During the week of June 16-22, the Church News reported on talks and trainings given by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the 2024 Seminar for New Mission Leaders, held June 20-23. Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles dedicated the Layton Utah Temple. Elder D. Todd Chirstofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles dedicated the Salta Argentina Temple.
Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke at the Religious Educators Conference at Brigham Young University. Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles spoke at a devotional for Portuguese-speaking Church members. The Relief Society focused on leading the effort in a global initiative for women and children. Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson and Sister Tamara W. Runia of the Young Women general presidency ministered to Church members living in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama and Costa Rica.
The Church released updates about temples in Brussels, Belgium; Wellington, New Zealand; and Deseret Peak, Utah. On the Church News podcast, LeAnna Willmore, retiring Bells at Temple Square conductor, was interviewed about her experience with the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square. A new missionary training center will open in the Democratic Republic of Congo in August of 2024.
Read summaries and find links to these 10 stories below.
1. Church leaders teach at the new mission leaders seminar
Earlier this year, nearly 150 new mission presidents and companions were announced who would serve around the world beginning July 1. Before they begin their three-year assignments, they gathered at the Provo Missionary Training Center to receive instruction and training.
The 2024 Seminar for New Mission Leaders is held June 20-23. Over the four days, the new mission presidents and their wives were taught by each member of the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, as well as general authorities and general organization leaders serving as members of the Church’s Missionary Department and Missionary Executive Council.
Read summaries of the talks given here.
2. Elder Bednar dedicates the Layton Utah Temple
Elder Bednar dedicated the Layton Utah Temple on Sunday, June 16, and encouraged those who will worship and serve in it to establish and strengthen a “covenant connection” with Heavenly Father and His Son through what they learn there.
Pointing to the need for Latter-day Saints to learn through their experiences in the temple and in their weekly Church meetings, Elder Bednar asked: “Where do we learn about a house of order and a house of prayer? In the instruction we receive both in our Sabbath worship and in the house of the Lord.”
Read more about the Layton Utah Temple dedication here.
3. Elder Christofferson dedicates the Salta Argentina Temple
On a bright and sunny Sunday, June 16, when Elder Christofferson dedicated the Salta Argentina Temple as one of two newest temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the only thing warmer on the temple grounds were the feelings of friendship, fellowship, reunions and remembrances. All were magnified by the Spirit as Latter-day Saints joyfully and tearfully welcomed a house of the Lord in the northern Argentina city of Salta.
Read more about the Salta Argentina Temple dedication here.
4. Elder Renlund teaches at the Religious Educators Conference
Elder Renlund offered the keynote address of the first Religious Educators Conference sponsored by the Church Educational System on Tuesday. The event marked the first time religious educators have gathered together from all of the CES entities — Seminaries and Institutes of Religion, BYU, BYU–Idaho, BYU–Hawaii, Ensign College and BYU–Pathway Worldwide. “In total, these religious educators teach roughly half a million young adults across CES,” noted Elder Clark G. Gilbert, a General Authority Seventy and the Church commissioner of education, in his introductory remarks.
Read more about the Religious Educators Conference here.
5. Elder Soares invites Utah’s Portuguese-speaking Saints to focus on God’s love
What started four years ago as a way for Brazilian Latter-day Saints to share their testimonies together through the singing of Church music has grown from a small gathering at a stake center to now fill one of the Church’s most iconic venues.
At a devotional filled with music, Elder Soares spoke to an audience of nearly 3,000 Latter-day Saints and friends who came to hear him and to enjoy worshipful music in Portuguese at the historic Salt Lake Tabernacle on Temple Square.
Read more about Elder Soares’ devotional here.
6. Relief Society global initiative for women and children seeks to provide the Savior’s relief
God’s covenant daughters are a conduit through which Jesus Christ provides His relief. Anytime someone does anything to bring relief to others — temporal or spiritual — they are bringing them the love of Jesus Christ.
Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson said that as people bring the Savior’s relief to others, they will find their own relief in Him. Then, they will desire a covenant connection with Him.
Because the Relief Society’s purpose has always been to bring the Savior’s relief to others, at the request of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Relief Society organization is leading the effort in the Church’s global initiative for women and children.
7. ‘God’s work on earth’: What President Johnson and Sister Runia witnessed in Central America
This month, Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson and Sister Tamara W. Runia of the Young Women general presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ministered in the Church’s Central America Area.
The global leaders held devotionals and training meetings, met with families in their homes and at Church meetinghouses, and visited locations of humanitarian projects in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama and Costa Rica.
They saw firsthand the great faith of the people in each country — a faith that is centered in Jesus Christ, Sister Runia said.
8. Temple dedication, groundbreaking updates
The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has released the site location of the Brussels Belgium Temple, the first house of the Lord in the western European nation.
The First Presidency of the Church has announced the dedication and open house dates for the Deseret Peak Utah Temple in Tooele, Utah.
The First Presidency of the Church has released an exterior rendering for the Wellington New Zealand Temple.
Read more about the Brussels Belgium Temple site here.
Read more about the Deseret Peak Utah Temple dedication and open house dates here.
Read more about the Wellington New Zealand Temple rendering here.
9. Retiring Bells at Temple Square conductor describes her experiences
From the inception of the Bells at Temple Square, LeAnna Willmore served as associate conductor until she was named director in June 2011, until her final concert in June 2024. Willmore holds a Master of Music degree from the University of Utah, has served in many state and national music leadership positions and, importantly, fostered a love for music as a choir teacher for decades of students across Utah’s Wasatch Front. She joined this episode of the Church News podcast to discuss the importance of music in worship and daily life.
Listen to the Church News podcast here.
10. New Missionary Training Center in Democratic Republic of Congo
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will open a new training center for full-time missionaries in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, in August 2024. With a planned capacity of up to 200, the new MTC will serve missionaries who already speak French or will be learning French for their assigned service.
