Here is the latest information regarding the Salt Lake temple's renovation. Almost a year since it officially closed for work on the foundation to withstand a large earthquake, on December 29th, 2019, much has been done on the grounds at Temple Square. Early last year, I traveled to Memphis to tour the newly renovated temple in Bartlett.
The original temple was built as a smaller scale. This was how the church was able to build multiple temples across the globe or the US during President Hinckley's time as the president of the church. As I toured with my family the halls and the rooms, I recognized the floor plan being the same as the Nashville temple. It was mostly an architectural face-life, but it was an incredible site for sure. My 3 children were otherwise restless that day having been couped up in the car for the 4 hour trip, and were hard to keep reverent throughout the building. I was praying the entire time that they would be peaceful and lose the compulsion to bounce of the walls while in the temple. I also said a prayer for patience for my kids in the moment and that we'd as a family enjoy this experience. When we arrived at the Celestial room the group leader taking us through, invited all to take a seat and a moment to ponder the special spirit within the room and the building. My kids who at the start were loud and jumpy were now quiet and still. It was an absolute miracle and a sign that even the littlest can recognize the majesty and incredible nature of God. My wife and I couldn't stop talking about it on the way home and as we related this experience to family. Now the reason for the renovation was due to mold forming in the air gap of the shell of the building. The climate in Tennessee is much more humid and because of different weather and practices in commercial construction from the eastern portion of the country to the west, it created the perfect environment for mold to form. This was said to be the cause for a few other temple renovations in the southeast.
I love the Nashville Tennessee Temple. I have truly missed attending there with the closure due to the pandemic restrictions. I was hopeful that it would be renovated as well since we enjoy the same climate as does Memphis, but nothing has been stated regarding any modification needed on the structure or vapor barriers within the construction. That temple is where my wife and I were sealed. I received my endowments there prior to my mission, and I have enjoyed doing my ancestors' work there over the last several years. Perhaps I am like Alma in that I sin in my wish(Alma 29:3)... in wanting a similar look for the Nashville Temple as that which we saw in the Memphis temple. I am anxious for the day the restrictions are lifted and Nashville temple enters phases 3 and 4 and begin again to operate fully.
Elder Gary E. Stevenson spoke in last conference on the foundation renovation being completed for the Salt Lake temple in April 2020 General Conference. There were some great concepts key to an effective self-evaluation he likened to this construction work being undertaken right now.
"An introspective look may reveal that we too and our families could benefit from our doing some needed maintenance and renovation work, even a seismic upgrade! We might start such a process by asking:
“What does my foundation look like?”
“What comprises the thick-walled, stable, strong cornerstones that are part of my personal foundation, upon which my testimony rests?”
“What are the foundational elements of my spiritual and emotional character that will allow me and my family to remain steadfast and immovable, even to withstand the earthshaking and tumultuous seismic events that will surely take place in our lives?”
These events, similar to an earthquake, are often difficult to predict and come in various levels of intensity—wrestling with questions or doubt, facing affliction or adversity, working through personal offenses with Church leaders, members, doctrine, or policy. The best defense against these lies in our spiritual foundation."
What are you doing to prepare for General Conference this time? Maybe a better question that will help us to prepare for general conference, What are you doing to prepare yourself and your family for the second coming of the Savior?
I look forward to what will be spoken, taught, and testified this coming weekend.
I hope this can help everyone and those who can't seem to find use in the war chapters of the book of Mormon. Growing up in the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, hearing from members and also having wondered myself, I use to have a hard time going through these war chapters. I may have gone through phases. First, Not really understanding the conflict. Second, thinking of these chapters in terms of an action packed war movie similar to Braveheart, etc. Third, I recognized Captain Moroni as a heroic military leader for the Nephites. Forth, having gone through my own struggles and after serving a 2 year mission seeing personal application of these chapters in my own life. Fifth, looking for strategy Captain Moroni and his Nephite armies utilized and specific detail in the plans used to combat the Lamanites and Nephite dissenters and applying those same plans and effective strategies in my daily life. Over the last few years I have come to appreciate these chapters, but as of the last month and a half it occurred to me that there is more to these accounts of war than aspiring to live up to Alma 48:17. My emphasis this go-around was realizing Captain Moroni's passion for "Covenants." There are many layers of meaning to the scriptures, and there's no telling what you or I will pick up on next time. It got me thinking, "Do I really understand the covenants I have made." On the surface the answer is, "Yes!" However, the scriptures point to accessing power through covenants. I don't want to be like the Lamanites who had the baptism by fire of the Holy Ghost and knew it not. Captain Moroni was very aware. He was a strong and a mighty man, but he wasn't perfect. If he can recognize the power and influence in his life of covenants, then you and I have that same opportunity.
The definition of the word "Proclamation" is: a public or official announcement, especially one dealing with a matter of great importance.
Today everyone around the country remembers the tragic events that unfolded on the morning of September 11th, 2001. I happened to be in my first period class with a teacher who was a member of the church. Her husband was a pilot at the time and had been flying. She was extremely worried and concerned as the principle addressed everyone over the intercom unexpectedly, instructing each classroom to turn on their tv's. As I watched smoke rising from a tower on the morning news in New York City, I had no idea the seriousness. All I knew was that it had been announced that a plane had crashed into one of the towers. We spent the entire class time watching the news coverage. Algebra took a back seat to this trauma we were witnessing in real time. When the bell rang at the end of class, my teacher had asked me and a few others in the class who were members to stay with her while she prayed. I was quite young and not really understanding what had happened. We had all seen the 2nd tower fall to the ground in a cloud of dust and debris that created a thick dark haze that floated in the air. People continued to speculate and rumors spread quickly.....
19 years later and questions have been answered. Wars have been fought. Lives have been lost. Families have been rocked and shaken since that day. But we were all united as we came together as a Nation Under God. Today the country is divided and contention abounds.
Yesterday President Trump released for today a Proclamation to the Nation to declare today as Patriot Day.....
In 2001, our Nation, united under God, made an unbreakable promise never to forget the nearly 3,000 innocent Americans who were senselessly killed on September 11. On this sacred day — Patriot Day — we solemnly honor that commitment. As the bells toll, we call by name those who perished in the terrorist attacks in New York, New York; Arlington, Virginia; and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. In cities and towns across our great country, we stand in solidarity to remember the victims and mourn their stolen hopes and dreams.
On a day that began as ordinary as any other, terrorists carrying out a sadistic plan murdered thousands of our fellow compatriots. With shock and disbelief, we watched our first responders, encumbered by heavy equipment and hindered by debris and smoke, rush with conviction and courage into the void to rescue those in despair. With pride and sorrow, we felt the tremendous bravery of those aboard Flight 93, who summoned the courage to charge the terrorists in a counterattack that saved countless American lives. As the day closed, America steadied its resolve to hold accountable those who had attacked us and to ensure it would never happen again.
The courage, heroism, and resilience Americans displayed on 9/11, and in its aftermath, are perpetual testaments to the spirit of our country. While our Nation was anguished by this attack, the grit displayed that day — the very essence of America — was a reminder that our citizens have never failed to rise to the occasion. Heroes sprang into action in the face of great peril to help save their fellow Americans. Many laid down their lives. As we reflect on the events of that September morning, let us recommit to embrace the stalwart bravery displayed and reaffirm our dedication to defending liberty from all who wish to deny it.
To fulfill our collective promise never to forget, we impart the memory of that fateful day to our children and grandchildren. The smoke that rose from the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, and the Pennsylvania field carried away the souls of innocent Americans. As we recall the images of our American Flag raised from the ashes of Ground Zero and the Pentagon, we are reminded that good triumphs over evil. We recommit ourselves to fortifying our cherished American values so that future generations will know in their souls that the United States is the land of the free and the home of the brave.
This Patriot Day, we commemorate the lives of those who perished on September 11, 2001, we pray for the families who carry on their legacies, and we honor the unmatched bravery of our Nation’s first responders. We also commend those who, in the days and years following the attack, answered the call to serve our country and continue to risk their lives in defense of the matchless blessings of freedom. By a joint resolution approved December 18, 2001 (Public Law 107-89), the Congress designated September 11 of each year as “Patriot Day.”
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim September 11, 2020, as Patriot Day. I call upon all departments, agencies, and instrumentalities of the United States to display the flag of the United States at half-staff on Patriot Day in honor of the innocent people who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. I invite the Governors of the United States and its Territories and interested organizations and individuals to join in this observance. I call upon the people of the United States to participate in community service in honor of the innocent people we lost that day and to observe a moment of silence beginning at 8:46 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time to honor those victims who perished as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this tenth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.
DONALD J. TRUMP
We also received a proclamation this year in April from the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles declaring the reality of the Restoration and inviting all to participate in its continuation in these later days.................................................................................
We solemnly proclaim that God loves His children in every nation of the world. God the Father has given us the divine birth, the incomparable life, and the infinite atoning sacrifice of His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. By the power of the Father, Jesus rose again and gained the victory over death. He is our Savior, our Exemplar, and our Redeemer.
Two hundred years ago, on a beautiful spring morning in 1820, young Joseph Smith, seeking to know which church to join, went into the woods to pray near his home in upstate New York, USA. He had questions regarding the salvation of his soul and trusted that God would direct him.
In humility, we declare that in answer to his prayer, God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to Joseph and inaugurated the “restitution of all things” (Acts 3:21) as foretold in the Bible. In this vision, he learned that following the death of the original Apostles, Christ’s New Testament Church was lost from the earth. Joseph would be instrumental in its return.
We affirm that under the direction of the Father and the Son, heavenly messengers came to instruct Joseph and re-establish the Church of Jesus Christ. The resurrected John the Baptist restored the authority to baptize by immersion for the remission of sins. Three of the original twelve Apostles—Peter, James, and John—restored the apostleship and keys of priesthood authority. Others came as well, including Elijah, who restored the authority to join families together forever in eternal relationships that transcend death.
We further witness that Joseph Smith was given the gift and power of God to translate an ancient record: the Book of Mormon—Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Pages of this sacred text include an account of the personal ministry of Jesus Christ among people in the Western Hemisphere soon after His Resurrection. It teaches of life’s purpose and explains the doctrine of Christ, which is central to that purpose. As a companion scripture to the Bible, the Book of Mormon testifies that all human beings are sons and daughters of a loving Father in Heaven, that He has a divine plan for our lives, and that His Son, Jesus Christ, speaks today as well as in days of old.
We declare that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, organized on April 6, 1830, is Christ’s New Testament Church restored. This Church is anchored in the perfect life of its chief cornerstone, Jesus Christ, and in His infinite Atonement and literal Resurrection. Jesus Christ has once again called Apostles and has given them priesthood authority. He invites all of us to come unto Him and His Church, to receive the Holy Ghost, the ordinances of salvation, and to gain enduring joy.
Two hundred years have now elapsed since this Restoration was initiated by God the Father and His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Millions throughout the world have embraced a knowledge of these prophesied events.
We gladly declare that the promised Restoration goes forward through continuing revelation. The earth will never again be the same, as God will “gather together in one all things in Christ” (Ephesians 1:10).
With reverence and gratitude, we as His Apostles invite all to know—as we do—that the heavens are open. We affirm that God is making known His will for His beloved sons and daughters. We testify that those who prayerfully study the message of the Restoration and act in faith will be blessed to gain their own witness of its divinity and of its purpose to prepare the world for the promised Second Coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
So we have received these 2 proclamations of very important matters in the year 2020. The Book of Mormon mentions the word "Proclamation" 17 times and this form of declaration was utilized by both prophets and political leaders just as it has been used today. When the Family Proclamation was introduced in 1995 it wasn't anything new or profound.
Only 25 years later we see the depth of such simple declaration on the family, with same-sex marriage become legal a few years back. The definition of marriage and family roles being erased and distorted from what God intended has caused many of us to appreciate the foresight given to our prophets and leaders. That makes me wonder how long before the Restoration becomes even more controversial than it already is to the world.
We have been encouraged to study these documents individually and with our families, to establish a foundation for our testimonies as we seek understanding and a testimony through personal revelation. The book of Mormon shows us how proclamations were given to unite a people. If these documents can unite a people, it is my hope that they can lead us to the Savior as we continue to prepare for His return in the not too distant future.
