Additional Updates Noted On Several Other Temples

Hello again, everyone! Although it has been just about 3.5 hours since I posted the last temple updates I had, I have since learned of several other developments that I wanted to pass along as well. So let's get right into all of that.

We begin with the Fortaleza Brazil Temple. The last time I posted an update on that temple was on Saturday April 14, at which time I noted that the temple in that city was still having its' cladding being put up around its' exterior, while on the grounds, trees were being planted and walkways and staircases were being poured as well.

The newest update of which I have become aware indicates that cladding is nearing completion on the temple's exterior, while sod has been laid and trees have been planted in the oval garden feature. I have previously mentioned my feeling that this temple could be dedicated prior to the date when a dedication will occur for the temple in Kinshasa, which is an opinion I stand by.

Turning next to the Lisbon Portugal Temple, which, unless I have missed something, has not had a status update in the last 3-4 weeks or so, it would appear from an update today that a vapor barrier and cladding is going up around that temple's exterior, while the parking lot surface is being laid.

Doubling back now to Brazil, the new status update for the Rio de Janeiro Temple shows that waterproofing and a vapor barrier is being applied to the exterior walls of that temple. The last time I found an update for that temple was about a week and a half ago, on Saturday April 14. It is great to see progress being made after such a comparatively short time.

And I have one other update which has been noted, this one on the renovation process for the Frankfurt Germany Temple, where cladding is being reattached to its' exterior. As I have previously stated, it is awesome to consider that this temple, which, at the beginning of this year, was anticipated to be rededicated at some point this year, but which could not have a rededication pinpointed any more specifically than that. It may even have been earlier this month when we learned that its' completion was anticipated for the early or middle part of next year, and the fact that it has progressed substantially since that change clearly demonstrates the justification of that belief.

I continue to monitor all temple developments, and will, to the best of my ability, pass those along ASAP after I learn 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.

Several Temple Updates Noted

Hello again, everyone! Just a few moments ago, updates on several new temples and those undergoing renovation were brought to my attention. Before getting into specific updates, I wanted to first note an update to something I have shared before: my belief that the Church will have a minimum of 200 operating temples by or before the Church's 200th anniversary (which will be observed on Saturday April 6, 2030). As of today, that anniversary is 11.95 years away, which means that, if an average of 3.43 temples were dedicated each year, it could easily be done.

With 2 temples scheduled for dedication later this year, 2018 will be below that average. But next year, we know that 5 or 6 new temples will be dedicated, and there are 3 others that we know of so far which will be dedicated in 2020. If, as I have said before, several other announced temples have a groundbreaking within the next year and beyond, that would also increase the number of those that will be completed during 2020 and the years that follow. So it seems logical to assume that at least 200 temples will be operating by that time.

Having noted that, we now turn our attention to the updates I mentioned. We start first in Rome Italy. While the last update I posted for that temple still applies (that the visitor's information center is open and that the plaza water feature is being tested), it has additionally been noted today that asphalt has been laid for the driveway.

Turning next to the temple in Kinshasa DR Congo, it has been noted that a concrete block perimeter wall is being built, and that work has resumed on the roof of the temple. And although I noted just yesterday that interior framing was being done for the walls of the Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple, I learned today that the baptismal font has also been poured.

Since that is all the updates of which I have been made aware for new temples, I now conclude by passing along an update on the status of the renovation process for the Oakland California Temple. New information on that process indicates that both water feature fountains have been removed from the grounds, and that work has begun on the process of renovating the temple's interior.

It continues to amaze me how much things can change in terms of such developments, even within the space of 12 hours or less. The Lord is hastening the work of allowing His children access to temples around the world, and it is thrilling for me to be a witness to such developments and to pass them along to you all here. I will continue to do so to the best of my ability.

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.

Update Provided for the Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple; Open House for Jordan River Utah Temple Concludes This Saturday

Hello again, everyone! This post will cover two temple developments of which I became aware a short while ago. We start first with the Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple. As many of you might recall my mentioning here on this blog at least a few times previously, the groundbreaking for that temple was held on October 28 of last year, with full-scale construction efforts getting underway around two weeks following that.

As you may also be aware, because the Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple has been planned as a smaller edifice in comparison with others under construction, the process of building that temple was only anticipated to last between 15-18 months. If we add 18 months to mid-November 2017, that takes us to mid-May 2019, so it makes sense that this temple's general completion estimate falls in mid-2019.

The last update I shared for this temple was passed along the Friday before General Conference weekend. At that time, I noted that structural framing had gone up for the temple and its' steeple. Then today, after almost a month has passed without my hearing anything on it, I learned that the interior walls of the temple are now being framed. It was good to learn of that update.

Next, for any of my readers who are wanting to tour the Jordan River Utah Temple, the open house will run for one more week and will conclude at the end of the day this Saturday. At that point, the Temple Department will finalize any preparation for this temple's rededication, which will be held four weeks (exactly 28 days) from today.

As I also previously mentioned, since the Jordan River Utah Temple rededication is the first major event of President Nelson's administration, I have no doubts that he will preside at at least one of the three dedicatory sessions. I am also equally as certain that several other Church leaders will be participating or at least in attendance at the three dedicatory session.

The rededication of this temple will be significant for another reason: it appears to mark the last time the Church will have a cultural celebration the night before a temple's dedication or rededication. In covering the announcements of the scheduled dedications for the Concepcion Chile, Barranquilla Colombia, and Rome Italy Temple, I had noted that, instead of a cultural celebration, a devotional has been scheduled for youth in these temple districts the night before. The Church has not made it clear why this is being done, but there are surely very good reasons behind this change.

And although it is also true that, following the rededication of the Jordan River Temple, there will not be any other dedications until October 28 (when the Concepcion Chile Temple will be dedicated), I am cautiously optimistic that we will find that, by that date, not only will construction have formally begun for the Winnipeg Manitoba Temple, but we may also have seen at least two, and possibly even three or more, temples have a groundbreaking by that time.

Whatever might occur in that regard, you can depend on my monitoring these developments and passing word along to you as I hear of it. 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.

Houston Texas Temple Rededicated in a Simple Ceremony; Minor Update Noted on the Winnipeg Manitoba Temple

Hello again, everyone! Mormon Newsroom published this release regarding the rededication of the Houston Texas Temple that was held earlier today. In addition to President M. Russell Ballard, Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the service was attended by Elders Larry Y. Wilson (who serves as Executive Director of the Temple Department, unless the recent assignments that were given have changed), Elder S. Gifford Nielsen (who, while he has no direct role in the Temple Department, was there as a resident of Houston prior to his call as a General Authority), and Bishop W. Christopher Waddell, Second Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric, who particularly commeted on the remarkable way in which the temple repairs were finished ahead of schedule and under budget, which, for a project of this sort, is nothing short of remarkable.

This temple will, of course, reopen to patrons on Tuesday. The one other temple development which I wanted to note in this post is that the status of the Winnipeg Manitoba Temple was updated recently to show that, rather than having full-scale construction begin within the last 7 or 8 days of this month, it is likely that that process will commence at some point in the second quarter of 2018. It appears that the report from someone in Canada in this regard may have been in error. I had hoped it was not, but clearly, there is more to what's delaying this process than originally thought.

That said, I fully believe that we will be seeing this temple start the construction process sooner rather than later. One of many unknown factors that I am still waiting to hear about is whether the plan modification for this temple was sufficient to change the estimate of the length of its' construction process. As I previously noted, round about the time the Church annouonced this temple's groundbreaking, I had heard an estimate of 20 months (1 year and 8 months) mentioned for that process. If that information still applies, and if the Church gets construction underway within the next month or two, then the temple could complete the construction process either around the end of next year or the beginning of 2020, which would allow its' dedication sometime during early-to-mid 2020.

I continue to do my level best to stay on top of all such developments, and will be sure to pass such news along to you all as I receive it. 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.

Change in Advisers to the Church Magazines Noted in May 2018 Ensign

Hello again, everyone! In my previous post, I shared some information about the May 2018 Ensign. This post, in somewhat of a continuation of that theme, will highlight some changes that the Church has made to the advisers of its' magazines.

There have not been any changes noted in either the editor (Elder Hugo E. Martinez continues in that assignment) or assistant editors (Randall K. Bennett and Carol F. McConkie are still listed, though obviously Sister McConkie's release will necessitate a change, which will likely be noted in the June magazines).

And while Brian K. Ashton, LeGrand R. Curtis Jr., Edward Dube, Sharon Eubank, Donald L. Hallstrom, and Douglas D. Holmes continue as advisers to the Church magazines, Bonnie H. Cordon's call as Young Women General President means she will no longer serve as an adviser, since she now has other responsibilities, and it appears that the Church has also released Elder Erich W. Kopischke from his responsibility as an adviser. Additionally, Cristina B. Franco, Second Counselor in the Primary General Presidency, has been added as an adviser.

No word yet on any other changes. It is likely there will be a new assistant editor, who will likely be one of Sister Cordon's counselors, and that that will be determined by the time the June magazines are published. Any other changes may not be identified until the August 2018 issue, since August 1 marks the beginning of new assignments for each General Authority Seventy.

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.