Progress Continues on the Rome Italy Temple

Hello again, everyone! I am pleased to be able to post today to pass along some significant news about the progress on the construction efforts for the Rome Italy Temple. In a previous post or two, I have referenced the article in that Italian newspaper which quoted one of the construction workers assigned to the project as saying that the Church may be able to dedicate that temple in or around October of this year, if all goes according to schedule.

In light of that assertion, I was gratified to learn just a few moments ago that, while landscaping and interior work continues, the art glass installation for the Rome Italy Temple has now been completed. Since I have followed temple-related events and news so extensively, I can say with great confidence that the completion of the art glass installation generally signifies that any temple is that much closer to completion.

Let me be clear on this point: I do not in any way claim to have any special knowledge regarding how temple construction works. I base the assertions in progress reports such as these purely on observation and (when available) information I can gather from either experts on the subject of temple construction or from the available news sources that might give some indication of whether or not such assertions are accurate and justifiable.

It is also worth noting that the Rome Italy Temple has been subjected to numerous delays. On President Monson's birthday (August 21, 2013), the Italian Mormon Newsroom put out a release with a statement from Elder Massimo De Feo, then an Area Seventy living in Italy, who would be called as a General Authority Seventy less than three years after that, which clarified the point that no dates put out by unofficial sources should be taken as accurate, and that only an official announcement from the First Presidency would serve as justifiable verification that any dates are accurate.

So for the next little while, we continue to wait patiently for official word on when this temple will be dedicated. And I hope it is clearly understood that the more specific estimates I provide for temple events anticipated in the near future are based on my own thoughts and study, and the progress (or lack thereof) which I see on such temples everywhere in the world.

I will continue to provide updates to those estimates as I feel I can, but until those time-frames are confirmed or denied by an official announcement from the Church, they are merely my own thoughts and musings on the subject.

With that said, I did want to note one other piece of information which may be of interest to some of you. I have previously taken many opportunities to reference my opinion that the Church could (and likely will) have at least 200 operating temples by the 200th anniversary of the Church, which will occur on Saturday April 6, 2030.

Because there are 159 temples that have been dedicated so far, the Church would just need to dedicate 41 others (which includes the 23 in various phases of construction currently, and 18 others that would also need to be announced, constructed and dedicated by that time).

Between today's date (February 24, 2018) and April 6, 2030, there are 12.11 years remaining for the Church to do all that. And that could easily be done if the Church dedicates an average of 3.39 temples each year during that time.

We also know that the Church will be dedicating at least 2 temples this year (and perhaps as many as 4), and that any temples that could be dedicated this year and are not will likely have that occur in the early months of next year. Aside from those, there are at least 4 (and possibly 1 or 2 others) that may be dedicated next year as well.

And right now, it looks like there may be 2 others (so far) that could be dedicated in 2020. I have likewise heard that this year and the next will be significant ones in terms of potential groundbreakings for temples currently announced. If that proves true, then 2020 and the year or two after that will also be full of such dedications.

Whatever might occur in terms of all of that, you can be sure I will be keeping my eyes open for such updates and will be doing my best to pass them along to you all here. I also wanted to note personally that, despite dealing with flu symptoms for the last little while, as I have been able to do so, I have worked on fine-tuning my list of temple site possibilities that I will be including for the next General Conference, and I hope to be able to post that either later today, tomorrow, or Monday. It all depends on how quickly I am able to get that done.

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.

Additional Update Provided on the Renovation of the Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temple

Hello again, everyone! In my efforts to continue to monitor temple-related developments, I have today come across yet another update on the renovation process for the Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temple. The last time there was an update on that process, the new entrance lobby was being framed. It was reported today that that lobby is now being sheathed. I have said this before and I will likely keep repeating it, because it does bear repeating: It is amazing and inspiring to see the progress that occurs, often on a daily basis, for temples worldwide.

It is additionally worth repeating, as I have previously done so, that the new design that has been used on other renovations for temples originally dedicated during President Hinckley's smaller temple building impetus in the late 1990s-early 2000s seem to be getting the same new exterior look.

That is certainly true for the Memphis Tennessee, Oklahoma City Oklahoma, and Raleigh North Carolina Temples, and may also be the case (though that has yet to be confirmed) for both the Baton Rouge Louisiana and Asuncion Paraguay Temples. Stay tuned for more information on that point in the days ahead. I will be continuing to monitor temple-related events in the near future and will do my best to pass news of those along as I hear of them.

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.

Some Thoughts Regarding How the Layout of the Women's Session Might Change Starting This October

Hello again, everyone! I am back to pass along some thoughts about how the Church's announcement on October 27 of last year (regarding how the Priesthood Session would now be held each April, and the Women's Session each October as the third sessions of those conferences and would be held two hours following the Saturday Afternoon Session) might change the layout of the Women's Session compared to what it has typically been.

In that regard, I wanted to note first of all that, in doing the research, I figured out that the Women's Session has typically been roughly 15 minutes shorter than the Priesthood Session. But I would anticipate that, since the two sessions will occupy the same time slot every six months, the Church may opt to extend the length of the Women's Session by 15 minutes. I will be addressing how that time might be filled a little later on.

Next, while each member of the First Presidency has generally spoken during the Priesthood Session, and while that will likely still be the case, if we were to hear from the full First Presidency during every Women's Session, there would likely not be time for more than a couple of speakers from the female auxiliaries of the Church, which would be counter to the typical patterns of that session. For that reason, it seems logical to conclude that every October, the Women's Session will continue to feature the First Presidency members speaking in rotation as has been the case up to now.

So, if only one member of the First Presidency does speak during the Women's Session, then I see two potential options: First, the session could remain at its' current length of time and the member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles that would have otherwise spoken during the Priesthood Session will do so during one of the other four sessions.

The second option, in my opinion, is far more likely. If the Church does opt to extend the Women's Session by 15 minutes, then that time could be filled by the member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles that would have otherwise spoken during the Priesthood Session.

There have been times in the past (particularly during the administration of President Kimball) when one member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke during what was then the General Women's Meeting, so that kind of thing is by no means unheard of.

And, in my opinion, that would likely be the easiest course of action. But if that occurs, then that likely means that the two First Presidency members who are not speaking during the Women's Session each October will also have one less address each, unless a revision of the typical patterns for the other four sessions enable them to give that address during one of the other four sessions.

It is interesting to think about all of this, and to consider what might happen. Of course, we could also find 8 months from now that none of these ideas I am suggesting have been proven accurate. But whatever does happen in that regard, you can count on my tracking those developments and bringing them to you here on this blog.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, especially those sharing your thoughts on the ideas I have presented here. 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.

April 2018 General Conference Predictions Alterations: Part Eight--Slight Update to Speaking Order Projections

Hello again, everyone! I am back to add another part to the series of posts I published last month on how the announced and likely future changes in Church leadership would alter my April 2018 General Conference predictions. I wanted to note that I have done more research on the speaking history for general officers of the Church.

Based on what I found there (and also on what I believe the layout of the October 2018 Women's Session might look like, which I will be addressing in another post after publishing this one), my reasoning behind making these changes and what those changes entail follow below.

As some of you may recall, I previously noted we could potentially see the Reyna I. Aburto, Second Counselor in the Relief Society Presidency, and Cristina B. Franco, who holds the same position but in the Primary General Presidency speak to us.

The additional study I have done since that time has led me to now believe that we will instead hear from the First Counselors in those two presidencies, with Sharon Eubank potentially speaking during the Saturday .Morning Session, and Bonnie H. Cordon speaking during the Sunday Afternoon Session.

This change has seemed to be a common-sense choice because of what I believe will occur during the first Women's Session held following the announcement last October that that session would only be held every October.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, especially any addressing your thoughts on this subject. Thank you for the privilege of your time. Until my net post, which will, barring anything unexpected, address my thoughts on how these changes to General Conference might affect the layout of the Women's Session every October, I wish each one of you all the best and pray that the Lord will bless you all in everything you do.

Another Update Provided for the Kinshasa DR Congo Temple

Hello again, everyone! I am pleased to be able to report today that another update has been provided for the Kinshasa DR Congo Temple. The latest reports on those construction efforts indicate that scaffolding has been removed from the steeple, and that while roof shingling continues, the driveway and parking area have been outlined.

This update gives me hope that we might see this temple dedicated by the end of this year (rather than the beginning of next year), especially since it seems to be making fairly steady process. With that said, if my memory serves me correctly, other temples have been a bit farther along in their progress when their dedications were anticipated within 8-10 months, so I will be keeping an eye on this temple and its' ongoing progress (or lack thereof), and I will be posting updates on that progress as I am able to do so.

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.