Sunday, September 12, 2021

New Temple Predictions - September 2021 Edition

I have updated my temple prediction map in preparation for General Conference in October. Data used to identify probable locations for future temples include the size of the Church in a specific geographical area (i.e. number of stakes and districts, the number of wards and branches), the age of the oldest stake in a specific geographical area, church growth trends, distance to the nearest temple, the historical number of endowment sessions scheduled at the nearest temple, and member and missionary reports regarding member activity, temple attendance, and convert retention. Altogether, there are 156 potential temples on the map (33 more like temples, 108 less likely temples).

One Location was added to the temple prediction map in September 2021:

  • Laoag City Philippines Temple

    The following prospective temples were transferred from the less likely category to the more likely category:

    • Maceió Brazil Temple
    • Viña del Mar/Valparaíso Chile Temple

    The following 10 locations appear most likely to have temples announced this coming General Conference. You are welcome to provide your top 10 picks for temple announcements in the comments below.

    1. Monrovia, Liberia 
    2. La Paz, Bolivia
    3. Angeles or Olongapo, Philippines
    4. Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia 
    5. Mbuji-Mayi, Democratic Republic of the Congo
    6. Charlotte, North Carolina
    7. Austin, Texas
    8. Santiago/Tuguegarao Philippines
    9. Tacoma Washington
    10. Colorado Springs, Colorado 

    See below for the map of likely and less likely new temple sites:

     

    307 comments:

    1 – 200 of 307   Newer›   Newest»
    EP said...

    The only fantasy sport, so to speak, I enjoy playing. Let's go.

    October 2021 (20 announced):
    Edinburgh, Scotland (M)
    Monrovia, Liberia (S)
    Kananga/Mbuji-Mayi, DR Congo (S)
    Abuja, Nigeria (M)
    Antananarivo, Madagascar (XS)
    Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (XS)
    Naga/Legazpi, Philippines (S2)
    Osaka, Japan (M)
    Iquitos, Peru (XS)
    Rosario, Argentina (M)
    Teresina, Brazil (M)
    Fairbanks, AK (XS)
    Tacoma, WA (L)
    Flagstaff/Prescott, AZ (M)
    Colorado Springs, CO (L)
    Austin, TX (M)
    Charlotte, NC (L2)
    North Rexburg/Sugar City, ID (XL)
    Spanish Fork/Springville/Mapleton, UT (3X)
    Herriman, UT (14852 Juniper Crest site) (XL/2X/3X)

    And to decipher the sizes,

    Standard Floorplans:
    XXS: 7-9k, single story, basic adaptable model, front main spire, 1/1/1 (Vanuatu, Kiribati, Puerto Rico)
    XS: 10k, single story, modular pre-fab, center main spire, 1/1/1 (Helena, Elko, Phnom Phen)
    XS2: 10-16k, two story, front main spire, 1/1/1 (Durban, Okinawa)
    S: 17k, single story, front main spire, 2/2/1 (Harare, Nairobi)
    S2: 18-24k, two story, front main spire, 2/2/1 (Davao, Antofagasta, Lisbon)
    M: 20-30k, single story, center main spire, 2/2/1 (Mendoza, Pittsburgh, Bentonville)
    M2: 22-26k, two story, center main spire, 2/2/1 (Barranquilla, Arequipa)
    L: 30k, single story, front main spire, 4/3/1 (San Pedro Sula, Pueblo)
    L2: 35-40k, two story, front main spire, 4/3/1 (Richmond, Feather River, Burley, Ephraim)
    XL: 65-75k, three story, center main spire, 4/4/1 (Pocatello, Orem, Tooele, Taylorsville)
    2X: 80-90k, three story, dual spires, 4/4/1-2 (Layton, Lindon)
    3X: 90-96k, three story, center main spire, 4/6/1 (Saratoga Springs, Red Cliffs)
    UMS: 40-45k, urban multi-story, center main spire, ?/?/1 (Bangkok, Bengaluru)

    A second baptistry wouldn't surprise me in either Utah temple or the North Rexburg temple.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Great list, Matt. Thanks. I agree with quite a few of your picks. Unless the data I used is incorrect, then I believe that the top ten nations with the strongest Church presence without a temple are now (in order): Uganda, Liberia, Madagascar, Mongolia, Malaysia, Republic of the Congo, Indonesia, Marshall Islands, Jamaica, and Micronesia. And I believe that in the threads of your previous temple predictions, it was mentioned at least once that the Church seems to be announcing temples in 1-3 nations that had been in the top ten list.

    Given that fact, if Liberia and Mongolia (second and fourth on that top tenlist) both have temples announced, that would allow the next two nations to join that list for the first time. I also agree with your picks of La Paz Bolivia, Angeles Philippines (although I have Tacloban as an alternative to Olongapo). I likewise agree with Mbuji-Mayi DR Congo, Charlotte North Carolina, and Austin Texas, though I have Fort Worth also listed as an alternate for the next temple in Texas. I am not sure whether or not the current status the McAllen Texas, Moses Lake Washington, and Grand Junction Colorado Temples might delay the announcement of the next temples in each of the three states, but I don't think we can rule them out completely on those grounds.

    I have mentioned in another thread that, per my usual tradition, I have a list of the top cities in almost all of the 22 areas of the Church in which a temple could be announced. The more extensive list can be found in the following document:

    https://docs.google.com/document/d/12D18tyoUvRE3Qh9EHTuSUVwL_tWAFh5gZ41W5Xqs6wo/edit?usp=sharing

    I have also noted my specific list of top picks for this General Conference, which can be found at the bottom of the following document:

    https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AHEJOqAjEJDN7aXQLlfrkzc2yTVer6E0TRR5eYdNKB8/edit?usp=sharing

    That list contains 23 candidate locations. While any of them seem to be ripe for an announcement next month, I am not sure that all of them are equally likely this go-round. If nothing else, I anticipate another dobule-digit number of new temples to be announced, and wouldn't be shocked if the Church did a midpoint between the 12 temples announced by President Nelson in October 2018 and the 20 new temples that were announced last April. If we split that difference, the result would be around 16.

    But for myself, I will welcome any new temples. If any of you want to dialogue more particularly with me on anything about my list, it will likely be easier for me to respond to those comments if they are posted on the discussion thread of my latest General Conference predictions, which can be found in the following post:

    https://stokessoundsoff.blogspot.com/2021/08/updated-predictions-for-october-2021.html

    My thanks once again to you all.

    Daniel Moretti said...

    The São Carlos stake (my house), despite being a part of the Piracicaba correlation area, is much closer to a future temple in Ribeirão Preto than to Campinas. Matt, I think the suggested stakes served by the future temple in Ribeirão Preto could include our stake because of this location. Sorry for my bad english

    Daniel Moretti said...

    The São Carlos stake (my house), despite being a part of the Piracicaba correlation area, is much closer to a future temple in Ribeirão Preto than to Campinas. Matt, I think the suggested stakes served by the future temple in Ribeirão Preto could include our stake because of this location. Sorry for my bad english

    Steven Cuff said...

    Bump 4 of the Top 10 in favor of Utah, Brazil, Mexico, and California.

    Steven Cuff said...

    Bump 4 of the Top 10 in favor of Utah, Brazil, Mexico, and California.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    For some dark horse predictions: What about the Marshall Islands? At least on the less likely list? Or one in the Federated States of Micronesia? For distance I hope someday for a temple in Darwin/Alice Springs Northern Territory Australia. Not dark horse but my wife is from Mongolia. I am looking forward to a temple there hopefully very soon. South Cache Valley such as Hyrum Utah and many other places around the world to have temples.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    I would love to see an historical site temple in or Sharon Vermont. But but that location seems to be outside the nearest stake center. Otherwise I hope for one in either Vermont, New Hampshire, or Maine. There are currently 12 U.S. States without a temple in any stage. Some though, have temples in cities right across their borders. I think both the islands of Maui, and Kauai in Hawaii can each get their own temples. two more in Alaska based on distance are Fairbanks, and Juneau. The island of Madagascar needs one and Indonesia too. Temples in Zambia, Uganda, Botswana, and Angola are also needed soon. Ghana and Nigeria will probably be seeing more over the next few years. I would like to see a small one in central Idaho like Moore that will cover a few stakes in the areas between the existing temples. The same for a Price Utah temple. More in Texas such as Austin, Fort Worth. El Paso Texas and Reynosa Mexico need temples to reduce border crossing troubles. Flagstaff, Arizona and Kanab, Utah are locations look forward too. Depending upon how busy it is a second Las Vegas temple may be warranted. I look forward to one in La Paz Bolivia, Culican Mex, Cancun Mex, Baja California Sur Mexico, Auguas Calientes, Mex. I could go on as I have many more I hope for. With our Heavenly Father anything is possible.vIf we are getting one in mainland China and the middle east, we can get them anywhere.

    Fredrick said...

    1. Monrovia Liberia
    2. Ulaanbaatar Mongolia
    3. Iquitos Peru
    4. Valparaiso/Vina Del Mar, Chile
    5. Angeles, Philippines
    6. Charlotte, NC
    7. El Paso, TX
    8. Austin, TX
    9. Colorado Springs, CO
    10. Spanish Fork/Springville, UT

    L. Chris Jones said...

    I think both Spanish Fork and Springville Utah will be announced probably a year or two apart based on recent trends. For example Syracuse Utah and Layton utah, Davii Philippines and Cagayan de Oro philippines,

    L. Chris Jones said...

    Draper and Oquirrh were announced about a year apart. There are other examples of multiple temples announced within close over all proximity a year or two apart or coming from the same mother temple district. (Salta and Mendoza Argentina from the Cordoba district)

    Nephi said...

    This is a real stretch but with bad roads and the remoteness of the Navajo Nation I think it would be awesome to put a small temple in Chinle, AZ to serve the Chinle & Tuba City Stakes. This would be a tremendous blessing to the Native Americans.

    Jim Anderson said...

    Look at cities that have a good freeway access system. Almost all temples in the US except a couple of Pioneer era temples, and heavy concentrations of members like Smithfield and Tooele have temples near to, if not beside them (Orem, Taylorsville, San Diego). It goes without saying in Utah and some Idaho and Arizona areas, one could go anywhere but in other areas where members are far less common, a major factor is transportation corridors such as freeways are where they are regularly sited near.

    Uganda is two stakes, and they are just learning how to run wards and stakes, they were included in the Kenya temple groundbreaking. Give it a couple years outside to announce that, maybe another stake before one is there.

    Have been hearing anecdotal evidence that the expected demand for using temples in Phase 3 has not materialized. Slots to attend are regularly open about any session. Any of the ordinances but largely so with other than baptisms.

    The family history work though has brought a tremendous number of names added to the FamilySearch tree since the initial shutdown. Over 120 million names were found in the first 17 months, and more are being found all the time, how many of those were submitted is anyone's guess, those numbers are never published for very valid reasons.

    I also heard that it was said at the last general conference leadership session, that the plan is to dedicate 70 temples in the next 5 years. And it is possible like last year's groundbreakings, to exceed that projected number. Elder Rasband said there, 'We are not here to be 'station keepers', we need to move the work forward in a dramatic way'.

    Fredrick said...

    The only reason why I don't think two separate temples will be built for Spanish Fork and Springville the way it for Layton and Syracuse is Layton would have been serving approx. 42 stakes alone. A Springville/Spanish Fork Temple would be serving 21 stakes. I expect a Springville/Spanish Fork Temple to built halfway btw the two cities along Hwy 51.

    Unknown said...

    I predict the following 7 for this conference:

    Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
    Osorno, Chile
    Tacoma, Washington
    Monrovia, Liberia
    Naga, Philippines
    Iquitos, Peru
    Joao Pessoa, Brazil

    And since Matt invited people to predict their top 10, I think the three next most likely to be announced (though I think they will be in a future conference) are:

    Tacloban City, Philippines
    Culiacan, Mexico
    Uyo, Nigeria

    Jim, that tidbit about 70 temples in the next five years is interesting, as it implies 7 temples per conference which is what I assumed would be the case as I have been developing my predictions, though I did not know about that leadership session statement.

    Lorena said...

    It is possible that as part of the list of the next conference's new temple announcements would include the Neuquén Argentina Temple and the Santiago DLC Dominican Republic Temple.
    DLC Means "De Los Caballeros"

    Lorena said...
    This comment has been removed by the author.
    James G. Stokes said...

    Unknown, I am not Jim Anderson, but unless I am mistaken, he was not saying that 70 temples would be announced in the next 5 years, but that the Church was planning on dedicating 70 temples in the next 5 years. There are 252 temples worldwide, of which 168 have been deducted. If the Church is planning on dedicating 70 temples between now and the end of 2026, that would yield a minimum of 238 by 2026.

    I hope Jim Anderson will correct me if I misinterpreted his comment. But if the goal is 70 more temple dedications by sometime in 2025, that would also imply that the Church will increase the number of temples announced in the next few General Conferences. Hope that helps.

    Unknown said...

    Thanks. I should have read Jim’s comment more carefully. Either way, it is a remarkable number!

    Jim Anderson said...

    That 70 figure is indeed completed and dedicated by then, it does presume more will be announced anyway as for some it can take years to get everything ready to even start construction.

    Based on last year with groundbreakings, it is entirely possible that 70 number could be exceeded by at least a few.

    Jim Anderson said...

    The Provo City Center Temple takes in Springville and south Provo below Center Street plus several stakes west of University Ave., and about half the BYU YSA stakes. There is a regular issue of students moving around so there is the added problem of keeping that temple fully staffed.

    Payson takes in all south of the bridge and road over I-15 north of the US-6 exit and roughly the same line the east of that location, I think Provo City Center may include the two or three stakes in Mapleton, there could be another one formed soon as one of the stakes there has 5k members.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    Maybe Mapleton, UT.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Unknown, that is indeed a remarkable number. I believe that it was in 2017 when Elder Larry Y. Wilson, then the Executive Director of the Temple Department, noted that the Church planned to announce 70 temples over the next 5 years. Based on my memory of that, I imagine that 70 new temples announced between 2018 and 2021 may have been among those to which Elder Wilson referred, if that was not indeed the entire list (though there's no way to tell that for certain). But since the Church has announced 70 temples between 2018 and this year, it would make sense if that could be repeated or exceeded over the next 3-4 years or so.

    Jim Anderson, thanks for providing corroboration about the 70 temples matter. I have a feeling that if the Church keeps up the trend of announcing 70 temples every 3 years, the number of temples qill skyrocket over however many years President Nelson might be around. And regarding the prophet, I have seen even more reports from those who have met with him that continue to describe how his health, energy level, and vigor makes it hard for his fellow apostles to keep up with him, and that many people who have interacted with him continue to report that he is acting and moving with the stamina of men 25-35 years younger than he is.

    So unless his health unexepctedly tanks for any reason (which shouldn't happen, as the former phsyican has decades of experience with self-care and helping his patients) I would not be shocked at all if most of us commenting on this post now were to come back here in around 20-25 years and marvel about the ongoing health and vigor of the prophet.

    Just some additional thoughts from me. My thanks once again to you all.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    I see both cities each getting one, but maybe about five years apart. Mapleton is towards the east and slightly between these two cities.

    Daniel Moretti said...

    First supercentenarian prophet since Moses

    EP said...

    8 stakes in Springville, 3 in Mapleton, and 10 in Spanish Fork, with the growth and room to grow in that area, makes me think maybe one on the south end of Spanish Fork and one near the Springville/Mapleton border. Probably Spanish Fork first with Springville announced within three years of Spanish Fork completion or a temple district of 35-40 stakes, whichever comes first.

    So if I'm guessing the order for Utah over the next several years:
    Spanish Fork
    Herriman
    Heber City
    Lehi/Traverse Mountain/Alpine/Highland
    Pleasant View/North Ogden
    Price
    Cottonwood Springs/Sandy
    Hurricane/3rd Washington County
    Springville
    Morgan
    Delta
    Eagle Mountain
    Farmington
    Roy/North Davis County
    Hyrum

    I could go further but I think this is already a seriously long list. The growth of the Beehive State is simply incredible.

    @Jim Anderson interesting insight into Phase 3 temple usage. I'm surprised, that hasn't been the case at all up here in Idaho. Idaho Falls and Rexburg routinely both have sessions booked out within hours of their release.

    Yamil Inosotroza said...

    Hi Matt,

    I'ld change Osorno for Puerto Montt ;)

    Anonymous said...

    6/21/2021 Lehi City Planning Commission Meeting. See 2:33:47 for developer DR Horton’s comments on being in contract for a large centerpiece with the Church near Micron.

    https://lehi.granicus.com/player/clip/385?view_id=2&redirect=true

    EP said...

    @Anonymous, wow, absolutely fantastic find. I've long thought the Church would build a temple somewhere on Traverse Mountain, this seems to be about where I expected it. Looking at the site plan, the parcel in question must be the one marked Civic (Church/School).

    The Spencers said...

    1. Madagascar
    2. Mongolia
    3. Monrovia, Liberia
    4. Valparaiso or Vina del Mar, Chile
    5. Chiclayo, Peru
    6. Spanish Fork, UT
    7. Kenanga, DRC
    8. La Paz, Bolivia
    9. Tacloban City, Philippines
    10. Tacoma, WA
    11. Rosario, Argentina.
    12. Scotland
    13. Austin, TX
    14. Maceio, Brazil
    15. Henderson NV
    16. Neuquen, Argentina
    17. Cottonwood Hts, UT
    18. Osorno, Chile
    19. Colorado Springs
    20. Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Rep.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Here goes my prediction. Just remember I once predicted Elder Gong would not become an apostle. Considering he is the only general authority I ever predicted that about, and most general authorities do not become apostles, I have really bad predictive power.

    October 2021 Temples:
    San Fernando Valley, California
    Ventura, California
    Bakersfield, California
    Modesto, California
    San Jose, California
    Santa Rosa, California
    Salem, Oregon
    Olympia, Washington
    Tacoma, Washington
    Price Georges, British Columbia
    Victoria, British Xolumbia
    Couer d'Lane. Idaho
    Rexburg Idaho 2nd temple
    Missoula, Montana
    North Ogden, Utah
    Morgan, Utah
    Holliday, Utah
    Magna, Utah
    Harriman, Utah
    Lehi, Utah
    Spanish Fork, Utah
    Heber City, Utah
    Price, Utah
    Fillmore, Utah
    Summerlin, Nevada
    Flagstaff, Arizona
    Queen Creek, Arizona
    El Paso, Texas
    Austin, Texas
    Gilmer, Texas
    Hattiesburg, Mississippi
    Jacksonville, Florida
    Tampa, Florida
    Savannah, Georgia
    Charlotte, North Carolina
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Cincinnati, Ohio
    Cleveland, Ohio
    Des Moines, Iowa
    Wichita, Kansas
    Madison, Wisconsin
    Lansing, Michigan
    Utica, New York
    Sharon, Vermont
    Oakland Township/Harmony, Pennsylvania
    Trenton/Princeton/New Brunswick, New Jersey
    Augusta, Maine
    Manchester, New Hampshire
    Barcelona, Spain
    Bourdeaux, France
    Hamburg, Germany
    Monrovia, Liberia
    Daloa, Ivory coast
    Cape Coast, Ghana
    Abuja, Nigeria
    Port Harcourt, Nigeria
    Etinan, Nigeria
    Mabuji-Maye, DR Congo
    Kampala, Uganda
    Maputo, Mozambique
    Antanarivo, Madagascar
    Delhi, India
    Jakarta, Indonesia
    Canberra, Australia
    Wellington, New Zealand
    Christ Church, New Zealand
    Ha'apai Group, Tonga
    Tabui, French Polynesia
    Fairbanks, Alaska
    Marshall Islands
    2 more temples on Luzon
    Vina del Mar, Chile
    Punta Arnes, Chile
    Neuquen. Argentina
    Joinville, Brazil
    Cuiaba, Brazil
    Joao Pasoa, Brazil
    Londrina, Brazil
    Santos, Brazil
    La Paz, Bolivia
    Otavalo, Ecuador
    2nd temple in Venezuela
    3th temple in Colombia
    Cuenca, Ecuador
    3rd temple in Lima
    Iquitos. Peru
    Piura, Peru
    Cuzco. Peru
    2nd temple in El Salvador
    Kingston, Jamaica
    Cancun. Mexico
    2nd temple in Mexico City
    Culiacan, Mexico
    Chihuahua, Mexico
    Xalpa, Mexico

    Eric S. said...

    I always enjoy reading the top picks/guesses/speculation of others. With 20 announced last conference, it's hard to guess how many may be announced this time. For a while, it seemed 8 was a good average to announce every 6 months. Then we got 6 and then BAM! 20! Excited either way for whatever may be in store. In no particular order, here are my picks:

    -Glasgow OR Edinburgh Scotland
    -Monrovia Liberia
    -Kananga OR Mbuji-Mayi DRC
    -Antananarivo Madagascar
    -Ulaanbaatar Mongolia
    -Naga OR Tacloban Philippines
    -Punta Arenas OR Valparaíso/Viña del Mar Chile
    -Iquitos OR Chiclayo Perú
    -1 or 2 of the following (Kingston Jamaica, Santiago Dominican Republic, Tasmania, Majuro Marshall Islands, Savaii Samoa)
    -Herriman OR Spanish Fork OR Heber City UT
    -1,2, or more of following US with "larger" stake concentration (Tacoma WA, Colorado Springs CO, Austin TX, Charlotte NC)
    -1,2, or more of following US with "smaller" stake concentration (Fairbanks AK, Kahului HI, Flagstaff/Prescott AZ, El Paso TX, Des Moines IA, Wichita KS, Milwaukee/Madison WI, Augusta ME)

    I've noticed since 2018 there has been at least one conference where the temple announcements have included several island nations/territories so that is why I included one section with several picks. Also, after last conference especially, I think there may be more US locations announced to close the gaps in distance and/or place one in almost most major metro.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    OK, that is 106. I doubt it will be quite that many.

    Eric S. said...

    Correction. Meant to say since 2018, there has been at least one conference per year where the temple announcements have included several island nations/territories.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    I think Marshall Islands more likely than Micronesia. Micronesia only has 1 stake, while the Marshall Islands has 2. Plus I think Much of Micronesia is closer to Guam.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Keep in mind Dallas and Las Vegas cover about equal numbers of stakes but Las Vegas is twice as big.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    I can list lots of temples announced for 1-2 stakes.

    I am also rooting for a Baltimore, Maryland Temple. That would be serious inner city outreach. A Chicago City Center Temple would be nice.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Uganda has 3 stakes. More than Kenya which is getting a temple.

    The Detroit Temple is not cited near a freeway, and if you come from the west side of the state it is somewhat awkward to get to.

    It was cited to be built fast. It is on a major road, smaller than the adjacent stake center. It is good to get to from Detroit, but hard to get to from the west of the state. This is one reason I hope Lansing gets a temple.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    How many people predicted an Orem and a Lindon Temple?

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Well President Nelson has not yet outlived President Hinckley. He is 97 though, which is the age President Hinckley died at.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    I do not think Henderson will happen anytime soon. The next temple in Las Vegas will be to the northwest of the city.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    We got third temple in Columbia. Bogota, Barranquilla, and one announced for Cali last April.

    Mon Chou said...

    You've heard it right here, folks! Cardiff, Wales!!!

    GTC1 said...

    I keep seeing Edinburgh as a prediction on many peoples list, with family living in Scotland,non members though, it’s always on my top 10. What are the chances of having Glasgow over Edinburgh? Even just looking at placement of wards and stakes, Glasgow seems to have a lot more in close proximity. Anyone else more familiar with the areas it with general rules that might suggest one over the other?

    Jim Anderson said...

    Kas Vegas 2 could be close to CC-215 (future I-215 probably west of Jones, southwest or northwest as there is not a lot of buildup close to those areas, east of that on the south part is built up, north of Lone Mountain is more likely but not close to that landmark, Henderson would be a few miles from the present one but not by much so it would definitely be far west side, perhaps even inside 215 in the Summerlin area,

    That Lehi possibility fits the average distance criteria for spacing temples, averaging 5-7 miles from other temples. And that is also the area I think one would go. We also have that Herriman has grown substantially, and also two controversial developments have hit the news the last year or two, current population is 50k, up substantially since President Hinckley mentioned the southwest valley temples planned although only one was announced, Bluffdale immediately east has grown substantially and similarly so one in Herriman would service both areas. It would also fit the average distance criteria.

    Detroit has better freeway access than some, there is a huge interchange at I-696 and Woodward which is also a state highway, M-1. About five miles or so likely more due to Woodward's skew from the freeway.

    EP said...

    @Jim Anderson I would be very surprised if the second temple in Las Vegas wasn’t somewhere in Summerlin. Very easy access off the 215 and near a lot of population growth in the northwest part of the valley. I know the Church owns 6 acres in the Stonebridge Village that as far as I know have not developed yet. It’s a smaller lot but it’s doable for a second temple. There’s also lots of land still available in that area so if not that parcel, certainly others.

    Ross Tenney said...

    I noticed how Matt's original comment asked us to provide our own top 10 list. Very hard to narrow it down to 10 locations, especially when 20 locations were announced in April. I have been guilty in the past of posting a list that was 70+. Here it goes:

    1. UB Mongolia
    2. Monrovia Liberia
    3. Colorado Springs Colorado
    4. Antananarivo Madagascar
    5. Austin Texas
    6. Herriman / Bluffdale Utah
    7. Las Vegas Nevada II
    8. Marshall Islands
    9. Flagstaff Arizona
    10. Vina del Mar Chile

    Not ready to add to my list, but I was super intrigued by the following locations posted by others. Some of I had seen mentioned many times, others this is the first time I had seen mentioned. Elko Nevada was like that for me for the past 3 years. Could see the rationale for a temple (distance to SLC Temple and two strong stakes), but didn't think it would come to pass for another five years.

    Intriguing Possibilities in October 2021 - Distance and Historical Significance

    Kanab Utah
    Gilmer Texas
    Sharon Vermont
    Cove Fort Utah
    Martins Cove Wyoming
    Cardiff Wales
    Delta Utah
    Fairbanks Alaska
    Juneau Alaska
    Maui Hawaii
    Kauai Hawaii

    Cory said...

    With all the temples Europe is getting, it seems like the British Isles is overdue. I think most people suggest Edinburgh because it is the most central stake. But there is only one ward in the city. I have heard some day Sterling as being a central location. But due to its size, Glasgow may be the best option, especially if there are more train and bus connections to the city. I do think Dublin or Belfast are possibilities, as well as Cardiff. I think Birmingham, England Should be added to the map. Yes, the other temples in England are large and probably under-utilized, but there are seven stakes in the area, plus Wales if they don't get a temple first.

    Anonymous said...

    Given the backlog of uncompleted, announced temples, the 21 announced so far this year, and the potential desire to evaluate the effectiveness of the 10,000sq ft modular design, I’d guess 6-12 temples will be announced this time around, most likely 8. I’d also guess not many, if any, will be small, 1-floor modulars. Given these two assumptions, here are my guesses:

    Top 10 List:
    Rexburg, ID North
    Lehi, UT
    Herriman, UT
    Tacoma, WA
    Monrovia, Liberia
    La Paz, Bolivia
    Tacloban City, Philippines
    Uyo, Nigeria
    Ribeiro Preto, Brazil
    Osaka, Japan


    Alternate List:
    3-5 of:
    Rexburg, ID North
    Lehi, UT
    Herriman, UT
    Tacoma, WA
    Charlotte, NC
    Greater Las Vegas, NV
    Spanish Fork, UT
    Austin, TX

    3-5 of:
    Monrovia, Liberia
    La Paz, Bolivia
    Tacloban City, Philippines
    Uyo, Nigeria
    Ribeiro Preto, Brazil
    Osaka, Japan
    Santiago, Dominican Republic
    Greater Mexico City, Mexico
    Maracaibo, Venezuela

    James G. Stokes said...

    GTC1, while I can't speak for others regarding their rationales about prioritizing Edinburgh Scotland over Glasgow or Dublin Ireland, I would be happy to share with you my personal reasoning for Edinburgh. To recap comments I've made on that in the past, it was around 2015 or 2016 when I started including prospective temple locations. Though at first I tried to confine the list for each conference to the most likely top prospects each April and October,

    I also had a couple other lists, including a lengthy list of locations for which a temple was likely at some point in the future. But I also kept a mid-range list that focused on the temples on the longer list that seemed more likely to happen sooner rather than later, and a third list that has been specifically used for each General Conference, since there are many locations I feel could have a temple announced at any point in the very near future.

    When it came to Scotland, Ireland, and the surrounding regions,at first, I had prioritized Dublin Ireland. Some feedback I received from someone who had done more thorough research on the matter than I had done indicated that the Church would likely have an easier time getting a temple in Scotland approved than they would in trying to build a temple in Ireland. But more than that, the feedback also specifically addressed why Edinburgh was likely to be the city of choice rather than Glasgow.

    Between when I received that feedback and now, there have been 5 temples announced specifically for the Europe Area of the Church. Those 5 are: Praia Cabo Verde (October 2018), Budapest Hungary (April 2019), and the 3 from General Conference last April: Oslo Norway, Brussels Belgium, and Vienna Austria. You might notice a common element in each of the five announced temples in the Europe Area: Every last one of them have been announced in the capital cities of the relevant nations. If we go back even further in temple history, we see that's also been true for the 3 temples most recently dedicated in Europe: Lisbon Portugal, Rome Italy, and Paris France.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Given the established precedent of 3 dedicated temples having been constructed in the capital city, in addition to the fact that the 5 other most-recently announced European temples have been for the capital cities of each nation, that's a pretty clear precedent pointing to the notion that the Church, with few (if any) exceptions, will continue to build most of the first European temples in the capital cities of the relevant nation.

    But specifically in response to your comment about how there is a larger concentration of Church members and units in Glasgow vs. Edinburgh, a smaller number of congregations in a given area doesn't automatically mean that the area with the strongest Church presence will have a temple. We have seen that recently in examples like the temple in Winnipeg Manitoba, which will serve just a couple of stakes/districts, and in the fact that the first temple in Guam was not announced for either the capital city of Hagåtña, or even in the same city (Barrigada) where the single current Guam stake is based, but in an area served by only one or two wards.

    What that tells us for Scotland's first temple is that sometimes, when such temples are announced, it's with a forward-looking view and in the hopes that having a temple in a place that may be less logical on paper is actually a better way to ensure that, following the temple's completion, the surrounding areas might then experience more growth in the numbers of members and congregations.

    From my perspective, that's why I personally have prioritized Edinburgh over Glasgow, or even Dublin Ireland. There is always a chance that my reasoning could be faulty. I'm the first to admit when the inspiration of the Lord proves me wrong in any respect. But unless and until the Church announces Scotland's first temple, there are reasons to favor Edinburgh over Glasgow that may be more compelling than the reasoning behind faovring Glasgow over Edinburgh. Sorry for the sermon, but hope this information helps.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    I anticipate one day soon to have both Ireland and Scotland have temples. Om another her blog I posted that the year with the most temple announcements (by name) was 1998 with 27 (although a plan was announced in April of that year for 30 changed 32). With 21 announced so far this year we only need 7 more to beat that number or 12 to beat the 32 plan that year to increase the number of temples dedicated by the end of the year 2000 to be 100. We ended that year with 102 dedicated temples. Would it be wonderful to have a goal for 300 by 2030 the 200 anniversary of the church?

    James G. Stokes said...

    Anonymous, I am not sure what you mean by referencing the "backlog" of temples. I ran a comparison of temple groundbreakings last year versus what we have seen this year. Last year, the weekend after the October 2020 General Conference, the Church had broken ground for a total of 9 temples. On the Saturday following this year's October General Conference, ground will be broken for the 10th and 11th temples this year. That means that by Sunday October 10, the Church will have broken ground for 11 temples in 2021, whereas it was not until November 4 of last year that the Church broke ground on the 11th temple in 2020.

    By that measure, the Church is already ahead of where they were last year. See the following document for the side-by-side comparison on temple groundbreakings last year vs. this year:

    https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SgpsCbhL0hRHAlnii3tjw6O-gxPk2rt0_jD50JYC4ck/edit?usp=sharing

    So in terms of groundbreakings, the Church is ahead of itself from where things were last year. The groundbreaking of 2 temples on Saturday September 11 means that there are now 43 temples under construction, with 41 temples announced. So if there is a backlog, it's in the temple construction queue due to COVID-19 delaying construction or local issues with obtaining permits for temples that recently had a groundbreaking.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Or perhaps you mean there are too many temples that have not had a groundbreaking yet. If that's the case, I hope your definition is excluding the 3 other temples that have had gorundbreakings scheduled, and that you also haven't considered the 11 temples for which sites have been announced (for 5 of which a rendering has been released). And I think you might have also not considered that there is one (Bahia Blanca Argentina) for which preparations are underway for a groundbreaking by the end of the year, or the fact that there are at least 1-4 others in the queue of announced temples for which the Church Temples site has indicated property has been acquired.

    So, let's see where that leaves things, shall we? 41 announced temples, with 3 groundbreakings scheduled, leaves 38 in the queue. Let's now subtract the total 12 temples for which enough information enables them to be considered as having a groundbreaking anticipated. The 38 left in the queue minus those 12 leaves 26 unaccounted for. But there are also at least the 4 temples I mentioned above for which official information, including site locations, renderings, and groundbreakings, is anticipated to be announced soon. So that brings the "backlog" of temples down to 22, and if the other 19 temples are able to join the construction queue in the next year (if not sooner), the total number of temples under construction would be 62, versus the 22 that are announced.

    So, my question for you, Anonymous, if I can ask it, is this: did you take anything else into account aside from the current number of temples under construction versus those that are announced? And if my comparison of temple groundbreakings last year versus this year is any indication, even if groundbreakings slow down slightly after those already scheduled, the Church is well on track to exceed the 21 groundbreakings held last year in this year alone. If by the end of this year, we project or forecast that the number of announced temples will be in the low 20s, then all we need to do is go back to the many statements made about his temple construction plans.

    Most of those recent statements of which I'm aware (though I'd have to dig back into some archives of conversations on the matter to verify for sure what was said) imply that another part of the prophet's temple construction plans is to keep the queue of announced temples at around 35. So if the Church is anticipating or planning on 22 temples or less being in the queue by then, that would factor into the number of temples that could be announced next month. With all of that in mind, to me, that indicates a double-digit number. Maybe between 12 and 20 rather than 20 or above, but with all of this in mind, hopefully you can see why so many of us are anticipating another large number of temple announcements next month.

    If I have misunderstood on the question of whether you've taken the data and results into account, I apologize if this comment comes across as condescending or rude. That is not in any way my intent. My sole desire on this is to understand exactly where you're coming from when you say you believe a much lower number of temples might be announced. Either way, hope you know I appreciate your thoughts on the matter.

    Searchthetruth said...

    I’m going with 15, this conference. Just a reminder we’ve had 21 temples announced including and since last conference.
    Kampala, Uganda
    Daloa, Cote d’Viore
    Austin, Texas
    Montpelier, ID or Blackfoot, ID
    Evanston, Wyoming
    Colorado Springs, Colorado
    Tacoma Washington
    Tasmania
    Kananga, DRC
    Charlotte, North Carolina
    Jacksonville, Florida
    Price or Heber City UT
    Antananarivo, Madagascar
    Culiacan or Chihuahua or Poza Rica Mexico
    Neuquen, Argentina

    Also I would love to see a design of a temple that draws inspiration from the very original annex of the Salt Lake Temple. I actually liked its design.

    Anonymous said...

    @James: my statement “backlog of uncompleted, announced temples” I am referring to all temples that have been announced, but not yet completed. I am well aware of the number of temples that have reached different milestones. My point was that taken as a whole, there are a significant number of temples not completed yet.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Thank you for clarifying that, Anonymous. I certainly hope it is evident that I meant no disrespect to you, your opinion, or how you formulated and expressed that opinion. That being said, as someone who does take the information about the status of other temples into account, insofar as I am aware, I'd imagine that the prophet specifically (and, to a lesser extent, the general Church leaders who serve on the Temple and Family History Executive Council) would be taking the status of all temples under advisement when trying to formulate plans about information to be released and the timing thereof, which would certainly also apply specifically to the announcement of new temples. Again, no disrespect or offense intended, and I hope none is taken.

    That being said, there has been one announcement from the Church today relating to temples that needs to be corrected from my previous analysis in the last comment I left. I noted that with two temple groundbreakings planned for Saturday October 9, the Church would have two more temples breaknig ground before the end of October this year than was true last year. In the interim, likely in view of COVID-19 conditions and the need to adjust previously-announced plans, the Church announced this afternoon that the groundbreaking for American Samoa's first temple was being postponed from the second Saturday in October to the last Saturday in October, as a result of which the Paog Pago temple will have a groundbreaking on October 30.

    Interestingly enough, that update makes this year the same as last year in one ctkey respect: The Church's original intent last October was to have the groundbreakings for both the Moses Lake Washington and the Taylorsville Utah Temples both take place on Saturday October 10. During the October 2020 General Conference, we learned that Elder Gong had tested positive for COVID-19, so the groundbreaking had to be postponed for three weeks.

    That being said, the bulk of the 21 groundbreakings held last year occurred in the last 3 months of 2020, and it might be too early as of yet to draw a solid conclusion as far as whether that will be true this year, but I'm still reasonably confident that the final 3 months of this year might bring some very unexepcted developments. With that in mind, anyone who would like to read about the rescheduling of American Samoa's first temple can do so at the following web address:

    https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/groundbreakings-announced-for-two-temples-in-the-south-pacific

    And my analysis of that adjustement can be found in the following post on my blog:

    https://stokessoundsoff.blogspot.com/2021/09/updated-pago-pago-american-samoa-temple.html

    It's also been humbling to see how the Church notes the latest updates on the process of temples reopening worldwide each Tuesday. For my analysis on the latest developments there, please see the following post:

    https://stokessoundsoff.blogspot.com/2021/09/breaking-temple-news-church-continues.html

    Also, it's worth noting that for a variety of reasons, I am looking at a potential major overhaul of my reports covering temple construction and for the list of temples most likely to be announced in General Conference. So while comments on my current list remain welcome and appreciated, hopefully by this weekend, I'll complete the needed changes, and meaningful discussion can be conducted on that. My thanks once again to you all.

    Jim Anderson said...

    Another consideration on predicting things and how soon is the matter of the coordinating councils, there may even be the idea to get a temple within the area covered by one or two groupings of stakes.

    For example, Gilbert and Queen Creek have 25 stakes total combined, Gilbert has a temple, Mesa has several councils, and Phoenix generaally with the west side cities has at least two. I would guess one temple in or close to three coordinating councils may be shooting for.

    In Utah, this may not quite work due to the density of members in the metro. So the mileage model works better, others including the Church News have found that no current proposed or operating temple inside the Provo-Ogden corridor is more than 8 miles from the next closest temple.

    And we have it that someone at the Taylorsville temple groundbreaking said that 'this is only the beginning of building temples in this area'. I think both Lindon and Syracuse came after that groundbreaking. If Tooele hits capacity after opening and is consistently full, they will likely announce one in the north end of that area, so the site change may have been good all along.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    I meant to put 4th temple in Columbia. I am sort of hoping for Medellin, but have not studied the issue enough to say for sure.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    A temple for all Scotland would best be placed in Sterling. Glasgow would be closer to Ireland. I have no clue. Remember I someone made Elder Gong my one not going to be called as an apostle ever prediction. That takes anti-talent to be that wrong.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    The think is Woodward goes towards the city of Detroit. Which is good for me, since I-75 has been under construction. However if you are coming from Lansing or Grand Rapids you want to take US 24 and then cut across most likely on Lone Pine and come from the north so you make a right. The last mile of Line Pibe the speed limit is 25 mph. If you come from Flint or Midland or Traverse City you get off 75 at the business loop and take that to M-1. You angle back a little, but not as bad as if you take Woodward from 696.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Martin's Cove seems very unlikely with Casper getting a temple. I think that would put 2 temples in 1 stake.

    Cove Fort seems less likely than Delta or Fillmore, but I guess it would be a little over for Beaver and Minersville stakes. Delta and Cove Fort both seems very unlikely.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    I am still holding out hope for 1000 by the 200th anniversary, sort of the inverse of the year 2000 (theoretically the 2000th anniversary of Jesus birth, although he most likely was born 5-7 years sooner) having 100. Of course if I wanted to go truly grand, what about 2000 by the theoretical 2000th anniversary of the resurection in April 2033. To get to those numbers though April 2021 will need to be a low announcement conference.

    If the Helena plan can actually build temples faster with no drawbacks in quality, we may be able to hit that goal. Although it will be hard.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Then there is Rio de Jainero which was finished in Sprin 2020 but still lacks a dedication date.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    How close is San Juan to completion? It had a temple president called. Are there any other called temple presidents besides the ones for Winnipeg, Rio de Jainero, Pocatello and San Juan fprtemples in progress?

    Jim Anderson said...

    Martin's Cove really has no services, they are a few miles away, and Cove Fort is just some truck stops and the site itself and a few scattered houses. Sevier County is an outlier but one could see one with growth in that area but I do not know how that is going. Just over ten miles via Spotted Wolf Pass on I-70 between the two.

    Fillmore and Delta are quite small, a truck driver who livestreams his trips went through two hours ago and stopped at the Maverik, the store was closed, they could not find anyone who wanted to work there. You could gas up with a payment card though.

    Price/Helper is another problem area economically, mining-centered, not much else save for College of Eastern Utah (USU school). And some agriculutre, hat is not much either.

    Foreign, what about Sorocaba, Sao Paulo state in Brazil. Several stakes, freeway access to both Campinas and Sao Paulo sort of like Provo to Salt Lake but part of the drive in involves the major traffic snarls. (Raposo Tavares is less used but is two lanes to near Cotia). We could see something soon there.





    A. J. Merlos said...

    Personally, I would love if President Nelson announces a new temple in Rosario, Argentina! I served my mission there and I know how much the members want a temple. They said that like ten years ago it was announced in a Liahona that the church would build a new temple there but I'm not sure if that is true...

    Steve Crandall said...

    John Pack Lambert, besides the four that you mentioned, temple presidents have been called for Abidjan Côte d’Ivoire, Yigo Guam, and Praia Cabo Verde.

    Chris D. said...

    Recently organized "Lehi Utah Canyon Hills Stake - 2187280", which was split from the "Lehi Utah Traverse Mountain Stake - 486701"

    Which includes the Canyon Hills 1st, 2nd and 3rd Wards, and the Traverse Mountain 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 11th and 12th Wards.

    https://classic.churchofjesuschrist.org/maps/#ll=40.445499,-111.858059&z=14&m=google.hybrid&layers=stakecenter&q=Lehi%20Utah%20Canyon%20Hills%20Stake&find=stake:2187280

    21 Sep 14, 2021 Lehi Utah Canyon Hills Stake

    Steve Crandall said...

    Here are my predictions.

    Fairbanks, Alaska
    Heber City, Utah
    Colorado Springs, Colorado
    Austin, Texas
    Augusta, Maine
    La Paz, Bolivia
    Iquitos, Peru
    Monrovia, Liberia
    Antananarivo, Madagascar
    Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
    Tacloban City, Philippines
    Edinburgh, Scotland

    Maybe a couple more. I’m thinking 12-15.

    Daniel Moretti said...

    I don't think so, because of the São Paulo Leste announcement, leaving few stakes for the old temple. Maybe if Brazil receives 5 more temples, then there is a chance

    Jim Anderson said...

    I am thinking the new Sao Paulo Leste temple will be in the farther suburbs but still inside Rodoanel Mario Covas (SP-021), there is a substantial population inside that, less to the west, and even some east end Sao Paulo members may benefit even if it is closer to the eastern end of the metro.

    A stake president in the Penha area of Sao Paulo said that it was 90 minutes in good traffic to get to the present temple, so a temple just outside the city would help all of that. You do land in Guarulhos, a very large suburb, and there are other equally large suburbs to the south of that which could benefit.

    Mon Chou said...

    Curious... I've always been a proponent of Victoria, BC having their own smaller temple. And I agree that Prince George is far from any temple, but what do you think of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan? It's about an 2 hr and 45 mins to Regina and that's on a clear, summer day... Canadian winters are notoriously bad.

    Mon Chou said...

    This is a reply to JPL's long list (which included some Canadian cities). Before anyone comments, yes, I know there's one stake in Saskatoon, but there's one stake in Manitoba and Regina and they have temples. Not predicting this... Just curious why Saskatoon never makes the lists. Lol.

    Wisconsinite said...

    I always love this time of year, just for the temple prediction forums~~

    My top ten are (in no particular order):
    -Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
    -Rivera, Uruguay
    -Iquitos, Peru
    -Maracaibo, Venezuela
    -Santa Ana, El Salvador
    -Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico
    -Kananga/Mbuji-Mayi, Dem Rep of the Congo
    -Tacloban, Philippines
    -North Ogden, Utah, USA
    -Spanish Fork/Springville/Mapleton, Utah, USA

    Since Nelson assumed leadership, he really has announced most obvious gaps on the map, leaving just a few glaring omissions. I'm gonna bet on more temples being announced, rather than fewer, and some of my other top choices that aren't in my top 10 are:

    -Price, Utah, USA
    -Santiago de los Cabelleros, Dominican Republic
    -La Paz, Bolivia
    -Chiclayo, Peru
    -Cusco, Peru
    -Joao Pessoa, Brazil
    -Valparaiso/Vina del Mar, Chile
    -Punta Arenas, Chile
    -Neuquen, Argentina
    -Antananarivo, Madagascar
    -Monrovia, Liberia
    -Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
    -Edinburgh/Glasgow, Scotland, UK

    Alex said...

    I think it's a distance thing. Church leaders have previously used 200 miles as a benchmark of "X% of our members are now within 200 miles of a temple. From Regina, Saskatoon is within the 200 mile radius. Winnipeg is not. A lot of the small temple for small district temples seem to follow that rule, and most that don't have a travel problem (e.g., country borders closed during COVID for Belgium), so while Saskatoon may get a temple one day, I'd expect other isolated stakes like Prince George in BC to happen sooner since they're farther than 200 miles away from their temple.

    Cory said...

    Here are my top 10:

    Austin, TX
    Charlotte, NC
    Heber Valley, UT
    Rexburg, ID North
    Chiclayo, Peru
    Viña del Mar, Chile
    Florianópolis/São José, Brazil
    Kananga/Mbuji-Mayi, DRC
    Antananarivo, Madagascar
    Cauayan, Philippines

    Butterfly and Bones said...

    Now more than ever, I really think Scotland (as a European pick) could get their own temple! I'm rooting for Edinburgh this time. (If Oslo, Vienna, & Brussels can have their own)!

    Because I've seen Cardiff, Wales low-keyed bandied about here -- wondering if you think that Cardiff has a fighting chance at all? It is a capital of a European country, which is a trend we've been seeing lately.

    It could be supported by the following Stakes:
    Merthyr Tydfil Wales Stake
    Cardiff Wales Stake
    Cheltenham England Stake
    Bristol England Stake
    Plymouth England Stake
    (maybe Poole England Stake?)

    While I think Bristol, England is more central to that bunch of stakes above than Cardiff, the Early Church can thank Wales for so many of the earliest and first converts (who later immigrated to the States). In fact, it's been reported that 20% of all Utahans have Welsh ancestry. There is such a rich Church Welsh heritage. Look up the history of Dan Jones and John Parry who organized the choral group that went on to become the Mormon Tabernacle Choir! Also, Welsh was one of the first languages the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants was translated into.

    Any thoughts on a temple in Wales? Or do you think a temple in Birmingham, England would be called before one in Wales is?

    Know anyone who has served in Wales? While I know most Welsh citizens speak English - was wondering if there has ever been sessions at the London temple held in the Welsh language? Or if missionaries ever teach in Welsh or if Church is ever held in Welsh.

    This is just a fun little dark horse.

    Daniel Moretti said...

    That's why I believe the temple will not be built in São Paulo itself, but in Guarulhos, to the northeast, or in Santo André/Mauá, to the southeast. But there are sufficiently large areas in Itaquera, near the Corinthians Stadium, that they can serve.

    Butterfly and Bones said...

    @Alex- Yeah, Prince George is way out there by itself. So is Fairbanks, Alaska, which is why I've always been perplexed why Fairbanks, Alaska doesn't have one and others - they're like little islands in the wildernesses.

    Interesting about the Canadian mentions... Wendy Nelson is Canadian through and through so I'm sure she remembers these gaps on Canada's temple map. :)

    Exciting times! Happily anxious to see what will happen!

    Kermit said...

    I think Cory's is is spot on.

    Whizzbang said...

    I technically still live in the Regina Sask. Temple district. I would be extremely surprised if Saskatoon got a temple. The Winnipeg temple took about 15-20 workers out of the Regina Temple and Saskatooners typically go to the Cardston one so Regina will be kind of on it's own after Winnipeg is dedicated.The last time I was at Regina they had this senior couple from Arizona helping as workers. This area can barely sustain 2 temples let alone 3.

    GTC1 said...

    I can second this. Since reopening with COVID we now have no senior missionaries to assist. More local members have stepped up though. A lot of members have strong ties to southern AB and prefer to travel further to Cardston. I noticed Edmonton is nearly fully booked with lots of sessions through the week. Regina has enough sessions to count on one hand and usually only gets close to full on the week of the session. My personal view on the chance of Saskatoon getting a temple is .05% or less unfortunately.

    Mon Chou said...

    @Whizzbang & GTC1, Thanks for your comments. As I stated, this wasn't a prediction in the slightest -- just me teasing about how Victoria, BC has been on several lists (but not Saskatoon) while also marveling at the fact that Regina and Winnipeg have temples! Sorry that my humor is pretty lame.

    But in all seriousness, I have a friend in Lethbridge, Alberta that says Lethbridge is ripe for the picking for a temple. How do you Canadians feel about that?

    Brett Stirling said...

    Jakarta is a sinking city and the government is starting a new project to relocate the capital city to Kalimantan in Borneo. I wonder if any potential temple might avoid the capital for this reason.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    I think for the most part the capital moving may be fir the government and business centers. Jakarta is a city of around 10.2 million people and where most Indonesian members are. Moving that many people would be a logistics nightmare. I've heard commons in the past for the same reason not to build in Kirabati, yet they got an announcement last April.

    Jim Anderson said...

    Don't think Saskatoon just yet, given the matter of Winnipeg opening.

    Sao Paulo East will very likely be in the area bounded by Via Anchieta, Rod. Fernao Dias, and Rodoanel. Someone thought Maua, that is plausible being just inside Rodoanel.

    The temple I heard about that had sessions not fill up in the present situation was Raleigh-Durham. The temple president said that at a stake conference in his district. But that does not affect Charlotte because Columbia is between that and Charlotte. They look for 80% capacity under normal conditions and neither has returned to normal operation, no temple is Phase 4 (normal) yet.

    The lists are good, but now let's narrow things to first a top-8, then the rest of a top-20 list of the most likely of these places on the other lists.

    Whizzbang said...

    @ Mon Chou-Lethbridge distance wise, could be-I don't see it happening for awhile though. I know they would want one but I also know that when Calgary Temple was dedicated the Cardston Temple lost 1/3 of their workers. Maybe down the line it could get one! Guess we'll see!

    L. Chris Jones said...

    Since President Nelson was sustained nearly 4 and half years ago, he announced around 71 temples over 7 conferences. 17 of them have been in countries that never had a temple before and 5 of them in US states and territories getting their first temple as well. There are currently 20 countries without a temple that have at least one stake. Some of the new countries with announcements have only one stake. Many these have least one district in addition to the stakes. 9 have have at least 2 stakes. Or three others have 3, 4 and 5 stakes. Almost 24% of temples announced by President Nelson have been in countries that have never had a temple before. I hope and anticipate we may see more of this trend. We currently have 12 US states without temples and some appear to be good candidates now or in the near future.

    Daniel Moretti said...

    Considering only geography and distances, I believe that the locations that need temples are:

    North America:
    - Fairbanks AK
    - Wichita KS
    - Culiacán Mexico
    - La Paz Mexico
    - Kingston Jamaica

    South America:
    - Trinidad
    - Maracaibo Venezuela
    - Piura Peru
    - Iquitos Peru
    - Cusco Peru
    - Viña del Mar Chile
    - Osorno Chile
    - Trelew / Neuquén Argentina
    - Palmas Brazil
    - Teresina Brazil
    - Rio Branco Brazil
    - Cuiabá OR Campo Grande Brazil

    Also in South America, on Paraná River basin:
    - Livramento Brazil / Rivera Uruguai OR Uruguaiana Brazil / Paso de los Libres Argentina
    - Foz do Iguaçu Brazil / Ciudad del Leste Paraguai
    - Londrina OR Araçatuba Brazil
    - Uberlândia Brazil

    Africa:
    - Kampala Uganda
    - Kananga RDC
    - Antanarivo Madagascar
    - Monróvia Libéria
    - Abuja Nigéria
    - Luanda Angola

    Asia / Pacific:
    - Ulan Bator Mongólia
    - Jakarta Indonesia
    - Micronesia OR Marshall Is.
    - Christchurch New Zealand

    Europe:
    - Glasgow Escócia
    - Barcelona Espanha
    - Tirana Albânia

    Daniel Moretti said...

    And Osaka Japan (i forgot)

    L. Chris Jones said...

    1 of the 71 was outside of conference last May.

    Cory said...

    He didn't reach the 70 number until Ephraim was announced.

    April 2018: 7
    October 2018: 12
    April 2019: 8
    October 2019: 8
    April 2020: 8
    October 2020: 6
    April 2021: 20
    May 2021: 1
    Total: 70

    James G. Stokes said...

    JPL, aside from Rio de Janeiro (opening delayed) and Winnipeg and Pocatello (public tours starting soon), the Quito Ecuador and Yigo Guam temples are completed. The first president and matron have arrived in Guam, so an announcement could be made soon. Quito's first president and matron are not yet announced. Praia Cabo Verde and San Juan Puerto Rico are anticipated to be completed within the first or second quarters of next year, with the first presidents announced for both.

    Belem Brazil and Saratoga Springs Utah are anticipated to be completed in the second or third quarter of next year, though.the first presidents for both are not yet announced. Abidjan Ivory Coast and Richmond Virginia are likely to be completed in the third or fourth quarter of next year, with the first president and matron announced for Abidjan.

    The big question for temples completed or nearing completion is if COVID-19 will impact the timing of the announcement of opening dates or the opening arrangements themselves. Hope that information helps.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Brent Stirling, you raise an interesting point regarding Indonesia. I seem to recall some here who stated that temples in Kiribati and Vanuatu we're unlikely for the same reason (the sinking). But temples in the two nations could have a groundhog later this year or early next year. Based on that, I wouldn't necessarily count Indonesia or anywhere else. As one of my seminary teachers frequently asked: "Who was right, Noah or the weatherman?

    Some seem to think the Church might not consider such factors when announcing a temple, but the Brethren have noted that during natural upheavals and disasters, the temples are the safest places to be in. So I'm sure rising water has been factored into the plans for Kiribati and Vanuatu, which would likely be true as well for Indonesia. Hope that helps.

    James G. Stokes said...

    L. Chris Jones, the total number is 70, not 71. 19 were announced in 2018, with 8 more each in the next 3 conferences, 6 last October, 20 in April, and 1 in May. Hope that helps.

    Сњешко said...

    I dont know if anyone would be interested, but I did my own analysis two months ago and created a map like the OP. If anyone would like to give it a look, here is a link for it: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=10lauuaMZA5ZyrCXU5DpKk1kbhZKpCExq&usp=sharing

    James G. Stokes said...

    "were" unlikely and "groundbreaking", not "we're" and "groundhog." I hate autocorrect sometimes.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    I would be shocked if Daloa is announced before Abijan is done. There has never been a temple announced gir a country when that countries 1st temple was still in progress, except in the US. Even in the US though the second completed time was not began until the first was finished.

    In fact, DR Congo's record of less than 2 years from Kinshasa's dedication to Lumbumbashi being announced is way lower than its next competitor.

    The next competitor I believe is 11 years from Mexico City being dedicated until Monterrey was announced.

    Note Fermany does not count since it was 2 countries when the temple were built.

    Brett Stirling said...

    This isn’t a hypothesis. The Indonesian government are investing billions to relocate the capital because the capital is sinking under its own weight and rising oceans.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    My father served in Maua, Sorocaba, Santos, Presidente Predente, and Apucarana on his mission in 1972-1974.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Isn't Liberia the country with the most stakes with no temple announced? I know the distance from Freetown to Monrovia is not super, but this is not Brazzaville/Kinshasa either. I am surprised Brazzaville does not make more lists.

    Also Aba Temple will still have excessively large numbers of stakes for its size when Benin Vity and Lagos are done.

    I have to admit we see as many temples in progress at once in Nigeria in the 2020s as we saw in Mexico in the 1990s.

    I am thinking Calabar, Uyo, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Abuja and Ibadan. I still need 4 more though. Benue would be great but I am not sure there is a stake there. I always throw out Ikot Eyo, where the classic picture of the huge line of baptized comes from, but I am not at all sure it is far enough from Uyo to justify a temple.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    President Nelson is still under 4 years as president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. January 2018 to present.

    Butterfly and Bones said...

    @Anonymous! I agree with EP -- that was an incredible find about potential Lehi Temple on Traverse Mt! I am super convinced that that parcel by the school is def for a Temple - (the parcel for the meetinghouse is much smaller in comparison)! I don't know what else it could be besides a Temple lot.

    I didn't watch the entirety of the meeting (thanks for saving me time & pointing out the exact minute), but was there an estimate on how long this development project will take?

    And if you don't mind me asking, how did you come across this material? Did you know someone on the committee? Just curious as I'm wondering if one were to delve into the urban planning of Spanish Fork/Springville, if one could fine similar future developments seeking approval... Inquiring minds want to know! :)

    James G. Stokes said...

    JPL, Liberia is second on the top ten list. Uganda's number 1. Ordinarily, a temple for Uganda could be ruled out due to the fact that construction has not yet fully started for the Nairobi Kenya Temple. But since the Vienna Austria Temple was announced last April while official details are not yet released for the temple in neighboring Budapest Hungary (which was announced in April two years ago), I don't think it is wise to discount a temple being announced in Uganda. That's why Kampala has been on my list since Nairobi was announced.

    James G. Stokes said...

    JPL, Daniel's comment about President Nelson was in response to my reiteration of the hope that President was will be around for the next decade or two. If it's two decades minimum, at the time of his death, he'd officially be the first supercentenarian prophet. Daniel was rightly correct in what he said. In fact, by this time next year, he'll be the oldest prophet and apostle. And in 20 years, he'll then be over 110, making him the first official supercentenarian. I had left the super part off of my comment, so I appreciate the correction, Daniel. Thanks.

    Johnathan Reese Whiting said...

    @Searchthetruth

    If the SLC Annex shown in the following Brian Olson 3D Temple Video is the one you're referring to, than I agree.

    https://youtu.be/h9M0W0vD1u0

    It seems to draw on Byzantine or Moorish styles. It reminds me a bit of a miniature Hagia Sophia or Blue Mosque in Istanbul.

    The old 4th Ward building in Ogden has a Spanish/Moroccan style. It was built in the early 20th Century as well.

    https://ldsarchitecture.wordpress.com/category/meetinghouses/united-states/utah/ogden-area/ogden-4th-ward/

    It seems like Church Architects were more willing to experiment with those styles back in the day, but got away from them after a while. We also used to incorporate more Gothic elements (such as in Salt Lake, Manti, St. George, and Logan).

    Most of our temples now are modern designs, incorporating elements and motifs of Greco-roman, Victorian, and some Spanish Colonial styles (like Tijuana and Puebla), etc.

    We also have the occasional East/Central Asian influenced designs: Oakland, Bangalore, Bangkok, Okinawa, Sapporo, Phnom Penh (with hopefully more of these on the way).

    And one very specifically Mesoamerican-influenced temple in Mexico City.

    I am glad to finally see Domes and Cupolas included more and more in the newer styles: Tucson, Puebla, Puerto Rico, Cabo Verde, Newport Beach, etc.

    I'm interested to see what motifs will be included in the new modular designs, to at least make them slightly different from one another.

    Jim Anderson said...

    They had someone on Latter-day Saints Channel (while under the old name) some years ago and he explained that they have some basic designs, at that time six, for floor plans.

    They then send people out to the locations to find what is and has been done locally so they can design it so it reflects the local architecture inasmuch as it can be done and other things about the local surroundings. Thus, each one in the end is an individual plan, some elements very similar, but yet be distinct from the others.

    That is clearly evident from this morning's release of four renderings. Three follow a similar pattern while one follows the one used for Feather River and Richmond.

    EP said...

    100% agreed @Jim Anderson. I’ve counted 12 typical floor plans that the Church seems to be leaning on as of late, as put in my first post in these comments. So far, it has been pretty accurate in correlating to newly announced temples, with the only real exception being Syracuse. That said, I’m pretty sure Syracuse is a two baptistery adaptation of the XL floor plan that underpins Orem, Pocatello, Taylorsville, Tooele, etc., which may eventually also be a trend. I’m thinking Smithfield will be similar to Layton for now.

    Searchthetruth said...

    JPL-you are right about Doloa, that got past me. I will replace that with Monrovia, Liberia as it should have been on my list at first anyway. I also think a high possibility of Fairbanks or Glasgow Temple announcement is possible.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Hello again, everyone! The Newsroom and the Church News shared 4 exterior renderings for temples in the Western United States:

    https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/renderings-released-for-four-temples-in-the-western-us

    Here is my analysis on this development:

    https://stokessoundsoff.blogspot.com/2021/09/breaking-temple-news-exterior.html?m=1

    For the information of all readers of this blog, with 3 temple groundbreakings scheduled to occur thus far, there are now at least 14 temples for which I believe a groundbreaking is possible by the end of this year. The queue of announced temples currently sits at a total of 41. Once the 3 scheduled groundbreakings occur, that takes the number down to 38. And if at least those 14 temples also have groundbreakings scheduled, that would reduce the existing queue to 24. If, as some reports claim, the Church wants to keep the number of announced temples in the queue at 35, we'd be looking at 11 new temples for General Conference. I believe there will be a few more than that actually announced next conference and that if the Church wanted to do so again, the bulk of the temple groundbreakings this year in October-December could constitute a majority of all the temple groundbreakings this year.

    Hope those additional figures are helpful.

    Searchthetruth said...

    JRW-The Tijuana design has been one of my favorites lately. I thought Rome was unique, I also really liked the designs for Bangkok, Bengaluru and Phnom Penh with the Asian influence. And while we are on the subject, if there is ever a Temple in Summit County (Coalville) I hope it can be in reminiscent of the Summit Stake Tabernacle which was razed and maybe bridge some of the loss that was felt when it was tore down.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Chris & JPL, the river in Washington state for which a temple there is named and the temple in South Carolina are "Columbia", with one "o" and one "u". The South American nation in which the Cali temple was announced last April is "Colombia', with 2 "o"s and no "u".

    I'm hoping that autocorrect was to blame there. But I do want to apologize in advance if I'm being too nitpicky here. The fourth temple in Colombia seems likely to be announced for Medellin.

    I'll be interested to see the timing of milestones related to the latest announced temples in Latin America, and to see what happens with the timing of the announcements for new temples in that region in the next little bit.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Brett, I hope you know I meant no disrespect. If the Indonesian government is relocating the capital of that nation, your point that it's not hypothetical is well-taken.

    At the same time, that's a separate question to whether the flooding conditions would be sufficient to deter the Church from announcing a temple in Indonesia and putting it in Jakarta or in the new capital city.

    With that in mind, I'm not swayed enough by the flooding issue to alter my personal projection of a temple being announced to for Jakarta, though the Church could opt to build it elsewhere in Indonesia or to have a temple safely built elsewhere that would be more accessible and safe to serve the Church members in that nation.

    Again, no offense intended, and I hope none is taken, Brett.

    Jim Anderson said...

    SE Idaho is going to get another stake soon, no details on where or when except soon, in the boundaries of the Idaho Twin Falls Mission. That has 35 stakes now.

    Chris D. said...
    This comment has been removed by the author.
    James G. Stokes said...

    Not sure if this will matter to anyone here, but when doing research about a second Ivory Coast Temple, my research shows that the most likely location for the second Ivory Coast Temple is the city of Yamasoukkro. Once the Abidjan temple is dedicated, Church members will have a one-way journey of just under 200 miles, and no other operating or planned temple is closer to Yamasoukkro than that. I'd be shocked if the second Ivory Coast Temple is anywhere other than that city.

    James G. Stokes said...

    JPL, if the Church had had over 250 temples in any phase around 20 years ago, 1000 temples might have been achievable by the 200th anniversary of the Church's restoration. My calculations show that to get to 300 operating temples by Saturday April 6, 2030, the Church would need to dedicate between 10-12 temples every full year between now and then. If COVID-19 permits, the Church will dedicate 10 new temples by this time next year, duplicating that number again in 2023 and 2024.

    But getting another 800+ temples dedicated in the just over 8 years remaining before the bicentennial would likely require a minion of 30 temples to be dedicated every month between now and the end of 2029. So I don't see that happening. 300 minimum, very reasonable. 1000, only if they were dedicated prior to construction starting.

    Searchthetruth said...

    JRW- Also the link you have for the original Salt Lake Temple annex was the 1920 look. It was even more ornate prior to 1920, I think Brian did a 3D video on that as well.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    Some possible potential US temples: For California: Modesto or Stockton, Bakersfield, and San Jose. For Wyoming: Evanston or Rock Springs, For Montana: I still vote for Missoula even though they will get Helena. Florida: Jacksonville, Arizona: Flagstaff and Queen Creek. Dark Horse Idaho: Moore, maybe one near Coeur d'Alene. Washington: Takoma. one in Vermont, New Hampshire, or Maine. Texas: El Paso, Austin, Near Fort Worth or Dallas2. Kansas: Wichita or Garden City. Iowa: Des Moines. Utah: Heber City, Price, east SLC area, Harriman/Bluffdale, Lehi, Farmington, North Ogden, Hyrum, Spanish Fork, Springville, and Others. Some more immediate others in the next ten or so years. Many more internationally.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    Plus Fairbanks and Juneau Alaska and Maui and Kauai Hawaii

    James G. Stokes said...

    JPL, I can understand why you've offered that opinion. If my information is correct, then the Marshall Islands and Micronesia rank eighth and tenth on the list of the top ten nations having the strongest Church presence without a temple. But as we've periodically seen, the Church has sometimes announced a temple lower down on that list or in nations not anywhere near being on that list.

    I although there are locations that seem to be more likely to have a temple announced will always be the first priority for the Church in any area of the Church. Just wanted to mention that caveat.

    Johnathan Reese Whiting said...

    @Searchthetruth:

    I found the videos you were talking about, and you were right, the Annex was more ornate:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bx26M4G1dGU&list=PLmoewVukwToif_-iw3l8-NliHM7parMoT&index=8

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGqOI5TgwVY&list=PLmoewVukwToif_-iw3l8-NliHM7parMoT&index=11

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPCWpWSKhXA&list=PLmoewVukwToif_-iw3l8-NliHM7parMoT&index=13


    It looks like they changed the entrance several times in a short period (as well as eventually removing the accents). Also, I'm curious as to whether that building behind the Annex was a greenhouse, a temple exit, or a glass gazebo.

    Eric S. said...

    This prediction post has been up for almost a week now. With over 100 comments, I thought it would be fun to add together all of the predictions so far and see what the top 10 are just based on the number of times a location has been mentioned. =) Just a note, I only included posts that mentioned they were specifically predictions for this upcoming conference (rather than posting location guesses in general). Apologies if I missed any or miscounted. With that said, here is the top 10 so far with the number of times a location has been mentioned. I will group together picks if they have the same number.

    1. Monrovia Liberia (12)
    2. Austin Texas (11)
    3. Antananarivo Madagascar (10)
    4. Ulaanbaatar Mongolia (9)
    5. Mbuji-Mayi/Kananga DRC, Charlotte North Carolina, Tacoma Washington, Colorado Springs Colorado, Iquitos Peru (8)
    6. La Paz Bolivia, Tacloban Philippines, Valparaiso/Vina del Mar Chile (7)
    7. Edinburgh/Glasgow Scotland, Fairbanks Alaska, Spanish Fork/Springville/Mapleton UT, Herriman UT (6)
    8. Nequen Argentina, Santiago Dominican Republic (5)
    9. Flagstaff/Prescott Arizona, Rexburg #2 Idaho, João Pessoa Brazil, Culiacan Mexico, Chiclayo Peru, Greater Las Vegas #2 Nevada, Heber City UT (4)
    10. Angeles Philippines, Naga Philippines, Rosario Argentina, Kampala Uganda, Ribeirão Preto Brazil, Kingston Jamaica, Madison/Milwaukee/Green Bay Wisconsin, Wichita Kansas, Osorno Chile, El Paso Texas, Augusta Maine, Marshall Islands, Punta Arenas Chile, Maracaibo Venezuela (3)

    Сњешко said...

    In addition to the map I've already provided, I would like to select my top ten picks for this General Conference.

    1. Monrovia, Liberia
    2. Charolette, North Carolina
    3. Flagstaff, Arizona
    4. Springville, Utah
    5. Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
    6. La paz, Bolivia
    7. Chiclayo, Peru
    8. Natal, Brazil
    9. Glasgow, Scotland
    10. Austin, Texas

    Two just for fun wild card picks:
    White Tank Mountains, Arizona (Surprise, Arizona)
    Tirana, Albania (First Balkan temple)

    Johnathan Reese Whiting said...

    @Searchthetruth:

    I agree about the Summit Stake Tabernacle idea.

    I've wondered about that one - whether it was originally intended as a sister building to the Salt Lake Assembly Hall - because the two of them are so similar in design, and groundbreaking started for the Assembly Hall in 1877, while plans for the Summit Stake Tabernacle coincidentally also began in 1877.



    Unknown said...

    Does anyone else think that Park City would get one over Heber and Coalville? It's a bigger population and I think would be a great idea for the Church with the amount of tourists that would pass by... especially while Salt Lake is under renovation.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Hello aagain, everyone! Although I am planning on looking at (and responding to) any comments given in response to the recent comments I have left here, for now, I wanted to note some interesting information that was shared in the weekly email with the Church meeting links. THe presidency of my stake (Orem Utah Geneva Heights) created a new ward in our stake.

    A few years ago, my stake had wards number 1st-10th. Growth in our area at around that time led to the creation of the 11th and 12th wards. My wife and I reside within the boundaries of the 4th Ward. Just before the pandemic hit and the Church closed all temples and chapels and gave instructions for worshipping at home, the other ward in our buidling (the 3rd Ward) was discontinued due to not having sufficient manpower to remain operational. So we have had the 1st and 2nd Wards, folloqwed by the 4th-12th. The creation of the new ward (which will be known as the Lakefront Ward) puts the number of congregations in our stake at a total of 12. While I am well aware of the fact that other stakes in various parts of the world have more individual wards and btranches than that, we have seen cases in the United States where any stake with more than 10 units has eventually been split. Since the number of units now is back up to what it was prior to the closure of the 3rd Ward, I don't think a split of my stake will be needed until the surrounding stakes also have 12 or more wards. Just wanted to share that interesting development here.

    Nate said...

    The temple matrix is up and available for the October 2021 conference. Texas, Liberia, and Mongolia are at the top of the list again just like they were last conference.

    https://sites.google.com/view/templematrix/home?authuser=0

    See also the "Nelson Temples" link which summarizes the temples announced since President Nelson was sustained. Average number of temples announced each conference since then is 11.5!

    Daniel Moretti said...

    What a wonderful job, Nate!

    L. Chris Jones said...

    I think Park City is a great idea. I like the idea of temples in tourist towns. It could accommodate both local and traveling members. And atract nonmember tourist. Even a nice visitors center would be great for a tourist area. However there are more stakes in the Heber City area(6) to Park City/Kamas(2). But both are closer to each other than nearby temples in SLC or Provo, so either will still cut travel to almost half. And canyon driving often has crowded traffic problems and risks of winter avalanches/icy roads.

    Daniel Moretti said...

    The São Carlos Brazil Stake was reorganized today. I am very happy with this change. It seems that every time we see a transformation of this magnitude, our willingness is renewed to support and help the leadership

    Ryan J said...

    Morehead City NC Stake created today.
    Kinston NC Stake renamed Greenville NC Stake

    Jim Anderson said...

    Found out it is estimated that out of 17 million members the total considered active is only roughly five million. Percentages in local units obviously will be different from region to region.

    It is known that in the Utah area activity rates are between 40 and 50 percent. If we were to reactivate even a small percentage we would see even more temples, not only the other things that would result from the activity rates increasing in many areas.

    James G. Stokes said...

    I left an incomplete thought here. What I wanted to say above is that Uganda haz been first on Matt's top ten list the last 2 or 3 times he's shared that here. Other nations on that list have had temples announced, taking the mm off the list, while Uganda remains first thereon.

    Additionally, those of us who have had Mongolia and Madagascar on our lists for a while now have observed that no other temples are close enough to the two nations to eliminate the undue hardship of lengthy and expensive travel. Despite it those facts, the Church has prioritized other African or Asian locations. The examples of Mongolia and Madagascar perfectly illustrate why it may not be a safe conclusion to assert that a temple in the Marshall Islands will almost definitely be announced prior to a temple in Micronesia. Either could be announced before the other, both could be announced at the same time, or the two nations could be announced in that same order.

    Each possible scenario has a 1/3 chance of happening compared with the others. That's what I was trying to say, but left the thought incomplete. Thanks.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    I thought Twin Falls mission was renamed to Idaho Falls mission a few years ago.

    Anonymous said...

    I thought utah activity rates were 60-70%

    John Pack Lambert said...

    How about Honolulu, Hawai'i. I really think Oahu could by itself support 2 temples.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Well, Tahiti had its first temple announced when it had 1 stake. Same is true of Manitoba, Okinawa, and I believe Vanuatu. Also Hungary I believe. China, Ukraine, Hawai'i, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and New Zealand all had no stakes when they had a temple announced. So I cannot reasonably rule out Albania getting a temple.

    I still think it unlikely.

    I also just do not see Mongolia getting a temple yet.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    I think in 1995 I could have shown how getting 100 temples by 2000 was undoable. Getting much over 300 by 2030 seems unlikely, but I am not quite giving up hope.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    On the other hand the president for Avijan Temple has been called so maybe a repeat of the DR Congo situation even faster will happen. I am split as to Daloa or Yamasoukro. Also if we saw a 3rd and even more so a 4th stake beyond Abijan it would seem more likely.

    Also, there is essentially no way to drive from Lumbumbashi to Kinshasa, there are parts of DR Congo basically passable only by air and water.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Uganda may have more members than Liberia, but I was talking about stakes. Liberia has 5 to Uganda's 3. Liberia has as many stakes as Uganda and Kenya combined.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Germany lacks a temple in its capital. Being a capital is not the only issue.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Hey, Chris. Although I'm not convinced that the Church would pick Sharon over Montpelier for a temple in Vermont, there's another area with historical significance for the early Church.

    Two stake are operating in Des Moines, the second of which bears both the name of the Iowa capital city and the name of Mount Pisgah. That name was used in at let one of the five books of Moses that are featured in the Bible.

    But there's also pioneer history tied to that name. A group of able-bodied men, under the leadership of Brother Brigham, was sent ahead of the main body of Saints. The vanguard company in turn sent a few men ahead, including Orson Hyde (unless it was Orson Pratt). Whichever Orson it was scouted the road ahead. Seeing a mountain range, the Apostle announced that it iwould be called Mount Pisgah, and would be the temporary location for the Saints to take their next rests.

    One of the advanced scouts went back to the vanguard company and relayed that information to Brother Brigham. The man who himself would become known as an "American Moses" reportedly responded that if the Mount Pisgah name was good enough for Moses and the Israelites, it was good enough for him

    If and when Iowa's first temple is announced, it could be built in (or at least named for) the Mount Pisgah resting place.

    I could see the Church naming any such temple either the Des Moines Iowa Mount Pisgah Temple or, for simplicity, the Mount Pisgah Iowa Temple

    Hope these insights are helpful to you, Chris.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    I really, really do not think Park City is a contender for a temple. They build temples based on local needs not the whims of jet setters and ski snowbirds. Thwre are 6 stakes in Heber City to at most 2 in as large an area as you can call Park City metro.

    I am also reminded of one time I went over Thanksgiving with someone to visit family in Heber City and Kamas. The family in Heber City were active members the ones in Kamas were very much not. It might be the problem of anecdotes, but I do not see Park City as a contender. Also remember The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints used to have a visitor center of sorts in Park City but no longer do.

    Lastly Park City types would fight the temple tooth and nail whoever it was placed.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    So if President Nelson announced 11 temples and the city for Russia he will hit that number. I know elsewhere Iisted 106 temples, but here is my if average prediction.

    Monrovia, Liberia
    Majuto, Marshall Islands
    Northern Luzon, Phillipines
    Charlotte, North Carolina
    Tempe, Arizona either by rebuilding g the institute building to include a temple Manhattan style or right by ASU in some other way
    Heber City, Utah
    Glasgow, Scotland
    La Paz, Bolivia
    Culiacan, Mexico
    Tampa, Florida
    Mbuji-Maye, DR Congo
    Russia temple will be built in Saratov

    James G. Stokes said...

    JPL, no I had predicted a temple in Orem, but didn't think it would be announced as soon as it was. By extension, I also had all Utah cities where temples have since been announced, but not for the immediate future General Conferences in which each had been announced.

    Thar fact has led to my choice with my last several predictions to list all near-future Utah temple prospects I could see on every one of my temple predictions within the last 2 years. Hope that answers your question.

    Jim Anderson said...

    Found out in Phoenix, the Mesa Temple goes as far northwest as Paradise Valley, an area roughly north/northeast of Camelback Mountain, not sure the line of sorts on the east/southeast although I understand the Gilbert coordinating council has 12 stakes presently and Queen Creek has 12, but Mesa has a fair number of stakes anyway so Tempe for now would still go to Mesa. The light rail also goes through ASU then east with a station by the northeast corner of the temple property.

    Was in the Mesa Temple in 1987 and that night they had quite a wait to get into the chapel, the Chandler stake at that time, likely still in the Mesa district, had announced a temple night and the stale responded that night in a major way.

    The Phoenix metro has 250k+ members. That gives average 80k members per existing temple, so something could come at any time based on other factors. We think Queen Creek but there could easily be another site too.

    Eric S. said...

    @Ryan J

    That's exciting news about the new Morehead City Stake! I'm guessing that stake was created from the Kinston (now Greenville) and Wilmington stakes? I served in that area of the Kinston stake on my mission 7-8 years ago. I recall hearing one time while there about speculation/rumors of possibly creating a new stake or realigning boundaries between the two stakes and Goldsboro. At the time, Wilmington stake was not in our mission. I think it's good that there is a stake now centered in that area of eastern NC. Very cool!

    Eric S. said...

    Jim, I've thought about a new temple in the Phoenix metro as well especially after last conference. Queen Creek certainly makes sense, but I've also thought about the SW/W portion of the metro. Perhaps Goodyear, but I do also like Unknown's wild card pick of Surprise. Between the metro and either Flagstaff or Prescott, I think Arizona's next temple announcement will come soon. In fact, Arizona is the only state in the contiguous western US that President Nelson has not announced a new temple for and I think that is about to change soon.

    James G. Stokes said...

    JPL, you cited the example that before President Hinckley’s announced intention to build 100 temples by 2000, you’d have dismissed it as not possible. So let’s look at the particulars of that announcement. With plans to more than double the number of temples in a few year’s time, the prophet was specific about how that would be accomplished, and what it would take to make that possible. Right now, we don’t have anything of a similarly-official nature from President Nelson to gauge his plans.

    What we do have is the statement of others that, with the expectation that he will be around for a minimum of 1 or 2 decades, his temple plans involve adding a “0” to the current number (which I term as a ten-fold increase) within the span of his prophetic tenure. So we see from that that in another decade or two, the Church could have 1700 temples dedicated. We also have the confirmed statement that the prophet hopes to oversee dedications for 70 temples in the next 5 years. That would take the existing number to just under 240 by sometime in 2026.

    So, in the absence of specific comments from the prophet about the particulars of his plan, with those numbers in mind, let’s run the calculations. Unless something drastic changes in the construction queue, the 200th temple of the Church will be the Coban Guatemala Temple, currently anticipated to be completed sometime in early 2024 (with a dedication 2-3 months after that). So by around April or May 2024, that 200th temple would be dedicated, leaving around 800 to be not only announced, but constructed and dedicated within around a 6 year period.

    EP said...

    Phoenix metro will come soon enough. Probably in the next 2-4 years. I can’t see it being anywhere other than Queen Creek though, Gilbert is by far the most overloaded of the three Phoenix temples. I also think Flagstaff or Prescott will be first to address distance issues, which will also take a few stakes off the Phoenix temple.

    James G. Stokes said...

    6 12-month periods yield a total of 72 months in which to make the 1,000 temples possible, which would then require the dedication of those remaining 800 temples in those 72 months. That means that unless the Church was successful in dedicating 13-15 temples at minimum per year, the goal wouldn’t be anywhere in reach. And with 4 or 5 weeks in a standard month, 3-5 temples would have to be dedicated per week, every week, with a few weeks during the year needing to dedicate 1-4 more temples than that to compensate for General Conferences or any other factors that would impact the scheduling.

    The Prophet and President of the Church is the only one authorized to fully exercise all priesthood keys at all times. Any of the roles requiring any of those priesthood keys could be (and have been) delegated to his fellow apostles. But officiating at the dedication of a temple requires priesthood keys that only the apostles, as authorized by the prophet, are able to exercise. By the end of next year, the only apostles under 70 years old will be Elders Gerrit W. Gong, Gary E. Stevenson, and Ulisses Soares.

    Although President Nelson is still reportedly acting with the energy, strength, mental clarity, and vigor of someone in their 60s or 70s, President Ballard is also a nonagenarian, with Presidents Oaks and Eyring and Elders Cook, Uchtdorf, and Holland being octogenarians. Elders Christofferson, Rasband, and Andersen are septuagenarians, with Elders Bednar, Renlund, Gong, Stevenson, and Soares being sextagenarians currently. Since all of the other 14 apostles have trouble keeping up with President Nelson, and given the advancing ages of all the Brethren, I don’t see any reasonable scenario under which the Church could dedicate 800 temples between 2024 and 2030, when all current apostles will be 4-10 years older than they are at present.

    James G. Stokes said...

    And even if, by some miracle, that was going to be a feasible possibility, I would think that would have been mentioned by President Nelson himself as the goal, and that such would have been announced right from the start. Having around 1,000 temples operating by sometime in the 2040s, 2050s, or 2060s seems reasonable. But if anywhere close to 1,000 temples were being planned to be in operation by the 200th anniversary of the Church, such plans would have to have been detailed before now in order to make them feasible.

    Again, if there were 200 or even 300 temples operating by 2000, I’d have an easier time believing that 1,000 temples by 2023 was reasonable. I don’t see any way to make the numbers work that way given the amount of time between now and then and the lack of clear statements from the prophet confirming any such plans.

    That being said, your optimism is certainly commendable, if slightly misplaced. I wish I could share that optimism. But based on what I have laid out here, I think the Church is far more likely to hit 1000 temples by sometime in 2040 or 2050.

    Jim Anderson said...

    The Phoenix temple district does take in Prescott, the Verde Valley towns, and Flagstaff, the total with those areas is 21 stakes.

    Gilbert may have at least 30, and Mesa has the rest inside the metro plus a few other outliers.

    So the task here is to figure out how they could otherwise realign districts to accomodate a fourth temple in the metro, and also allow for that northern temple, with Flagstaff being about 240 miles via I-17.

    Gilbert and Mesa are also large capacity temples, but Phoenix is about 30k square feet. The member population also skews to largely east of the airport, nore so the 101 on the east side and south of the 202 east of the airport. The 202 loops around so I am talking the part that does run by the airport.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Hope is all well and good when it can be justified or verified, but your suggestion seems to be too wild for someone who has, by his own admission elsewhere on this thread, been incorrect about things that were proven to be accurate, and inaccurate about things that are proven to likely be incorrect. But I'm willing to be wrong here myself. So, JPL, bearing in mind the facts I've shared in my latest comment here, do you still support your idea of 1000 temples by 2030?

    How do you see that being accomplished? And if that is indeed the plan, do you have any information explaining why such a plan has not yet been detailed? Are you aware on your end of any supported doctrinal provisions that would allow limited use of apostolic keys to dedicate temple that could allow GA and area seventies to assist with a mass dedication as you are suggesting? Where is such information supported? Thanks.

    EP said...

    Flagstaff actually is part of Snowflake Temple district. Phoenix actually is about 64k square feet, it’s single story but with a full basement. I think 20 stakes minus three it would lose to a northern AZ temple is fine for the size. Mesa is 114k square feet so I think the 29 currently assigned is probably top end acceptable. But Gilbert at 85k square feet and 36 stakes is sufficient to split before too long. Queen Creek and San Tan make up about a third of those stakes, and we know the Church has land in that area, so to me, that’s the logical answer. That suggestion someone had about turning the institute building in Tempe into a temple is a fascinating one though. The shape of the temple districts with Queen Creek in the mix is kind of odd, definitely not cutting distances for people at that point. Maybe the focus is solely on capacity.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    If Flagstaff is announced, could some communities of temples in the Phoenix/Mesa/Gilbert metro area realign though boundaries to offset to many stakes leaving Phoenix? I've seen it happen with the Provo Utah temple after Provo City Center was dedicated. (The Orem stakes transferred from Mount Timp).

    EP said...

    Maybe a minor shift, but only Prescott, Prescott Valley, and Cottonwood are lost to Flagstaff. The other stakes would come from the Snowflake temple district. Three stakes from the smallest temple in the valley probably doesn’t help much. Phoenix metro is incredibly lopsided with the distribution of Saints in the area, the vast majority are east and southeast in the valley.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Cagayan de Oro and Davao were announced 6 months apart, with the former in April and the latter in October 2018. But I think Lagos and Benin City Nigeria could be added, as could Orem and Lindon.

    James G. Stokes said...

    Salya and Mendoza were also 6 months apart.

    Johnathan Reese Whiting said...

    @Anonymous

    That may be an average. Activity was really low in my stake back in Ogden (even before the pandemic). We consolidated several Wards a few years ago.

    Johnathan Reese Whiting said...

    Here's my big fat list of Temple Possibilities based on Matt's and all of your lists!

    Some of these I think are likely or are due, and some are personal choices I'd like to see over the next few years. I'll whittle this down to just a few choices for this October in my next comment.

    (I included slashes in between the ones that I think are just as likely to be announced - except in the case of Brazil and the Philippines. I included practically all of the ones from those two countries that were on Matt's Potential Temples Map, and grouped them mostly according to location, but also some according to likelihood. Since I'm not as familiar with those two countries as I am with other parts of the World (like say, Mexico or North America), I'll have to whittle those lists down later as I get more info.)


    Utah:

    -Herriman
    -North Ogden/Pleasant View/West Weber County (2nd in Weber County)
    -Springville/Mapleton/Spanish Fork
    -Eagle Mountain/Lehi (Traverse Mountain?)
    -Price/Heber Valley/Morgan
    -Washington County 3rd/Hurricane
    -Cottonwood Heights/Sandy/Magna
    -Hyrum/Cache County 3rd


    Intermountain West/"LDS" Corridor USA:

    -Rexburg 2nd/Sugar City, ID
    -Missoula/Kalispell, MT/Couer D'alene, Idaho
    -Preston/Malad/Montpelier/Blackfoot, ID
    -Nampa, Idaho
    -Rapid City, South Dakota/Pueblo/Colorado Springs, CO
    -Flagstaff/Queens Creek, Arizona
    -Henderson/Summerlin/Las Vegas 2nd, Nevada


    Rest of USA/Canada:

    -Wichita, Kansas/Des Moines, Iowa/Green Bay, Wisconsin
    -Fairbanks, AK
    -Victoria, British Colombia
    -Bakersfield, CA
    -Santa Rosa, CA
    -Forth Worth/Austin/Longview, Texas
    -Brownsville, Texas
    -El Paso, Texas/Las Cruces, New Mexico
    -Lexington, Kentucky/Cincinnati/Cleveland, Ohio
    -Jacksonville, Florida/Charlotte, North Carolina
    -Maui, HI
    -Tacoma, Washington
    -Utica, New York


    Mexico/Central America/Caribbean:

    -Cancun/La Paz/Culiacán/Chihuahua, MX
    -Mexico City 2nd
    -Pachuca/Cuautla, MX
    -Trinidad and Tobago/Kingston, Jamaica/Santiago, DR
    -Santa Ana, El Salvador
    -Cuba
    -Belize


    South America:

    -Osorno, Chile/Neuquen/Rosario, Argentina
    -Viña del Mar/Valparaiso/Santiago 2nd, Chile
    -Punta Arenas, Chile
    -Iquitos/Cuzco, Peru
    -Lima (3rd)/Huancayo, Peru
    -La Paz, Bolivia/Ciudad del Este, Paraguay/Otavalo, Ecuador
    -Maracaibo, Venezuela


    Brazil:

    -Rio Branco
    -Ribeirão Preto/Santos/Sorocaba/Vitoria
    -Foz do Iguaçu/Londrina/Cuiabá/Campo Grande
    -Florianópolis
    -João Pessoa/Maceió/Natal
    -Teresina/Palmas
    -São José/Santa Maria/Pelotas


    Asia:

    -Pakistan/New Delhi, India
    -Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
    -Jakarta, Indonesia/Malaysia
    -Taichung Taiwan/Hanoi, Vietnam/Busan, Korea
    -Osaka, Japan


    Africa:

    -Lome, Togo
    -Monrovia, Liberia
    -Antananarivo, Madagascar/Kampala, Uganda
    -Maputo, Mozambique
    -Bo, Sierra Leone/Yamoussoukro, Cote d'Ivoire
    -Uyo/Abuja, Nigeria
    -Port Harcourt, Nigeria
    -Mbuji-Mayi, DRC
    -Cape Coast, Ghana


    Australia/Oceania:

    -Marshall Islands
    -Christchurch/Wellington, New Zealand
    -Canberra, Australia/Tasmania


    Philippines:

    -Tacloban City
    -Naga/Legazpi
    -Angeles/Olongapo
    -Puerto Princesa
    -Santiago/Tuguegarao


    Europe:

    -Tirana, Albania
    -Vilnius, Lithuania
    -Barcelona/Canary Islands, Spain/Toulouse, France
    -Hamburg/Berlin, Germany
    -Glasgow, Scotland/Edinburgh, Ireland

    James G. Stokes said...

    Johnathan, Edinburgh is Scotland's capital city, and Dublin is the capital of Ireland.

    Johnathan Reese Whiting said...

    Thanks, James!

    I must've mixed them up by mistake. :)

    Johnathan Reese Whiting said...

    @Nate & Eric S:

    Alright, here is my small wish list to add to the Temple Matrix and Top Ten Lists!

    I've whittled it down to 22 (just to be even and pick two for each of the 11 regions I split the world up into). But I'm going to guess there will be 15 total announced this Conference.


    Utah:

    -Eagle Mountain
    -2nd in Weber County

    Intermountain West/"LDS" Corridor USA:

    -Rexburg, ID, 2nd
    -Las Vegas, Nevada, 2nd

    Rest of USA/Canada:

    -Fairbanks, AK
    -Bakersfield, CA

    Mexico/Central America/Caribbean:

    -Culiacán, MX
    -Santa Ana, El Salvador

    Brazil:

    -João Pessoa
    -Foz do Iguaçu/Ciudad del Este, Paraguay

    Rest of South America:

    -Osorno, Chile
    -La Paz, Bolivia

    Asia:

    -Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
    -Hanoi, Vietnam

    Africa:

    -Monrovia, Liberia
    -Mbuji-Mayi, Democratic Republic of the Congo

    Australia/Oceania:

    -Marshall Islands
    -Tasmania/Hobart, Australia

    Philippines:

    -Puerto Princesa
    -Naga/Legazpi

    Europe:

    -Tirana, Albania
    -Glasgow, Scotland

    Ohhappydane33 said...

    The Pleasanton and Livermore California stakes were combined yesterday.

    Fredrick said...

    No surprise that the Church continues to shrink in California.

    Unknown said...

    Hopefully combining the stakes will allow for more organizational strength and a heightened ability to share the gospel in the new combined stake. I have San Jose a a “dark horse” temple candidate on my personal list of temple predictions. Do you know if this realignment of stakes was the result of shifts in which parts of the Bay Area members live (as sometimes happens as one area becomes more of an “old folks” area while younger families move into newer neighborhoods elsewhere in the region), or does it reflect a decline in membership in the Bay Area more generally?

    Eduardo said...

    I was one who thought Kiribati or Vanuatu was not a good candidate because of ocean levels rising. John PL calls that “anti-talent”. Sure.
    I would be incredibly surprised if President Nelson made it to 107. Of course that would put me at 60 and I have a hard time imagining that.
    No one but the Lord knows the future.
    Exciting times, and I think the pandemic is part of the hastening of the Work. Marvelous and wondrous.

    Nate said...

    Thanks again to all who have contributed lists of anticipated temples. The temple matrix is up to date and includes all lists in the comments above. One update was made to the Nelson Temples listing. The average number of temples announced per conference by President Nelson is 9.9 (corrected to include the most recent April conference).

    Ohhappydane33 said...

    400+ families have left Pleasanton and Livermore stakes since the pandemic began. The combined stake is Livermore, no more Pleasanton stake.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    Same idea in Salt Lake County. Salt Lake City seems to be shrinking membership but in nearby South Jordan and other nearby areas the church has been expanding a lot.

    Eduardo said...

    California’s losses can be gains elsewhere, but that is tough. Speaking of losses, a son of one of my wife’s aunts is a bishop of an Oregon ward that has lost 5-6 members to C-19, all between the ages of 50-60.
    Hard times for many.

    L. Chris Jones said...

    Does that include the one temple so far outside of conference such as Ephraim, a month after last April conference?

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Cove Fort is that all that far from Fillmore, and is fairly close to the freeway as I recall. It could cover 4 or a few more stakes. I am not sure it is even the most likely place in Millard County.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Until Kalimatan gets a stake I still see Jakarta a more likely location.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    It and Washington were the furthest west contiguous states that did not get temples announced in April. Washington had Moses Lake announced fairly recently though, by President Nelson in fact.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Not turning the institute building into a temple. Adding a temple onto the institute building. The institute building and temple would coexist.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    After Pleasanton went down to 3 wards this does not surprise me. My dad's parents lived in Plesanton when I was growing up. I have a cousin who also married a man from Plesanton.

    In California it has been several years since a new stake was formed. The last one I believe was somewhere in the interior in Southern California, I want to say Riverside County.

    There may be some ward growth, but the most significant one of late may be the creation of two Farsi-speaking units.

    The newest stake in the Bay Area was the 2nd Tongan stake, and even that was about 10 years ago. About 30 years ago some wards were taken out of Plesanton stake to a different stake. The San Francisco Bay area may not have gotten a new stake other than Tongan ones since the 1980s.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Wow, that is huge numbers. Is there something specific to this area causing the exodus, or is it common to much of California?

    Ohhappydane33 said...

    400+ member households between the two stakes (now one stake) have moved out in the last 18 months. I would say it's a combination of members fleeing to other states and, to a lesser extent, members moving to cheaper areas of the state. Hayward and San Rafael stakes are also both down to four wards each.

    Jim Anderson said...

    Areas outside of the Salt Lake, Logan area, or even Sanpete County, as well as southwest Utah, are having some difficulties of their own, really not that much growth, and problems economically too. A trucker who livestreams his trips left Salt Lake and stopped at Fillmore to get snacks. The gas station he stopped at was closed, sign said they could not find employees to work the gas station (could still fill up with a payment card).

    Of course that is an issue everywhere, but the outlying areas seem more vulnerable to economic stresses of the current variety as it pertains to the employee pool overall.

    Anecdotal evidence has it that some areas are 'gathering places', Arizona, Utah, and Idaho are the most mentioned. Some of it has apparently come from top leaders, not the local ones. Have no specifics other than hearing the anecdotes.

    The California temples before Feather River and Yorba Linda announced in the Hinckley era were smaller, the two others in socal may have been slightly smaller, and so I believe Yorba Linda to be the largest temple announced in some time in California. A stake was discontinued very close by prior to the announcement.

    But the pandemic shifting missionary work from the streets to computer and phone screens has meant more lessons, etc., happening. Forget the always clogged freeways or hitting every last red light. While we saw that slowdown in actual baptisms last year, I think it will be more up since things reopened when we hear next April the report on what we actually had.

    And we have around half a million give or take every year, who are able to attend either as youth to do baptisms, or adults who can receive the other ordinances for themselves, that only can add to the need for temples. If reactivation efforts are more productive, that can increase the need for temples also.

    Eric S. said...

    @John

    Thank you. Yes, I was referring to all of the western US temples President Nelson has announced so far. Including Moses Lake two years ago.

    Chris D. said...
    This comment has been removed by the author.
    Unknown said...

    I also think that eventually (20-30 years) every county in Utah will have a temple. I think we can expect in this conference either 1 more in Salt Lake or Utah county. These counties are feeling the growth of Utah and I think it will start to push out to other counties like Summit, Juab, Davis and more. I'm really crossing my fingers this conference for Heber City or Price, with winter travel, I think they could really use the blessing of a temple. I also feel fairly strongly that within 5-10 years, Delta, Nephi, and Morgan will all receive temples for similar reasons. Other than those, I think rural Utah has no other clear next temple spots, though I'd love Randolph or Loa to get one, that seems like a far far stretch. But I do believe at some point all of Utah will be blessed with a. temple nearby

    Nate said...

    @L Chris Jones

    The 9.9 per conference does not include the Ephraim temple, but the 20.0 average per year does! Also, the overall total of 70 temple announcements by President Nelson does include Ephraim. Hard to believe there are so many temple announcements to keep track of. I am expecting to hear several more temples announced this conference, despite the fact that there have already been 21 announced this year.

    Unknown said...

    I just learned from a member I knew as a missionary in India that there is now a home group in Dehradun. Quite a few members in Delhi have family and friends in Dehradun, so I am hopeful that within a few years (maybe sooner, if the mission is able to send missionaries there) that there will be a branch there. Some of the most promising cities for church growth in India remain completely unreached. Indian society is changing rapidly, and in ways that will likely make bringing others to the gospel much more difficult in the future. I very much hope the church move more quickly and assertively in India in the near future. It’s already lost out on one major opportunity when there was a few year period during which as many visas as the church wanted would be granted but the number of missionaries sent was not substantially increased. I’ve often found it something of a disappointment that the church sends lots of missionaries to areas where baptism rates are abysmal while neglecting to send very many to some of the more promising places, even when it is feasible to do so.

    Gator said...

    Still shocked and dumbfounded by the Ephraim Temple.
    I had to drive from Richhfield up to Mt Pleasant last weekend and passed through Ephraim.
    YOU CAN SEE the Manti Temple from Ehpraim....it is 7 miles.
    I know I need to repent.... but It hurt my heart that Ephraim got one and Sevier County didnt.
    Also...in Ephraim getting one..... It puts Sevier county WAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYY Down the list.
    Like I said...I know i am wrong for posting this....but, it is how I feel.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    After Lindon Temple was announced 1 conference after Orem Temple, I am not convinced anymore tha any temple announcement makes any other temple announcment unlikely.

    In the case of Ephraim, Ephraim temple exists for 2 reasons 1-to allow Snow College Students easy access to the temple and 2-because Manti Temple is not accessible to those in wheel chairs or who otherwise cannot easily go up and down stairs. It is no way makes a temple in Sanpete County, or one in Price, or both less likely.

    Christopher Nicholson said...

    The accessibility of the Manti Temple was going to be updated, but that would have involved removing the Miranda Teichert murals, and a lot of members were very upset about that. Hence the murals stay and the Ephraim Temple is built.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Although I would love to see a temple in every county in Utah, nor every county in Utah even has a stake. Daggett County has no stake, and while it is hard to predict what the world will be like in 2051, I would be surprised if it has a temple by then. I am not sure there is actually a stake based in Rich County, Utah. Grand County getting a temple in the next 30 years is probably a little more likely.

    If I counted right, 17 of Utah's 29 counties do not have a temple. Utah has more counties than temples. Piute and Wayne Counties do not even border counties with temples. Wayne County Utah has 2,486 people, and its population dropped by 10% in the last decade. It is still more populous than Piute County. I know predicting out 30 years is hard, but even Loa or Circleville getting a temple seems very unlikely, both of them getting a temple even more so.

    John Pack Lambert said...

    Even with Pleasanton loosing its stake, and thus 1 less stake in the Oakland Temple district, I still think a San Jose Temple is highly likely. I am also rooting for a temple in Tampa, which is the most populous metro area in the US without a temple. San Jose is the most populous city in the US without a temple in its metro area, although some would argue San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose is all one metro area.

    twinnumerouno said...

    JPL,

    I was also going to comment about Daggett county. I believe it only has two towns, Manila which last I knew has 1 ward, and Dutch John which may still have a branch, both of the units pertain to one of the Vernal stakes. So the membership would have to be 3-4 times more than it is now to even have a stake.

    Fredrick said...

    San Jose is actually possible. At first I didn't think so. It would serve approximately 9 stakes. It really depends on how attendance is at the Oakland Temple and if 17-21 stakes is enough to operate it. But then the Church has constructed temples due to traffic concerns. Tampa I think is possible in the next couple of years depending on how the Church continues to grow in Florida. A Tampa temple would serve 7 stakes if it were built today.

    Last conference demonstrated that anything is pretty much possible.

    James G. Stokes said...

    JPL, while the number of stakes/districts in a nation does have some bearing on the potential timing for a temple announcement, the order in which the top ten nations are sorted appears to be determined by total Church membership first, followed thereby by the total number of congregations.

    And it appears that some African nations might have more total congratulations but fewer stakes and districts.

    We have also seen very recently that the construction status (or lack thereof) is not a deterrent or disqualifier for a neighboring nation.

    A recent example of that is the fact that the Budapest Hungary Temple was announced in April 2019, and that it is the only temple from that conference which has not had any official information confirmed, but that didn't deter President Nelson from announcing a temple for Austria last April.

    So that brings us back to Kenya and Uganda. When President Nelson visited Kenya in 2018. a Public Affairs representative of the Church said the Church had already acquired a site for the temple in Nairobi Kenya, and that because the temple was anticipated to be smaller, it was anticipated to be dedicated in 2021.

    Obviously, due to COVID-19 and other factors, ground was not broken for Kenya's first temple until September 11 of this year, and its completion isn't anticipated before 2024 for the time being.

    But since the Nairobi temple is now in the construction queue, what could that indicate about how soon a Uganda temple might be announced?

    Matt's latest update on the top ten nations, published here in November of last year, listed Uganda as the first of those ten nations. But since that was published, the Church announced Mozambique's first temple. That nation had ranked second.

    Although the 2020 statistics are not available for nations, based on the 2019 data, it appears that Liberia, Madagascar, and Mongolia now rank second, third and fourth on that list.

    While I have nothing but my own research to back this up, I anticipate that at least two of the 3 nations (Liberia, Madagascar and Mongolia) might have temples announced before Uganda does Hope these additional thoughts are helpful to all who read them.

    Eduardo said...

    In what order will the last U.S. states without a temple get one? Which will be the last?
    Next most likely? Wisconsin. 2. Maine. 3. ?
    What about Mexico? Durango. 2. Baja South. 3?
    Brazil? Tocantins 2. Goiaias 3?
    Regions of Chile: 4th. 2. 12th 3. ?

    My guesses may not be solid, but it is neat to prioritize the last holdouts. 10th Region of Chile and 12th Region of Chile woud both make sense.
    Neuquen on Argentine side, too. Less familiar with Argentine districts or states.

    Valenzuela y Escobar said...

    Hi! It is nice to dream and think that temples can reach every country that needs it, regardless of whether there are few baptized, when I met the church in 1990, there were very few temples, and the announcements were not as massive as now.
    In each conference, what I look forward to the most are the announcements from the temples, since the messages are always the same, although with different words, and rarely do they touch on the problems that the baptized go through.
    Just as it happens to you, too, I want more temples to be announced in Chile, my country, I know that there are few active ones, and an endless list of inactive ones, despite this, it would be wonderful to see an advertisement in Punta Arenas, Viña del Mar, Osorno, perhaps, there are not so many assets, but having a temple closer encourages you to attend and set goals.

    Butterfly and Bones said...

    @Anonymous (with the blue bow-tie) -- I commented way above but I think maybe you haven't seen my reply to your comment there! I agree with EP -- that was an incredible find about potential Lehi Temple on Traverse Mt! I am super convinced that that parcel by the school is def for a Temple - (the parcel for the meetinghouse is much smaller in comparison)! I don't know what else it could be besides a Temple lot.

    I didn't watch the entirety of the meeting (thanks for saving me time & pointing out the exact minute), but was there an estimate on how long this development project will take? Not sure if you watched the entire thing ...

    And if you don't mind me asking, how did you come across this material? Did you know someone on the committee? Just curious as I'm wondering if one were to delve into the urban planning of Spanish Fork/Springville, if one could fine similar future developments seeking approval... Inquiring minds want to know! :)

    Butterfly and Bones said...

    I saw Viña del Mar on quite a few lists for predictions. I agree. I thing bringing the temple to the people helps encourage us to attend and set goals!

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