In 1988, the Church looked back and forged ahead. The year was hallmarked by anniversaries and milestones as well as growth and development in the Church.

Growth in the Church this year, if it follows the trend of recent years, will have increased from 6.4 million members at the beginning of the year to between 6.6 and 6.7 million at year's end. Official statistics will be announced at April general conference.There are 1,707 stakes in the Church today, up from 1,666 a year ago. The number of congregations is 16,500, an increase of 500.

The number of full-time missionaries in the Church grew from 34,750 a year ago to a little more than 36,000 today, and the number of missions has grown from 205 to 221.

President Ezra Taft Benson continued his emphasis on Church members' studying and teaching the Book of Mormon, declaring at the October general conference that the time has come to "flood the earth" with the Book of Mormon. (See stories on the Book of Mormon on pages 6-10 and the Viewpoint on page 16.)

President Benson's busy itinerary during 1988 included:

- He broke ground Feb. 27 for the San Diego (Calif.) Temple. The site was dedicated by President Thomas S. Monson.

- He spoke at regional conferences in Dallas, Texas (April 24); Ogden, Utah (May 15); Fort Collins, Colo. (June 19); San Diego, Calif. (Oct. 30); and Los Angeles, Calif. (Dec. 11).

- He spoke to 450 missionaries at a joint conference of the Utah Salt Lake City North and South missions May 25.

- He dedicated a restored gristmill at Stansbury Park, Utah, June 11. The gristmill was constructed in 1854 under the direction of his great-grandfather, Elder Ezra T. Benson of the Council of the Twelve.

- He emphasized his love for missionary work - and the leaders who move it forward - at the June 21 seminar at the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah, for 68 new mission presidents.

- He spoke July 11 in Boise, Idaho, to 650 temple workers on the 4th anniversary of the dedication of the Boise Temple.

- He spoke Aug. 14 to some 6,000 Scouts and leaders from eastern Idaho and western Wyoming at a Scout encampment at Island Park, Idaho.

- He addressed a seminar for new temple presidents and matrons Aug. 23 in the Salt Lake Temple.

- He counseled women to realize their personal self-worth and to never demean themselves in a speech at the General Women's Meeting Sept. 24, read by President Thomas S. Monson.

He inspected the Church's Deseret Ranch in central Florida Nov. 18-19, where he once served on the board of directors.

- He quoted testimonies from Book of Mormon prophets about the divinity of of Jesus Christ and added his own testimony in a speech read by President Gordon B. Hinckley at the annual First Presidency Christmas Devotional Dec. 4.

Other major events during the year included:

January

As Church members began a year-long study of the Book of Mormon, the volume of scripture was being published in 80 languages - more than ever before.

In one of the most ambitious and largest divisions of stakes in Church history, 11 stakes in Lima, Peru, became 18 stakes Jan. 30-31.

February

The Church commemorated 75 years as an official sponsor of Scouting in a satellite fireside in the Salt Lake Tabernacle Feb. 14. A Scout patch was created to commemorate the anniversary.

March

The Young Women organization introduced a new pendant, a modified version of the Young Women logo introduced in October 1986.

Nine new missions - all in developing countries - were announced by the First Presidency. The Liberia Monrovia Mission began March 1. The Brazil Belo Horizonte, Chile Antofagasta, Colombia Barranquilla, Mascarene Islands, Mexico Puebla, Mexico Tampico, Philippines Quezon City West, and Spain Las Palmas missions were created July 1. That brought the total number of missions in the Church to 221, an all-time high.

April

At the 158th Annual General Conference April 2-3, Elders Robert L. Sackley and L. Lionel Kendrick were called to the First Quorum of the Seventy. Also, Michaelene Grassli was called as Primary general president, with Betty Jo Jepsen as first counselor, and Ruth B. Wright as second counselor.

Ricks College kicked off its centennial anniversary April 2, capped by an open house at the Lion House in Salt Lake City, which honored four presidents whose administrations spanned 44 years.

The Church released in April a computerized word-search program containing the complete text of the new editions of the standard works.

May

Church leaders, including President Gordon B. Hinckley, first counselor in the First Presidency, declared at a satellite priesthood fireside May 15 that priesthood is a real power whose restoration should be honored and authority respected and righteously exercised.

The first stake in western Africa, the Aba Nigeria Stake, was created May 15 - the first stake in the Church in which all priesthood leaders are black. Also, the Nigeria Aba Mission was created July 1 from a division of the Nigeria Lagos Mission. It was the second mission in western Africa to be created this year.

The Manti Temple was 100 years old May 21. More than 19,000 members of the 28 stakes in the temple district gathered for a commemorative program.

June

The Church received legal recognition in the Hungarian People's Republic on June 1. A document granting the recognition was signed in Budapest by Dr. Imre Miklos, state secretary and president of the State Office for Religious Affairs.

President Howard W. Hunter was set apart June 2 as president of the Council of the Twelve, succeeding President Marion G. Romney, who died May 20 after a lengthy illness.

Extensive renovation of the historic site around the Carthage jail in Carthage, Ill., site of the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, was announced June 4.

On June 9, the Church observed the 10th anniversary of the announcement of the revelation extending the priesthood to all worthy male members of the Church. Since the announcement in 1978, Church membership has steadily grown among blacks in Africa from a small and scattered group to about 20,000; in Brazil from about 50,000 members to some 300,000; in the Caribbean islands from about 3,000 to 30,000; and in metropolitan areas in the United States, Canada and England.

The Tabernacle Choir embarked June 14 for Hawaii, New Zealand and Australia, one of its most ambitious concert tours, which lasted three weeks.

A century of the Church in Samoa was celebrated June 14-26, with centennial events honoring the arrival of missionaries June 21, 1888. The celebration was held on three islands, with President Thomas S. Monson presiding over the last segment of the celebration, and Elder James E. Faust of the Council of the Twelve presiding over the first segment.

July

Technological resources and helps introduced by the Family History Department included a new release of the Personal Ancestral File to allow personal computer owners to submit information to the Family History and Temple departments on computer diskette.

August

Deseret Industries, organized in August 1938 as a depression-era effort to "provide opportunities for individuals to become self-sustaining," observed its 50th anniversary in August.

The Church reached a milestone in temple work by having performed 100 million endowments for the dead, from the early days of the Church to mid-August.

The Primary observed its 110th anniversary Aug. 25 by staging a re-enactment of the Primary's organization in the original rock meetinghouse in Farmington, Utah, where the organization took place.

September

Thirty BYU folk dancers participated in the opening ceremonies of the 1988 Olympics Sept. 17. Eighteen LDS athletes competed in the Olympics.

October

At the 158th Semiannual Conference Oct. 1-2, Elder Richard G. Scott was called to the Council of the Twelve and Elder J. Richard Clarke to the Presidency of the First Quorum of the Seventy. New members of the First Quorum of the Seventy were Elders Monte J. Brough, Albert Choules Jr., Lloyd P. George and Gerald E. Melchin.

The first modification in eight years in the Church's consolidated Sunday meeting schedule was announced by the First Presidency Oct. 3. The schedule now provides for 10-minute Sunday School opening exercises with a hymn-singing period.

The Church reached a milestone with the organization Oct. 16 of the Manaus Brazil Stake, the 1,700th in the Church.

The German Democratic Republic granted the Church the right to conduct missionary work in that country, and to permit Latter-day Saints from the DDR to serve as missionaries both in their native country and elsewhere in the world. Principles of the agreement were approved during an Oct. 28 meeting between President Thomas S. Monson and top government officials, including Erich Honecker, chairman of the State Council (chief government leader of the nation).

November

A new Utah Central Area was created Nov. 1, encompassing Salt Lake, Tooele and Summit counties.

The Church observed the 50th anniversary of its microfilming efforts Nov. 16.

Mauritius and Reunion, the two principal islands of the Mascarene chain in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of southern Africa, were dedicated by Elder Marvin J. Ashton of the Council of the Twelve on Nov. 22-23.

December

Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Council of the Twelve on Dec. 14 presented a check for $100,000, on behalf of the Church, to Soviet Ambassador Yuriy V. Dubinin in Washington D.C. for relief in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake that struck Armenia a week earlier.

The 4 millionth visitor to Temple Square during 1988 was recorded Dec. 19, which reflected an increase of more than a million visitors over last year.