The Church recently organized its first branch in the Nigerian State of Kogi. The Idah Branch was organized in the city of Idah and pertains to the Nigeria Enugu Mission. Kogi State has approximately 4.5 million inhabitants and numbered among the few predominantly Christian states in Nigeria without an official Latter-day Saint presence prior to the creation of the Idah Branch. The last time the Church organized its first branch in a state in Nigeria without a previous Church presence was when the Ado-Ekiti Branch was created in Ekiti State in 2016. Now, all states in southern Nigeria have at least one official ward or branch.
Wednesday, December 9, 2020
First Branch in Kogi State, Nigeria Organized
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I presume that they speak Igbo there in this pioneer state (Kogi), but apart from the three biggest languages of Nigeria: Igbo, Yoruba, and Hausa, there are quite a few smaller languages and dialects that represent millions of people in Nigeria, a country that may have more people than the US in some current peoples' lifetimes. Maybe Fulani is there, like in other African nations?
How many Nigerian languages do we have the Book of Mormon in?
The Pierre Branch, from the previous Pierre South Dakota District (disorganized in 2019), has recently been upgraded to Ward status.
97 Dec 09, 2020 Pierre Ward Pierre, South Dakota
Christopher, is there any way to detremine the membership of the new Pierre Ward? I thought the guidelines called for a minimum of 165 members and 15 active Melchizadek Prieshood brethren for a ward to be created. And with the new Casper WY East Stake, I believe the original Casper Stake had to have in excess of 6,000 members. Is that correct? Thanks very much.
With the Casper Wyoming East Stake being created. I could see a temple being built in Cheyenne, WY. Maybe it makes more sense to put one in the Rapid City, SD area and take in part of SW South Dakota and even western portion of Nebraska. I would think part of the Kearney Nebraska Stake, could be taken in to the temple district, but probably not the whole stake.
The teaching on polygamy by the LDS church is an abomination before God. Don’t you find it troubling that all of the hearsay quotes were published after Joseph Smith was killed…and so he was not able to dispute them? In 1852, 8 years after Joseph’s death, Brigham Young introduced Sec. 132 at a conference in Utah saying that it had been kept in his desk all that time. Brigham was unable to produce the original document, which he said Emma burned. When asked, Emma responded, “It is false in all its parts, made out of whole cloth, without any foundation in truth.”
Review for yourselves how Joseph Smith Fought Polygamy throughout his life.
If you believe that Joseph Smith taught and practiced polygamy, then you have to also acknowledge that he lied about it. And if he lied about it, then is it possible that he also lied about all the rest – the vision in the grove, the Book of Mormon, the revelations in the D & C, the Inspired Version, etc.? However, if Joseph Smith was telling the truth, then the truth of the restoration remains…but the validity of the Mormon Church from Brigham Young to the present is revealed as false. Joseph Smith did not write section 132, or any revelation revealed after his death.
We know from scripture that there are “save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil; wherefore, whoso belongeth not to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the mother of abominations; and she is the whore of all the earth.”
And also, God “will work a great and a marvelous work among the children of men; a work which shall be everlasting, either on the one hand or on the other—either to the convincing of them unto peace and life eternal, or unto the deliverance of them to the hardness of their hearts and the blindness of their minds unto their being brought down into captivity, and also into destruction”
That time of a marvelous work is now, the end of the world, and you must choose what church you belong to. Fast and pray and “ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
Jacob 2
1 Nephi 14
Idah is 180 miles drive from Benin City where a temple is planned. It is only 93 miles in a straight air line.
Idah had a population of 80,000 per the 2006 census. It may be significantly bigger now. It is the historic capital of the Igala kingdom.
In 2006 Kogi state had 3.3 million people which is more than Utah today. Besides the Iguala it has large Ebire. Bassa Nge and Okun populations. I have to admit that I have little understanding of these ethnic groups. It does not help that it is a chore to get Americans to refer to Nigeria as a country and recognize that people do not come from some undifferentiated area called Africa.
Eduardo they do not speak Igbo in Kogi state. Igbo is an Igboid language. Iguala is a Yorubid language. The language in Idah is closer to that in Lagos than in Abah.
Nigeria has hundreds of languages spoken. The number of ethnic groups and languages in the country is truly dizzying.
The Book of Mormon is currently available in Efik, Igbo, and Yoruba.
With a ward now operating in Pierre, every U.S. state capital now has at least one ward. Jackson, MS and Albany, NY are mostly covered by branches, but adjacent wards take in portions of the city limits. Even the capital cities of the five primary insular areas of the U.S. are covered by wards, the only exception being Charlotte Amalie, VI.
According to his bio, President Thomas S. Monson had served as a counselor in the stake presidency of the "Temple View Stake". Does that stake still exist today? Was it renamed? I can't find it.
Reported today 12/14 on Classic Maps, the "Ipoh Malaysia District - 413100" consolidated with the "Kuala Lumpur Malaysia District - 608270".
"Districts Closed
6 Dec 14, 2020 Ipoh Malaysia District"
http://www.fullerconsideration.com/units.php
https://classic.churchofjesuschrist.org/maps/#ll=4.385268,101.392055&z=7&m=google.hybrid&layers=stakecenter&q=608270&find=stake:608270
The first YSA congregation in Latin America was organized in October, but just mentioned today. I find it very strange that Botswana of all places got a YSA congregation before all of Latin America. https://noticias.laiglesiadejesucristo.org/articulo/abren-barrio-jas-en-la-ciudad-de-mexico
The Church Newsroom Recently published a story about the first YSA ward in Latin America, like we discussed on this blog a couple months ago:
https://noticias.laiglesiadejesucristo.org/articulo/abren-barrio-jas-en-la-ciudad-de-mexico
The Ward meets in a meetinghouse close to the Mexico MTC, formerly the Benemérito de las Americas high school. The ward boundaries are rather compact, so I'm not sure if they are limiting membership to these boundaries of if anyone can attend. The Ward is named after the university that is in the area. The news story mentioned that many young people come from around the country to study, so it seems like that may have been a consideration when forming the Ward.
The area president is also quoted as saying that they are only authorized to create YSA ward in Mexico City, but indicated that if the ward does well, there could be more in Mexico and Latin America. So it seems like this is a trail run. Because of the small boundaries of the ward, I think it is possible that more are organized in the medium term. I'm sure there are enough members for a YSA stake.
I think this is good development. Many members in the city were burned by the closing of the school there. Hopefully these YSA wards can build on that culture of youth in the city. I do worry a little bit about the state of the rest of the wards who will loose their active young single members. I suppose they may have had this in mind when they restructured the ward boundaries in the City in 2018.
Reported today 12/15 on Classic Maps and www.fullerconsideration.com/units.php :
The new "Palmas Brazil North Stake - 2164779" was recently organized in the Brazil Brasilia Mission.
https://classic.churchofjesuschrist.org/maps/#ll=-10.135183,-48.253027&z=10&m=google.road&layers=stakecenter&q=2164779&find=stake:2164779
26 Dec 15, 2020 Palmas Brazil North Stake
Palmas Brazil North Stake (2164779)
Estaca Palmas Brasil North
6 Dec 2020
Luzimangues Ward (2103281) Ala Luzimangues
Miracema Ward (323500) Ala Miracema
Palmas 1st Ward (337471) Ala Palmas 1
Palmas 2nd Ward (356778) Ala Palmas 2
Paraíso Ward (366986) Ala Paraíso (To)
Salt Lake Temple View Stake was organized as Temple Stake in 1946, and renamed Temple View Stake a few months later. It became Salt Lake Temple View Stake in 1974 when stake names were standardized. It was divided between the Salt Lake Wells and Salt Lake Liberty stakes in 1979.
According to Rick's churchofjesuschristtemples.org site, the Mendoza Argentina Temple groundbreaking ceremony has been rescheduled for tomorrow Thursday, December 17th, 2020. Making it the last of the 21 groundbreaking ceremonies that were done in 2020.
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/mendoza-argentina-temple/
The Temple View Stake was at some point dissolved. I believe it covered the area immediately south-west of the Salt Lake Temple. The population of this area fell with the building of I-15. Also as people moved out of the former cramped housing in the area.
Placentia California Stake and Fullerton California Stake were combined to form the Brea California Stake. 2 or 3 Wards were dissolved in the process, and another ward was transferred to the Anaheim California East Stake. This leaves 14 stakes in Orange County, California.
Unknown, The Kearney Nebraska Stake is huge and when I used to live there it was one of the biggest stakes in the United States. I remember growing up in North Platte and every was so excited that they would have to drive less to go to the Winter Quarters Temple, and not having to drive to the Denver Colorado Temple. So I being the smart one I looked up the mileage from the meeting house in North Platte to the two different temples and the Denver Temple was 287 miles from the meeting house and the Winter Quarters Temple was 286 miles! So much closer I told them! The sad thing is the new Ft. Collins Collins temple is 248 miles to their meeting house. So even a temple in Cheyenne or Casper would not be much close than that for those members in the western edge of the stake. However since the Stake Center is in Kearney it would go off were the stake center is and not where some of the units are.
Unknown, I believe the old Temple View Stake was replaced by the Pioneer Stake. The Cannon Stake is adjacent south, so maybe both of them were in the old Temple View Stake. Incidentally, there is a Temple View Stake today, but it is in New Zealand near the Hamilton New Zealand Temple.
I can see multiple temples being announced for Nigeria in the foreseeable future. Like Abuja, Port Harcourt, Ibadan Uyo and Warri for example
Unknown: (ironic name) The Salt Lake Temple View Stake was discontinued in 1979, according to my 2013 Church Almanac. (Oh, how I miss these books!)
It is numbered as 155 in Utah, began in 1946. Perhaps it merged into Salt Lake Wells and Salt Lake Liberty Stakes.
Since 2002 there is the Draper Utah South Mountain Stake, also, if I am interpreting it right.
Reported yesterday 12/17, the "Placentia California Stake - 502340", was consolidated with the old "Fullerton California Stake - 507822", which was renamed the "Brea California Stake - 507822".
https://classic.churchofjesuschrist.org/maps/#ll=33.896427,-117.877365&z=12&m=google.hybrid&layers=stakecenter&q=507822&find=stake:507822
The Brother of Jared, if you look back at accounts of the Savior's ministry as contained in the Bible, when He healed people, He gave one of three instructions:
1. Do not tell anyone.
2. Only tell select individuals.
3. Make known to all what God has done for you, and give Him the credit.
Did using any approach above the other two minimize the miracles? No. But that demonstrates that the Lord gave distinct instructions for specific scenarios.
Similarly, the Lord used three approaches, each tailored to unique scenarios, when He was brought before the political leaders of His day:
1. Say nothing.
2. Answer the questions asked.
3. Boldly testify of His divine role.
And the way the individuals involved responded to these approaches in each case we're also telling as far as their understanding of and reaction to the actions taken or words spoken or unspoken by the Lord.
With that in mind, if you research plural marriage in this dispensation in light of accounts written at the time, you'd know that Joseph Smith only instituted plural marriage in this dispensation after an angel with a drawn sword informed him that he (the angel) had been commanded to slay him (Brother Joseph) if he failed to follow through on instituting the practice. Among the apostles serving at that time, several had a faith crisis, others wished for death, seeing that as preferable to obedience, and many Church members at that time called for declaring Brother Joseph a fallen prophet.
But you would have also learned that, just before plural marriage was to be introduced to the Church, Brother John C. Bennett, who had helped secure the charter for the city of Nauvoo, and who also served for a time as the mayor of Nauvoo and an assistant Church leader to the prophet, used his charisma, good looks, and Church and city positions to try and convince some females in and out of the Church, that a process he called "spiritual wifery" was sanctioned by the Church and instituted with the full support of the Prophet Joseph Smith.
So just as the Lord was readying His Church, and its' leaders and members, to accept and practice plural marriage, John C. Bennett introduced a corrupted version of it. All of this information is well-documented in Church history as a matter of record. So Joseph Smith had to be careful about the way in which he instituted plural marriage, and it wasn't until John C. Bennett's apostate and depraved knock-off of that practice was a distant memory before the Church could practice plural marriage according to the revelation received by Joseph Smith on the matter.
"By their fruits ye shall know them." The scriptures also teach that the devil and his followers can quote scripture when it suits their purposes.
The reality of it is, if the Lord inspired the Restoration, and I know He did, then it follows that the Book of Mormon and all other scripture given through Joseph Smith is also true, and all doctrines, principles and practices instituted in this dispensation are also true and valid.
And you can either accept that or not. But if you reject anything done by or through Joseph Smith, then if any of it isn't true, it follows that he must have deceived all who embraced everything he started, which, by extension, includes the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, which also includes the two chapters to which you referred above. And by extension, that also means that the user name under which you posted your comment is referencing someone who never existed, and was also made up by Joseph Smith.
For myself, I know and bear witness that Joseph Smith was what he claimed to be, and therefore, everything he was inspired to do was done under heavenly direction, full stop.
Location announced for Lindon Utah Temple near Oak Canyon Jr High. Corner of 800 East and Center.
It was Dissolved in the Lake seventies
A couple things:
From an aerial photo on Rick's site it looks like the rumor mill called it nearly exactly on the Linfon Temple location, it will front Center Street across from the junior high, basically at most it is within a block of where locals had thought it would go as early as the evening after its announcement.
On the polygamy matter, this broadcast has the most current Church teaching on it, from Elder Cook himself, have no timestamp, it came up in the questions he answered. Church website link, it is also in the Gospel Library app.
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/broadcasts/worldwide-devotional-for-young-adults/2018/09/september-2018-worldwide-devotional-for-young-adults?lang=eng
Which is still almost twice as many as Michigan.
What was the highest number of stakes Orange County ever had?
I believe this puts California at a net loss of 2 stakes in 2020.
The Kalamazoo Stake is as I understand split assigned to both Detroit and Chicago Temples.
While getting approval to organize temple trips to other than tour assigned temples is hard, the handbook clearly says individual members can go where they choose.
Toledo Ohio Stake and London Ontario Stake are also functionally assigned to multiple temples. I am sure there are other cases.
The Utah County Parcel Map showed that the church recently purchased the property in Lindon. When the temple was announced in October, the church owned three parcels where some houses stand north of Oak Canyon Junior High. The field was owned by Walker Farm. A few weeks later, the parcel was updated to show that the field had been acquired by the church. There was a bit of chatter on Facebook of people who claimed to be involved in the sale. So I guess everything is an open secret in Utah.
I am running a fun little survey to determine people's favorite temple designs of 2020. It's kind of like a reward show with different award categories. I would appreciate it if more people would submit their voting preferences:
http://www.thisweekinmormons.com/2020/12/vote-now-the-2020-this-week-in-mormons-temple-awards/
Orange County had 16 stakes until recently. Garden Grove Stake was dissolved a few years ago, and now Placentia Stake. Both located in North Orange County. North OC has older neighborhoods and demographics are shifting to being more diverse (namely Latinos, Koreans, and Vietnamese).
At the same time, Mission Viejo Stake and the newer San Clemente Stake in South Orange County continues to grow with several new Wards recently added, and a new meetinghouse built in San Juan Capistrano.
Also, half of Long Beach East Stake falls in Orange County too.
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