Tag: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Categories
State News

Latter-day Saint Leader M. Russell Ballard Passes Away; Funeral Services Announced

Photo courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Advertisements

By McKinsleigh Smith

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that President M. Russell Ballard, Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (one of the international faith’s highest governing bodies), passed away at about 11:15 PM on Sunday, November 12, 2023 with loved ones by his side. He was 95 years old.

Advertisement.

Ballard joined the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on October 6, 1985. He was announced as Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on January 16, 2018, assuming the duties of President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Dallin H. Oaks, after he was called to the faith’s First Presidency, its highest governing body. Ballard helped oversee the spiritual and organizational affairs of a church of more than 17 million members spread all over the world.

Of Ballard, Church President Russell M. Nelson said, “President Ballard was never indecisive. He knew exactly what the Lord taught and how it could be applied in one’s personal life and bring joy and happiness.”

Funeral services for President M. Russell Ballard will be held in the Tabernacle on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah on Friday, November 17, 2023, from 11 AM to noon MST.

Advertisements

The funeral will be open to the public, and attendees must be 8 years old or older. The Temple Square gates and the Tabernacle doors will open at 9:30 AM. Attendees should be seated by 10:30 AM.

The funeral services will be streamed live on the Church’s Broadcasts page and Inspiration and Events YouTube channel (both available in Cantonese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish), as well as BYUtv.

A private burial service will take place at the Salt Lake City Cemetery immediately after the service. There will be no public viewing. In lieu of flowers, President Ballard’s family has asked that donations be made to This Is The Place Heritage Park.

Advertisements
Categories
Orem City News

Orem Utah Latter-day Saint Temple Begins Tours

©2023 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.
Advertisements

By McKinsleigh Smith

The Orem Utah Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints towers over the west side of I-15, overlooking Utah Valley University. It is the sixth Latter-day Saint temple in Utah County, joining the Provo, Provo City Center, Mount Timpanogos, Payson, and Saratoga Springs temples.

Advertisement.

With Vineyard expecting and planning for massive population growth in the coming years, the Orem Utah Temple will serve one of the most densely populated areas in the state, which includes housing for many Utah Valley University students. The facility will meet the spiritual and ritual needs of 57,000 Utahns who practice the faith and live in a geographical boundary Latter-day Saints call a “temple district.”

The temple will open for free public tours beginning this week. The first open house is Friday, October 27. Tours will run through December 16, 2023. Since Sundays are holy and considered a “day of rest” for Latter-day Saints, tours will not be held on Sundays. The temple will also close for the Thanksgiving holiday.

This temple is the 186th completed temple for the international Church. It was first announced in 2019 and sits on over 15 acres of land. The building itself is 70,000 square feet. Its unique stained glass windows were crafted by artist Tom Holdman, an Orem native.

You can catch a glimpse of the new structure in the video below, courtesy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Advertisements
Categories
State News

Sister Kathleen J. Eyring Passes Away at Age 82

Photo by Gerry Avant, Church News.
Advertisements

By Mike Romero

Sister Kathleen Johnson Eyring — the wife of President Henry B. Eyring, second counselor in the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — died Sunday, Oct. 15, 2023, in her home in Bountiful, Utah, surrounded by her family. She was 82.

Through over 60 years of marriage, Sister Eyring remained her husband’s biggest support, counselor and confidante.

During an address he gave at the Vatican on November 18, 2014, Henry B. Eyring said, “I have become a better person as I have loved and lived with her. We have been complementary beyond anything I could have imagined. … I realize now that we grew together into one — slowly lifting and shaping each other, year by year. As we absorbed strength from each other, it did not diminish our personal gifts.”

Advertisements

Sister Eyring was born in San Francisco, California, on May 11, 1941. She was the daughter of J. Cyril “Sid” and LaPrele Lindsay Johnson. Her parents instilled in her a deep commitment to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She was great at sports, loved the outdoors, and was an intellectual. She was the captain of the tennis team at her prep school, and was student body president and valedictorian. After graduating, she attended the University of California at Berkeley. She also studied at Sorbonne University in the heart of Paris and the University of Vienna, where she learned to speak both French and German.

When she and a friend decided to do a summer semester of school at Harvard in 1961, she met and fell in love with Henry Bennion Eyring. They were married in July 27, 1962, in the Logan Utah Temple by President Spencer W. Kimball. They have six children — four sons and two daughters.

One of the Eyrings’ bishops once told her husband: “I’m amazed. Every time I hear of a person in the ward who is in trouble, I hurry to help. Yet by the time I arrive, it seems that your wife has always already been there.” 

Funeral services will be announced soon.

Advertisements
Categories
Orem City News

When Will the Orem Temple Be Dedicated?

A rendering of the Orem Utah Temple.
Advertisements

By Charlie G. Patreus

The Orem Utah Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will be dedicated on January 21, 2024, despite minor construction issues along the way. The dedication and open house dates were announced by the church’s First Presidency, along with the closure date for the Provo Utah Temple.

The Orem Utah Temple will have a public open house from October 27 to December 16, with exceptions for Sundays and Thanksgiving Day. A media day will be held on October 23, followed by invited guests touring the temple from October 24 to 26.

Advertisements

The dedicatory sessions will be broadcast to all units in the Orem Utah Temple district, and more details about the dedication will be shared later.

The Provo Utah Temple will be closed starting from February 24, 2024 for reconstruction. During the closure, members are encouraged to attend other temples, and those seeking ordinances should contact nearby temples for arrangements.

Utah has a total of 28 LDS temples, including the Orem and Provo temples. The state is the global headquarters for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, with a membership of 2.2 million people. The Saratoga Springs Utah Temple will be dedicated on August 13, and the St. George Utah Temple will be rededicated on December 10.

Advertisements