Utah
The Church organized three new stakes in Utah.
The Pleasant View Utah Orchard Springs Stake was organized on February 9th from a division of the Pleasant View Utah Stake and the Pleasant View Utah South Stake. The new stake includes the following eight wards: the Misty Meadows, Pleasant View 5th, Pleasant View 7th, Pleasant View 13th, Pleasant View 15th, Pleasant View 16th, Pleasant View 17th, and Willow Brook Wards. There are now three stakes in Pleasant View, Utah.
The Saratoga Springs Utah Springside Stake was organized on February 9th from a division of the Saratoga Springs Utah Saratoga Hills Stake (organized in 2017) and the Saratoga Springs Utah Mount Saratoga Stake (organized in 2016). The new stake includes the following seven wards: the Heritage 1st, Heritage 2nd, Legacy Farms 1st, Legacy Farms 2nd, Saratoga Springs 1st, Saratoga Springs 2nd, and Saratoga Springs 10th Wards. There are now eight stakes in Saratoga Springs, Utah.
The West Jordan Utah Maples Stake was organized on February 2nd from the West Jordan Utah Sunset Ridge Stake and the West Jordan Utah Sycamores Stake. The new stake includes five wards, including the Maples 1st, Maples 2nd, Maples 3rd, Maples 4th, and Maples 5th Wards. There are now 22 stakes in West Jordan, Utah
There are now 607 stakes and one district in Utah.
South Africa
The Church organized a new district in South African on February 2nd. The Klerksdorp South Africa District was organized from three mission branches in the South Africa Johannesburg Mission, including the Jouberton, Klerksdorp, and Potchefstroom Branches. The newest of these three branches, the Potchefstroom Branch, was organized in 2003, whereas the Klerksdorp Branch has operated since 1966. This area of South Africa on the outskirts of Johannesburg has experienced slow growth. However, the organization of the district may indicate improvements in local leadership development and increases in active membership to warrant the organization of a district. One of the branches in the new district had approximately 50 active members in late 2016 per a report from a local member.
There are now 17 stakes and 10 districts in South Africa. All 10 of the districts in South Africa have been organized since 2007. The first stake in South Africa was organized in 1970.
71 comments:
Nice. Hope South Africa continues to grow.
Matt, thank you for this report. I especially appreciated hearing about the stake creations here in Utah, and the creation of the new South African district, since my mom was born and raised there. It will be particularly interesting to me to see how soon the next South African temple is announced. I know there has been some political unrest and lots of criminal activity in some areas thereof. Around 12 years or so ago, my mom's uncle was murdered there, so South Africa has been troubled by a variety of factors for a while now But based on the blessings pronounced on the Durban temple and the Saints who will be benefitted thereby, hopefully that temple can help turn the tide in a few ways in South Africa. And the fact that such remarkable Church growth is happening there despite less-than-ideal conditions that exist in some areas is inspiring indeed. Thanks again, Matt, for this wonderful and timely report.
I'm projecting the next temple in Weber County to be in North Ogden/Pleasant View. I expect it will be announced not too long after Layton is finished.
Any thoughts?
I think it depends on how busy the Ogden Temple is. I can see a temple announced between Ogden and Brigham City in the next 5 years, but first, I think we'll see more temples announced in parts of Africa where the distances between temples are so great for those Saints. I hope that the Ogden Temple is utilized enough to make another one just north needed. That would be great.
In all the prognosticating that goes on here about where temples will be sited, I've never heard any discussion about how many people it takes to staff a temple. Is there any reliable info about that, per temple? I wonder if James, or Matt, might have statistics. I remember a friend telling me that there were around 1000 workers at the Logan temple, and possibly 1500 at Salt Lake. Does anyone know if that is accurate? Of course, a smaller temple would require a much smaller staff. As I hope and pray for a (small)temple to be announced in our area, I wonder how many workers we would need to provide.
Matt, It's great to see your update that the Nampula Mozambique District (2017) is scheduled to become a Stake on April 19th.
Staffing requirements vary from temple to temple, based on size, how frequently it can run endowments, other factors relating to other ordinances. A large one like Provo will need 4,000 in a given week while a small one may need very few.
The three really small temples being built will need very few workers. Those are the size of a large house, and will have some rooms that will be used for different things at different times.
So it now even depends on what the member base is that may also help determine what size temple will be built, often this is known from the number of stakes close to where they want to build it. But the last three Asian temples also are quite large for their member base, so they also factor in anticipated growth. Bengaluru is one such example.
I actually have see discussions of staffing numbers. They very per temple size and how often it is open.
Nancy, I am an ordinance worker in the Mount Timpanogos Temple and a couple of weeks ago, a member of the Temple Presidency said that right now we have 4,300 temple workers with the numbers still increasing. To staff a large temple like Mount Timpanogos it take a minimum of about 3,000 per week. James Anderson, is correct that it really depends on the size of the temple. Some temples are not open all day long either and so they can staff it with what is needed for the specific schedule of that temple. For example, the Kansas City Missouri Temple is open for endowments from 9:30-7:30 with 5 endowment sessions. This temple would need a lot less workers than a large, busy temple would need. A foreign temple, such as Accra Ghana, would need far fewer than even Kansas City. That small West African country temple has 7 endowment sessions per day going from 7:00-6:00 pm. I don't know for sure, but I would guess that a small temple could probably manage with about 30-50 people per day (depending on how long the shifts are). In the Columbus Ohio Temple, the temple workers move between initiatory and the endowment and so there is sometimes a bit of a delay for a patron. Many of them operate with a limited number of ordinance workers. Hope that helps a bit.
I think it's definitely worth considering. The imminent likelihood thereof may be a different question.
Nancy, the number of workers does vary per temple size, hours of operation, number of days open per week, associated facilities, etc.
For some small temples, especially those with multipurpose spaces (Yigo, Praia, San Juan), since the sealing room doubles as an ordinance room, a sealer could run endowment sessions as well. And for some temple presidencies, one or both counselors can also double as recorders/security/engineering. Hope that info helps.
October 1997 when the new temples along with two larger ones were first announced, President Hinckley laid that out. That was also the conference where, seven hours before the announcement, I found a news story from a Houston, Texas newspaper, with rendering, of plans to build one there.
It does seem that there are fewer units per stake, at least in the U.S. and possibly worlwide. This is positive, I feel, so that the stake leaders can have closer and easier access to all their members. Everyone hopefully will benefit. I always wanted stake presidents, and all the group leaders (former auxiliaries) to work more with less active members and missionary work with more investigators (friends?) and non-members.
So now excommunicated people are called... I forget.
And disfellowshipped are restricted members...?
It can be difficult to remember new nomenclature and vocabulary for older terms formerly used. Inspired though it may be.
Sometimes people interpret the changes as faults or nitpicking, but language and naming is part of how we live the Gospel. And, the ways in which we adapt to these changes and alterations indicates our attitudes and faith, receptivity.
All leads to show our testimony and faith, or overall belief in the Lord and His institution, the Restoration.
Thanks, James, JMR, JPL, for your input. I am an ordinance worker at Monticello, and I recently was told there are about 350 workers there. The high numbers you mentioned for the bigger temples makes me think my numbers for SLC and Logan must be way too low. It's interesting, and astounding, that a big temple uses 2 stakes worth of people every week to operate.
In the temple plan presented by President Hinckley one counselor would be the recorder the other the engineer. However some things suggest to me in Deteoit they may have a church employee as the temple engineer who also does that work for the buildings in at least 2 stakes.
I think Detroit has around 200 temple workers, but some only come every other week. The schedule is 1 endowment session Tue and Wed. Thur and Fri do morning and evening sessions but not afternoon and them all day Saturday.
However today the Detroit Temple is open all day for stake temple day for my stake. I wish I had taken the day off and gone there. I will in the fall. I'm not used to having paid days off.
My number for Detroit Temple may be too low.
I just started working at the Boston temple. I don't know how many workers total there are, but I think there are about 10 workers on my Thursday morning shift, including 1 or 2 temple missionary couples who are possibly there every day.
We have a lot more sessions per day than the other northeastern temples, 12 sessions every Tuesday through Saturday. In Boston, each worker rotates to do a little bit of everything, except where men and women have different assignments.
I wouldn't say the attendance is heavy on weekdays, sometimes a session is cancelled for lack of people. Or occurs only with temple workers as patrons. I'll try to find out how many workers there are.
Nancy, one more thing that I will mention to you. The Mount Timpanogos Temple has 4 shifts per day (6-10, 10-2, 2-6, and 6-10). This lends itself to more people being able to work a shorter shift. My parents work in the Vernal Temple and they only have three shifts. It really is up to the discretion of the Temple Presidency how they want that temple to operate.
So how does a huge temple like Cardston find the staff to operate with such a small temple district? How will the Washington D.C. temple be able to operate after the Richmond temple is built?
Just speculating on your question, Christopher, that maybe the reason why Cardston can operate is because there are so many faithful members of the Church there that consecrate their time to serve in the temple. I have no way of validating that. I would give the same answer about Washington DC. The members will need to step up and be willing to serve more than they are. I also think that a lot of the temple workers are temple missionaries. I know that a couple can serve for as little as 6 months, and in an expensive area like Virginia and Maryland, those short missions are much more feasible and easier on the budget. That's one of the reasons why the Brethren are encouraging more couples to serve missions in their retirement years. In many areas of the world, a man or woman will be endowed one day and asked to be an Ordinance Worker the next day. This tidbit was reported last year to the Vernal Temple ordinance workers by Elder Kevin R. Duncan of the Seventy, who is the assistant executive director in the Temple Department. Temple missionaries are in high demand all around the world.
LDS Business College to rebrand to Ensign College:
https://www.ksl.com/article/46722110?fbclid=IwAR15LzOKUzsRkSNflABLQ3l0iq_Fb63D2pWNvX8uKF7VAYwXD-cXNvIUHno
Also, a number of church related Facebook pages in eastern europe have also started to make moves to rename and/or merge pages following the counsel that President Nelson gave about using the proper title of the church.
Ensign college will also add a few bachelor's degrees. The Domaine name ensign.edu.gh is already taken. I wonder what it will be.
Part of being able to have a temple in an area is the willingness and ability to staff the temple.
from a theoretical standpoint, I think about the absolute bare minimum would be 3 men and 2 women per shift.
Realistically, you need enough to sufficiently meet the demands of the patrons. you want each session to flow smoothly. you want to have workers at each part of the temple. you want a temple presidency to be able to handle delicate situations and make decisions. You want shift coordinators to be able to coordinate the schedules of the workers, you want trainers to make sure new and returning workers are taught correctly and to give correction as needed.
Some temples need hundreds, some temples need thousands.
So there really isn't a one size fits all answer, except to say, in most cases, the temples can always use willing capable obedient worthy individuals to serve where they are needed. I know that some temples in utah have an abundance of people able to work such that they release ordinance workers after a few years to allow others to have a chance, but that is the exception, not the rule.
@JMR
I can vouch for that. On my mission, just shortly after the Louisville Kentucky Temple was dedicated, an elderly couple was asked to become temple workers right after they themselves had received their endowments and been sealed (additionally, they were recent converts, as well). They were a very stalwart couple out in Owensboro, KY - regularly encouraging the other branch members to attend the temple.
There are many stakes in the greater DC area and also in Baltimore area. Bear in mind new policies make it so members can now serve as temple workers before missions, when they are mothers of children under 18 or serving in Bishoprics.
The Church has tried to move away from using missionaries to operate temples. In Detroit and many other temples built in the same era they have never had missionaries assigned to the temple.
Fow what it is worth the only people I knew who were temple missionaries in the DC temple were called as missionaries from within the temple district.
My Dad has been a temple worker in Detroit for over 10 years. I think there might be one or two temple workers who have been there the whole 20 years of its existence.
I know this has nothing to do with this but I feel like I have to say it...
Earlier this week a branch was created in San Juan Chamula, which is a tiny town outside of San Cristobal de las Casas (more than likely it belongs to the district of San Cristobal de las Casas).
This is especially significant because it has been an area of religious conflict for decades. The missionaries back when I was serving my mission in that region were prohibited from even setting foot in the city because of the conflicts. There were stories about "dissident" religious people being forced out of the city simply because they no longer wanted to practice the type of Catholicism that was had by the people there.
The area is mostly Tzotzil speaking and it might be gobbled up by the Tzotzil district (the Chojolhó district) though geographically it is much closer to San Cristobal de las Casas.
There would be missionaries that served in the region that swore that there would be missionaries at the Grand Mosque in Mecca before there would be missionaries in Chamula. I am happy they were wrong.
The Lord moves his work...
Bryan, is that Guatemala near Quetzaltenango? I don't hear those names a lot.
John Patrick Lambert, I am not going to debate with you, but I know that in lots of areas of the Church, temple missionaries are still needed. The ideal, as you've mentioned, is to have local members fill those positions, but when it isn't possible to do so adequately, the Church is very grateful for those who can serve as temple missionaries. I long for the day when we don't need temple missionaries and that every temple can be self sustaining. Until that happens, the consecrated service of retired couples who are willing to leave their homes, grandchildren, etc is very much needed.
I just came across an article on missionaries being assigned to Wadesboro, North Carolina. It appears they are working to start a group there.
My name is John Pack Lambert. Please stop writing my name incorrectly. That is very insulting.
The Aba Nigeria Temple was closed for a time because when it was first built it relied heavily on temple missionaries. The security situation there lead to not assigning temple missionaries there. This situation and disruption may have caused the Church to exercise caution in building temples in volatile areas.
It may also be behind the delay with the Harare Temple. Training workers abroad and sending them home is in some ways easier than sending missionaries there.
That was the philosophy used with the Laie Temple and the rise and fall of Iosepa even if Laie had many Haole Temple worker missionaries.
Probably southern Mexico. Tzotzil is spoken in Chiapas and Oaxaca.
Overall Mexico is more Catholic than Guatemala and El Salvador although some of this observation is 20 years old.
John Pack Lambert, I didn't mean to spell your name incorrectly. Sorry about that. That was an accident and I wasn't trying to be insulting. Please forgive me.
When I served in Nauvoo this past summer there were dozens (probably around 60 or so) Temple Missionary couples called to serve in the Nauvoo Temple. So yes, Temple missionaries still exist. When a missionary couple fills out a request for a full time missionary calling it is one of the assignments they can be given. I think you are looking at church service missions, which are different.
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I think the Nauvoo Illinois Temple may need extra missionaries, at least seasonally (Summer). It is a major tourist destination for historical/religious pilgrimage travel. The same for Palmyra New York and Omaha (Winter Quarters) Nebraska. I think they would need extra workers during the times that the temple patrons are largely from outside of the temple district.
The same can apply to other areas that have a lot of tourist, such as Laie Hawaii, Orlando(as part of a Disney World trip), etc.
The temple in Frankfurt still has about 10 missionary couples, a couple from the U.S. and the rest from the actual temple district. During the week, they're still needed. On Friday afternoons and Saturdays, I think local workers would be sufficient, but there aren't that many members nearby who can come and serve during regular "work hours."
Brasilia Temple rendering:
https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/brasilia-brazil-temple-rendering-released
Due to the coronavirus emergency, missionaries serving in the Italy Milan Mission near their scheduled release date (from now to May) will return home today.
While that would not surprise me, I don't see an official announcement yet on the church's news page. It also seems to have taken root in Germany too and is starting to surface in other countries in Europe.
My parents are one of the missionary couples at the Laie Hawaii Temple. One for each shift and they rotate each week. My dad mentioned one reason was due to traffic issues as the road to Laie is a small 2 lane road that, if problems arise such as traffic accident, extra traffic or construction, those living outside Laie hace a hard time getting the to work their shift.
They also looked at serving in many of the temples in the northeast of the US and Canada, so most of those temples have missionary opportunities and needs there. Guatemala City Temple does also.
I live in Cardston temple district. There are a lot of members in surrounding communities that serve in the temple. A lot. The temple district has a lot of members and temple service is kind of a big part of our culture.
Got a message from a missionary serving in Japan. They are cancelling all church services indefinitely.
"Effective immediately and until further notice, all church buildings in Japan will be closed. ALthough members will not gather together for SUnday meetings, including sacrament meeting, all are encouraged to meet in their homes as families. Where possible wards and branches may share spiritually uplifting messages and conduct church business via online media."
Other tidbits:
Sapporo and Fukuoka Temples will closed.
All church office buildings/family history centers will be closed.
Stake/District conferences have been canceled
Missionaries must stay isolated form the public, but can proselyte online.
Church leaders release dedication, open house dates and renderings for the Washington D.C. Temple
https://www.thechurchnews.com/temples/2020-02-27/lds-washington-dc-temple-open-house-dedication-175501
On the Church's missionary opportunity site, there are 50 temple mission opportunities currently open. Including another couple in Laie Hawaii as one couple leaves in March. There are also 11 special project needs for the temples under construction throughout the world. Lots of opportunities. The Lord needs more willing and able to serve.
This is just Temple missions.
What's with all the upcoming temples without Moroni statues? Not to put too fine a point on it, but the bigger ones just look weird and the smaller ones look like nothing more than pretty but generic churches. I can understand doing this in a handful of the world's poorest countries but for the rest of them, to say nothing of those that already have dedicated temples with Moroni statues, it seems more like a slap in the face.
Interesting question, Christopher. Rick's temple site has a list of 21 temples without an angel Moroni statue- I was surprised to realize this includes 4 temples under construction and 5 of the announced ones. Also he includes the fact the statue is being permanently removed from Hong Kong as part of the renovation. I wonder very much if we'll find out why not having the statue is becoming more common.
Maybe it's a "going back to the roots" thing. If my analysis of Rick's information is right and I am not forgetting anything, then only three of the post-Joseph Smith era temples dedicated before the 1980's had a statue originally: those three being Salt Lake, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.. (At least 6 of the other early ones had statues added later.)
For more information see this page on Rick's site:
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/library/facts/
I don't know why some of them are not going to have the Angel Moroni statue. I am sure that the Brethren have talked a good deal about it and have good reasons for it, and that is good enough for me. Maybe they'll address it at some future date.
Some cities/communities fight the church on construction permits and plans every step of the way. I imagine some are removed from the designs as part of this negotiation process in order to get the required elements approved.
Leadership Sessions of April 2020 General Conference Postponed
https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/leadership-sessions-april-2020-general-conference-postponed
https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/coronavirus-update-february-27-2020
@Adam, thanks for the update!
While I'm not surprised either. Do we have an official Church source on this? Thanks for sharing.
I asked a temple president in one of the temples that does not have a Moroni and they said it was because the church does not want to display a 'gold statue' atop a building in a poor(er) nation. It is sort of counter-intuitive and for a lot of people, shows the church only cares about fancy and expensive things. Just a thought
One thing they tried was using a white fiberglass statue. But those showed more so than the gold ones the dust, bird droppings, etc., and also yellowed, so they went back to gold. This was done on the first few Hinckley-era small temples.
The white angel was also hard to see in overcast weather.
Another reason I could think of for removing the angel statue is the confusion it sometimes causes for those not of our faith. There may be some out there who are under the impression that the Golden Angel on top of the temple is someone we worship. Leaving him off some of the temples helps dispell that rumor, along with not allowing it to even start in areas/countries where they are receiving their first temple - and that temple is an angel-less one.
This would mesh with President Nelson's push to return the focus of our faith back to Jesus Christ by emphasizing the full name of the Church. Just as he doesn't want people to believe we worship Mormon over Christ, perhaps he doesn't want people to believe we worship Moroni, either (although I recognize the current trend of leaving the statue off of some of the newer temples goes back to President Monson, as well, but Elder Nelson was around then, too, and may have had some input about it).
When the statute was put on the Salt Lake Temple it was not meant to be Moroni per se but the Angel mentioned by John in revelation. Yes these are interpreted as the sa mb e but it was later that they were openly declared to be the same.
I have to say to me the key to the elegance of temples is not having a statue of Moroni but murals on the walls.
Which does not explain why the Paris France Temple lacks one. There are lots of factors involved. Including height and other factors.
As I understand it, Colonia Juarez has 8 endowment sessions for the whole week, and the baptistry is only open every other Wednesday and Friday. (However, they do also have scheduled times for initiatories and sealings, which isn’t necessarily true even for temples in the US, and these initiatory and sealing times are typically mid-session. Means that it’s a small temple with a limited schedule, but it likely has a disproportionate number of temple workers.)
Cardston is larger than Nauvoo, but I feel like Nauvoo is a pretty similar situation (though some of the temple workers in Nauvoo, I feel, are likely to be senior missionary couples serving as temple workers).
Manhattan is still pretty dependent on temple missionaries, at least for its weekday operations. Many of the temple missionaries also pull double duty as Institute instructors and as conventional senior missionaries, but they’re still technically temple workers. I’m usually not in attendance on Saturdays, so I can’t say if it’s more locals then.)
This was definitely true in Boston, until the zoning restriction was overturned, and the Church added a Moroni statue to the temple. It’s possible that a new Moroni statue could be added to some of these temples later, perhaps as a colored fiberglass statue instead of a gold plated fiberglass statue.
For Paris, the Church went through a protracted legal fight to build the temple. There are probably lots of construction concessions that occurred that prevented the use of even a steeple, let alone a Moroni statue.
I’ve always felt that the six spire design of temple felt particularly generic-church-building-like without the six spires and Moroni statue. The small Hinkley era temples feel more temple-like because their white color and unique shape sets them apart from most meetinghouses. Perhaps these newer small temples will have something particularly temple-y about them. As for the bigger ones, I think Saratoga Springs looks particularly temple-y, like a cross of the Ogden exterior renovation with Idaho Falls. Bengaluru? Well, I noticed several of these temples were being built in city lots already owned by the church, with a meetinghouse/multipurpose building built on the same lot (similar but not quite like Hong Kong). Why not go with a multipurpose temple, like Manhattan? There are probably several reasons (keeping the temple sacred in countries and regions without real temple experience), but I have one word for you, basketball. That is to say that particularly loud activities from the chapel, such as basketball, can be heard in the temple proper. The worst part is is that the noise generally isn’t noticeable until you get into the Celestial Room (because you don’t hear it over the instruction in other parts of the endowment).
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