BREAKING NEWS: First Presidency Announces Parameters for the October 2022 General Conference

Hello again, everyone! On this Friday, I am pleased to share some breaking news from the First Presidency: in a letter to be read in all Sacrament Meetings this Sunday, the parameters have been set for the October 2022 General Conference (in order to access the contents, you'll need to sign into the Church website with your Church account). The letter indicates that the conference will consist of five general sessions for all members, including one on Saturday evening. 

The details provided in the letter were later confirmed in a report from the Church News while this post was being put together here. With that announcement in mind, it appears as though my interpretation of both last July's announcement about the Saturday evening session and the introductory First Presidency message given by President Oaks at the beginning of last April's Womens' Session is correct: the focus and audience for the Saturday evening sessions will be determined by revelation on a conference-by-conference basis. 

Some people reportedly complained that the Church abandoned the specially-focused sessions (Priesthood in April and Women's in October) only to reinstate that with the Women's Session last April. But as President Oaks announced in April, the focus and audience will be determined on a conference-by-conference basis. Parenthetically, it's a valid point to me that the April 2022 General Conference featured a Women's Session since that was the closest conference held to the late March 180th anniversary of the establishment of the Relief Society organization. 

And the establishment of that organization eventually led to the creation of the Relief Society, Primary, and youth programs as we know them today. I could see the Church doing something similarly special in April 2029, to mark the 200th anniversary of the restoration of the Priesthood, and in April 2030, to mark the Church's bicentennial, particularly since, if current traditions hold, the Saturday of that conference will coincide with the exact bicentennial day.

So that leads me to my next point: with the general session for all members, who might speak? As reflected in my General Conference predictions, I would anticipate at least 1 or 2 General Officers, 1 member from the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and one member of the First Presidency. The only questions in my mind are whether that would be President Nelson (since President Eyring spoke then last October and President Oaks did so in April) or whether the counselors will continue to alternate, and how many other speakers there might be.

In terms of the second question, the number of speakers in that Saturday evening session has varied in recent General Conferences of the Church. In April 2020, there were 7, with 6 each the following October and April, 8 in October 2021, and 5 in April of this year. If Presidents Oaks or Eyring speaks during that session, it's possible they could also give a short introductory address specific to that session.  

If President Nelson speaks, we could either see a shorter or normal-length talk from the prophet, which may affect how many other talks he gives and their respective lengths. As far as how many other speakers the session will feature, that's anyone's guess. The announcement also notes that the Saturday evening session will be 90 minutes, as opposed to the other sessions, which will be 120, and that could also impact the speaker lineup.

Nothing would surprise me at this point. The announcement also notes that, due to ongoing renovations of the Salt Lake Temple and Temple Square, in-person attendance at the Conference Center will be limited. Last April, the cap was 10,000 (with the Conference Center half-full as a result). There could be that same number or slightly lowered as a result. In any case, my unexpected discovery of the letter answered a lot of questions on my end.

I was grateful to have found that, and hope this post has been illuminating for you all. I continue to monitor all other Church news updates and temple construction developments and will be sure to bring word of those to you all as they cross my radar. In the meantime, that does it for now. Thank you for the privilege of your time. All comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as the offered feedback is made per the established guidelines. 

If you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. 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: Renovations, Expansions, and a Redesign Scheduled for Kona Hawaii Temple

Hello again, everyone! The First Presidency announced this afternoon that renovations, expansions, and a redesign are planned beginning around October 2023 for the Kona Hawaii Temple. The updates are anticipated to be completed sometime in late 2025. Plans call for an increase in the square footage of that temple from 9,500 square feet to 12,000 square feet. The rendering for the temple after the change reflects a slightly different look.

The temple is the 70th in operation, originally dedicated by President Hinckley on January 23 and 24, 2000. This continues the Church's efforts to expand the floor plan of Hinckley-era temples to accommodate an increased need. During the renovation process, the Church encourages patrons in the Kona temple district to participate in ordinance work at the Laie Hawaii Temple. I am grateful to have heard about this news and for the opportunity to share it with you all here.

I continue to monitor all such updates and will bring you word of those here as I become aware of them. In the meantime, that does it for now. All comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as the offered feedback is made per 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. If you enjoyed what you read here and would like to stay informed of newly added content, please feel free to subscribe. 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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: Text of the Washington D.C. Temple's Second Dedicatory Prayer Published Official Name Confrimed for Rexburg North Idaho Temple; Name Clarified for the Newest Temple in the United Kingdom

Hello again, everyone! I have three major temple announcements to cover in this post. First, as I mentioned in the comment threads of my previous post, I have been anticipating that the text of the second dedicatory prayer written by President Nelson and offered by him in the first session and each of his counselors in the final two sessions of yesterday's rededication of the Washington D.C. Temple has been published. 

In all honesty, although I expected that to happen this week, I was surprised to see it already released today. As I've previously noted, as a general rule, the links I provide for any content I share are usually for any of you to pick and choose which ones you'd actually like to read based on your personal interests, but from time to time, an article crosses my radar that I recommend to all of my readers. This is another such article.

However, that report is a secondary reason for this latest post. The primary reason is that a new announcement from the First Presidency has provided the first major temple update since yesterday's rededication. And contrary to what I had supposed, the update did not relate to any new temple groundbreakings, or opening or reopening arrangements for temples nearing completion. 

Instead, there has been an official confirmation of the name of the Rexburg North Idaho Temple, and a clarification of the name of the newest temple in the United Kingdom. As reflected on the official temple list, the new name of the second temple in Rexburg Idaho, set to be built in the northern part of that city, will be the Teton River Idaho Temple.

As previously mentioned, the current status of that temple and a similar status for the temple in Montpelier Idaho means those two top the list of the temples most likely to have a groundbreaking announced soon. That being said, for the Teton River Idaho Temple, we are also awaiting confirmation of the official site. Even so, I'm glad we at least have confirmation of the name now.

Now, regarding the newest temple in the United Kingdom, when President Nelson announced it in April, he referred to it as the Birmingham United Kingdom Temple. However, as we know, the other two temples in England use the name of England rather than the UK moniker. Either is technically correct. But conventionally, the other two temples use England. 

So the official name there is the Birmingham England Temple. While I'm glad that has been officially confirmed, we do not have a site confirmation on that temple yet. And thus we see that temple-by-temple, the Church is confirming official names for temples that only had generic or directional ones up to this point. I am pleased to have been able to provide this update.

I continue to monitor all such developments and will be sure to pass them along as I learn of them. In the meantime, that does it for now. All comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as the offered feedback is made per the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. 

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. 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.

Hello again, everyone! I have three major temple announcements to cover in this post. First, as I mentioned in the comment threads of my previous post, I have been anticipating that the text of the second dedicatory prayer written by President Nelson and offered by him in the first session and each of his counselors in the final two sessions of yesterday's rededication of the Washington D.C. Temple has been published. 

In all honesty, although I expected that to happen this week, I was surprised to see it already released today. As I've previously noted, as a general rule, the links I provide for any content I share are usually for any of you to pick and choose which ones you'd actually like to read based on your personal interests, but from time to time, an article crosses my radar that I recommend to all of my readers. This is another such article.

However, that report is a secondary reason for this latest post. The primary reason is that a new announcement from the First Presidency has provided the first major temple update since yesterday's rededication. And contrary to what I had supposed, the update did not relate to any new temple groundbreakings, or opening or reopening arrangements for temples nearing completion. 

Instead, there has been an official confirmation of the name of the Rexburg North Idaho Temple, and a clarification of the name of the newest temple in the United Kingdom. As reflected on the official temple list, the new name of the second temple in Rexburg Idaho, set to be built in the northern part of that city, will be the Teton River Idaho Temple.

As previously mentioned, the current status of that temple and a similar status for the temple in Montpelier Idaho means those two top the list of the temples most likely to have a groundbreaking announced soon. That being said, for the Teton River Idaho Temple, we are also awaiting confirmation of the official site. Even so, I'm glad we at least have confirmation of the name now.

Now, regarding the newest temple in the United Kingdom, when President Nelson announced it in April, he referred to it as the Birmingham United Kingdom Temple. However, as we know, the other two temples in England use the name of England rather than the UK moniker. Either is technically correct. But conventionally, the other two temples use England. 

So the official name there is the Birmingham England Temple. While I'm glad that has been officially confirmed, we do not have a site confirmation on that temple yet. And thus we see that temple-by-temple, the Church is confirming official names for temples that only had generic or directional ones up to this point. I am pleased to have been able to provide this update.

I continue to monitor all such developments and will be sure to pass them along as I learn of them. In the meantime, that does it for now. All comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as the offered feedback is made per the established guidelines. Thank you for the privilege of your time. 

I hope any of you who would like to share anything will take your opportunity to “sound off” in the comments below. 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.