President Thomas S. Monson: Welcome to conference; 5 new temples

Announcement of five new temples was part of President Thomas S. Monson's opening remarks to the 180th Semiannual General Conference of the Church on Saturday morning, Oct. 2.

President Monson said that sites are being acquired and in coming months and years temples will be built in Lisbon, Portugal; Indianapolis, Indiana; Urdaneta, Philippines; Hartford, Connecticut and Tijuana, Mexico.

Following is the full text of President Monson's opening conference address:

My beloved brothers and sisters, we welcome you to general conference, which is being heard and seen by various means throughout the world. We express thanks to all who have to do with the complicated logistics of this great undertaking.

Since April when we last met, the work of the Church has moved forward unhindered. It has been my privilege to dedicate four new temples. Accompanied by my counselors and other General Authorities, I have traveled to The Gila Valley, Arizona; to Vancouver, British Columbia; to Cebu City in the Philippines, and to Kyiv, Ukraine. The temples in each of these locations are magnificently beautiful. Each one is blessing the lives of our members and is an influence for good upon those not of our faith.

The evening prior to each temple dedication, we were privileged to view a cultural celebration, participated in by our young people and some of our not-so-young people. These events were generally held in large stadiums, although in Kyiv we met in a beautiful palace. The dancing, singing, musical performances and the displays were excellent. I express my commendation and love to all who were involved.

Each temple dedication was a spiritual feast. We felt the spirit of the Lord at all of them.

Next month we will rededicate the Laie Hawaii Temple, one of our oldest temples, which has undergone extensive renovations during many months. We look forward to that sacred occasion.

We continue to build temples. This morning I am pleased to announce five additional temples for which sites are being acquired and which, in coming months and years, will be built in the following locations: Hartford, Connecticut; Indianapolis, Indiana; Tijuana, Mexico; Urdaneta, Philippines; and Lisbon, Portugal.

The ordinances performed in our temples are vital to our salvation and to the salvation of our deceased loved ones. May we continue faithful in attending the temples, which are being built closer and closer to our members.