Sunday, October 8, 2023

New Temples Announced in October 2023 - Part II: Africa

Calabar Nigeria Temple

The Calabar Nigeria Temple will be the Church's fifth temple in Nigeria following temples in Aba (dedicated in 2005), Lagos (announced in 2018), Benin City (announced in 2020), and Eket (announced in October 2022). This marks the first time the Church has ever announced so many new temples in a country with only one dedicated temple since Mexico had at one point nine temples announced in February 1999 before a second temple was dedicated in March 1999 (which was the Colonia Juarez Mexico Temple). The new temple will likely include all four stakes and the one district located in Cross Rivers State - the smallest prospective temple district in Nigeria among temples announced. However, the Church in Cross Rivers State has experienced rapid growth during the past two decades. The first stake was organized in Calabar in 2002 from the Calabar Nigeria District, and two additional stakes were organized in the city in 2015 and 2017. The Church has maintained an official presence in Calabar since the early 1980s. Many members in the area speak Efik. Two of the stakes in Calabar appear likely to divide in the foreseeable future due to the steady creation of new wards, suggesting that there may be five stakes in the city within the next 2-3 years. Moreover, the new temple will also likely include the nearby Akamkpa Nigeria Stake (organized in 2022) and the Ugep Nigeria District (also organized in 2022). The Church previously headquartered a mission in the city of Calabar until it was relocated to Uyo within the past decade. I added Calabar to my list of likely new temples to be announced in September 2019 as a less likely location to have a temple announced.

With the steady creation of new stakes and significant active membership growth in many areas of the country (there are currently 70 stakes, 15 districts, and approximately 225,000 members in the country), Nigeria appears a likely candidate for many new temples to be announced, especially if temples service small numbers of stakes like the future Calabar Nigeria Temple. Below is a list of likely locations for future temple announcements in Nigeria (with the current number of stakes and districts likely to be serviced by each temple), given the development of the newly announced Calabar Nigeria Temple.

  • Abuja (3 stakes, 1 district)
  • Enugu (5 stakes, 4 districts)
  • Ibadan (6 stakes, 3 districts)
  • Port Harcourt (8 stakes, 1 district)
  • Umuahia (6 stakes)
  • Uyo (6 stakes)

Cape Coast Ghana Temple

The Cape Coast Ghana Temple is the Church's third temple in Ghana following the Accra Ghana Temple (dedicated in 2004) and the Kumasi Ghana Temple (announced in April 2021). The Church organized some of its first congregations in Ghana in Cape Coast in the late 1970s. The Church created its first stake in Cape Coast in 1991 followed by two additional stakes in the Cape Coast area in 2016 and 2021. The new temple will likely service the seven stakes and three districts located within the boundaries of the Ghana Cape Coast Mission (organized in 2005). I have included Cape Coast as a more likely location for a future temple for at least a couple years ago given the large number of stakes assigned to the Accra Ghana Temple, steady growth in the Cape Coast area, and distance to the Accra Ghana Temple. The Church reported 101,924 members at year-end 2022. There are now 29 stakes and 11 districts in Ghana.

Luanda Angola Temple

The Luanda Angola Temple is the Church's first temple in Angola. The temple announcement is unprecedented for Africa as there has never been a temple announced in an African country with as few Latter-day Saints as Angola (4,760 as of year-end 2022) and where there is only one stake (although this stake appears likely to divide in the near future). The Johannesburg South Africa Temple was previously the temple announced in an African country with the fewest members at the time of the announcement (approximately 8,500 members in two stakes in 1981). I added Luanda to the less likely list of potential locations for a temple announcement in February 2022. There are numerous factors that may have influenced the announcement of a temple in Angola despite few members of the Church in the country and a fairly recent Church establishment (first branch was organized in 1996, the first and only mission was organized in 2013, and the first and only stake was organized in 2018). Securing land is very difficult in Luanda, and the city ranks among the most expensive cities to live in within the world. Thus, it may take a considerable amount of time to secure a suitable site to build the temple. Also, the Luanda Angola Stake is a remote stake with no other nearby Portuguese-speaking countries with an established Church presence. Finally, access to temples in other countries appears more difficult than other African nations due to distance and travel costs. Furthermore, the Church has experienced unprecedented growth and expansion into many areas of the country within the past 1-2 years. The new temple will likely service only one stake and one district at present, although there is a strong probability that additional stakes will be organized in the immediate future. Angola did not even rank within the top 10 countries with the most members without a temple per year-end 2022 membership figures, although with rapid membership growth in 2023 in many areas, there may be as many as 6,000-7,000 members by the end of the year (which would have placed Angola as high as fourth among countries with the most members without a temple).

Mbuji-Mayi Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) Temple

The Mbuji-Mayi DR Congo Temple will be the Church's fourth temple in the DR Congo following temples in Kinshasa (dedicated in 2019), Lubumbashi (announced in 2020), and Kananga (announced October 2021). I added Mbuji-Mayi as a less likely location for a future temple announcement in February 2023. The Church created its first mission in Mbuji-Mayi in 2016, and this mission divided earlier in 2023 to create a separate mission in Kananga. This area of the central DR Congo, known as the Kasai Region, has experienced some of the most rapid growth in the worldwide Church in modern history. The first branches were created in the region in 1997, and today there are now nine stakes in the region with the creation of several new stakes appearing imminent due to rapid growth in the numbers of active members. The new temple in Mbuji-Mayi will likely include six stakes in its temple district based upon the current organization of the Church in the area. A separate temple for Mbuji-Mayi in addition to the previously announced Kananga DR Congo Temple appeared warranted due to extreme difficulties with travel in the DR Congo and the development of a strong center of strength in Mbuji-Mayi. The Church organized its first stake in Mbuji-Mayi in 2016 followed by a second stake in the city in 2022. Other stakes likely to be assigned to the new temple district are located in Luputa (two stakes created in 2011 and 2021), Mwene-Ditu (organized in 2019 and currently has 12 wards), and Ngandajika (organized in 2023). There were 102,862 Latter-day Saints in the DR Congo as of year-end 2022. Given rapid growth, extremely high member activity rates, and travel difficulties, the Church in the DR Congo will likely announce additional temples in the coming years. Some likely locations in the DR Congo for temple announcements in the next five years include the following:

  • Kinshasa (second temple) - 5-6 stakes 
  • Kolwezi (1 stakes, but this stake appears likely to divide in the immediate future)
  • Likasi (3 stakes - one of which appears ready to divide in the immediate future [Kolwezi])
  • Luputa or Mwene-Ditu (3 stakes - one of which appears ready to divide in the immediate future
  • Matadi (1 district that appears close to become a stake and several nearby mission branches that may be organized into a district in Muanda)

50 comments:

  1. Matt, thanks for this update and analysis. I know you mentioned in the past that the next area change you anticipated in Africa was Nigeria splitting off into its own area. Do you think that, in the coming years, the growth in Africa could necessitate any other new areas or area boundary adjustments? Do you have any thoughts as to the timing on any such changes? Because my mom is a South African native, I have a great love for the African continent and great hopes for ongoing growth there. Based on the future strength anticipated in the Church from that continent, I look forward to the day when we will see the first African American apostle called, and later down the line, hopefully a native African.

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  2. How likely would you consider a temple for the Canary Islands to be? There's only one stake there, but it's 1000 miles away from the Madrid Spain Temple.

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  3. I think the Canary Islands are a good candidate for a small temple. Madrid has patron housing and cheap flights there, so it is probably within reach for most members from the islands to go once a year for a week (just as an example). But that is probably still less often than President Nelson and the brethren envision in terms of temple access.

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  4. Thanks for this great analysis. It is so amazing and exciting to see the progress of the church in Africa.

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  5. https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/location-budapest-hungary-temple-released

    9 October 2023 - SALT LAKE CITY News Release
    Location of Budapest Hungary Temple Released
    Groundbreaking Held for Modesto California Temple

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    1. This means that, without exception, all temples announced from October 2018-October 2019 have had some information confirmed. Russia, Cagayan de Oro Philippines, and Shanghai PRC will obviously take longer.

      I had thought that the Dubai UAE Temple property was supposed to be handed over to the Church in late 2022, so I'm surprised we have nothing on that yet.

      And with 7 temples now having major construction completed, I was surprised we didn't see opening arrangements announced for any of them today. Hopefully tomorrow, later this week, or next Monday

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  6. The continent of Africa is one the biggest places for believers and the Restoration on the planet. Interesting that a dozen or so African countries, primarily Muslim, have little or no Church of Jesus Christ or much Christian presence.

    What are the next five African nations to get a temple?

    I would think Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Botswana, maybe Togo? Benin or Zambia?

    Some of those last ones are stretches. But exciting to see and speculate on!

    I hope we are encouraging our youth and retired couples (and single sisters) to go on missions.

    They/we are all needed.

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    1. Eduardo, Uganda, Togo, Benin, and Zambia are all on the top ten nations list now, unless I am mistaken. They are first, sixth, eighth, and tenth respectively. So each may be a matter of time. Tanzania, Rwanda, and Botswana could potentially be further out, but I could be wrong based on the recent unexpectedly early announcement of Angola's first temple.

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  7. To be fairthe Philippines 11 temples announced and 2 dedicated is a record no one has ever met. I expect Nigeria will see more temples announced before Lagos or Benin City is dedicated.

    Abuja, Port Harcourt and Enugu all seem likely locations, and Ibadan is another, but seems more likely after Lagos is done, or maybe just before Lagos is completed.

    A second temple in maybe Uyo in Akwa Ibom state also seems possible.

    I know Port Harcourt is not far from Aba, but the number of stakes justifies a 2nd temple, and Port Harcourt would but people to its south and west much closer to a temple.

    I am thinking many of us will live to see a temple in Jos and one in Aboh, among many other places in Nogeria, but I doubt either will be announced while the 5 senior apostles are still with us, but despite putting it in a list I really did not think Luanda or Kbuji-Mayi would come this year.

    I think Botswana is a strong candidate. Uganda seems very strong. Togo quite strong, and Benin close behind. I think Cotonou Venin will be announced before Togo is done. Zambia is maybe not do close, and Bulawayo might be a second temple in Zimbabwe first.

    Tanzania will mostly likely not have a temple announced before it gets a stake. Ethiopia seems unlikely any time soon, but I hope to live to see that day. When I was on my mission all we could give to the Ethiopian immigrants, there was an apartment complex in my first area in Las Vegas mainly inhab8ted by sylych immigrants, was a Joseph Smith's testimony pamphlet.

    Camerron might not be so far out. I think that temple will post date a stake.

    Rwanda is a place the Church is gowing, but I think a temple is still a little way off.

    Malawi is probably not close. The Book of Mormon has been published in Chewa only through Words of Mormon.

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  8. Elder Sitati, the now emeritus general authority from Kenya, was mission president in Calabar. Hesbon Usin, I think I got his name right but sorry if I butchered it, also a Kenyan, is the cilurrent mission president in Enugu mission, which covers Makrudi, which has seen at least one baptismal service of over 100 converts recently.

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  9. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was established in Cape Coast by J. W. Billy Johnson and his wife. They first were in an unofficial congregation of the Church in Accra. There they met a young cocoa industry expert from the US who had stumbled on this congregation while doing doctoral research in Ghana named Merril J. Bateman. Brother Bateman became acquainted with Johnson and others in the congregation. He would visit when he was in Accra, which was semi-regularly. This was in the late 1960s. Then on one visit Johnson told Brother Bateman he would not see him for a long time, because the Lord had told Johnson to go to Cape Coast and build up a people to the Lord.

    Brother Bateman next met Johnson when he was on a brief fact finding mission to Ghana and Nigeria with Ted Cannon prepping to bring in missionaries. Cannon and his wife as well as the Mabeys were the first missionaries sent to Nigeria and Ghana, starting in about Nov. 1978. They baptized Johnson and some others in Cape Coast. During the dark days of the freeze from mid 1978 until the end of 1990 Brother Johnson and his wife were the only missionaries in Ghana. They went around quietly risking arrest to share the gospel.

    When the Cape Coast stake was formed in 1991, less than a year after church meetings had become legal again, Johnson was the first patriarch of that stake. He was a rmtemple worker in the Accra Temple when it opened. He died maybe before Cape Coast got a mission, but one of his sons has been mission president there. Johnson named one of his sons Brigham because Brugham Young appeared to him in visions and dreams and gave him encouragement and strength during the long days of waiting for the gospel to come.

    The above is in part based on statements by Elder Merril J. Bateman at the 25th anniversary celebration of Official Declaration 2 in the Tabernacle and also some from Dr. Elder (Area Seventy) Emmanuelle A. Kussi's book on the history of the Church in Ghana, "Waking in the Sand", a title I live all the more because it makes no sense to me but a Ghanaian will understand it. Elder Kissi was acting mission president during the freeze. I also know some of Brother Johnson from having conversed with the man who along with his wife were the first missionaries to serve only in Ghana. That man told me how Brother Johnson had a strategy to build the church on a sure foundation in every new village.

    Elder Morrison, a general authority seventy in I believe originally from Takarodi, Ghana. Elder Morrison is the youngest general authority, born in 1977. He joined the Church in 2992 or 1993, so after the freeze. Takarodi is west of Cape Coast, Accra far to the east, so this will be a blessing to the saints in Takarodi.

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  10. Since Kamaga got a mission, and then Mbuji-Mayi got a temple making it so that we have yet to have a 2nd temple announced for a mission, idmf any new city gets a mission in DR Congo next year, it is going to the top of my temples list.

    On a different note I wonder what the chances of building an MTC in Kinshasa area. It would seem to be logistically easier not to have new missionaries have to travel to Accra, and could maybe help move the work forward in mantle new directions.

    Elder Andersen spoke og getting a temple in Mbuji-Mayi when he visited there in I think 2016, the first time an apostle was in Kasai, anfmd I think actually the same trip as the gtkroundbreaking for Kinshasa Temple, but I might be wrong on that last point. 7 years from apostolic prediction to actual announcement is far less than we have for many places.

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  11. I meant Kanaga above. Sorry for the misspelling.

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  12. Nigeria is getting close to the same number of stakes as Texas and geographically a little larger. Texas has roughly 8 temples and Nigeria 5 (including announced). I would imagine at the current pace of temple announcements, I would image Nigeria will be a regular.

    The entire country currently shares one relatively small temple. Four more have been announced, but none has yet to make it to groundbreaking. Two just had their site locations announced a couple of weeks ago.

    This issue is not unique to Nigeria, 35/year are announced, but only 10 broke ground this past year. I anticipate construction will ramp up soon. Until construction can meet announcements, this backlog of announcements is going appear more like a wish list.

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  13. I was pleasantly surprised or even amazed how close the Kananga and the Mbuji-Mayi temples are in relation to each other! I know that Dem. Rep. Congo is a massive country (top 12 or so in the world, not counting Greenland or Antarctica), but this is really cool to see.
    Likewise in Nigeria, there are temples going pretty close to each other. The latest will be in the language of Efik, which is a small minority compared to Igbo, Yoruba, and Hausa families.

    Any late news on Equatorial Guinea? Gabon?

    Something I have learned about West African missionary matters: Elders (not sure or doubtful about sisters) based in Cote d'Ivoire (which has 61 ethnic groups, I remember from grad school), are going to both Senegal and the Gambia.

    Good news all around for the movement of Jesus' Word, but sad events and tragedies in Israel and Palestine. I would note that most Muslims have more faith in Jesus than many Christians, but we all wish that they would have their faith do them more miracles and peace and prosperity. We pray for our brothers and sisters of Judah, Benjamin, Ishamel, and all the rest lost ones being found by us.

    As I told my family lately: Ephraim and Manasseh have to lead the way.

    Figure it out, watch and pray.

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  14. Bonnie H. Cordon named new president of Southern Virginia University

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/members/2023/10/13/23915843/bonnie-h-cordon-new-president-southern-virginia-university

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  15. I wonder what the possibility is of the "Santa Juana Branch" of the "San Pedro Chile Stake" becoming the 5th unit of the Coronel Chile District, when the District becomes a Stake later this month?

    Or is it not a minimum of 5 units (Wards or Branches) to be organized as a Stake?

    https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/wards/325120

    Currently the Coronel Chile District has 4 branches :

    Arauco, Camilo Olavarría, Coronel 1st and Lota Branches.

    https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/418676

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  16. We'll see in a few days about the Coronel Chile stake.

    The overwhelming majority of stakes have at least five wards. The very few stakes that have less than five wards tend to have several extra branches or are close to being discontinued and as such don't last very long.

    I expect the new Coronel Chile stake to get one or two wards from San Pedro but not the Santa Juana branch (curvy road through a forest over 1200 ft hill with a high risk of wildfires in summer, and ice in winter). This is just a guess, of course.

    It's also possible that the Lebu district will be part of the new stake as long as some of its branches are big enough to become wards. But admittedly, anything is possible and I have no local contacts.

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  17. Thank you, R. Jofre, for that clarification. I had not taken into account the local infrastructure specifically the roads, nor the topography of possible hills for travel difficulties. That was very enlightening.

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  18. This just in from the Newsroom within the last hour:

    https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/kathleen-johnson-eyring-obit

    My thanks once again to you all.

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  20. A new stake will be organized in Antananarivo, Madagascar next Sunday. This will be the third in Antananarivo and the fourth in Madagascar.

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  21. For anyone who is interested, I found this article with some good tidbits on Church history in the Fort Worth area: https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/fort-worth/article280499039.html

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  22. Idaho creating the first 2 Midsingles Wards (ages 31-45) for that state.

    Indian Creek SA Ward, Nampa Idaho YSA Stake
    Central Park SA Ward, Idaho Falls YSA Stake

    Both wards start October 22, 2023

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    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. I suspected this was eminent because a week or two ago they announced in my ward's sacrament meeting that there will be a special meeting that night to invite single adults up to age 45 that was located at the Idaho Falls Dunbar building (which happens to be the stake YSA stake center). I wonder what the boundaries will be. The YSA stake includes at least Bonneville and Bingham counties. I don't know how many young to mid singles are in my ward. Many are elderly seniors so I don't think we will see many leave for that ward.

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    3. Correction the Idaho Falls YSA stake includes "parts" of Bonneville and Bingham counties. My son was in the Ammon YSA ward when he left to begin his mission last December.

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    4. @Matt & L. Chris Jones:

      I used to be in that Ammon YSA and attended the Dunbar building when in a different ward. Nice to hear about the new mid-singles wards.

      I imagine I would attend the IF Central Park one if I still lived there.

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  23. With the passing of Sister Eyring, the 5 senior apostles (who, incidentally, are the only ones left from the group who presented the Family Proclamation and The Living Christ and also made the original Special Witnesses video) have now all outlived their first wife. She was 82 according to the press release, making her about eight years younger than her husband- this seems to give an example of the "renewing of their bodies" that the apostles often receive, which is promised to faithful priesthood holders in D&C 84:33.

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  24. The temple/mission ratio (outside the US/Canada) is starting to become increasingly clear to me. Excluding additional temples in large cities, that is, referring only to temples taken to the interior of countries such as Japan, DR Congo, the Philippines and all
    In Latin America, the proportion of temples announced and still needed and the number of missions established seems to indicate a pattern.

    I say this because I imagine that Brazil could still require 12-13 temples, reaching 35 houses of the Lord, almost the same number as the missions (36). Logically, the locations for establishing temples differ slightly from mission headquarters, which tend to be more concentrated in metropolises, while temples consider travel distances more, but the way these two numbers came to talk really demonstrates a possible pattern for the announcements for the coming years.

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  25. With this in mind, I will choose my guesses for the next conferences based on the missions' creation dates; The oldest ones should receive the temples first (1-2 years), with the next ones coming after.

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  26. Two unrelated notes about Church growth in the Vanuatu Port Vila Mission:

    Around 2000 attend district conference in Luganville

    https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid02JuiV6YG1eJjrVnPfSiNmd5uNt4Es9bSTXmFdh2rFKdQvCwSV7dqZ16C31g2mK74Fl&id=100070043858522

    Significant number of convert baptisms in the southern Solomon Islands

    https://www.facebook.com/cmakai/posts/pfbid0z4CJWTjminUYZ6RGTamceMyBWi2p7i1RfyTRtfuesRKVr6g4w6KxTZPmbD7fzXm2l

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  27. Hey, Matt! I just now realized I never heard back from you about my questions that I raised in the first comment on this thread. If you have time to weigh in on those, I'd appreciate your insights. Also, I am looking forward to the remainder of your coverage on these newest temples whenever you can provide it.

    In the meantime, for anyone else interested, a March dedication has been set for the Red Cliffs Utah Temple, and a November groundbreaking has been set for the Kaohsiung Taiwan Temple:

    https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/open-house-dedication-dates-announced-red-cliffs-utah-temple

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/temples/2023/10/16/23913844/red-cliffs-utah-temple-st-george-dedication-open-house-dates

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/temples/2023/10/16/23913826/kaohsiung-taiwan-temple-groundbreaking-elder-tai-preside

    And here is my coverage of today's updates:

    https://stokessoundsoff.blogspot.com/2023/10/breaking-temple-news-opening.html

    My thanks to Matt for allowing me to continue to post these updates here, and my thanks once again to you all.

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  28. Last Sunday, I attended church in Harlow, England and had a great visit with a family from Bengaluru, India. They have been living in England for the last five years, but are returning to India later this month, specifically to help build up the church and support the new temple. I asked if they knew anything about the problems we've heard about the temple maybe not being able to be opened because of local government issues. They said what happened was the church had been very secretive about the temple location and construction details with the local members, and some of the long-time pioneer members felt offended by not being included, so they went and complained to the government, which brought some problems. But they said those issues were now resolved, and they expected everything to be fine with the temple opening up. I hope things are truly going to work out for the opening of the temple in India, and that the Saints there can use it and enjoy the blessings it brings.

    Although the ward had a tiny attendance of about 60 people, it was very diverse and uplifting. There was a member from Thailand speaking about his joy at the new temple there, and a family from Kumasi, Ghana had just arrived 5 days before to resettle in London. I told them we were very happy for the new temples coming to Kumasi and Cape Coast, and he gave me a big hug.

    I visited the temples in Preston and London, and also visited Birmingham, but of course no temple location has been released there yet. At Preston, I met a missionary from Portland, Oregon, and I congratulated him on the new temple for Vancouver. He had a confused look as the pieces came together -- he then said he hadn't finished watching conference yet -- so he wasn't aware of the new temple announcements. I felt bad for spilling the beans for him.

    In Lancaster, I was visiting with local members, and they said the Scottish Saints help keep the Preston Temple busy. I asked if they believed temples in Scotland and Ireland could be kept busy, with said they believed so. It is only a matter of time before temples come to both of those lands.

    I wished I was able to visit the temples in The Hague and Copenhagen, but my travels didn't allow me enough time, although I was in both cities. I did manage to see the Thorvaldsen's Christus statute in Copenhagen, and it was gorgeous. I ended in Bergen, Norway, where the saints there will eventually travel to Oslo for their new temple. It thrills me to see how access to the temples is increasing throughout Europe. When I was born in 1981, there were just 2 temples in Europe. Now there will be 22 (counting Russia).

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    1. @Gnesileah

      Thanks for reporting about the Scottish saints you met in England.

      I felt inspired recently to work on my Scottish Family History line and submit a bunch of their names to the Temple. I found some connections to the Highlands, Inverness, and Loch Ness that I hadn't known about (also some Lowland connections).

      I'm hopeful this is in preparation for a Temple in Scotland.

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  29. Church leaders meet with Burundi prime minister in Central Africa

    ‘Our first mission is to help people come to Jesus Christ,’ says mission president
    By Mary Richards 17 Oct 2023, 7:31 AM MDT

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/global/2023/10/17/23919547/burundi-prime-minister-ndirakobuca-meets-church-leaders-africa-central-area

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  30. Danane Cote d'Ivoire District and Man Cote d'Ivoire District were combined to create the Man Cote d'Ivoire Stake on 10/15/2023. Two additional units were transferred from Duekoue Cote d'Ivoire District.

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  31. The new Man Cote d'Ivoire Stake, as been reported here by Nephi above. Has been updated on Meetinghouse locator this morning.

    https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/2125412

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  32. It is exciting to see the fruits of the impressive expansion efforts from a few years back in Cote D'Ivoire. It wasn't very long ago that tons of new cities were opened and several of them have turned into stakes. I'm sure there are more stakes in areas outside of Abidjan coming in the near future, too! Hopefully another temple gets announced for the country in the coming years.

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  33. @Johnathan

    The new Central Park SA Ward boundaries in Idaho Falls goes from Ucon to the north, to Blackfoot to the south.

    For the new Indian Creek SA Ward boundaries in Nampa, goes from Kuna to the east to Ontario, Oregon to the west.

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    1. @OC Surfer

      Thanks for sharing the boundaries.

      I definitely would have probably attended if I still lived there. :)

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  34. Meet the new Church historic sites leaders who will begin serving next year

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/callings/2023/10/20/23919943/5-new-church-historic-sites-leaders-wyoming-mormon-battalion-illinois

    FYI If anyone is interested.

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  35. This Week on Social

    This week on social: Elder Cook addresses bad things happening to good people, Elder Rasband visits members in Vietnam

    Elder Ronald A. Rasband visits members in Vietnam, and other leaders share thoughts from their general conference messages

    By William Matheson 20 Oct 2023, 3:00 PM MDT

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/2023/10/20/23925581/this-week-on-social-elder-cook-why-bad-things-happen-to-good-people-elder-rasband-visits-vietnam

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  36. The Coronel Chile District has been updated on the Meetinghouse Locator mapsite.

    Including new wards associated.

    https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/418676

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  37. It appears to have merged with the now discontinued Lebu Chile District in the consolidation.

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  38. @Matt, I've been told from a reliable source that the new combined Stake has been renamed from the Coronel Chile District to the new name "Arauco Chile Stake". I hope this is useful.

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  39. More good news out of Chile, as reported previously by Matt here. The previous Buín Chile District (610194), has also recently been reorganized as the new Buín Chile Stake (610194).

    Verified also on the Meetinghouse Locator website including 6 wards.

    https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/610194

    Although unknown yet the date of creation of the new stake.

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  40. 15 July 2021 is when the Church News announced the call of President and Sister Allen to head the Abijan Ivory Coast Temple. They are from Midway, Utah. From 2017-2020 they lead the Accra MTC. They lead the Geneva Switzerland Mission from 1997-2000. President Allen served in that mission as a young man. They were also missionaries in Lebanon for some of the 2010s.

    President Allen has a PhD from Florida State and lead some educational corporations. He also was involved in the leadership of the Perpetual Emigration Fund for 8 years.

    Ground was broken for Abijan on Nov. 8, 2018. According to Rick's temple website, they are now doing interior work and landscaping.

    Most of the temple presidents called around when the Allen's were called will end their service about Sep. 1, 2024. At the rate things are going the Allen's may not even start by then.

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  41. Elder Christofferson and Bishop Causse were at a church Conference this week in the city of Florianopolis, Brazil.

    "Elder Christofferson, Bishop Caussé speak on being stewards of the earth, at Brazil conference
    ‘Our love of God and our discipleship of Jesus Christ will be a sure guide,’ Elder D. Todd Christofferson says

    By Valerie Walton 20 Oct 2023, 4:43 PM MDT"

    https://www.thechurchnews.com/global/2023/10/20/23925790/elder-d-todd-christofferson-bishop-gerald-causse-stewards-of-the-earth-brazil-conference

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  42. I missed that the conference was in Florianopolis. I am hoping to see Florianopolis get a temple announced soon. Soracaba, Sao Luis, and Cuiaba are also on my list. I think a 3rd temple for Sao Paulo itself is also needed.

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