April 2020 that has had official details confirmed.

In the meantime, as we know, the Ephraim Utah Temple was announcedin May of last year, with site identification following five months later (last October) and a rendering resed on March 4 of this year.

Ground will be broken for that temple on Saturday August 27. The First Presidency has asked Elder Walter F. González, the current Second Counselor in the Utah Area Presidency who will be released from that assignment on August 1 and will be released and granted emeritus status in October, to preside at that groundbreaking.

The fact that these two events are set for back-to-back weeks in mid-to-late August gives me hope that perhaps other temples might have their groundbreakings on the Saturdays of August 6 and 13.

I continue to monitor all such updates and will pass word of those along to you all here as I receive it. In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such feedback offered is consistent with the established guidelines.

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. 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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: 16 Temples Begin Transition to Normal Operations; "Traveling" Open House Being Conducted for Those in Yigo Guam Temple District

Hello again, everyone! In recent weeks, the timing of announcements about temple phase transitions has become slightly less predictable, with some announcements coming Tuesday afternoon or Wednesday morning rather than on Tuesday morning. So it has been difficult to anticipate the timing of such announcements each week, assuming there are any at all. Despite that, I am pleased to be able to report today that 16 additional temples will begin their transitions to phase 4 (normal operations) as soon as today.

The 16 temples include the following: 10 in Latin America (Buenos Aires and Cordoba Argentina; Concepcion and Santiago Chile; Guatemala City and Quetzaltenango Guatemala; Asuncion Paraguay; Montevideo Uruguay; Panama City Panama; and Tegucigalpa Honduras); 3 in Africa (Aba Nigeria, Durban South Africa, Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo); 2 in the United States (Birmingham Alabama and Orlando Florida) and 1 in Europe (Paris France). These adjustments are also confirmed in the area-by-area temple status tracker. 

As a result of the latest adjustments, the reopening status of the Church's 170 currently-operating temples stands as follows: 8 are closed for major renovations (all of which have been granted a designation of phase 3, allowing patrons in those districts to schedule phase 3 appointments at the nearest temples open); 1 each with phase 3 operations suspended (Kyiv Ukraine) and in phase 1 (Suva Fiji); 0 in phases 2 and 2-B; 35 remaining in phase 3; and the remaining 125 which have transitioned or soon begin transitioning to phase 4 operations. 

In view of today's announcement, 77.16% of the 162 currently-open temples are or will be returning to normal operations. Aside from the Kyiv Ukraine Temple, which is currently affected by the Russian invasion of that nation (which despite having previously moved on from Kyiv, has now seen action resume there), and the Suva Fiji Temple (where the transition to normal operations is being hindered by local COVID-19 conditions, among other factors), I believe in coming weeks that the 8 temples being renovation may be granted phase 4 status since the temples nearest to them have begun such transitions already.

The same is true of the 35 temples currently in phase 3. It has been interesting to watch the methodical way in which temple reopenings have occurred, and I again testify of the prophetic foresight guiding that process. But in addition to temple reopenings, there is another development I need to cover here. The Church is preparing to host tours of the Yigo Guam Temple.

Since some of the Saints in the forthcoming temple district are currently prohibited from traveling to Guam due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Church is bringing the experience of the temple open house through means of virtual tours and samples of materials used to furnish and beautify that edifice. The "traveling open house" will reach out to members and friends of other faiths in those regions to allow them to be part of that experience. That brings me to a potential correction I may need to make. 

I had understood that the Church was using a multipurpose space in the temple that could serve alternately as an instruction room for the endowment or a sealing room. The open house pictures appear to indicate they will be separate spaces, which was not originally indicated when construction began. If that is correct, then it corrects and supersedes anything I previously said on that. 

The VIP/invited guest tours have begun, with the formal open house starting tomorrow and going through May 14. The temple dedication will follow on Sunday May 22, under the direction of Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. I will monitor available resources for updates on that and bring word of those to you as they are reported. I also continue to monitor all Church news updates and temple developments and will bring you all word of those as I receive it.

In the meantime, that does it for now. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such feedback offered is consistent with the established guidelines.  I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. Thank you for the privilege of your time. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. 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.