BREAKING NEWS: First Presidency Issues Statement on Armed Conflict

Hello again, everyone! On the heels of my report last night about the Kyiv Ukraine Temple, the First Presidency has issued an official statement on the armed conflict currently underway by the government of Russia targeting Ukraine. The Church News app alerted me to this development. While the First Presidency was not under any obligation to weigh in on the matter, I am grateful for and comforted by their calming words at this time.

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 comments are made in accordance 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: Groundbreakings Announced for Elko Nevada & Grand Junction Colorado Temples

 Hello again, everyone! This morning, as first reported by the Newsroom and the Church News, groundbreaking have been set for two more temples in the United States. Let's break down the details. First up will be the Grand Junction Colorado Temple, which will have a groundbreaking on Saturday April 16. Anyone who has followed the Church Growth Blog comments lately will know that Nancy, who has previously commented there and here, noted recently that an announcement for that temple's groundbreaking was forthcoming. 

The groundbreaking will be under the direction of Elder Chi Hong (Sam) Wong, who serves as First Counselor in the North America Central Area Presidency. Following the announcement of that temple in April 2021, the site was announced on June 23 of that same year, with the release of the exterior rendering following on September 17. 

Moving on to Elko Nevada, the groundbreaking for that temple will be held on May 7, under the direction of Elder Paul B. Pieper, the current president of the North America Southwest Area, under which this temple falls. That groundbreaking follows the announcement of that temple, also in April 2021,  which was followed by the site announcement on June 10, and the release of the exterior rendering (which also occurred on September 17 of that same year). 

The latest announcements bring the total number of groundbreakings scheduled thus far in 2022 to a total of 6. In 2021, the sixth groundbreaking had occurred on August 21. With the sixth 2022 temple groundbreaking occurring on May 7, I will be interested to see where we are at with temple groundbreakings by August 21 of this year. I am keeping a side-by-side comparison of temple groundbreakings this year vs. those that occurred last year.

Since the scheduled groundbreakings have not yet been announced for the rest of May and June,  depending on what the Church is able to get approved if we assume that a minimum of 1 temple will have a groundbreaking each week until the end of June, a minimum of 7 more could have a groundbreaking by that time, which would bring the total number of temple groundbreakings to 13.

The temples for which I anticipate groundbreaking announcements in the relatively near future are as follows: Belo Horizonte Brazil, Ephraim and Smithfield Utah, Burley Idaho, and Willamette Valley Oregon. Depending on a variety of factors, we might also possibly hear soon about groundbreaking arrangements for the temples in Cali Colombia, Torreon and Queretaro Mexico, Greater Guatemala City Guatemala, and Cape Town South Africa.

As always, there is also a chance that temples for which no information has been publicly released yet could have a groundbreaking announcement soon, with a site announcement and exterior rendering coming in conjunction with that. I am monitoring all of these developments, in addition to Church News updates, and will be sure to pass word of those along to you all as I become aware thereof.

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 comments are made in accordance 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: Kyiv Ukraine Temple Closes Until Further Notice

Hello again, everyone! Late-breaking temple news was reported a short time ago. In the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Kyiv Ukraine Temple has been closed, effective immediately, until further notice. While it is generally safer for Church members to be in the temple during a natural disaster or upheaval,  with the current ongoing invasion of Ukraine by Russia, the Church is acting out of an abundance of caution.

All missionaries of the Church serving in Ukraine were relocated last month. In noting this development, the page for that temple was updated with the following note: "On Tuesday, the presidency of the Eastern Europe Area reassured members that the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles were fully aware of the unfolding events in Ukraine and that the situation is being closely monitored on an hourly and daily basis."

The situation that necessitated the closure of this temple is in flux at the present time. While we don't exactly know when the dust will settle, or when that temple will be able to reopen, the Lord is aware of what needs to happen here. My prayer is that we will all petition the Lord for His blessings to be upon all those affected by this current crisis. As we unite in prayer at this time, the Lord will bless that region with whatever is needed at this time. For now, my thanks once again to you all.

UPDATED: Lists of Temples Which Will Have an Extended Closure Period in 2022 and Temples for Which New Leaders May Be (or Have Been) Called in 2022

Hello again, everyone! Towards the beginning of the last two years, I have been able to provide updated documents showing which temples will have extended closure periods each year, and temples for which new leaders may be (or have been) called any given year. My hope was to provide completed versions of both before the Church began announcing temple leadership changes this year. But in view of ongoing health challenges (nothing serious, thankfully, just a lot to figure out), I am somewhat behind the times.

I have not yet completed either document for this year but wanted to share what I have compiled thus far. The documents will be updated as I am able to make those updates happen. So here they are: the list of temples that will have an extended closure this year, and the list showing which temples have had or may have new leaders announced this year.

I am committed to continuing to work on these lists as I can, but don't know how soon they might be fully completed. In the meantime, it's also worth noting that the Church News has shared biographies for new temple leaders on the following dates thus far: February 3; February 10; February 17; and today (February 24). The biographies speak for themselves and are well worthy of your time and attention.

I just wanted to share a couple of notes. There have been a few surprises in the announcements that are being made. The first leaders have already been identified for the Helena Montana and Feather River California Temples, which could both have construction concluded and dedications held in the next 4-8 months. 

But those callings were announced in advance of the announcement about the first president for the Quito Ecuador and Belem Brazil Temples, which may point to the Church focusing on getting US temples up and running as soon as possible after completion since COVID-19 is less of an issue in the nation now. In the meantime, taking that approach with US temples would allow them to open temples outside the US when that can safely occur.

Of course, the timing of any temple event, particularly with COVID-19 as the major variable, will be up to the Lord as revealed to His prophet, President Nelson. But it wouldn't shock me to see temples outside the US dedicated after some of their US counterparts, which may be further behind in the construction queue currently, but for which temple dedications can be more easily and safely held.

Whatever might happen in terms of major developments in temple construction or Church News, you can depend on my bringing word of those updates to you all here as I become aware thereof. For now, hope you enjoy the documents I shared above. I will continue to work on them as I can, and you can track my progress therewith via the placeholder note I have at the top of each document.

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 comments are made in accordance 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.

UPDATED: April 2022 General Conference Predictions

Hello again, everyone! As I mentioned almost 2 weeks ago, when the First Presidency announced the Women's Session for the April 2022 General Conference, my initial predictions were blown out of the water. Since then, I have reasoned that, if my theory is correct, the determination to hold a women's session was made because this General Conference will come just over two weeks after the 180th anniversary of the establishement of the Relief Society organization. So what might that mean for this General Conference? 

I'm not entirely sure. Any patterns that previously prevailed in the process of rotating speakers in General Conference have literally been blown to smithereens by each of the now-8 markedly-different General Conferences held under President Nelson's dynamic leadership. While there are some patterns, there is also a high degree of unpredictability for each one going forward. 

As I've mentioned in other settings, the different focus of each Saturday Evening Session of General Conference adds even further to the complex process. But for me, admittedly, that also makes it all the more exciting to try and analyze, theorize, and present something even close to what actually happens every six months. Where possible, I have picked up on some factors that have been of assistance to me in crafting the last few versions of those predictions. 

With just under 6 weeks remaining until the April 2022 General Conference, I am pleased to present for your perusal my updated predictions for that conference. Those predictions consist of 3 parts: the potential speaker lineup, the potential changes in general Church leadership (which includes my estimated figures for the Statistical Report), and the usual extensive list of the most likely locations for which a temple could be announced in April. 

As I metnioned recently on the Church Growth Blog, Elder Kevin S. Hamilton, who serves as the Executive Director of the Family History Department, presided at my stake conference in December, where he noted that the Church has over 300 temples in various phases. With a total of 265 now, that means the Church could be looking at announcing at least 35 new temples this year. 

I consider it more likely that we will see a smaller number of temples in April, with a larger number announced in October, to give us that total of at least 35 new ones. As a final note on these revised predictions, I am not including footnotes or endnotes on them this time around.If there is anything in these predictions about which any of you have questions, I'd be happy to address those as they come. 

The commenting period on them remains active through 10:00 PM on Wednesday March 30, which I hope will give me enough time to update and post a final version before the conference officially starts. I look forward to hearing your feedback. 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 comments are made in accordance 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.