This week on social media, Apostles and other general Church leaders shared their excitement for the Salt Lake Temple Celebration next year as well as the schedule changes to Sunday meetings beginning on Sept. 6.
Salt Lake Temple Celebration
President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, announced Sept. 1 the theme of the Salt Lake Temple Celebration, which is “Rejoice in Christ.”
The next day, President Uchtdorf posted a video on social media. In the post, he wrote: “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a global Church with a universal message of the joy the gospel in Jesus Christ brings. We invite all to rejoice with us.”
Primary General President Rosemary K. Chibota, who also spoke at the announcement of the Salt Lake Temple Celebration theme, posted her thoughts on social media Sept. 1.
“I am so excited for the Salt Lake Temple Open House and for the opportunity it gives children, families, friends and people from around the world to come and see this beautiful house of the Lord,” she wrote.
“I hope children will come and see the temple, ask questions, learn with their families and discover for themselves what the temple teaches us about Heavenly Father’s love and Jesus Christ.”
On Sept. 3, Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles posted a video on social media in response to the Salt Lake Temple Celebration theme announcement.
“In preparation for this special occasion, I invite you to worship in your own temple and recommit yourself to the covenants and principles taught within its sacred walls,” he wrote.
Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson also posted about the Salt Lake Temple Celebration’s theme, “Rejoice in Christ.”
In a Sept. 4 social media post and video, President Johnson wrote: “Wherever we are around the world, we celebrate and rejoice in Christ. Through Him, we are offered hope, peace, and the opportunity to return to our heavenly home.”
New schedule changes and more
On Sept. 3, Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles shared a short clip on social media from a video that will be shown in ward meetings around the world on Sept. 6.
“Every member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has an individual responsibility to study and learn the doctrine of Christ, and then strive to apply it in their lives,” he says in the video.
In a video post on Young Women Worldwide social media pages on Sept. 4, Young Women General President Emily Belle Freeman spoke about the updated For the Strength of Youth curriculum.
“It’s an exciting time to be a young woman or young man in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where we are learning to walk with the Savior daily,” she says in the video.
On Sept. 3, the Young Men Worldwide social media accounts posted five tips to make quorum discussions meaningful as they teach from the “For the Strength of Youth” guide.
The tips are:
- By five in, dive in
- Follow the four
- Discuss, don’t present
- Invite to live
- Focus on Jesus Christ
On Sept. 1, Elder Bednar shared a video to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the dedicatory prayer for the preaching of the gospel in Japan. That same weekend, he spoke in a devotional broadcast across the country.
“The message I shared at the broadcast is the same message that has been preached to millions of people across the globe — that Jesus Christ loves you and what He did through His Atonement is for you, a beloved child of your Heavenly Father,” he wrote.
Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, along with President Uchtdorf, recently ministered to victims of devastating wildfires in Spokane, Washington.
In a Sept. 4 post on social media, he wrote: “Affected members and friends of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints lost nearly everything, but they didn’t lose their faith in Jesus Christ. Despite overwhelming tragedy and loss, their faith is safe.”
Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles shared an experience his wife, Sister Ruth Renlund, had after substitute teaching a youth Sunday School class in their home ward. In the Sept. 3 social media post, he explained that some of the 12- and 13-year-old young men behaved like 12- or 13-year-old young men and turned a handout Sister Renlund had given them into paper airplanes.
The following Thursday, three of those young men came to the Renlunds’ home with an apology note and a bouquet made of paper airplanes.
“Real men are accountable for their actions, acknowledge their mistakes, apologize, and try to set things right,” Elder Renlund wrote.
“I am grateful for their example to me of being priesthood holders and real men.”
Elder Patrick Kearon of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles recently dedicated the Phnom Penh Cambodia Temple on Aug. 30.
In a social media post the next day sharing pictures from the dedication and of the newly dedicated temple, he wrote: “The temple can be a constant reminder of God’s love for you and for all His children. Through sacred temple ordinances made possible through the atoning gift of our Redeemer, old wounds can be healed and broken hearts can be mended, on both sides of the veil. This is a house of miracles.”
Church membership in the Africa West Area is growing at an amazing pace, said Elder Clark G. Gilbert of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in a social media video posted on Aug. 28.
“With so much growth, one of the primary efforts we are focused on in the area is building leaders,” he wrote. “One of the miracles happening in the Church isn’t just the baptismal growth, but it’s how the Church prepares everyday people just like you and me to serve in callings and to grow and become leaders in the restored Church of Jesus Christ.”
