Additional News Reported Relating to the Rome Italy Temple Dedication

Hello again, everyone! Some additional news has been reported from Rome Italy as the dedication of that temple continues. All living apostles gathered in Rome for the dedicatory events gathered for a set of historic photographs. Two of those photos show the entire First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve, one in their white temple suits, and the other in their "street clothes". As some of you may be aware, it has been a tradition of sorts for the Church to feature new separate photographs for the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles anytime there is a change in either of those leading Quorums of the Church. But this is the first time in around 2 decades or so where a photo was taken with all of the apostles together.

There is even more significance in this development, however. For the first time of which I am aware, a group photograph was also taken featuring almost all of the wives of the members of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The only one missing from that photo was Sister Kathleen J. Eyring, wife of President Henry B. Eyring. As President Eyring mentioned in his address during the last General Conference, his wife is dealing with some significant health issues incident to her age, so she has not been actively able to accompany him to such occasions and assignments for the last several years.

But there is even more significance involved in these developments: In this article from the Church News, a quote from President Nelson emphasizes that the Lord inspired him to gather all of his apostolic colleagues in Rome for this dedication, and he apparently met with each of them individually to extend that invitation personally. It is very wonderful to know that we have a prophet who is not hesitant at all to highlight exactly how much of his actions and decisions have been inspired by the Lord.

As BYU students were told in 1980 by then-Elder Ezra Taft Benson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, one of Fourteen Fundamentals relating to following the prophet is that the prophet does not need to say "thus saith the Lord" to give us modern scripture or instructions that the Lord has inspired him to give. But we have a prophet who is absolutely fearless in declaring how much of what he does in his ministry has been directed by the Lord.

All of the articles I have cited so far are well worthy of your time. But in addition to that, President Nelson's wife, Sister Wendy W. Nelson, took time while in Rome with her husband to share her testimony and firsthand witness of the foreordination and divinely-inspired calling of her husband as the Prophet of the Lord and President of the Church. One thing she mentioned is that her husband's practice of writing down many instructions from the Lord has accelerated and not slowed at all in the last year. She also again referred to his willingness to be innovative, and to do things differently, in view of the ultimate goal is making the Church run more effectively in every way.

And so history continues to be made in Rome, most notably because today marked the first time in around a decade or so that a temple dedication has been scheduled to be longer than a single day. Dedicatory services will have wrapped up by this time tomorrow in Utah time. And more reports will be provided about this temple's dedication within the next 36 hours or so. I will monitor such developments and pass word of them along to you all as I receive it.

In the meantime, I wanted to pass along a couple more new temple updates before I conclude here. First, with the time in Kinshasa now being just after 8:30 PM, the Church has wrapped up VIP/Media tours for the first temple in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In around 12-13 hours, that temple will be open to the public for an 18-day period, until March 30, with the exclusion of the relevant Sundays. As previously mentioned, that temple will be dedicated the Sunday following General Conference, and I anticipate that event could somehow coincide with another leg of President Nelson's ongoing Global Ministry Tour.

Another update has been reported relating to the Durban South Africa Temple, where efforts are underway to clad the baptismal font in marble, and where ceiling and tiling work continues. On the grounds of the temple, walkways are being poured, and the walls of the water feature are being prepared for their installation. Meanwhile, at the Raleigh North Carolina Temple, stone cladding has been completed.

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. 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.

My Attempt to Clear Up Misconceptions and Misunderstandings

Hello again, everyone! I hope you will all indulge me as I share a personal post. My purpose in doing so is to attempt (even if I fail) to clear up some misconceptions and misunderstandings on the part of anyone who reads this blog regularly. The need to do so has arisen due to my being criticized through a comment on this blog. The comment, made by one of several who use the "Unknown" moniker to post their feedback, called me out for my failure to recognize that I am not always talking to the same individual in each interaction I have with those who comment as "Unknown".

So let me say this right off the bat: I am only as good as the information I am given. I have one individual who comments as "Unknown" and, in doing so, always leaves his first name with his comment, so I know which "Unknown" comments he has made. I recognize fully that, with the Blogger commenting system being what it currently is, there are some who comment using a default system other than Blogger. And for those individuals, the one and only way I would know whether I am talking to the same person or someone different is if they were to tell me.

Because of this problem cropping up, I wish in some ways I could look through the screen and see who I was talking to every time. I cannot do so, and for the most part, being able to would cause more harm than good. I am also not in any way omniscient, and, due to that fact, am only as good as the information I am given. I would personally love to treat everyone who comments here with the consideration and respect they deserve, and would love to refer to them by name. Therefore, for the sake of my not being perfect or able to see through the screen, could you who use the "Unknown" moniker do me a favor? When you comment, please leave your first name for me before posting, as that will help me know to whom I am speaking.

I also wish to clear up another misconception about me and about the things I post. Some of you who comment have told me that, at times, I come across as being far more interested in asserting the accuracy and validity of my own opinion than I do in conducting a process of earnest dialogue between myself and those who comment here. As I mentioned earlier, I am not perfect. In fact, full disclosure here: I am probably the most imperfect man on earth, even on my best days. That is why I am grateful for the atonement of Jesus Christ, since that can, does, and will make up the difference when I inevitably fall short, which I almost always do.

That said, I do have a firm testimony of the gospel, of the doctrines, practices, and procedures thereof, and I have gained that testimony through years of extensive study. I would be foolish and misguided if I were to claim I have all the answers. I do not now, and I likely will not ever know everything there is to know about the gospel in general, and the topics I cover here in particular. But I have studied for years on end to gain knowledge of such things, and if I don't know something, at least I usually know where to look for answers to such questions. If I have ever portrayed myself as someone who thinks he has all the answers, or whose opinions ought to be considered as the end-all be-all of any discussion, I sincerely apologize. That was in no way, shape, or form my intent.

My purpose for starting this blog was to share my passion for the news and developments of the Church. Generally, I never come away from any interact with anyone in the comments of this blog without having learned something therefrom. As my regular readers will tell you, sometimes in the rush to collect and publish data or information, I overlook something big which escapes my notice. And the efforts others have made to point out such errors are sorely needed. We need to be focused on lifting and encouraging each other, and when that happens through the discussions on this blog, I consider my efforts a success.

Recognizing my imperfections and limitations (which, even on my best days, can be severely debilitating  if I stop and think about them), and acknowledging that I am prone to mistakes constantly, I hope that all of you who read what I post here will forgive and pardon any misunderstanding, misconceptions, or ill feelings any mode or manner of expression I have utilized here may have caused.

My hope and prayer is that we will all do more to ensure civility, kindness, and accuracy purveys and permeates our discussions. If it can be so, then all of my imperfect efforts will have been more than well spent. In the meantime, if any of you have any questions or concerns about my mode and manner of speaking in either blog posts or the comments thereof here, I hope you will feel that this is a safe space where you can let me know about them. As we attempt to uplift, strengthen, encourage, and inspire one another, I likewise hope and pray that the Lord will bless our mutual efforts.

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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: Rome Italy Temple Is Dedicated as the 162nd Operating Temple of the Church

Hello again, everyone! I apologize for the delay in sharing this, but the Rome Italy Temple dedication is underway. As I anticipated, there have been 3 dedicatory sessions held today (as it is now past 10:00 PM Sunday Italian time), and there will be 2 more each day tomorrow and Tuesday. The Newsroom website shared this report about the dedication, complete with a video summary of the cornerstone ceremony, which demonstrated President Nelson's personal warmth and sense of humor.

And the Church News provided this report on the history of the Church in Italy and the events of the day. In the course of the next 48 hours, there will be more reports from both the Newsroom and the Church News website. In relation to the latter, that website is maintaining a special section compiling all of the Church News coverage that has been or will yet be published, so you can catch the latest stories through that page as they are published and added.

If I am correct that the sessions held today were at 9:00 AM, noon, and 3:00 PM Italian time, and that the two sessions each on Monday and Tuesday could be held at 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM, then the dedicatory sessions will conclude around 36 hours from now. And by way of reminder, the open house tours for the Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo are set to begin on Tuesday March 12. Kinshasa is ahead of Utah time by around 8 hours, so that open house may begin at around 1:00 AM MDT tonight. Oddly enough, it appears that Kinshasa is in the same time zone as Italy.

And so, the Church continues to make great progress on temple construction all around the world. I am committed to bringing all of you word here on temple developments as I become aware of them. In relation to that commitment, I should also note that new information received today indicates progress has been made at the Durban South Africa Temple site. The latest update I have found is that the baptismal font is being clad in marble, that work continues on the ceiling and tiling, that walkways are being poured, and that the walls of the on-site water feature are being prepared to be poured.

Although I hold out a small amount of hope that this update indicates that the construction process for the Durban South Africa Temple is back on track after being affected by electrical blackouts and a high degree of political turmoil, until I am sure that is the case, I stand by my previously-offered assessment that the dedication of the Arequipa Peru Temple could occur before the Durban South Africa Temple is dedicated. Time will tell.

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. 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.

Current Apostolic Statistics: Part Two—Updated Ages, Averages & Apostolic Nonagenarians

Hello again, everyone! I am back again now with the second part of this apostolic update, in which we will move on to talk specifics regarding the long-form and decimal ages of our current apostles, which will also include updated information on the average ages of the First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the 15 apostles as a group, and current and future nonagenarians.

So let’s get right into all of that. Again, all data is current as of today (Sunday March 10, 2019). Since my last update, Elder Rasband has observed his 68^th birthday. The next apostolic birthday (President Eyring’s 86^th) will not occur until the last day in May. By that time, one more of these updates will have been posted on this blog, and another such update will follow 2 days after President Eyring’s birthday (Sunday June 2, 2019). Less than two weeks later (13 days, to be exact), Elder Bednar will observe his 67^th birthday. And the next apostolic birthdays after that won’t be observed until August.

With that noted, we now move on to some exact figures about the ages (and average ages) of the First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and all 15 apostles as a group. In the Church’s leading Quorum, President Nelson is, as noted towards the end of my previous post, 94 years, 6 months, and 1 day old, with a resulting decimal age of 94.50 years. His right-hand man, President Oaks, is now 86 years, 6 months, and 26 days old, or 86.58 years. The junior member of the First Presidency, President Eyring, is now 85 years, 9 months, and 10 days old, which is 85.78 in decimal years.

The First Presidency thus now has a combined 266.86 years of life experience, which results in an average age for each man of 88.95 years. President Nelson remains 5.55 years older than that average, with President Oaks closest to it (as he remains 2.37 years younger than that average), which means that President Eyring remains 3.17 years below it. Unless there is something of which we are not aware in relation to the health of any of these Brethren, they will continue to set new records for the oldest-serving First Presidency in Church history for the foreseeable future.

Next, let’s turn our attention to the members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. President Ballard’s long-form age now sits at 90 years, 5 months, and 2 days, or 90.42 years. Elder Holland now has a long-form age of 78 years, 3 months, and 7 days, with a resulting 78.27 decimal years. Elder Uchtdorf (who is a mere 27 days older than his senior apostolic seatmate) age now stands at 78 years, 4 months, and 4 days old, which works out to 78.34 years.

Elder Bednar has now reached the full age of 66 years, 8 months, and 23 days, which works out to 66.73 decimal years. Elder Cook, the oldest but least senior of the 3 apostles born in 1940, has a long-form age of 78 years, 6 months, and 2 days old, with a resulting decimal age of 78.50 years. Elder Christofferson has now reached the age of 74 years, 1 month and 14 days old, making his decimal age 74.12 years.

Elder Andersen, who, as previously noted, will be marking a decade in the apostleship this April, is now 67 years, 7 months, and 1 day old, and his decimal age is 67.58 years. Elder Rasband, who is our only apostle to have a birthday since my last update, is now 68 years, 1 month, and 4 days, or 68.09 years. Elder Stevenson, at exactly 4.5 years younger than Elder Rasband (as both were born on the 6^th), has a long-form age of 63 years, 7 months, and 4 days, or 63.59 in decimal years.

We move on now the final 3 apostles. Elder Renlund has now reached the exact age of 66 years, 3 months, and 25 days, with a resulting decimal age of 66.32 years. Elder Gong is now 65 years, 2 month, and 15 days, which works out to 65.21 in decimal years. As for Elder Soares, he is now 60 years, 5 months, and 8 days old, which is a resulting 60.44 decimal years.

           

Based on those numbers, the current members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles now have a combined 857.61 years of life experience, which results in an average of 71.47 years per member. Elders Christofferson and Rasband are respectively above and below that average, with the former again being 2.65 years older, and the latter remaining 3.38 years younger. Based on the information I provided earlier about the members of the First Presidency, the entire body of apostles now have a combined 1,124.47 years of life experience, which is an average of 74.97 years. I don’t know whether or not I have miscalculated this in the past, but the latest calculations I have run show that Elder Holland is older than that average by 3.2 years, while Elder Christofferson is now apparently 0.85 years younger.

           

We now move on to the nonagenarians. President Nelson remains the seventh oldest apostle in Church history, and is set to move up to the seventh spot on July 5 of this year. In the meantime, President Ballard has observed his next nonagenarian milestone (that occurred on Wednesday February 20, 2019, when his lifespan became longer than that of President Thomas S. Monson), and he also has 3 other milestones in that regard coming up on May 15, June 9, and July 31, the specifics of which I will discuss closer to those dates. For the other apostles, President Oaks will join the nonagenarian list in 3 years, 5 months, and 2 days, while Elder Soares will do so in 29 years, 6 months, and 22 days, with the other apostles doing so at other various intervals, which will be detailed more fully as they approach.

I hope that many of you found this information to be interesting, informative, and accurate. 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.

Current Apostolic Statistics: Part One—Updated Data for President Oaks, President Nelson, and Longest-Serving Apostolic Groups

Hello again, everyone! While I continue to welcome comments on any previous posts (particularly any feedback any of you have on the latest version of my list of potential cities for which a temple might be announced next month in General Conference, or the coverage I have provided and will yet provide about the Rome Italy Temple dedication), it is time once again to bring you all updated information on the latest apostolic statistics. This data will again be published in two posts.

Although I sincerely hope most of you will find this information interesting and enlightening, there may be some of you who are not interested in the data I will be presenting. Consequently, I will not in any way be offended or bothered if any of you skip over this post and the next one. This first post, as has been the case for previous updates, will address President Dallin H. Oaks’ tenure as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, then shift to explore where Church President Russell M. Nelson currently stands in terms of his age and tenure length among his prophetic predecessors. That will be followed by some observations about the tenure lengths of our current First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and all currently-living ordained apostles as a group.

The more specific data about upcoming apostolic birthdays, the long-form and decimal ages of our 15 current apostles, and details about nonagenarians will then follow in a second post, which will be published a few minutes after this one is. My last such update was posted on January 27 of this year, and since I have made a tradition on this blog of sharing these updates every 6 weeks, I will be planning on posting my next such update on Sunday April 21 (two weeks after General Conference, and one week following the dedication of the Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple).

The data in this update is current as of today (Sunday March 10). There is a lot to get to, so let’s jump right in. President Oaks has now served as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for a period of 1 year, 1 month, and 24 days, and he has not moved up among the other Quorum Presidents since my last update. I mentioned previously that his first tenure milestone for this year is coming up on April 9, 2019, at which time he will have served longer as Quorum President than Franklin D. Richards, thus becoming the 24^th longest-serving Quorum President in Church history.

His next two milestones will, as noted when I provided an overview of projects for this blog for this year, be observed on July 7 and 9 of this year. I will provide more specifics on those with my fourth overall update this year (which I am planning on posting on June 2 of this year). As mentioned previously, the length of President Oaks’ service will depend not only on his health and life length, but, of course, the health and life length of President Nelson will factor into that as well.  Insofar as I have been able to ascertain, none of our 15 current apostles is experiencing any kind of age- or health-related limitations. While the lifespan and length of apostolic tenure for all of these men is in the Lord’s hands, I am reasonably certain it will be several years before the next apostolic death.

And speaking of President Nelson, since he was ordained and set apart as Church President on the same day he set apart President Oaks as Quorum President, his tenure has spanned 1 year, 1 month and 24 days as well. He is also now 94 years, 6 months, and 1 day old. He will observe his only 2019 tenure-length and age-length milestones two days apart on July 3 and 5 respectively with subsequent milestones more spread out in the years following that. And again, I will be detailing those more specifically closer to the time when they will be reached.

In the meantime, as also noted previously, the current First Presidency will only be joining the list of longest continuously serving First Presidencies in Church history on Saturday April 20, 2024, so I will be outlining their future milestones on that list closer to the time.  As for the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the current members will mark 3 years together on March 31, 2021, at which point they will join the list of the longest-serving Quorums of the Twelve Apostles in Church history. I will likewise be providing updates on those future milestones closer to that time.

Interestingly enough, less than two months prior to that, the 15 apostles will make the list of the longest-serving such group (the exact date is February 8, 2021). With that said, I want to conclude this portion of the update. 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 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 (which will be the second half of this update that published here within the next few minutes), 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 Nelson and Other Church Leaders Meet with Pope Francis

Hello again, everyone! As part of his visit to Rome Italy to dedicate the temple this weekend, President Nelson sought for and was given the opportunity to meet with Pope Francis, the pontiff of the Catholic Church. Pope Francis, who hails from Argentina, was surprised and grateful when President Nelson greeted him in Spanish. The meeting was meant to last around 15-20 minutes, but the Pope extended it to around 35 minutes or so. President Nelson was joined in that meeting by President M. Russell Ballard, Elder Massimo De Feo, the Church's first Italian general authority, Elder Alessandro Dini Ciacci, an Italian area seventy, and President Nelson's executive secretary.

President Nelson and the pope exchanged gifts and shared common beliefs and values, particularly talking about their mutual concern for the youth and children of the world. President Nelson also highlighted the partnership that has existed in various parts of the world between the Church and Catholic charitable organizations. The pope and President Nelson invited each other to visit whenever the opportunity to do so presents itself in the future. You can read more about the visit between Pope Francis and President Nelson's delegation in the Church News, via the Newsroom and in the the Deseret News. The latter article particularly highlights the cooperative efforts of the Church and the Catholic Church.

I will continue to be on the lookout for further updates on this weekend's dedicatory events. In the meantime, I did want to note one other thing: I have spoken before about my belief that the Church will have at least 200 temples operating by or before the Church's bicentennial anniversary (which will, as noted, be occurring on Saturday April 6, 2030). This article, published by the Church News in January of this year, noted the Church was well on track to do that, whether or not an official goal is made to do so.

When the first dedicatory sessions are held for the Rome Italy Temple tomorrow, that will mean that the Church would just need to complete 38 of the temples in various other phases of construction by or before the aforementioned bicentennial. As of tomorrow, there will be roughly 11.07 years remaining until that bicentennial, so as long as the Church completes around 3.43 temples per year within that time, it should easily be doable, especially since the Church already has 4 other temples scheduled to be dedicated before the October General Conference.

So the average number needing to be completed per year will thus be going down considerably within the next two months, and that will continue to be the case for the foreseeable future. It is also worth noting that the Church is anticipated to go from 162 dedicated temples by this time tomorrow to at least 176 temples by sometime in mid-2021. 14 temple dedications in around a two year period is tremendous to think about.

With that said, I do continue to monitor 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, 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.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: President Nelson Will Preside at the Rome italy Temple Dedication

Hello again, everyone! While I don't know currently if President Nelson will be in Italy for the entire 3 days of the dedication of the Rome Italy Temple, this article reports he will oversee at least the first session. I also anticipate that we will see several other apostles in attendance during those 3 days as well. I will monitor this development and post more details as I learn of them.

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.

Updated Estimates for Known Temple Events

Hello again, everyone! Having shared the updated sections of my temple construction progress report in my last post, I wanted to share my updated estimates for known temple events in this post. Those updated estimates 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.

2019:

Sunday March 10-Tuesday March 12: Dedication of the Rome Italy Temple (162^nd operating temple; confirmed)

Note: The First Presidency announced the amended dedication dates for this temple on November 8, 2018. When the dedication information for this temple was first announced, it was set to be held over an 8-day period. Now that that has been shortened to 3 days, I don’t know what that might mean in terms of the number of apostles participating. But I do anticipate that President Nelson may likely preside over at least the first one or two sessions, if not others, and that there may be more apostolic and general leadership participation for this event than has been typical for recent temple dedications.

Saturday March 16: Groundbreaking for the Pocatello Idaho Temple (confirmed)

Note: On February 1, 2019, the First Presidency announced the groundbreaking information for this temple. Given that it will be similar in size to The Gila Valley Arizona temple, I am venturing a general completion estimate of mid-to-late 2022. As more is known about that process, I will make any necessary alterations to that estimate as they are needed.

Saturday & Sunday April 6 & 7: 189^th General Conference

Note: Because 19 temples were announced in 2018 (which may have been President Nelson’s way of starting slowly), and because one of his major focuses during his first year as Church President has been highlighting the importance of temples, I’m sure we will see several new temples announced during this General Conference.

Sunday April 14: Dedication of the Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple (163^rd operating temple; confirmed)

Note: In view of the facts that the dedication of this temple will occur after the April General Conference, and that following the April 2018 General Conference, President Nelson began his Global Ministry Tour, I could see President Nelson doing another leg of his tour in conjunction with this temple’s dedication, whether that tour starts or ends with this dedication, or whether this dedication is held sometime in the mid-point of that tour.

Saturday May 4: Groundbreakings for the Yigo Guam, Praia Cabo Verde, and San Juan Puerto Rico Temples

Note: On January 12, 2019, the First Presidency released the artist’s rendering for the San Juan Puerto Rico Temple. Five days later (on January 17), the groundbreaking for that temple was set to be held on May 4, with Elder Walter F. Gonzalez, President of the Church's Caribbean Area, presiding at that ceremony. Then on Febuary 1, 2019, the First Presidency released the artist’s rendering for the Yigo Guam Temple and announced that its’ groundbreaking ceremony would also occur on May 4, and that Elder Yoon Hwan Choi, President of the Church's Asia Area, would preside at that event. On February 8, 2019, the artist’s rendering for the Praia Cabo Verde Temple was released, and its’ groundbreaking was set to occur on May 4 as well, under the direction of Elder Paul V. Johnson, who serves as President of the Church's Europe Area. The time in Guam is ahead of that in Cabo Verde, which is ahead of the time in Puerto Rico, so I am listing them in that order. Since the construction for each of those temples is anticipated to take 2 years, I am estimating that all of them will be dedicated in early-to-mid 2021.

Sunday May 5: Private rededication of the Memphis Tennessee Temple (confirmed)

Note: On January 16, 2019, the First Presidency announced the private rededication of this temple would take place in a single session on this date, that Elder Jeffrey R. Holland would preside at the rededication, and that no open house or youth devotional would be held prior to this event.

Saturday May 11: Groundbreaking for the Quito Ecuador Temple (confirmed)

Note: The First Presidency announced on March 7, 2019 that this temple would have a groundbreaking on this day. Elder Enrique R. Falabella, who presides over the South America Northwest Area, will preside at this event. Construction on this temple is anticipated to take between 2-3 years.

Sunday May 19: Private rededication of the Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temple (confirmed)

Note: On January 16, 2019, the private rededication for the Oklahoma City Oklahoma Temple was also announced. President Henry B. Eyring will preside at the single-session rededication, which will not be preceded by an open house or youth devotional.

Sunday June 2: Dedication of the Fortaleza Brazil Temple (165^th operating temple; confirmed)

Note: On January 10, 2018, the First Presidency announced this temple’s dedication. In an unusual (but not unexpected) move, that dedication has been scheduled to occur two weeks prior to the rededication of the Oakland California Temple. To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time a dedication has been set to occur prior to a rededication which has previously been announced. Usually, a temple’s rededication has been set to occur prior to a previously-announced temple dedication. As noted on other temples, President Nelson could preside at this event himself, or he could delegate one of his counselors or a senior member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles to do so.

Saturday June 8: Groundbreaking for the Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple

Note: On March 7, 2019, the groundbreaking for this temple was also announced. Since this temple is also being built within the South America Northwest Area, Elder Falabella will preside over this as well. And based on the fact that the design of this temple reminds me of the Mesa Arizona Temple, I am anticipating a 3-4 year construction process for this temple.

Sunday June 16: Rededication of the Oakland California Temple (confirmed)

Note: This temple’s rededication was announced on December 18, 2018. As noted above, the dedication of the Fortaleza Brazil Temple, announced almost a month later, has been set to occur before this temple’s rededication.

Monday July 8: Hong Kong China Temple Renovation Closure

Note: On January 30, 2019, the First Presidency announced the renovation closure for this temple, with the plans to be detailed more fully at a later time. I am anticipating that that process will take between 2-4 years.

August: Private rededication for the Raleigh North Carolina Temple

Note: While I once felt certain that both this temple and the Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple could take place during this time, new information received in late February led me to rethink that, and I now believe that this temple’s renovation may wrap up during early summer, with a rededication taking place sometime during the early-to-middle part of this month.

Sunday September 1: Dedication of the Port-au-Prince Haiti Temple (165^th operating temple; confirmed)

Note: On November 14, 2018, the First Presidency announced the open house and dedication information for this temple. Then, on January 18, 2019, the dedication was pushed back to this date in view of delays in the construction process.

Sunday September 15: Dedication of the Lisbon Portugal Temple (166^th operating temple; confirmed)

Note: On February 22, 2019, I received new information which indicated that the Lisbon Portugal Temple, which has continued to progress ahead of schedule, would likely be dedicated sooner than anticipated. As a result, in late February-early March, I moved this temple ahead of the Durban South Africa Temple on my temple construction progress report. Then, on March 4, 2019, the First Presidency announced the open house and dedication information for this temple.

Saturday & Sunday October 5 & 6: 189^th Semiannual General Conference:

Note: Depending on what is done by this time to clear the existing backlog of announced temples, it seems more likely than not that several new temples will be announced during this weekend.

Sunday October 20: Rededication of the Frankfurt Germany Temple (confirmed)

Note: New information received on February 22, 2019 indicated that the Frankfurt Germany Temple was anticipated to be dedicated in October. Then, on March 5, 2019, the First Presidency officially announced that this temple would be rededicated on this date. I am anticipating that the First Presidency will ask Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, the third most-senior member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the sixth most senior apostle overall, to represent them in rededicating this temple.

Monday November 4: St. George Utah Temple Renovation Closure (confirmed)

Note: This temple’s renovation was announced on January 25, 2019. Given the fact that seismic and systemic updates are anticipated to occur, I have set a preliminary general completion estimate of mid-to-late 2022.

Early-to-mid November: Rededication of the Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple

Note: On February 22, 2019, I also learned that the Baton Rouge Louisiana Temple could be rededicated at some point in October. But in view of the March 5, 2019 announcement of the rededication for the Frankfurt Germany Temple, I have pushed my estimate for this temple’s rededication (which will likely be done privately) to this period of time.

Mid-to-late November: Dedication of the Arequipa Peru Temple (167^th operating temple)

Note: The Arequipa Peru Temple has been ahead of schedule for a while now, and a Church member living in Peru spotted the cornerstone engraving, which reads: “Erected 2019”. With that in mind, I feel reasonably confident that this temple will be dedicated at around this time, and that this temple could thus likely be dedicated before the Durban South Africa Temple dedication occurs.

December: Dedication of the Durban South Africa Temple (168^th operating temple)

Note: On February 22, 2019, I received information which indicated that, due to a current blackout in South Africa, depending on how long that lasts, the temple in Durban might experience a delay towards its’ completion. Until I know one way or another whether or not that is true, I have moved my estimate to this point. If I find evidence in the future that no such delays will occur, I can and will move this temple up on this list again.

                                                                                                                                                           

Final note on 2019: Given what I have heard about 2019, it seems more likely than not that several temples will have a groundbreaking at some point during that year. With groundbreakings held in January for both the Urdaneta Philippines and Bangkok Thailand Temples, groundbreakings have also been confirmed for the Pocatello Idaho, Yigo Guam, Praia Cabo Verde, and San Juan Puerto Rico Temples. I am also anticipating that groundbreakings may be held for the Saratoga Springs Utah, Lima Peru Los Olivos, Brasilia Brazil, the Nairobi Kenya, Harare Zimbabwe, and Greater Manila Philippines Temples, most (if not all) of which could have a groundbreaking this year. But in view of the unexpected announcement of the groundbreakings for 3 of the temples President Nelson announced last year, we could also see other temples have a groundbreaking by that time as well.

2020:

Mid-January: Dedication of the Rio de Janeiro Brazil Temple (169^th operating temple)

Mid-March: Rededication of the Asuncion Paraguay Temple

Saturday & Sunday April 4 & 5: 190^th Annual General Conference

Note: Barring anything unexpected, I would anticipate several new temples being announced during this weekend.

June: Rededication of the Tokyo Japan Temple

Early-to-mid August: Dedication of the Winnipeg Manitoba Temple (170^th operating temple)

Saturday & Sunday October 3 & 4: 190^th Semiannual General Conference

Note: Temple announcements are always possible, so it is not hard to believe that a few could be announced during this General Conference.

Mid-September: Rededication of the Mesa Arizona Temple

Mid-November: Dedication of the Abidjan Ivory Coast Temple (171^st operating temple)

Note: At the groundbreaking for this temple (which occurred on November 8, 2018), Elder Neil L. Andersen, who presided at this event and gave his remarks in French, noted that construction of the temple was anticipated to take around two years. For that reason, I am moving my previous estimate for this temple’s dedication up to this point.

Mid-December: Rededication of the Washington DC Temple

Final note on 2020: Some of the announced temples that will have a groundbreaking between now and the end of 2019 could potentially be dedicated during this year. And several other announced temples (I currently have 7 on my radar) could have a groundbreaking during 2020 as well.

2021:

Saturday & Sunday April 3 & 4: 191^st Annual General Conference

Note: Depending on what happens between now (early December 2018) and the dates for this General Conference, I could easily see several new temples announced.

Mid-March: Dedication of the Yigo Guam Temple (172^nd operating temple

Mid-to-late April: Dedication of the Praia Cabo Verde Temple (173^rd operating temple)

Late April-early May: Dedication of the San Juan Puerto Rico Temple (174^th operating temple)

Mid-to-late May: Rededication of the Hamilton New Zealand Temple

June: Dedication of the Quito Ecuador Temple (175^th operating temple)

Mid-September: Dedication of the Urdaneta Philippines Temple (176^th operating temple)

Saturday & Sunday October 2 & 3: 191^st Semiannual General Conference

Note: I am hoping that by the time this particular General Conference weekend rolls around, the temple construction program of the Church will have progressed to the point where some temples will continue to be announced every six months.

Mid-November: Rededication of the Hong Kong China Temple

Note: This is just a projected estimate, based on what is currently known. As more information is revealed, this estimate could be pushed forward or back as needed.

Mid-December: Rededication of the St. George Utah Temple

Note: What I shared above about the probable timing of the rededication for the Hong Kong China Temple also applies here: As more information is made available, and as the renovation process proceeds, I will be sure to make any adjustments to this estimate that might be needed.

Final note on 2021: If, as anticipated, several more temples are announced in 2019 and 2020, and any which have not yet had a groundbreaking have that occur within that same time period, that in turn will multiply the number of known temple events which will likely occur in 2021 and the years beyond. As more is learned about future temple renovations, that will also have an impact on the number of future events.

2022:

Saturday & Sunday April 2 & 3: 192^nd Annual General Conference

Note: Since the face of the Church’s temple construction program will likely look entirely different by this time, I would anticipate the announcement of several new temples.

June: Dedication of the Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple (177^th operating temple)

Mid-August: Dedication of the Pocatello Idaho Temple (178^th operating temple)

Saturday & Sunday October 1 & 2: 192^nd Semiannual General Conference

Note:  As noted above (for the 2022 April General Conference), by this time, it is more likely than not that the face of the Church’s temple construction program will be looking entirely different. With that in mind, it seems more likely than not that other temples could be announced during this General Conference.

Mid-November: Dedication of the Bangkok Thailand Temple (179^th operating temple)

Note: Because this temple is significantly larger than temples which have been built in recent years, delays in that construction process are more likely than not. It is also worth noting that the official number for this temple is almost certain to change as other temples have a groundbreaking and construction and are potentially completed before this one is.

Final note: As noted a few different times here, within the 3.9 years or so between now and the end of 2022, the face of the Church’s temple construction program will likely look very different. We currently have a Church President who has clearly prioritized bringing the temples to the people, and the fact that he announced 19 new temples within his first year as such verifies that beyond doubt. I also am equally certain he will do all he can to clear the existing backlog of announced temples. With that in mind, there will likely be many more temple events to add to this list in the future. I am committed to bringing updates in that regard to you all as I receive them.

Updated Sections of My Temple Construction Progress Report

Hello again, everyone! In light of the unexpected announcement made earlier today (about the groundbreakings being set for the Quito Ecuador and Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple), I had to revisit three sections of my temple construction progress report. So I wanted to pass along those updates, consisting of the following sections: Groundbreaking scheduled, groundbreaking anticipated, and  announced temples.

Those updates follow 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.

Groundbreaking scheduled:

174. Pocatello Idaho Temple: Youth service project held March 5, 2019; preparing for groundbreaking, which is scheduled for Saturday March 16, 2019; completion estimated sometime during mid-to-late 2022.

175. Yigo Guam Temple: Yigo chapel closed on February 24, 2019 in preparation for demolition; groundbreaking scheduled for Saturday May 4, 2019; completion estimated sometime during early-to-mid 2021.

176. Praia Cabo Verde Temple: Preparing for groundbreaking, which is scheduled for Saturday May 4, 2019; completion estimated sometime during early-to-mid-2021.

177. San Juan Puerto Rico Temple: Trujillo Alto Ward chapel closed on January 20, 2019 in preparation for demolition; groundbreaking scheduled for Saturday May 4, 2019; completion estimated sometime during early-to-mid 2021.

178. Quito Ecuador Temple: Preparing for groundbreaking, which is scheduled for Saturday May 11, 2019; completion estimated sometime during mid-2021.

179. Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple: Existing institute building and meetinghouse closed on January 27, 2019 in preparation for demolition; groundbreaking scheduled for Saturday June 8, 2019; completion estimated sometime during early-to-mid 2022.

Groundbreaking anticipated:

180. Saratoga Springs Utah Temple: Government approval phase; awaiting official site confirmation and release of artist’s rendering; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2019.

181. Brasilia Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; property fence installed around temple site; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2019.

182. Greater Manila Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official name announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2019.

183. Nairobi Kenya Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site confirmation; groundbreaking could occur in mid-to-late 2019.

Note: The Church of Jesus Christ Temples site noted in mid-February 2019 that a site had been procured for this temple. But during President Nelson’s visit to Nairobi in April 2018, a public affairs representative had noted that this temple would be smaller, and that a dedication for it was anticipated to occur sometime in 2021. So it seems reasonable to assume that a groundbreaking could occur within the next 12 months, but hopefully sooner, if all goes well.

184. Harare Zimbabwe Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; President Nelson visited potential site on April 17, 2018; groundbreaking anticipated in late 2019.

Note: Although the site visited by President Nelson in April 2018 has not been confirmed as the official location for the temple, Elder Andersen, in a November meeting with Zimbabwe’s Vice President, noted that the Church hoped to break ground for that temple in the late months of 2019. So I have no doubt that will be able to occur.

185. Salta Argentina Temple: Planning and approval phase; groundbreaking could occur in late 2019-early 2020.

Note: The site has already been confirmed for this temple.

186. Mendoza Argentina Temple: Planning and approval phase; groundbreaking could occur in late 2019-early 2020.

187. Puebla Mexico Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in early 2020.

Note: A Church member living in Mexico reports that the area presidency is scouting that city for temple locations, and that construction could begin in the early months of 2020.

Announced Temples (for which more information is needed before I provide a groundbreaking estimate):

188. Layton Utah Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

Note: A potential site has already been identified (though not yet confirmed) for this temple.

189. Richmond Virginia Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

Note: A potential site has already been identified (though not yet confirmed).

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

Note: On March 7, 2019, based on the unexpected timing whereby groundbreakings were announced for the Quito Ecuador and Lima Peru Los Olivos Temples, and given the anticipated timing for the groundbreaking of the Harare Zimbabwe Temple, the Belem Brazil Temple is the only other one announced in April 2016 that has not yet had a groundbreaking. And since President Nelson has given some priority to the “oldest” among the announced temples, I am hoping the Lord will similarly surprise us with word on this temple’s site and groundbreaking in the not-too-distant future.

191. Managua Nicaragua Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

Note: I found out several years ago that the Church had held land in reserve for a temple in this city for a while now, so I hope that means a site confirmation will occur sooner rather than later.

192. Bengaluru India Temple: Planning and approval phase; announced April 1, 2018; awaiting official site announcement; President Nelson toured potential locations on April 19, 2018.

193. Auckland New Zealand Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

Note: I found out several years ago that the Church had held land in reserve for a temple in this city for a while now (with that fact confirmed by a Church member living in that area), so I hope that means a site confirmation will occur sooner rather than later.

194. Phnom Penh Cambodia Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement; groundbreaking could occur in mid-2020.

Note: A potential site has already been identified (though not yet confirmed) for this temple.

195. Washington County Utah Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official city (and site) announcement.

196. Salvador Brazil Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

197. Lagos Nigeria Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

198. Cagayan de Oro Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

199. Davao Philippines Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

200. Yuba City, California Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official site announcement.

201. Russia Temple: Planning and approval phase; awaiting official city (and site) announcement.

BREAKING TEMPLE NEWS: Groundbreakings Announced for Quito Ecuador and Lima Peru Los Olivos Temples

Hello again, everyone! Breaking temple news has just been reported via the Church of Jesus Christ Newsroom. Groundbreaking ceremonies have been set to occur for the Quito Ecuador and Lima Peru Los Olivos Temples. Since both temples are within the boundaries of the South America Northwest Area, the president of that area, Elder Enrique R. Falabella will preside over both ceremonies.

The Quito Ecuador Temple groundbreaking will be held on Saturday May 11, and the Lima Peru Los Olivos Temple will have its' groundbreaking on Saturday June 8. Construction on the Quito temple will likely take around 2-3 years, while the construction process for the Los Olivos Temple may take 3-4 years to complete. I am grateful that both of these temples will have groundbreaking ceremonies before the end of the first half of 2019, and this will bring the total number of temple groundbreakings within that time to 8, which will seriously help the existing backlog to be diminished.

I do continue to monitor all Church news and temple developments, and will pass word of those along 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, 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.