Additional Church News Updates Reported

Hello again, everyone! Since my last Church news update a couple of days ago, several additional developments have been reported. This post will share some of those latest developments. So let's get right into all of those. We start with the Church's official Newsroom. As many of you are no doubt aware, Elder Steven E. Snow has been serving as Church Historian and Recorder since August 2012, and, in that capacity, has overseen the Joseph Smith Papers Project, the publication of the new narrative history Saints, and many other developments, in addition to weighing in on other matters connected to the history of the Church.

At a recent Environmental Stewardship Symposium held at Utah State University, he noted that God will hold all of us accountable, as individuals and as the human race, for how we treat the Earth that He has created. That stewardship, he noted, has been clearly outlined in ancient and modern scripture. The Newsroom provided a detailed report of his remarks on that subject.

2 days ago, the Church, through spokesman Daniel Woodruff, released a statement on the safety of missionaries who are serving in the path of Hurricane Michael's devastation. Those who were in dangerous areas were relocated, and those not directly in the storm's path remained to help those in nearby areas that had been impacted. General Church leadership, through communication with local leaders, continue to assess the safety of those in the storm's path and will conduct further missionary evacuations if and when that becomes necessary.

Although many Church members in the western portion of the United States have headed to the eastern regions to help with recovery efforts, for many others who are not able to do so but would still like to be of service somehow, the Church has provided an ongoing list of opportunities for service as time and circumstances allow.

And in continuing the theme about areas impacted by the recent storms, Area Seventy Elder Douglas B. Carter, who lives, works, and serves in the path of the storm, has provided some first-hand perspective on the extent of the storm, how local Church members have been impacted, what is being done in terms of ongoing recovery efforts, and how impressive it has been to see the Saints in that area rising above their own losses to reach out and help their friends and neighbors. That kind of help, he noted, is not exclusively being rendered by Church members. The community has come together to help each other through this in a remarkable way.

The final two stories on which I wanted to focus in this post relate to General Conference. Throughout the General Conference weekend, our 15 prophets, seers, and revelators posted through various social media platforms some additional thoughts about either their own remarks or the major announcements which occurred during General Conference weekend. You can find those thoughts summarized in the latest edition of "This Week on Social".

And although full transcripts of the addresses given during the General Conference weekend are now available, for any that would prefer or need brief summaries of each address, the Church News has you covered. Whether by summary or through reading full addresses, I hope each of us will frequently study these talks over the next six months, as President Nelson has invited us to do.

I continue to monitor any and all Church news and temple developments and will do my level best to bring word of those to you all as I receive it. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time. 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.

Temple Construction Updates (Including Revised Specific Estimates for Known Future Events)

Hello again, everyone! Given the fact that a couple of updates have been reported on temples around the world, and also because I have taken time to update my more specific estimates for known temple events in the near future, I wanted to post an updated copy of my temple construction progress report. That complete report (with new information in red text) follows below.

So as not to disturb the flow of that information, I will end here as I always do. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time. 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.

Temple Construction Progress (current as of 10/11/18)

Note about future temple construction: I have previously referenced the statement made by Elder Larry Y. Wilson, who serves as the Temple Department Executive Director, to the effect that 80 temples were on a list of locations that would be considered for an official announcement within the 15 years following that statement. And although we may not know whether or not those 80 locations have been announced by late April 2032, it seems reasonable to believe that the Church could (and likely will) have at least 200 operating temples by or before Saturday April 6, 2030 (which will mark the Church’s bicentennial anniversary).

Current temple status: The Church has 201 temples in various phases. There are 159 in operation, while the open house for 1 other is underway (which will conclude next weekend); 3 more have a dedication scheduled; and 7 others are in various phases of construction; 1 more has had a groundbreaking scheduled (and officially confirmed). In terms of temples undergoing renovations, 10 temples are currently closed for renovation (5 or 6 of which are anticipated to be rededicated next year), and 1 other, which closed for renovation in late 2017, is currently stalled in its’ renovation process. The remaining 30 are announced, several of which are likely to have a groundbreaking in 2019 and the years following that.

During the October General Conference, President Nelson also announced that many more operating temples will be renovated in the near future, including several pioneer-era temples (most significantly the Salt Lake Temple), and that more information will be released in the coming months about which temples are closing, and what the renovations will involve and entail.

Public open house underway:

160. Concepcion Chile Temple: Public open house underway (will conclude this Saturday); dedication scheduled to occur on Sunday October 28, 2018.

Note: On October 9, the Church announced that President Nelson, accompanied by his wife and Elder and Sister Gary E. Stevenson, would preside at the dedication of this temple, which will be the culmination of a South American tour for the two couples.

Preparing for public open house:

161.  Barranquilla Colombia Temple: Planting final flowers in flowerbeds; preparing for public open house (which will begin in just over 4 weeks); dedication scheduled to occur on Sunday December 9, 2018.

Dedication Scheduled:
162. Rome Italy Temple: Monument sign completed; flower beds being planted; dedication scheduled to occur from Sunday March 10-Sunday March 17, 2019.

163. Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple: Exterior lighting tests underway; laying driveway and walkway pavers; planting trees and shrubs; dedication scheduled to occur on Sunday April 14, 2019.

Under construction, completion estimated during 2019:

164. Fortaleza Brazil Temple: Exterior lighting tests underway; completion estimated sometime during early-to-mid 2019.

Note: I could potentially see this temple’s dedication announced before 2018 ends. If that occurs, it would not shock me to see it set for mid-to-late May.

165. Durban South Africa Temple: Finishing the temple tower surfaces; tiling the roof, floors, and walls; finish work continues on stairwells; completion estimated sometime during mid-to-late 2019.

Note: Given the increased number of progress reports we have seen on this temple recently, I could see a dedication set for this temple in early-to-mid August.

166. Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple: Stone cladding being added to exterior walls; completion estimated sometime during mid-to-late 2019.

Note: Depending on what occurs between now and then, I could see a dedication for this temple set for mid-October.

167. Lisbon Portugal Temple: Stone cladding exterior walls; installing lamp-posts; planting trees and shrubs; completion estimated sometime during late 2019.

Note: Given the fact that the Church has scheduled the First Presidency’s Christmas Devotional for the second Sunday in December, this temple could be dedicated during the first Sunday in December. If it doesn’t happen that week, it may be done 2 or 4 weeks following that.

Temples estimated to be completed sometime during 2020:

168. Arequipa Peru Temple: Stone cladding has reached tower base; completion estimated sometime during early 2020.

Note: If this temple’s progress stays on track, I could see its’ dedication occurring in mid-February.

169. Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple: Spire framework installed; stone cladding the exterior walls; completion estimated sometime during early 2020.

Note: Given the fact that there have been delays with this temple, I could see its’ dedication potentially occurring in mid-April.

170. Winnipeg Manitoba Temple: Plumbing and foundation work underway for on-site chapel; completion estimated sometime during mid-2020.

Note: In view of the recent change to this temple’s general estimate, I think we could either see its’ dedication occur in either mid-August.

Groundbreaking scheduled:

171. Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple: Preparing for groundbreaking; groundbreaking scheduled for November 8, 2018; completion estimated sometime during mid-to-late 2020.

Note: African members report that they were advised by a letter from Church leaders that this temple would have a groundbreaking on this date, and that Elder Neil L. Andersen would preside at that event. That was subsequently confirmed through the Ghana edition of the Church’s official Newsroom, and will almost certainly be confirmed through the main Newsroom within the coming days. If I am correct in assuming that this temple will take 18-24 months to construct, a dedication could be held in mid-to-late August. As more information is made available, I will make any adjustments to this estimate which may be needed.

Undergoing Renovation (rededication estimated sometime during 2019):

41. Frankfurt Germany Temple: Closed for renovation; reattaching cladding to temple exterior; staircase poured for expanded parking area; completion estimated sometime during mid-2019.

Note: Based on the recent adjustment to the general estimate for this temple, I am thinking a rededication could be set for early-to-mid June, and, as previously noted, I would anticipate that our native German apostle, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, will be asked to return to his homeland to preside at that event.

13. Oakland California Temple: Closed for renovation; cleaning and repairing exterior walls; water features being upgraded; rededication estimated sometime during mid-2019.

Note: When the Church of Jesus Christ Temples website came back online, the general estimate for this temple was adjusted to what is listed above. Additionally, a member living within this temple’s district informed me personally that the completion of this temple would occur sooner than many anticipated. For those reasons, I am venturing a more specific estimate of mid-to-late August.

95. Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temple: Closed for renovation; art glass windows installed; stone cladding exterior walls; rededication estimated sometime during mid-to-late 2019.

Note: Given the somewhat steady progress which has been reported recently on this temple, I could see a rededication occurring in mid-September.

80. Memphis Tennessee Temple: Closed for renovation; stone cladding continues on exterior walls; rededication estimated sometime during mid-to-late 2019.

Note: If all goes well with this temple’s renovation, I could see a rededication occurring in mid-to-late October.

68. Raleigh North Carolina Temple: Closed for renovation; stone cladding continues; rededication estimated sometime during late 2019.

Note: Since this temple has seen a recent increase in its’ construction progress, I am thinking that a rededication could follow in mid-November.

94. Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple: Closed for renovation; waterproofing membrane applied to exterior; rededication estimated sometime during late 2019.

Note: Barring anything changing with this temple’s general estimate, and on whichever Sunday (first or third) the dedication is held for the Lisbon Portugal Temple, this temple’s dedication would likely be held on the other Sunday, just before the Christmas holiday.

Undergoing Renovation (rededication estimated sometime during 2020):

18. Tokyo Japan Temple: Closed for renovation; scaffolding and debris netting put up around exterior; rededication estimated sometime during early-to-mid 2020.

Note: If all goes well with this temple’s renovation process, I could see a rededication occurring in mid-to-late May.

16. Washington D. C. Temple: Closed for renovation; repairs continue on temple spires; rededication may take place sometime during mid-to-late 2020.

Note: If this temple’s renovation progresses swiftly enough, a rededication could occur in mid-November, though it is possible that the rededication of the Mesa Arizona Temple could occur first.

8. Mesa Arizona Temple: Closed for renovation; grounds cleared; interior work underway; rededication may take place sometime during mid-to-late 2020.

Note: As noted above, this temple’s rededication could occur before that of the Washington D. C. Temple. But if anything unexpected occurs, then this rededication could be held in mid-December.

Undergoing Renovation (rededication estimated sometime during 2021):

11. Hamilton New Zealand Temple: Closed for renovation; dismantling interior; rededication may take place sometime during early-to-mid 2021.

Note: Barring anything unexpected, if all goes well and swiftly for this temple’s renovation process, I stand by my previously-offered estimate that this temple could be rededicated in mid-April.

Renovation process stalled; full-scale work pending:

112. Asuncion Paraguay Temple: Closed for renovation; full-scale construction pending.

Announced Temples:

172. Urdaneta Philippines Temple: Site preparation phase; construction barrier in place.

173. Pocatello Idaho Temple: Laying asphalt for streets; site confirmed and artist’s rendering released on September 6, 2018; groundbreaking anticipated in early 2019.

174. Saratoga Springs Utah Temple: Government approval phase.

175. Bangkok Thailand Temple: Artist’s rendering and site announcement released on March 19, 2018; groundbreaking pending.

Note: Although the rendering and site location for this temple was one of the first temple-related announcements of President Nelson’s prophetic administration, unless and until verification is provided that the on-site office building has been razed and that the site is cleared, it does not appear likely that the Church will break ground on this temple this year.

176. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Planning and preliminary construction phase; awaiting official site announcement.

177. Nairobi Kenya Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; media event held June 14, 2017.

178. Brasilia Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; site inspected by Church engineers on June 21, 2017.

179. Greater Manila Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official name announcement

180. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

181. Layton Utah Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

182. Quito Ecuador Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

183. Richmond Virginia Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

184. Belem Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

185. Managua Nicaragua Temple: Announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site.

186. Salta Argentina Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

187. Cagayan de Oro Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

188. Bengaluru India Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

189. Russian Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official location and site announcement.

190. Mendoza Argentina Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

191. Salvador Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

192. Yuba City, California Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

193. Phnom Penh Cambodia Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

194. Praia Cape Verde Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

195. Yigo Guam Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

196. Puebla Mexico Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

197. Auckland New Zealand Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

198. Lagos Nigeria Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

199. Davao Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

200. San Juan Puerto Rico Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official site announcement

201. Washington County Utah Temple: Planning and approval phase; Announced October 7, 2018; awaiting official location and site announcement.

Key:

Bolded numbers and text denote temples whose numbers already exists (for renovations), or is certain due to a scheduled dedication, as well as information that is certain, such as dedication or groundbreaking dates.

Italicized numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on the order in which future dedications and groundbreakings are scheduled.

Underlined numbers and text denote temples whose numbers may change based on progress towards planning, approval, and groundbreaking.

Changes since last report are highlighted in red.

Updated Research About Church's North America Areas

Hello again, everyone! I have a wide variety of projects on which I am currently working right now, many of which I hope to post on this blog at some point in the near future. But right now, I wanted to address some additional thoughts about the Church's North America Areas. Let's get right into all of that.

As some of you may be aware, the First Presidency announced the changes in Area Leadership for this year just a few days after the April General Conference. Among those changes was the fact that what had been 10 areas in the United States and Canada, for which the members of the Presidency of the Seventy have had oversight since 2004, would now be overseen by 6 area presidencies.

And that led to questions about whether or not what had been 7 separate areas of the Church had been consolidated into 3 areas, as one area presidency had oversight of the entire state of Utah, one would be overseeing what had been the Idaho & North America Central Areas, and the third would be overseeing what had been the North America Northwest & North America West Areas.

Since that time, as a Utah resident, I have received correspondence and read news releases from the Church which seem to indicate that the 3 Utah areas have been merged into a singular one. So I wondered what that meant in terms of whether or not the other 2 area presidencies had oversight of 2 separate areas each, or whether the 4 previously-separate areas had been consolidated to 2.

Particularly, if there are really only 6 areas in North America now, how would that change the composition of area seventies Quorums, since the Idaho and North America Central area seventies had been serving in two different Quorums? (Those in the former area had been serving in the 5th Quorum, and those in the latter had served in the 6th Quorum).

Before General Conference, I was able to do some more digging in relation to these questions. Particularly, I looked at the online biographies for the 9 Brethren in the 3 presidencies (both via the main biographies via the Church website's section for that purpose, and through the Newsroom's Leadership section).

The following information was found in that regard:

Wilford W. Andersen—President, Idaho and North America Central Areas (plural)
Craig C. Christensen—E-mail sent to Utah members by him as “Utah Area President” (singular; his Newsroom bio uses the plural)
LeGrand R. Curtis Jr.—Counselor, Utah Area Presidency (singular)
Randy D. Funk—Area Presidency (singular) of the Utah Areas (plural)
Jörg Klebingat— “Area assistant in the North America Northwest and North America West Areas” (plural)
S. Gifford Nielsen—First Counselor. Idaho and North America Central Area Presidencies (plural)
Kevin W. Pearson—President, North America Northwest & North America West Areas (plural)
Brian K. Taylor—Second Counselor, Idaho/North America Central Area Presidency (singular)
Scott D. Whiting—Serving at Church headquarters

From this research, aside from the personal knowledge I have (based on the letter I received from Elder Christensen on the medical marijuana ballot initiative) that the three Utah Areas are now one singular one, it appears that more information will be needed to determine what the situation of the other areas (Idaho, North America Central, North America Northwest, and North America West) actually is.

I continue to search for information in that regard and will post updates here as I am able to do so. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time. 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.

Additional Developments Reported on Newsroom; President Nelson Reaches Prophetic Tenure Milestone

Hello again, everyone! Earlier this month, the Newsroom on the Church's official website shared a story which I neglected to pass along. In ongoing efforts to enhance the established relationship between the Church and the NAACP, the Newsroom reported on Saturday that leaders from both groups again met in Salt Lake City on that day and the day before.

The details can be found in this article, but, in summary, Church leaders invited the NAACP leaders to attend the Saturday Morning Session of General Conference in the Conference Center. Prior to that session, those leaders, including three apostles (Acting Quorum President M. Russell Ballard and Elders Ronald A. Rasband and Gary E. Stevenson), Presiding Bishop Gerald Causse, and Executive Director of the Church Public Affairs Department Elder Jack N. Gerard), among others, hosted a breakfast for the NAACP leaders. It is great to hear of the Church's ongoing efforts to build a good partnership with the NAACP.

In the meantime, the Newsroom also reported earlier today on how Church leaders have joined leaders in the community in a call for measures to prevent child abuse, who have signed a joint statement about this issue. Church leaders who signed included Primary General President Sister Joy D. Jones, and Elder LeGrand R. Curtis Jr., a General Authority Seventy who serves as First Counselor in the Utah Area Presidency.

Before discussing the one other subject I wanted to cover with this post, I wanted to note that the Church News has published an article about how two brothers and WWII veterans recently observed their 100th birthdays. Those brothers offered inspiring insights about how to live as long as they have been able to.

Finally, I wanted to note that Church President Russell M. Nelson will be observing the first prophetic tenure milestone of his presidency tomorrow, as the length of his service will have then been longer than that of President Howard W. Hunter. Also, although in some ways it hasn't seemed that long, and in other ways, it seems like he has been Church President for a longer period, this Sunday, President Nelson will have been President of the Church for 9 full months, to the day.

I continue to monitor all Church news and temple developments and will do my level best to pass word of those along to you all as I receive it. As I mentioned, my plan is to post the next updated apostolic age and tenure information on Sunday November 4. In the meantime, given the extensive amount of new developments reported just within these first 10 days of October, many more developments will likely be reported in the coming days as well, and when anything official is reported, I will devote future posts to those developments as well. And with tomorrow being Thursday, any official Church announcements for this week may come then.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time. 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.

Miscellaneous Church and Temple News

Hello again, everyone! This post will serve the dual-purpose of covering some updated information on temple progress and also some additional Church news developments. Let's get right into all of that.

We start with the temple updates. At the Rome Italy Temple, new information indicates that the monument sign (containing the name of the temple and the Church) has been completed, and that landscaping work has continued at a steady rate, as the installation of flower-beds on the grounds of the temple is making progress. There have also been updates noted on both the Durban South Africa and Port-au-Prince Haiti Temples, but I have not been able to ascertain whether these updates are newly-reported developments or simply a reiteration of what has been previously noted. I will do more research on that question and post those developments if they are new.

Turning now to updated Church news stories, we start with a somewhat interesting development. Apparently, around a month ago (just over a month after the August 2018 Area Leadership Assignments became effective), the Church announced a change in the Africa West Area Presidency, which officially became effective yesterday.

While Elder Marcus B. Nash continues to serve as Area President, his First Counselor, Elder Larry S. Kacher, has been released from his area assignment and has returned to Church headquarters to fill a different assignment. Elder Edward Dube, Elder Nash's former Second Counselor, has succeeded Elder Kacher as First Counselor, and Elder Hugo E. Martinez will now serve as the new Second Counselor in that Area Presidency.

As some of you may be aware, Elder Martinez has been serving as the Editor of the Church magazines, so that assignment will be given to someone else. I suppose Elder Kacher could be asked to step into that role, or that any of the advisers to the Church magazines (Elder Randall K. Bennett, who had previously served as Assistant Editor before being reassigned as an adviser; or Elders Randy D. Funk; Donald L. Hallstrom; Erich W. Kopischke; or Lynn G. Robbins). As soon as I have more information on that, I will pass it along.

In the meantime, we turn now to developments reported in the Church News. In response to President Nelson's invitation to the women of the Church to observe a 10-day fast from social media (which was issued during his address at the Women's Session of General Conference), women throughout the world have responded to that invitation with thoughts about why they are following that counsel and what they hope to gain through doing so.

Next, as some of you may know, President Nelson has penned poems, some of which have been set to music as hymns. One of those, which was originally performed following his introduction of it at the conclusion of the April 2003 General Conference, was also performed to close the recent General Conference. The hymn is called "Our Prayer to Thee", and was set to the music of a hymn currently in our hymnbook "O Home Beloved". The Church News has provided this report on the latest performance of that hymn.

And finally, for purposes of clarification, the Church News has given a week-by-week breakdown of what the Church schedule will look like on a two-hour Church schedule. In a time when the Church is reducing and simplifying the work of its' leaders and members, this latest development will help alleviate some of the burden on the time of Church members worldwide, and will allow Church members to spend more time as families on a weekly basis, for which I am profoundly grateful.

I do continue to monitor all Church news and temple developments on an ongoing basis and will, to the best of my ability, bring word of those to you all as I receive it. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time. 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 fre 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 NEWS: Transcripts of October 2018 General Conference Talks Now Available Online

Hello again, everyone! I wanted to post briefly to pass along more breaking news of which I just became aware. The transcripts of the talks given during the October 2018 General Conference are now available online for review. We live in a wonderful age indeed where the address given during General Conference every six months are available within roughly 60 hours of when the last session ends. These talks are well worthy of review.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated. on any post, at any time. 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 NEWS: President & Sister Nelson Plan to Continue Global Ministry Tour in South America

Hello again, everyone! The Newsroom on the Church's website has announced that Church President Russell M. Nelson and his wife, Sister Wendy W. Nelson will continue their global ministry tour by traveling through several locations in South America later this month. Accompanied by Elder Gary E. Stevenson and his wife, Lesa, they will visit five countries in nine days.

This will give them opportunities to meet with missionaries, Church members, and governmental leaders. The tour, set to run from October 19-28, will include stops in the cities of Lima Peru on Sunday October 21, La Paz Bolivia the following day, and Asuncion Paraguay the day after that.

After a three-day hiatus, they will then go to Montevideo Uruguay on Thursday October 25, and will end the tour in Concepcion Chile on Saturday and Sunday October 27 & 28, which will coincide with the dedication of the temple that same weekend.

Thus we see that President Nelson continues to stop at home just long enough to rest, take care of important Church business, pick up a new apostolic companion

The Newsroom also promised to carry ongoing coverage of this leg of the Nelsons' Global Ministry Tour as it occurs, and I will do the same. In the meantime, the Newsroom website provided a look at previous visits which President Nelson and Elder Stevenson have individually made to the same locations, and which Church Presidents have visited these same cities and when.

This will be a development to keep an eye on for sure. Could the time spent in Lima Peru involve breaking ground for the Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple? Possibly, but that seems unlikely. Could the time in Asuncion Paraguay involve seeing what (if anything) can be done to expedite the process of getting the renovation process finally started on that temple? That's a definite maybe as well. More will be reported in the coming days on this trip, and it will be interesting to see what happens during this leg of that tour.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time. 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 NEWS: Groundbreaking Confirmed for Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple

Hello again, everyone! As indicated by the Church of Jesus Christ Temples webpage for the Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple, the groundbreaking for that temple has been confirmed. This confirmation has not yet been posted on the main English edition of the Newsroom on the Church's website, but was posted 4 days ago on the edition of the Newsroom for Ghana. I imagine therefore that the confirmation from the main newsroom will occur within the next few days. The ceremony is set to occur on November 8, 2018, at 10:00 AM Ivory Coast time (which is 4:00 AM on the same day here in Utah)..

It is nice to have this confirmed. From the image of this temple, it appears to be a smaller one, which may take between 18-24 months to construct. For that reason, I will be adding a potential initial completion estimate for that temple to my report, and I will set it to mid-to-late 2020.

I also wanted to note as well that I do not yet have any additional word on anything else upcoming in terms of future temple groundbreakings, but if President Nelson felt impressed to announce 19 temples this year, then I am sure he will likewise be putting into place something to enable temples to move more swiftly from announcement to groundbreaking to dedication.

And it would not surprise me if all of the temples currently announced (with the definite exception of Bangkok Thailand and Pocatello Idaho, and the possible exception of 2-3 others), were to be on that smaller side. Some will certainly need to be larger, but if the Church can do so, I believe that the most feasible option would be to rapidly build a bunch of smaller temples.

From what we also know (in view of recent developments) at least the Nairobi Kenya Temple, for which land has been selected but not yet publicly identified, that temple is anticipated to be dedicated at some point in 2021. So that one is almost sure to have a groundbreaking within the next 6-8 months if not sooner. I continue to monitor all such developments and will post word of them here as they are disclosed.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post, at any time. 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.

President M. Russell Ballard Celebrates His 90th Birthday; Lays His Wife to Rest

Hello again, everyone! With the stunning General Conference developments that occurred, I somehow spaced the fact that both President Ballard's 90th birthday would be observed and his wife's funeral would be held. There's a lot to discuss, so let's dive right in.
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First of all, in relation to the funeral services for Barbara B. Ballard, as of the time this post was written, I could not find any coverage of it. I assume that will be provided later today, so I will pass word of that along to you all as I receive it.

In the meantime, as it is President Ballard's 90th birthday, he now joins the ranks of nonagenarian apostles, becoming the 19th man on that list. On Wednesday, November 14, 2018, he will assume the 18th spot currently held by J. Reuben Clark. His next milestone on that list will be observed on Thursday February 21, 2019, at which point he will have lived longer than President Thomas S. Monson. As far as I am aware, he (President Ballard) remains in fairly good health, and is actively directing the business before the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

That said, let's get to some biographical details. Melvin Russell Ballard Jr. was born in Salt Lake City Utah to Melvin Russell Sr. & Geraldine Smith Ballard, on this day in 1928. Both his paternal & maternal grandfathers (Melvin J. Ballard & Hyrum M. Smith) were apostles, and Elder Ballard is thus a direct descendant of the early leaders of the Church (Hyrum M. was the son of Joseph F., who was the son of Hyrum Smith, brother of the Prophet Joseph Smith).

As I previously mentioned, the Church has, by tradition, had at least one apostle currently serving who has ancestral ties to the Smith family. It is further interesting to note that Bruce R. McConkie, who was the last apostle indirectly related to the Smith family (being the son-in-law of Joseph Fielding Smith, who was the son of Joseph F. who was the son of Hyrum, who was the brother of the Prophet Joseph Smith), was the apostle whose death resulted in the apostolic vacancy that necessitated Elder Ballard's call.

He served as a missionary in England, as has been noted in previous blog posts. Upon his return, he served in the US Army Reserves, where he rose to the rank of First Lieutenant. As a result of obtaining his secondary education from the University of Utah, he met a young lady named Barbara Bowen, whom he married on August 8, 1951 in the Salt Lake Temple. As noted earlier, she died on October 1 of this year, and was laid to rest today.

They became the parents of 7 children, and one of their daughters, Brynn, married Peter Huntsman, whose mother, Karen Haight Huntsman, is the daughter of Elder David B. Haight, one of Elder Ballard's apostolic colleagues. It is interesting to see that additional relationship Elder Ballard has to other LDS apostles.

Brother Ballard worked professionally in auto sales. His Church service included serving as a counselor to his mission president, as a bishop twice, and as president of the Canada Toronto Mission. He completed the final year of that assignment as a General Authority Seventy, having received that call in April 1976.

Less than four years later, on February 20, 1980, he was called to the Presidency of the Seventy. In the August 1985 Ensign, Church leaders reported that they had created an international mission, which would be supervised from Salt Lake City for the purpose of ministering to members in outlying areas in which no formal Church units had been formed, and Elder Ballard was asked to preside over that mission in his capacity as a member of the Presidency of the Seventy. Within the next 5 years and 7 months or so, he had become the third most senior member of that Presidency. In the October 1985 General Conference, as a result of the death of Elder Bruce R. McConkie just over 5 months earlier, M. Russell Ballard was called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

Elder Ballard is known and respected for the emphasis he has placed on missionary work in his apostolic ministry. Since October 1985, he has moved from the position of the junior apostle to now being the 3rd in apostolic seniority. In his 33 years as an apostle, he has given 67 talks in General Conference: in addition to the 9 he gave in his previous capacities as a General Authority Seventy and in the Presidency of the Seventy, that brings his total number of General Conference talks to 76 (which includes the one he gave during this last General Conference, for which the transcript will be available later this week). All of these addresses are well worthy of review.

As I mentioned above, his wife's funeral was held today, and I will be bringing a report of those services to you as soon as such information becomes available. In the meantime, I am grateful for the life, ministry, and serve of President Melvin Russell Ballard and hope he will, in spite of his wife's funeral, be able to have a good day today.

That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time. 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.

Some Thoughts About Temple Progress (and the Most Likely Location for the Washington County Temple)

Hello again, everyone! Given the announcement around 2.5 hours ago of 12 new temples, I thought I would provide some updated thoughts about temple progress. Among other things, I will be discussing the timing within which some of the 30 announced temples might have a groundbreaking, and also share some thoughts about the most likely location for the temple announced in Washington County.

Let's jump right in. First, the Church could (and likely will soon) confirm the November 8, 2018 groundbreaking for the Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple. If we do not soon hear an announcement on the groundbreaking fro the Urdaneta Philippines Temple, that temple could begin full-scale construction without a formal groundbreaking (although the last temple for which that happened was the Paris France Temple, the contractor and his equipment are already on site for the Urdaneta Philippines Temple, where a construction barrier has been erected. So either there is a lot of preliminary work to do before the temple has a formal groundbreaking, or there will be no groundbreaking, and construction will merely commence.

The Pocatello Idaho and Saratoga Springs Utah Temples both seem to be a lock to have groundbreakings occur within the first six months of next year, if not sooner. We may not hear anything about a groundbreaking for the Bangkok Thailand Temple for the next little while, unless and until the one building remaining on site is both vacated and razed.

I additionally am anticipating that, within the next 15 months, as we learn more, the Lima Peru Los Olivos, Nairobi Kenya, Brasilia Brazil, Greater Manila Philippines, Harare Zimbabwe, Layton Utah, and Richmond Virginia temples could each have a groundbreaking as well. If that occurs for each of these temples, that trims the list of those that have not had construction begin yet from 31 down to 19.

And if reports (which indicate that the Church has hired and will continue to hire additional personnel for the temple department), then the Church could very easily go from a current backlog of 31 down to 7 or less within the course of the next couple of years. Within that same time, I would also anticipate that other massive series of additional new temples could be announced as well.

As I observed in my previous post, there are now 201 temples of the Church in various stages of the construction process. If all but one of those were to be operating by that time  (which would enable the Church to reach the milestone of 200 operating temples), since 159 are currently in operation, only 41 others would need to be completed in the 11.5 years between today and the bicentennial anniversary of the Church's reestablishment (which is set to occur on Saturday April 6, 2030).

Of those 41, 11 are currently under construction, and 1 soon will be (if the Church confirms the information about the planned groundbreaking for the Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple). So if we subtract that total of 12, only 19 more would need to begin and finish with the construction process during that 11.5 years.That means, as long as 2-3 temples begin construction each year, there is no scenario in which the Church would be unlikely to have 200 operating temples by that date. And I would personally anticipate that there will likely be far more than that around that time, if all continues to go well.

In the meantime, I also wanted to pass along some information I have drawn up about the most likely location for the Washington County Utah Temple, which is 1 of the 12 temples that were announced today. I am figuring that the Church would want to build it in a main city (rather than one of the more urban or rural locales). I first measured the distance from Cedar City to St. George, cut that distance roughly in half, and used the resulting mileage (26.1) to try and find the most likely prospect. Here's the information I compiled:

Potential locations for Washington County Temple (optimal goal is half-way between St. George and Cedar City, which would be a distance of 26.1 miles)

Hurricane (18.4 miles from St. George; 36.9 miles from Cedar City)

La Verkin (20.7 miles from St. George; 38.1 miles from Cedar City)

Toquerville (23.2 miles from St. George; 34.6 miles from Cedar City)

I can see each of these locations as a worthy prospect. The biggest merit of the first (Hurricane), in my mind, is that, if memory serves me correctly, some of my more-distant-but-still-extended family members live there. The Church has also periodically built a temple in places that are hard to pronounce (along the lines of Quetzeltenango Guatemala, a city of which President Monson, in talking of the planned dedication for that temple, quipped "Don't spell it!"

But of the three major cities, Toquerville comes in as nearest to the average mileage distance between the temples in Cedar City and St. George, which may make that city a shoo-in. Perhaps, however, the Church would look to a smaller or less prominent locality as the prospective place for this temple.

Either way, if the announcement of 19 temples during 2018 tells us anything, it is that President Nelson will get right down to business in terms of new temple announcements, and that if the currently-announced temples are, in a similar vein, able to have construction begin and progress swiftly, we are indeed in for a windfall or landslide of temple announcements, perhaps on more than one occasion, in the near future.

Whatever happens in that regard, you can certainly count on my passing such news along as I become aware of it. Stay tuned for those developments, which I continue to monitor on an ongoing basis. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time.

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.