A Note on President Nelson's Appearance at the Funeral for President Monson

Hello again, everyone! While I don't know how many of you may have been able to watch President Monson's funeral services today, I wanted to note something that I found understandably significant. When President Nelson spoke in General Conference last October, he looked vibrant and healthy. During the funeral for his predecessor today, he looked tired, worn, and much older. I would assume that this is simply because he had likely prayed very fervently that President Monson, who was just less than 3 years younger, would outlive him, and with the passing of President Monson and the fact that he was now the senior leader and has yet to go through the process of reorganizing the First Presidency following the death of his mentor. the process of being involved in the final part of President Monson's life and the prospect of the upcoming mantle may have him feeling worn out at the moment.

Since I was born, I have not personally witnessed a time when a younger prophet has died, leaving an older man to succeed him. But it is plain that, for the moment, President Nelson is worn down by the load he is getting ready to bear.  I would, however, anticipate that when he and his counselors meet the press (which will, barring anything unexpected, occur Monday morning), the settling of the prophetic mantle will compensate for any feelings he currently has of being worn down and overwhelmed. I would also anticipate that once that mantle settles, he will be serving as the Church President for at least the next 2-3 years.

As I have previously noted, we have seen varying lengths of prophetic tenures over the history of the Church, and perhaps even more so in recent years. The presidency of Spencer W. Kimball, the last prophet to pass away before I was born, spanned just 6 days more than 11 years and 10 months. Ezra Taft Benson, who died in the summer before my baptism, served just short of 8 years and 7 months.

Howard W. Hunter, who was the prophet at the time I was baptized, had the shortest presidency of all, serving several days short of just 9 months. President Hinckley became Church President a few years before my ordination to the Aaronic Priesthood, and when he died in January 2008, I had been a Melchizedek Priesthood holder for 3 years, and his tenure had lasted the longest of any Church President since my birth, with his death occurring a couple of weeks after he had marked 12 years and 10 months as Church President.

While President Monson was 17 years younger than his predecessor, his nearly 10 year tenure of service saw him taking on less responsibility for the final two years of his life, and him stepping away from active involvement in the day-to-day government of the Church about 5.5 months prior to his passing . As I previously noted, I was married during his time as Church president.

President Nelson becomes the first Church President to outlive his younger predecessor since President Kimball, who was exactly 4 years to the day older than his predecessor (both were born on March 28, with President Kimball's birth in 1895, and President Lee's in 1899).

I just wanted to share these observations to note that, even though the responsibility likely very much weighs on him for now, not just because he has outlived President Monson, I fully anticipate that when he and his counselors (whomever they may be) meet with the press on Monday, the prophetic mantle will have settled on him to sustain him for that task. That has been seen at other times when an older prophet succeeded a younger one (as has occurred previously with Brigham Young, Wilford Woodruff, and Spencer W. Kimball).

And while President Nelson may not have a particularly long tenure as Church President, he has been well prepared to take the mantle through almost 34 years of dedicated apostolic service, the last 2 or so of which have been as the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

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.

A Note On President Monson's Funeral

Hello again, everyone! As most of you may be aware, I offered my thoughts earlier this week about the likely speakers at President Monson's funeral services, which were held today. I just now realized why I didn't anticipate President Nelson being the concluding speaker.

For the funerals of Presidents Hunter and Hinckley, their First Counselors were also the Presidents of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in view of their being the next most senior apostles, although in both cases, there was an Acting Quorum President (which was President Packer on both occasions) directing the assignments of the Quorum while the actual Quorum President was serving in the First Presidency.

It makes sense that, for President Monson's funeral service (as was true for President Benson), the Quorum President (which was President Hunter at the time of President Benson's death and President Nelson at the time of President Monson's death) was the final speaker, capping off the tributes to the deceased Church leaders. I will hopefully remember to take that into account in the future.

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.

Coverage of President Monson's Funeral from Mormon Newsroom and KSL/President Monson's Colleagues in the Quorum of the Twelve Offer Additional Tributes

Hello again, everyone! I am posting again now for a few reasons. The first is to inform those interested that additional coverage about the funeral proceedings held for President Monson today can be found on the Mormon Newsroom website, and on that of the Church owned and operated Utah news source, KSL.

Additionally, after the funeral, the Church News also published more extended statements from President Monson's colleagues in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, among them those who had their first experience with reorganizing the First Presidency when President Monson became Church President, and those to whom their apostolic calls were extended during President Monson's prophetic administration. You can find the article sharing those here.

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 (which, at latest, will be coming Monday following the anticipated press conference in which the new First Presidency will be presented to and take questions from the media), I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Summary of President Monson's Funeral Proceedings/Additional Tribute to President Monson Provided By Elder Andersen

Hello again, everyone! The Church News has provided this article to share an excellent summary of the funeral proceedings. What an excellent tribute to the life and teachings of our beloved prophet it was. While much of those addresses focused on personal remembrances, there were also references to the importance of the plan of salvation and the idea that his work continues beyond the veil. Additionally, the Church News has shared this article highlighting talks from Elder Andersen and his wife, among others, which were given at a youth devotional in the Logan Tabernacle. And Mormon Newsroom has released this summary of the funeral proceedings. These are fitting tributes to the life, ministry, teachings, and legacy of our dear prophet. 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.

President Monson's Funeral Plan Announced

Hello again, everyone! I am back in the late morning hours of Friday January 12 to pass along some information about the layout of the funeral services for President Monson. It appears that President Hinckley's funeral may have been an exception to those for Church Presidents.

With the consent and at the request of the Monson family, President Eyring will conduct the funeral, with Elders M. Russell Ballard and Jeffrey R. Holland giving the invocation and benediction for the services. Ann M. Dibb will represent the family, and we will hear from Presidents Uchtdorf and Eyring, then acting Church president and President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles Russell M. Nelson will be the concluding speaker.

The Tabernacle Choir, which was the one assignment for which President Monson insisted on taking personal responsibility, will be singing his favorite hymns for the funeral services, which will include the following: "Consider the Lilies", "O Divine Redeemer", "Dear to the Heart of the Shepherd", and "If the Way Be Full of Trial, Weary Not". His son, Clark S. Monson, will give the family prayer, and his oldest son, Thomas L. Monson, will dedicate the grave.

It will be great to hear the talks and music for this conference, and it looks like the Church is taking the advice President Monson often gave, which is that funerals should be short in their duration, with addresses that focus more on the plan of salvation than they do on the accomplishments of an individual.

You can depend on my bringing a report of my observations on funeral proceedings later today. 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.

More Tributes to President Monson

Hello again, everyone! The Church News has released additional tribute articles to President Monson, including this one, which summarized the way Elder Andersen remembered President Monson during the Seminar for New MTC & Visitor's Center Directors, this one focusing on the power of the last address he gave in General Conference, and this one, containing more reflections from his daughter Ann M. Dibb about how, even as his body and mind were failing, he found joy in serving others.

It amazes me that even at a time when he recognized his physical and mental capabilities were diminishing, the principles of reaching out to rescue that characterized his life continued until he had completely worn himself out in so doing. And by that, I mean simply that while others in that situation might be more inclined to sit back and wait for death, the principles that characterized President Monson remained in force until he literally wore out his body and mind to the degree where he passed away.

How grateful I am that he did not suffer long. Just think about it: On May 23 of last year, the Church announced he was stepping back from active service, and while many of his predecessors had failing health for years, the expectations President Monson set for himself, to the very end of his life allowed him to truly wear out his life in the service of others for the final 7.5 months or so that he lived. What a legacy for us to follow in our own lives. He lived as such, he died as such, and he has now returned to the Master to whom he devoted his entire life.

Thanks for taking time to read this. 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.

Thousands Pay Respects to President Monson During His Public Viewing

Hello again, everyone! I am posting at this hour to provide a look at the stories that have been published regarding the turnout so far for the public viewing of Church President Thomas S. Monson. In that regard, I wanted to pass along this article (from the Church News website), this report (from Mormon Newsroom) and this summary (from KSL's website). As always, it appears that the viewing has been well attended, and that many Church members are willing to do whatever it takes to pay their personal tributes to this wonderful man and prophet of God.

In that regard, I hope that while my wife and I are stuck at home with illness, my coverage of this event here on this blog will serve as an adequate tribute to the memory of our dear prophet. The viewing continues for the next six hours or so Utah time, and then tomorrow, of course, is the scheduled funeral service for President Monson. You can count on my bringing a report of that day's events to you tomorrow as they occur. So stay tuned for that.

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.

Significant Updates Reported on All Temples Likely to Be Completed Before the End of This Year

Hello again, everyone! I am back as promised with some significant updates on the status of all three temples that are likely to be completed before the end of this year. Notice that I said "completed" and not "dedicated." While the first two (Concepcion Chile and Barranquilla Colombia) will definitively be dedicated prior to the end of 2018, work may be completed on the Rome Italy Temple as well before this year ends, but there is a more than likely possibility that the actual dedication of this temple will not occur until the early months of 2019. That said, as I have previously noted, I have tentatively offered my optimistic view that, all going well, the Rome temple could be dedicated in mid-December of this year. But if the finishing touches on that temple are delayed in their completion, that would push it back.

That said, let's move on to specifics about the updates that have been reported for each of these temples. While the installation of lamp posts continues for the Concepcion Chile Temple, in addition to the planting of trees on temple grounds, the process of interior finish work is entering its' final stages.

Meanwhile, for the Barranquilla Colombia Temple, the decorative fencing has been completely installed, and the attention has turned to pouring concrete walkways while cladding is underway on patron housing.

And for the Rome Italy Temple, landscaping and interior work has continued. I also wanted to note that this temple seems to be having progress reported consistently enough that it gives me hope the Church could dedicate it before the end of this year, but that will largely depend on if and how consistently it continues to progress.

These are the updates, which I have been pleased to bring to you tonight. 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.

Political & Religious Leaders Worldwide Pay Tribute to President Monson & His Legacy of Cooperation With Those of Other Faiths

Hello again, everyone! There are some late-breaking temple developments which I will focus on in another post, as they are well worthy of mentioning, but I wanted first to mention that Mormon Newsroom has published this article today to pass along statements made by leaders of other faiths, leaders of nations (including LDS members of the US Senate and House of Representatives).

These tributes provide moving expressions of solidarity, well-wishes, and reminiscences about how many of those releasing such statements were personally impacted by President Monson's ministry. One thing I did want to mention regarding one of the statements: While I do not want to stir up political controversy, it has been my observation that our current US President, Donald Trump, does not have the smallest portion of a grasp of the English language that we have seen in so many of his predecessors. As one reading "his statement", I can say it was more likely than not crafted by someone else and submitted with his approval.

At any rate, it was wonderful to read those statements, and I think many of you will find that to be the case as you read them yourselves. What wonderful tributes to the legacy of this remarkable man, who truly wore out his life in the service of the Lord.

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 (which should be up in the next few minutes and will focus on the temple updates I mentioned at the start of this one), I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

My Personal Response to a Blog Post Complaining About How the Church Today Handles Dissenting Votes

Hello again, everyone! As longtime readers of this blog are no doubt aware, I have had little to no patience in recent General Conferences for those who have turned what should rightly be an opportunity to silently offer a sustaining vote into an occasion where they loudly shouted their disinclination to do so. The last few times that happened during President Monson's administration marked the first time that has happened since that of President Kimball.

In this 2015 blog post by someone styling themselves as a faithfully active member of the Church, the point the author was trying to make was that, in that individual's opinion, President Uchtdorf's handling of that occurrence was not nearly as graciously done as President Tanner's handling of similar issues when he, at President Kimball's request, led out in the sustaining process and opposing votes were verbalized.

As the blog post shares, during President Kimball's administration, the process of handling such contrary votes was to have those so voting meet personally with a member of the Twelve (that member, at that time, was generally then-Elder Hinckley). The author of the blog post lamented the fact that President Uchtdorerf instructed those voting negatively to meet with their stake presidents, and voiced the opinion that, if President Uchtdorf had followed President Tanner's example in graciously instructing those so voting to meet with a member of the Twelve to explain their reasons for so voting, the negative votes would likely have been nipped in the bud and may not have recurred.

While I respect the right of this blogger to feel that way, this is another classic example similar to those I have previously referenced where those who perpetuate such opinions have failed to put in the work and do the research for themselves. Had the author of this post opted to do so before posting his thoughts, he would no doubt have discovered that the Church has not only had a huge increase in its membership between the days of President Kimball and those of President Monson, but more than that, that the Church has gradually moved to delegating more responsibility once handled by apostles to stake presidents, in an effort to free up general Church leaders and give their local counterparts more responsibility for the members within their stewardship.

So rather than being a failure on President Uchtdorf's part to treat such dissenting votes with the graciousness and gravity that situation deserved, President Uchtdorf instead invited those so voting to go through the proper channels. Quite honestly, with the Church being more global in its outreach during President Monson's time than it ever might have been in President Kimball's time, if general Church leaders (including and especially the apostles) were to handle any and all similar issues themselves, the sheer volume of the matters they would be personally handling would leave them precious little time for much else, especially extensive travel that a worldwide ministry now mandates. The clear solution to the issue is to delegate that to local leaders, who would more easily be able to deal with the issue, and who, if unable to do so to the satisfaction of the members involved, could then refer such matters to those higher up in the Church's hierarchy.

When seen in that light, the dissenting votes (and the reaction of the blogger in question to the way it was handled) were both highly inappropriate. But above and beyond that, there was absolutely no difference whatsoever in terms of the level of graciousness and seriousness with which President Uchtdorf handled such votes and the way in which President Tanner did so in previous years.

Just wanted to get these thoughts down. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. Thank you for the privilege of your time, and for wading through these additional thoughts on this subject, which I could not help but "sound off" about. 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.