The following was originally published on the Church Newsroom. To visit their website, CLICK HERE.
The past year was one of milestones, mourning and momentum for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The days were punctuated with sorrow from tragedies such as those in Lesotho and Michigan, as well as joy and progress from expanded opportunities for service and the continued growth of the Church around the globe.
The Church also experienced changes in leadership: President Russell M. Nelson died at age 101, and President Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles died at age 85. President Dallin H. Oaks was named the faith’s 18th Prophet and President.
Throughout the year, Latter-day Saints everywhere continued to carry out the Church’s mission to pattern their lives after Christ’s, care for people in need, invite the world to receive Christ’s teachings, and unite families for eternity.
Caring for People in Need
To carry out Jesus Christ’s two great commandments to love God and our neighbor, the Church continued to care for people in need around the world. One significant way the Church did this was by sharing the first of 250 truckloads of food with 250 food banks across all 50 United States to commemorate the nation’s 250th anniversary.
In Michigan, FISH of Grand Blanc received one of the first food truck deliveries on Wednesday, November 19. Grand Blanc was chosen as one of five cities to lead the initiative in recognition of the community’s remarkable support after the September 28 shooting and fire that claimed four lives and injured eight others at a local Church meetinghouse of the Church of Jesus Christ.
Latter-day Saints also reached out in the wake of natural disasters, such as flooding in central Texas and the Philippines, fires in Southern California and Peru, earthquakes in Myanmar and Vanuatu, and Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean.
In Sri Lanka in May, Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson observed the tangible effect that funding from the Church to UNICEF is having on women and children in the South Asian nation. During meetings on Temple Square in June, President Johnson told representatives from eight global humanitarian organizations that the Church is donating another US$63.4 million to its global initiative to improve the well-being of women and children.
In May, Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles visited The Felix Project, the largest food redistribution charity in London. The Church collaborates with Muslim Aid to support The Felix Project’s work of providing tens of millions of meals for those in need across the city.
In June, Elder Gary E. Stevenson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles visited Centro Sonrisas de Heroes (Smiles of Heroes Center) in Santiago, Chile. This care center serves children with terminal illnesses and complex disabilities through various therapies and programs. The Church donated two vans to support children with mobility needs.
In November, Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles visited a children’s medical center in Argentina and a hospital in Uruguay. Church donations have strengthened the care offered at both places.
In September, the Church donated 3,000 Chromebooks to help school children in Sainshand, Mongolia, the capital city of the Dornogovi province in the Gobi Desert.
In 2024, the Church’s commitment to welfare, self-reliance, humanitarian aid, emergency relief and volunteer service was reflected in US$1.45 billion in expenditures. The details of the faith’s 2025 caring efforts will be released on March 10, 2026.
Caring also included spiritual ministry to the brokenhearted. In February, President Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles shared the love of Christ with families impacted by wildfires in California.
In September, Primary General President Susan H. Porter joined Sister J. Anette Dennis of the Relief Society General Presidency to minister in Lesotho to those mourning the tragic accident in late June that took the lives of six young women and four Church leaders.
Later that month, Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles visited Grand Blanc, Michigan, to minister to survivors of the deadly shooting and fire that claimed four lives and injured eight others at a local Church meetinghouse.
And in the Philippines in November, fellow Apostle Elder Patrick Kearon brought hope and comfort to survivors of Typhoon Tino and Super Typhoon Uwan.
Inviting All to Receive Christ’s Teachings
The Church continued to carry out Christ’s New Testament commission to “go … and teach all nations.” In October, the Church announced plans to create 55 new missions. And in November, the First Presidency said women as young as 18 can now share the gospel as missionaries.
The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square — the Church’s musical missionaries — performed its 5,000th episode of “Music and the Spoken Word” from the Conference Center in Salt Lake City. The show is the world’s longest continuously running network broadcast. More than 6 million people in over 50 countries tune in via radio, television, and online streaming each week.
President Oaks and his colleagues in the First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the Church’s organizations for women and children traveled around the world to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In Europe, President Oaks said the key to resolving the many divisions seen in society — whether political, economic, or doctrinal — is to follow the example of the Savior of the world.
“The only permanent solution to the differences that divide us,” he said, “is for all of us to follow our Savior’s teachings and to gradually become even as He is. Following Christ is not a casual or occasional practice, but a continuous commitment and way of life that applies to all persons at all times and in all places.”
Many sermons focused on serving others as Christ would. One example came at the First Presidency Christmas devotional from President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency.
“Opportunities await each of us this Christmas season to reach out and show kindness with Christlike love — and many times will have an enduring effect,” President Eyring said. “As we embark on this wonderful Christmas season, I leave you my testimony that Jesus Christ is love and hope. We too can partner with him and share His love and hope with others through selfless acts of kindness.”
Helping others follow Jesus Christ was also done in the interfaith realm. Speaking to Catholic friends in Rome in September, for example, President D. Todd Christofferson of the First Presidency spoke about human dignity — and its roots in the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
“As disciples of Christ, we have a solemn responsibility to advocate for human dignity, moral agency, and religious pluralism,” President Christofferson said. “Our infinite worth is also connected to the redemption of the human being by Jesus Christ, His Atonement, and what that means for our ultimate destiny. … His grace and His Atonement are key to the dignity, the worth that every soul has, regardless of where or when they live.”
Church leaders traveled to the islands of the sea to share the message of Jesus Christ. Just one example was Young Women General President Emily Belle Freeman spreading the gospel in Micronesia and Guam in February. She promised youth that “discipleship will be filled with adventure,” and that “Jesus Christ can strengthen and help and comfort you in all areas of your life.”
Apostles and prophets directed many Christ-focused messages to young adults around the globe. Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, for example, taught this important demographic to trust in God. Life doesn’t come with “cheat codes,” he said, and “God won’t give you a detailed itinerary for your life’s journey,” but “He trusts you to make the best possible decisions by following Jesus Christ.”
Church leaders also shared their love of Christ with civic and government leaders. One example from May was Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles visiting Côte d’Ivoire Prime Minister Robert Beugré Mambé at his private residence in Abidjan.
The Apostles also invited others to follow Christ’s teachings by preserving the earth and caring for God’s children.
“As disciples of Jesus Christ, we have a sacred duty to keep the flame of God’s love burning in our hearts and to let its light shine within our communities,” said Elder Gérald Caussé of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. “The Lord asks us to be aware of the broader world around us — something more possible than ever in our connected age — while remaining grounded and actively engaged in the places where we live and serve.”
Uniting Families Forever
Nearly six months before his death, President Nelson announced 15 new temples to be built in locations around the world. In his seven-plus years as leader of the Church, President Nelson announced 200 new temples. This is significant because each temple is a house of the Lord, where Christ’s teachings are reaffirmed through sacred ordinances that unite families for eternity.
Ten new or renovated temples opened in 2025: The Toronto Ontario, Nairobi Kenya, Auckland New Zealand, Abidjan Ivory Coast, Syracuse Utah, Antofagasta Chile, Farmington New Mexico, Elko Nevada, Grand Junction Colorado, and Bahía Blanca Argentina Temples.
In Canada, just before offering the rededicatory prayer for the temple in Ontario, President Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles urged Canadian Saints to rededicate themselves to “the promises of Christlike living.”
During a visit to Mongolia in September, Elder Neil L. Andersen shared with local Saints the rendering and site location for the temple coming to Ulaanbaatar — the country’s first house of the Lord.
“The joy we saw in their faces as we said, ‘Now you will have the house of the Lord right here in Ulaanbaatar.’ They were overjoyed. We were overjoyed,” the Apostle said.
One temple dedication coincided with an important milestone in Church history. At the dedication of the Bahía Blanca Argentina Temple in November, Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles noted that 2025 marks the 100th anniversary of the dedication of South America for the preaching of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.
“What a great blessing to conclude this beautiful year of celebration with the temple dedication,” said Elder Soares. “What a magnificent opportunity and blessing to see the growth of the kingdom of the Lord in South America that started here in Argentina in 1925. This temple is a symbol of faith; it’s a beacon and a light to Argentina.”
With the recent announcement of a temple coming to Portland, Maine, the Church has 383 temples operating, under construction, or announced.
“[Jesus Christ] invites us to follow the covenant path that leads to a heavenly family reunion,” President Oaks said at the conclusion of the October 2025 general conference. “The sealing powers of the priesthood, directed by the keys restored in the Kirtland Temple, bring families together for eternity. They are currently being exercised in a growing number of temples of the Lord throughout the world. This is real. Let us be part of it.”
The following was originally published on the Church Newsroom. To visit their website, CLICK HERE.
