Why Latter-day Saints are watching and listening to global general conference – Deseret News

It may be fall, the leaves in the mountains of Utah may be turning bright orange and red, and baseball playoffs, college football, and Halloween may be in the air, but it certainly feels like the areas in and around Temple Square bloom like in spring.

So much is happening as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints convenes its 194th Semiannual General Conference this weekend:

What can Latter-day Saints and others expect from a global conference Saturday and Sunday that will draw millions of spectators and listeners when there is so much renewal on display, skies are sunny and temperatures are expected to be in the high 70s and low 80s become?

Will President Russell M. Nelson speak? Who else?

The Church's prophet, President Russell M. Nelson, turned 100 last month and is expected to give his 114th conference address.

(Since 1984, he has given 112 conference talks as a member of the First Presidency or Quorum of the Twelve Apostles; he gave a general conference talk in October 1968, when he was president of the Bonneville Utah Stake of the Church.)

President Nelson recorded an address for general conference in October 2023, but did not attend as he recovered from a fall. He actually attended the conference in April 2024, where his talk was re-recorded.

He noted that some church leaders sat or pre-recorded lectures as a concession to age. For the first time, apostles led three of the five sessions previously led exclusively by members of the First Presidency.

The conference will take place in five unique two-hour sessions over two days:

• Saturday, October 5th: General sessions at 10:00 a.m., 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. MDT.
• Sunday, October 6th: General sessions at 10am and 2pm MDT.

In April, 32 church leaders and officials spoke. If previous precedents are correct, a similar number of talks will be given for this conference by members of the First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, General Authority Seventy and General Presidencies of the Elementary School, Relief Society, Sunday School, Young Men and Young Women .

Church leaders use their conference presentations to teach about Jesus Christ, provide instruction and guidance, and share messages of encouragement, peace, and comfort.

Will new temples be announced at the October 2024 general conference?

Precedent says yes.

President Nelson has announced new temples in every conference since he became church president and prophet in 2018, a total of 167 new temples in 13 conferences. (He separately announced a 168th new temple.)

He ushered in an unprecedented era of temple building for the church. Today there are 350 temples in operation, under construction or announced in the Church. Here's a breakdown:

• 197 operating temples (eight are currently being renovated).
• 54 temples under construction.
• 99 temples announced.

New leadership

On Thursday, during the general conference leadership session, leaders confirmed six new Area Seventy to assume leadership in five countries.

Learn more about these new leaders here.