During the week of Jan. 23-29, President Russell M. Nelson spoke about the original manuscript of the Book of Mormon, after portions of it were published in the latest volume of the Joseph Smith Papers project. He also expressed his deep love for the countries and people of Europe in a special Europe Area devotional, and his wife, Sister Wendy W. Nelson, joined the Church News podcast to speak about her husband’s four years as Prophet.
President Jean B. Bingham, Relief Society general president, told Ensign College students how to build a foundation on Jesus Christ, turn to Him in times of trial and learn to draw upon His power. The Washington D.C. Temple open-house period was extended after strong early response, and the rededication date was rescheduled. The Primary general presidency explained an update to the General Handbook for ward primary presidencies.
Members of the Church in Tonga went from island to island helping their neighbors after the volcanic eruption and tsunami. Two Church videos outlined more details about the new emotional resilience course, now available in several languages. And the total amount of donations were released for the 2021 #LightTheWorld Giving Machines in 10 U.S. cities.
Read summaries and find links to these nine articles below.
1. President Nelson lauds new volume of Joseph Smith Papers project, images of original Book of Mormon manuscript
The original manuscript of the Book of Mormon is a work that brings heaven and earth together, said President Russell M. Nelson at an event on Tuesday, Jan. 25, celebrating the latest edition of the Joseph Smith Papers project.
“Its original manuscript is one of the most significant and sacred artifacts the Church possesses,” said the leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “Church historians have taken great care — over more than a century — to gather even the most minuscule fragments of the manuscript and preserve them from further damage.”
A new volume in the Joseph Smith Papers project — part of the Revelations and Translations series which contains facsimiles of the original manuscript of the Book of Mormon — now makes those historic and sacred documents available to the public.
Read more about what President Nelson said and find out more about the original manuscript
2. The Church has an ‘unparalleled future’ in Europe, President Nelson tells Latter-day Saints from 48 European countries
At a time when some feel that religion is dying in Europe, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has “an unparalleled future” because of its faithful members, said President Russell M. Nelson.
“You have access to the power — God’s power — that will literally change the future of Europe,” said President Nelson during a special Europe Area devotional, broadcast Sunday, Jan. 23. “As you keep your covenants with increasing precision, you are the hope of Europe and you are the hope of Israel.”
See how many countries and languages were a part of the broadcast
3. Episode 67: Sister Nelson on being an eyewitness to President Nelson’s four years as Prophet
This special episode of the Church News podcast features Sister Wendy W. Nelson, the wife of President Nelson and a retired marriage and family therapist and professor. She shares her testimony, how to seek for truth in an age of overflowing information and what she has learned as an eyewitness to President Nelson’s extraordinary ministry.
Listen to the Church News podcast
4. President Bingham teaches Ensign College students the antidote to the ‘unique anxieties of this era’
The challenges of attending college can increase stress and anxiety for any student — not to mention political divisiveness, economic and employment uncertainty, and the past two years of pandemic impacts, Relief Society General President Jean B. Bingham acknowledged.
But there is an antidote to that stress and anxiety, she reassured Ensign College students during a campus devotional in the Assembly Hall on Temple Square on Tuesday, Jan. 25.
She quoted the words of President Russell M. Nelson: “The Lord has declared that despite today’s unprecedented challenges, those who build their foundations upon Jesus Christ, and have learned how to draw upon His power, need not succumb to the unique anxieties of this era.”
Read more of what President Bingham taught
5. Washington D.C. Temple open house and rededication update
With strong early response to the upcoming Washington D.C. Temple open house, the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is extending the open-house period and rescheduling the temple’s rededication date.
The Church’s Temple Department released a statement Friday, Jan. 28, saying that because nearly 50% of the available parking for the initial open house was scheduled in the first two weeks after the announcement of reservations was made, the First Presidency has approved an extension of the open house and rescheduling the rededication date to Aug. 14, 2022.
“Our goal is to invite all to join us to experience the peace, beauty and connection that can be felt in the temple, and to ensure that all who desire to come have a welcoming, safe and orderly experience in this sacred place,” the statement said, adding that available dates will be published online as soon as they are determined.
Find the way to get a parking reservation
6. New responsibilities for Primary counselors among latest updates to the General Handbook
A recent update to the General Handbook focuses ward Primary presidencies’ efforts on helping parents prepare their children to enter and progress on the covenant path.
The Primary president may now assign a counselor to help parents prepare their children to be baptized and confirmed. The other counselor may be assigned to help parents with priesthood and temple preparation.
Primary General President Camille N. Johnson and her counselors — Sister Susan H. Porter and Sister Amy A. Wright — posted a video on Instagram and Facebook on Thursday, Jan. 20, explaining this update to their social media followers. They also spoke to the Church News about how these responsibilities will help Primary counselors better understand their roles.
Explore the new focused responsibilities
7. From island to island, Tongans help each other find relief after tsunami
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the islands of Tonga pulled together to provide relief to fellow Tongans whose lives have been devastated by a Jan. 15 volcanic eruption and tsunami.
Responding to the speed and quantity of the donations, Elder Ian S. Ardern, a General Authority Seventy and president of the Church’s Pacific Area, said, “It is the Tongan way.”
See pictures from the islands and also a fire at Liahona High School in Tonga
8. What Church leaders and members are saying about the new emotional resilience course
After finishing the Church’s new emotional resilience course, Becca Ekberg said the biggest change she has noticed is her attitude about life.
“We all experience emotional hurt and heartache, and this is a course that will help provide a resource for help and a strength in the Savior because that’s what it’s about — the gospel of Jesus Christ,” said Ekberg, a young adult from Sandy, Utah.
“Finding Strength in the Lord: Emotional Resilience” is a course offered by Self-Reliance Services of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to help people adapt to challenges with courage and faith centered in the Savior.
Watch a discussion with Elder David A. Bednar about the new course
9. See how much people generously donated at Giving Machines for #LightTheWorld in 2021
Donations to the Giving Machines exceeded $5.8 million during the 2021 Christmas season as part of the Light the World campaign. An estimated 300,000 people visited Giving Machines in 10 U.S. cities. The donations will change the lives of people in need not only around the world, but also in the very communities and cities where those Giving Machines were based.
While livestock like chickens, goats and beehives were popular, most people selected meals for individuals and families.
