The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced on December 14, 2025 that a temple will be built in Portland, Maine. The announcement came during a regional Christmas devotional and was delivered by Elder Allen D. Haynie, a member of the Church’s Area Presidency, rather than during a General Conference session or directly by the Church president.
What makes this announcement stand out is not the location, but the method.
For years, temples were almost always announced during the April or October General Conference, usually by the Church president, at the close of a major session watched by a global audience. Under Russell M. Nelson, this practice became especially prominent, with long lists of new temples read out twice a year. These announcements have often been used rhetorically to imply numerical growth, even in regions with small or stagnant membership. Announcing a temple outside of General Conference reduces the performative aspect of that claim.
At the October 2025 General Conference, Dallin H. Oaks explicitly stated that no new temples would be announced during that conference.
As of the April 2025 general conference, President Russell M. Nelson had announced the construction of 200 new temples. He loved to announce new temples at the conclusion of each general conference, and we all rejoiced with him. However, with the large number of temples now in the very earliest phases of planning and construction, it is appropriate that we slow down the announcement of new temples. Therefore, with the approval of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, we will not announce any new temples at this conference. We will now move forward in providing the ordinances of the temple to members of the Church throughout the world, including when and where to announce the construction of new temples.
He explained that the growing backlog of announced and planned temples made the practice less appropriate, and that future announcements would be made “when and where” Church leadership deemed suitable. The Portland, Maine announcement appears to be the first clear example of what that shift looks like in practice.
Under Nelson, temple announcements often functioned as public indicators of growth and expansion, despite many of his announced temple not having began construction.
Slowing that cadence, or moving announcements out of General Conference, may signify a shift in priorities. It does not necessarily indicate fewer temples overall, but it does suggest less emphasis on using conference announcements as a measure of vitality.
With hundreds of temples announced, under construction, or still unbuilt years after their announcement, temple declarations may no longer function as meaningful milestones when they are bundled together twice a year.
The remedy seems to be to announce new temples in smaller, more intimate settings, where the announcement can have an impact on the immediately affected community, rather than being lost in a rapid list of dozens delivered at once to a global audience.
Future announcements will clarify whether Portland, Maine represents a one-off adjustment or the beginning of a sustained change in how the Church communicates major developments. Or if they can deliver the promised construction in a timely manner. What is clear is that the announcement breaks with recent tradition and aligns with Oaks' stated intention to change how and where these decisions are made public.
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