Hello again, everyone! I have breaking temple news to report, which I will get to in just a minute, but first, I wanted to pass along a personal update: I have taken time today to once again reevaluate the layout of this blog, and decided to tweak a few settings, which included doing some degree of optimization for those who read my blog on mobile devices. My hope in making these adjustments is to make the blog more user-friendly, with a goal to (hopefully) increase the revenue I get from running the ads on this blog. To achieve that end, I would appreciate hearing from any of you about whether these changes made a difference in the look and feel of your experiences as readers of this blog
One last note before I detail the news I have: I have conclusively verified that the Rome Italy Temple open house has officially ended. I say that because it is now roughly 7:20 AM Rome Italy time. That said, the update I have was unexpected but certainly welcome: Information found on the Quito Ecuador Temple page earlier today indicates that a site has been procured by the Church for that temple.
Until the First Presidency confirms that the site in question will be used for that temple, this is unofficial information. But it means that the Quito Ecuador Temple could be closer to a groundbreaking than I thought as recently as 8 days ago, when I last posted adjustments to my estimates for future temple groundbreakings. As a result, I have expanded my list of temples which seem to be in a "Groundbreaking anticipated" status.
That process involved weighing what I knew (including whether any of them had a potential or definitive site identified and anything I have heard from local members or other sources who are familiar with the situation of these temples) against what is unknown (based on how soon there might be a site identified or confirmed, and on any surprising developments which are possible to occur), and adapted my list accordingly.
One other note: with 4 additional groundbreaking ceremonies set to occur by the end of the first Saturday in May local time, there are only 24 temples remaining for which a groundbreaking has not been announced. With that in mind, the "Groundbreaking anticipated" section of my report now includes 16 announced temples, for all of which I am predicting a groundbreaking between now and the end of next year. And that leaves only 8 more temples for which I need more information before projecting a closer estimate for a groundbreaking ceremony.
If I am anywhere near correct in my theories as presented in both sections, then it appears likely that all temples which were announced by the end of 2018 could have a groundbreaking ceremony set to occur within the next 3.5 years, if not sooner. With that and all that has been said about President Nelson's temple-building intentions in mind, I have no doubt that, however long it takes to clear the current queue of announced temples, many others will have been announced.
And due to what I know now, I am more convinced than ever that President Nelson will almost certainly detail his plans and announce several new temples next April. But I am additionally and entirely sure that President Nelson will keep announcing new temples in General Conference for the foreseeable future, with each year marking an increased total number of temples announced than the year before. I have personally felt that the number of temples that will be announced this year could even be double or triple the 19 total we saw announced last year (which would be somewhere between 38 and 57 total for 2019).
But if Elder Cook's recent statement to the effect that a ten-fold increase in the number of temples is the approximate endgame is anywhere near correct, then it may be anyone's guess how many temples will be announced this year and in the years to come. Either way, if the revisions I have made prove to be anywhere close to what will actually occur, then the next 3.5 years and the years following that could be twice or 3 times more full of temple developments than we saw during the Hinckley-boom of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
I had originally planned to end this post with the updates I have made to the two relevant and recently-reorganized sections of my temple construction progress report, but since I wanted to provide further insight and commentary on that, I will do it in a new post in just a few minutes. So that does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines.
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.
On this blog, I, James Stokes, share insights and analysis covering the latest news and developments reported about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My specific emphasis and focus is on the ministry of our current apostles, General Conference, and up-to-date temple information. This site is neither officially owned, operated, or endorsed by the Church, and I, as the autthor thereof, am solely responsible for this content.
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Saturday, February 16, 2019
BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: Land Acquired for Quito Ecuador Temple/General Observations About Announced Temples
Labels:
Breaking News,
Church President,
Estimated Time-frames for Future Temple Events,
General Conference,
Potential Future Temples,
Scheduled Temple Event
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
Friday, February 15, 2019
Updated List of Potential Changes in Church Leadership & 2018 Year-End Statistics for the April 2019 General Conference
Hello again, everyone! I continue to work as I can on the edits to my list of prospective temple locations that may be announced during the April 2019 General Conference. In the meantime, I wanted to post again now to pass along updates I have made to the potential changes in Church leadership and my reworked guesstimates for the 2018 Year-End Church statistics, which will be published on the Church's website immediately after the Saturday Afternoon Session of General Conference.
Those updates follow below. So as to not disturb the flow of that information, I will end here and now 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, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. 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.
Those updates follow below. So as to not disturb the flow of that information, I will end here and now 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, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. 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.
Predictions for Changes in Church Leadership
Presidency of the
Seventy: Any changes effective August 1 sustained in advance.[i]
Result:
|
General Authority
Seventies: New General Authorities sustained from among the Area Seventies or
the Church at large (including any current mission or temple president)[ii];
Elder Steven E. Snow released as Church Historian and Recorder, with a new
Church Historian and Recorder called from among the current or newly-called
General Authority Seventies[iii].
Result:
|
Area Seventies:
Some area seventies released, others called[iv].
The following area
seventies may be released for the following reasons:
Called as mission presidents: Aley K. Auna, Walter Chatora, J. Kevin Ence, Jose L.
Isaguierre, Bryan R. Larsen, W.
Jean-Pierre Lono, Khumbulani Mdletshe, Hoi Seng Leonard Woo
Longest-tenured: Kevin
J Worthen (sustained in April 2010; is serving as BYU-Provo President; if he
is released, he may be sustained as General Authority Seventy)
Result:
|
Sunday School General
Presidency: Tad R. Callister, Devin G. Durrant, and Brian K. Ashton released,
new Sunday School General Presidency called[v].
Result:
|
Additional note: Reid L.
Neilson, who has been serving as Church historian and recorder and is not a
General Authority, will likely be released from that assignment, since he has
been called as a mission president as well. As far as I know, he was never
sustained in that position, so his release may or may not be presented.
|
Stakes
|
3,383
|
Missions
|
407
|
Districts
|
550
|
Wards &
Branches
|
30,710
|
Total Church
Membership
|
16,385,309
|
Increase in
Children of Record
|
104,150
|
Converts Baptized
|
228,987
|
Full-Time
Missionaries
|
64,543
|
Church Service
Missionaries
|
30,339
|
Temples Dedicated
during 2018 (Concepcion Chile, Barranquilla Colombia)
|
2
|
Temples Rededicated
during 2018 (Houston Texas, Jordan River Utah)
|
2
|
Temples in
Operation by the end of 2018
|
161
|
[i]Last April, two immediate
changes (as a result of two members of the Presidency of the Seventy having
been called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles) were presented for sustaining
vote, along with an advanced sustaining of 3 other changes that would go into
effect on August 1 of last year. If any changes are planned for August 1 of
this year, those will be sustained in advance as well. While such changes might
be hard to anticipate, the only one for which I see a need in the near future
is the release of Elder L. Whitney Clayton, who currently serves as Senior
President of the Seventy, and he may retain that assignment until August of
next year, since he is likely to be granted emeritus status in October 2020, by
which time he will be 70.
[ii]It is traditional for new
General Authority Seventies to be sustained each April, so I would anticipate
that occurring for this General Conference.
[iii]Elder Steven E. Snow, who
has served as Church Historian and Recorder since 2012, will be 70 in November
2019, so the Church will likely sustain a current or new General Authority in
that assignment to succeed him.
[iv] Although there have been
exceptions in recent years, April General Conference has generally seen a large
number of area seventies called, and a few released, especially if any of the
new General Authorities are currently serving as area seventies. I am
anticipating the same will be true for this General Conference.
[v]Brothers Callister and
Durrant have served together in the Sunday School General Presidency since
April 2014, and Brother Ashton joined this presidency in June 2015. For the
most part within the last couple of decades, the Church has generally released
each general auxiliary presidency 5 years after they were sustained, I would
anticipate that a new presidency will be called, which may be comprised of
either or both of the current counselors, members of the current Sunday School
General Board, members of the current Young Men General Presidency or General Board,
area seventies, or the Church at large.
[vi]As per the tradition
established in the April 2018 General Conference, the Statistical Report will
not be read out loud during the Saturday Afternoon Session, but will instead be
published on the Church website directly after that session.
Labels:
Apostolic Ministry & Travels,
Church President,
Common Consent,
First Presidency,
General Conference,
Sustaining the Brethren
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
BREAKING NEWS: Changes In Communication Between Missionaries and Their Families
Hello again, everyone! The First Presidency today announced adjustments to the protocol whereby missionaries can contact their family members. Previously, missionaries could only speak directly to their families via phone or video chat on Mothers' Day and Christmas Day. The announcement notes that missionaries will now be permitted to have such contact opportunities with their families once weekly on their preparation day. This adjustment will allow families to have a more active part in the details (including successes and challenges) of their missionaries' labor.
Also released on the Newsroom was the official notice from the Missionary Department. While missionaries are the ones that should initiate these additional contact opportunities, the families of missionaries can reach out to their elders and sisters directly as needed with the approval of the mission president. The Church News featured an article on this development, which included several quotes relating to the change from Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who chairs the Missionary Executive Council.
And Church members responded to these adjustments on Twitter. Some who had served missions in the past noted that they wished this had been an option while they were serving, while others said they were glad this adjustment wasn't made during their service, since it might have been more of a distraction for them from their labor.
But the announcement clarifies that with this change, missionaries should be considerate of their companions, and that family members should be considerate of their missionary's time. All indications point to the idea that this adjustment will enable families to have more of an active role and impact in the lives of their missionaries serving around the world.
It is awesome for me to see the way the Church has been balancing announcements about the missionary program with temple-related news and announcements and coverage of the ongoing ministry of our apostles. And it is amazing to realize that having a very healthy and vigorous Church President representing the Lord in conveying His will to the Church has enabled these changes to occur at a much larger scale than we have seen within the last 15 months versus what we saw in the 3-5 years prior to 2018.
I do continue to monitor all such developments, and will bring word of those to you all here as I receive word of them, either through new posts (for breaking or more significant developments like this one) or through comments on existing posts on this blog. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. 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.
Also released on the Newsroom was the official notice from the Missionary Department. While missionaries are the ones that should initiate these additional contact opportunities, the families of missionaries can reach out to their elders and sisters directly as needed with the approval of the mission president. The Church News featured an article on this development, which included several quotes relating to the change from Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, who chairs the Missionary Executive Council.
And Church members responded to these adjustments on Twitter. Some who had served missions in the past noted that they wished this had been an option while they were serving, while others said they were glad this adjustment wasn't made during their service, since it might have been more of a distraction for them from their labor.
But the announcement clarifies that with this change, missionaries should be considerate of their companions, and that family members should be considerate of their missionary's time. All indications point to the idea that this adjustment will enable families to have more of an active role and impact in the lives of their missionaries serving around the world.
It is awesome for me to see the way the Church has been balancing announcements about the missionary program with temple-related news and announcements and coverage of the ongoing ministry of our apostles. And it is amazing to realize that having a very healthy and vigorous Church President representing the Lord in conveying His will to the Church has enabled these changes to occur at a much larger scale than we have seen within the last 15 months versus what we saw in the 3-5 years prior to 2018.
I do continue to monitor all such developments, and will bring word of those to you all here as I receive word of them, either through new posts (for breaking or more significant developments like this one) or through comments on existing posts on this blog. That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. 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.
Labels:
Breaking News,
Church Policies and Major Announcements,
Church President,
First Presidency,
General Church News,
Missionary Work
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
List of Temples Which May Get a New President During 2019
Hello again, everyone! On this Valentines' Day, I wanted to post now my recently-completed list for this blog, which I have been working on for the last few days. The list contains those temples for which I see sufficient reason to believe a new president will be announced at some point during this year. The 2019 list includes 4 new temples which are anticipated to be dedicated within the next 12-15 months (either before the end of this year or at some point next year), along with 63 currently-operating temples for which the presidents have served a minimum of 3 years (with a few that have been serving longer than that.)
The list follows below. So as not to disturb the flow of that information, I will end here and now 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, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. 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.
The list follows below. So as not to disturb the flow of that information, I will end here and now 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, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. 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.
The first presidents will likely be announced for the
following new temples:
1.
Arequipa Peru
2.
Rio de Janeiro Brazil
3.
Winnipeg Manitoba
4.
Abidjan Côte d'Ivoire
List of currently-operating temples which may be getting
a new president in 2019:
1.
Aba Nigeria
2.
Anchorage Alaska
3.
Birmingham Alabama
4.
Campinas Brazil
5.
Chicago Illinois
6.
Ciudad Juarez Mexico
7.
Cochabamba Bolivia
8.
Columbia River Washington
9.
Columbus Ohio
10. Copenhagen
Denmark
11. Curitiba
Brazil
12. Dallas
Texas
13. Detroit
Michigan
14. Fort
Collins Colorado
15. Fresno
California
16. Gilbert
Arizona
17. Guadalajara
Mexico
18. Halifax
Nova Scotia
19. Hamilton
New Zealand (Note: It is possible that the Church could hold off on calling a
new president for this temple until its’ rededication is held in 2021)
20. Hartford
Connecticut
21. Hong
Kong China (Note: It is possible that the Church could hold off on calling a
new president for this temple until its’ rededication in 2021 or 2022)
22. Idaho
Falls Idaho (Note: Since the current president of this temple had his service
interrupted by its’ renovation, the Church could hold off another year or two
on replacing him.)
23. Johannesburg
South Africa
24. Jordan
River Utah (Note: Since the current president of this temple had his service
interrupted by its’ renovation, the Church could hold off another year or two
on replacing him.)
25. Kyiv
Ukraine
26. Lima
Peru
27. London
England
28. Manhattan
New York
29. Medford
Oregon
30. Melbourne
Australia
31. Memphis
Tennessee (Note: Since the current president of this temple had his service
interrupted by its’ renovation, the Church could hold off another year or two
on replacing him.)
32. Mexico
City Mexico
33. Monterrey
Mexico
34. Montreal
Quebec
35. Merida
Mexico
36. Nashville
Tennessee
37. Nauvoo
Illinois
38. Nuku’alofa
Tonga
39. Oklahoma
City Oklahoma (Note: Since the current president of this temple had his service
interrupted by its’ renovation, the Church could hold off another year or two
on replacing him.)
40. Orlando
Florida
41. Panama
City Panama
42. Perth
Australia
43. Philadelphia
Pennsylvania
44. Portland
Oregon
45. Provo
Utah
46. Raleigh
North Carolina (Note: Since the current president of this temple had his service
interrupted by its’ renovation, the Church could hold off another year or two
on replacing him.)
47. Reno
Nevada
48. Rexburg
Idaho
49. Santiago
Chile
50. Santo
Domingo Dominican Republic
51. Sapporo
Japan
52. Seattle
Washington
53. Seoul
Korea
54. Spokane
Washington
55. St.
George Utah (Note: Since the current president of this temple had his service
interrupted by its’ renovation, the Church could hold off another year or two
on replacing him.)
56. St.
Paul Minnesota
57. Star
Valley Wyoming
58. Tampico
Mexico
59. Tuxtla
Gutierrez Mexico
60. Twin
Falls Idaho
61. Veracruz
Mexico
62. Washington
D.C. (Note: Since the current president of this temple had his service
interrupted by its’ renovation, the Church could hold off another year or two
on replacing him.)
63. Winter
Quarters Nebraska
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
Thursday, February 14, 2019
Temples Which Will Close for an Extended Period of Time During 2019
Hello again, everyone! I just did some research on the subject of temples which have closed/will close at some point in 2019 for an extended period of time, and I wanted to present the results of that research here. The list of temples and the relevant periods and lengths of time for those closures follows below. So as to not disturb the flow of that information, I will end here and now 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, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. 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.
That does it for this post. Any and all comments are, as always, welcome and appreciated, on any post at any time, as long as such comments are made in accordance with the established guidelines. 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.
Temples which will close for an extended period of time (rather
than a renovation) in 2019:
Calgary Alberta: Tuesday April 16-Monday November 4
(roughly 29 weeks)
Los Angeles California: Tuesday June 25-Monday September
30 (roughly 14 weeks)
Manhattan New York: Tuesday July 23-Monday October 28
(roughly 14 weeks)
Denver Colorado: Tuesday July 2-Monday September 23
(roughly 12 weeks)
Chicago Illinois: Sunday June 23-Monday September 2
(roughly 10 weeks)
Aba Nigeria: Monday August 26-Monday November 4 (10
weeks)
Accra Ghana: Monday September 2-Thursday October 31 (8.5
weeks)
Panama City Panama: Monday, February 18, 2019-Monday,
April 15, 2019 (roughly 8 weeks)
Provo Utah: Monday July 1-Monday August 12 (6 weeks)
San Diego California: Monday September 30-Monday November
11 (6 weeks)
Cochabamba Bolivia: Tuesday April 9-Monday May 20 (roughly
6 weeks)
Columbia South Carolina: Tuesday September 10-Monday
October 21 (roughly 6 weeks)
Dallas Texas: Tuesday October 1-Monday November 11 (roughly
6 weeks)
London England: Tuesday August 6-Monday September 16
(roughly 6 weeks)
Medford Oregon: Tuesday July 23-Monday September 2
(roughly 6 weeks)
Taipei Taiwan: Tuesday September 17-Monday October 28
(roughly 6 weeks)
Albuquerque New Mexico: Tuesday October 1-Monday November
4 (roughly 5 weeks)
Las Vegas Nevada: Monday July 8-Monday August 5 (4 weeks)
Seattle Washington: Monday February 11-Monday March 11 (4
weeks)
Bismarck North Dakota: Tuesday August 20-Monday September
16 (roughly 4 weeks)
Porto Alegre Brazil: Tuesday July 2-Monday July 29
(roughly 4 weeks)
St. Louis Missouri: Tuesday, November 5, 2019-Monday,
December 2, 2019 (roughly 4 weeks)
Sydney Australia: Tuesday, November 5, 2019-Monday,
December 2, 2019 (roughly 4 weeks)
Trujillo Peru: Tuesday, September 17, 2019-Monday,
October 14, 2019 (roughly 4 weeks)
Veracruz Mexico: Tuesday, September 17, 2019 - Monday,
October 14, 2019 (roughly 4 weeks)
I have had a lifelong love for Church history, which has extended to ongoing reports of the ministry of our apostles and prophets, General Conference, and all temple developments. This blog enables me to share that love with all who read my thoughts on these developments, which are sometimes reported multiple times per day as needed.
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