Top LDS news stories of 2010: Humanitarian aid, temples, missionary work lead the list

The First Presidency announced in the fall that talks between church leaders and a high government official in the People's Republic of China are expected to result in "regularized" activities for the church in that nation.

According to a church news release, the Chinese official, the highest-ranking representative from Beijing to meet with church leaders, visited the First Presidency in the Church Administration Building in Salt Lake City on Aug. 24. That occasion followed meetings in February and May in Beijing, initiated by the Chinese representative and attended by Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve and Elder Donald L. Hallstrom of the Presidency of the Seventy.

Church spokesman Michael Otterson emphasized that the term "regularizing" does not mean the church anticipates sending missionaries to China. The pending developments were the result of 30 years of building mutual trust with the Chinese.

5. Family history developments

A new FamilySearch Library opened in Riverton, Utah, in June.

Some mourned the closure of 24 family history centers in south Salt Lake Valley, but rejoiced when they stepped into the new facility and witnessed its high-tech benefits.

The library occupies 10,000 square feet of the first floor of the church's Riverton Office Building, a former Intel-owned edifice replete with wirings and inner workings to accommodate the latest in computer hardware and software.

And it conveniently duplicates nearly all the offerings of the church's larger, well-known Family History Library in downtown Salt Lake City.

Family history researchers and enthusiasts from around the nation and other parts of the world converged in Salt Lake City in April to attend four genealogy conferences that offered more than 200 workshops.

The centerpiece of the conferences was the National Genealogical Society Conference in late April. It was the first time in 25 years the conference has been held in the Utah capital.

An updated version of FamilySearch was also released in 2010.

6. 'Protection of Marriage'

Earlier this month, the LDS Church joined with other faiths in signing "The Protection of Marriage: A Shared Commitment," an open letter to express commitment toward the preserving of marriage as the union between one man and one woman. Presiding Bishop H. David Burton signed on behalf of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Leaders from Anglican, Baptist, Catholic, Evangelical, Jewish, Lutheran, Mormon, Orthodox, Pentecostal and Sikh communities signed the letter.

7. Advances in technology

The church used the Internet and new technology to reach a wider audience in 2010. Last January, a new website for LDS youths (youth.lds.org) was rolled out; Store.lds.org, a new church online shopping site, opened for business in September, replacing the old LDS Catalog; a new handbook of instructions was released and made accessible for members online; Familysearch.org was improved; church websites mormon.org and lds.org were redesigned and launched; a new website called combatpornography.org was created; Elder Quentin L. Cook became likely the first apostle to post a blog; and missionaries in Rochester, N.Y., started a pilot project online to do missionary work in cyberspace. Technologically speaking, the first solar-powered LDS meetinghouse was unveiled in Farmington, Utah, last April.

8. Tabernacle Choir

The Mormon Tabernacle Choir celebrated 100 years of musical recording in September and was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in November. The choir capped the year off with its annual Christmas Concert featuring artist David Archuleta. There was such a demand to see the concert that tickets were scalped and hundreds were left standing in the cold due to overbooking.

9. Bishop slain