S4E52 The Importance of the Temple (Interview with President Roggero)

Summary

Standard of Truth Podcast - Episode S4E52: The Importance of the Temple (Interview with President Ruggero) Summary

Release Date: December 26, 2024
Host: Dr. Gerrit Dirkmaat
Guest: President Ruggero

---

Episode Overview

In Season 4, Episode 52 of the Standard of Truth podcast titled "The Importance of the Temple," host Dr. Gerrit Dirkmaat teams up with Dr. Richard Leduc to delve deep into the significance of temple worship within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. This episode uniquely blends light-hearted segments with profound spiritual discussions, featuring an engaging interview with President Ruggero. The episode is structured into three main parts:

1. Interview with JT - A candid and humorous conversation with a young podcast listener.
2. Reading of President Ruggero's Official Letter - A formal announcement regarding a district temple trip.
3. In-Depth Interview with President Ruggero - A heartfelt discussion about faith, miracles, and the transformative power of temple worship.

---

Interview with JT: A Young Superfan’s Perspective

The episode kicks off with Dr. Richard Leduc introducing JT, a 14-year-old superfan of the podcast. Recorded at a Mod Pizza in Spanish Fork, the conversation is both entertaining and insightful, offering a glimpse into how the podcast reaches younger members of the church.

Key Highlights:

• Forced Listening: JT shares that his parents made him listen to the podcast as a form of discipline. Dr. Leduc humorously remarks, “[07:01] President Ruggero: It is.”

• Teen Interests: Despite his initial reluctance, JT reveals a passion for history, theater, and football. He humorously notes, “[10:05] JT: Yeah, I will,” when discussing academic aspirations.

• Building Skills: JT proudly mentions having built his own room from scratch, demonstrating creativity and initiative: “[10:30] JT: Yeah. Two by fours and everything.”

• Honest Feedback: JT candidly expresses his feelings about the podcast’s content, saying, “[08:07] JT: Learning aspects, fun,” albeit with a humorous undertone about the podcast’s quality.

Notable Quotes:

• JT on building his room: “[10:33] JT: My room.”
• Dr. Leduc on the podcast's impact: “[08:08] Dr. Richard Leduc: Nothing’s more fun than knowing that we do a bad product and that makes you feel better about yourself.”

This segment provides a humorous yet genuine perspective on how the podcast engages with younger members, highlighting both the challenges and rewards of intergenerational communication within the church.

---

President Ruggero's Official Letter: Preparing for the Temple Trip

Following the interview with JT, Dr. Leduc reads an official letter from President Ruggero, addressing the congregation in the Rio Gallegos district about an upcoming temple expedition. This segment underscores the profound emphasis the church places on temple worship and covenants.

Key Points from the Letter:

• Importance of Covenants: Emphasizes the critical role of making and keeping covenants in the temple, quoting Doctrine and Covenants, Section 88, Verse 73.

• Spiritual Privileges: Highlights the gifts received through temple endowment, including increased knowledge, divine direction, and enhanced hope and peace.

• Miraculous Promises: References a General Conference announcement, stating, “Nothing will help you hold fast to the iron rod more than worshiping in the temple as regularly as your circumstances permit” ([15:35] President Ruggero).

• Temple Trip Announcement: Announces a district temple trip scheduled between November 25th and 29th, made possible by donations from church members. Priority is given to families prepared for eternal sealing and individuals ready to receive their endowments.

Notable Quotes:

• On divine gifts: “[20:38] President Ruggero: …the word endowment means gift. Then temple endowment is literally a gift from God…”

• On miracles through faith: “[24:07] President Ruggero: …miracles occur, that miracles happen again to make this possible over the past seven months.”

This letter serves as a spiritual call to action, encouraging members to participate in temple worship and assuring them of the blessings that follow faithful service.

---

In-Depth Interview with President Ruggero: Faith, Miracles, and Community Transformation

The centerpiece of the episode is an extensive interview with President Ruggero, who shares his experiences and insights gained while organizing the temple trip. This conversation delves into themes of faith, divine intervention, community support, and personal testimonies.

Key Highlights:

• Faith and Miracles: President Ruggero recounts how faith played a pivotal role in facilitating the temple trip, stating, “…we needed to demonstrate faith to have miracles” ([20:32]).

• Donations and Stewardship: Discusses the generous donations from church members, many akin to "the widow's mites," and the responsibility of stewarding these gifts effectively ([05:12] JT).

• Personal Connections: Shares heartfelt stories of reconciling with former missionaries and witnessing life-changing transformations within the community ([36:11]).

• Community Impact: Highlights how temple worship has uplifted members struggling with depression and isolation, providing them with hope and eternal bonds ([32:52]).

• Leadership Challenges: Reflects on the challenges faced within the district leadership and the importance of unified effort through faith ([42:46]).

Notable Quotes:

• On receiving donations as divine intervention: “[24:07] President Ruggero: …I consider them to be as part of an extension of the hands of the Lord.”

• On the transformative power of the temple: “[27:08] President Ruggero: …many, many miracles are happening.”

• On enduring faith despite challenges: “[46:12] President Ruggero: …the memories that the members have is not the money that was given or anything. It’s the love that you showed…”

Emotional Testimonials:

• Reuniting with a Former Missionary: President Ruggero shares a touching encounter with a former missionary, leading to an emotional reunion akin to biblical reunions, emphasizing the enduring bonds formed through faith ([36:11]).

• Encouraging a Discouraged Member: Recounts meeting a woman who felt unnoticed in her service, whose encounter with the temple trip rekindled her faith and sense of purpose ([54:42]).

Leadership Insights:

President Ruggero discusses the strategic and spiritual planning involved in organizing the temple trip, including overcoming logistical challenges and fostering a sense of community. He underscores the importance of being receptive to divine guidance, stating, “[46:28] President Ruggero: …something that we've formed this bond, this eternal bond that is now going to be there for forever.”

---

Key Takeaways

1. Centrality of the Temple: The temple is portrayed as a sacred space where members can make eternal covenants, receive divine gifts, and strengthen their testimonies of faith.

2. Power of Faith and Community: Collective faith and communal support are depicted as catalysts for miraculous events and personal transformations within the church community.

3. Personal Growth and Stewardship: Emphasizes the importance of personal responsibility in stewardship of resources and the transformative impact of sincere intentions behind donations.

4. Enduring Bonds Through Service: Highlighting the lasting relationships and spiritual bonds formed through shared worship and service, reinforcing the idea of eternal connections within the faith community.

5. Leadership and Divine Guidance: Showcases effective leadership rooted in faith, demonstrating how leaders like President Ruggero navigate challenges and inspire their communities through divine guidance.

---

Conclusion

Episode S4E52 of the Standard of Truth podcast offers a comprehensive exploration of the significance of temple worship within the Latter-Day Saints community. Through the engaging interviews with a young listener and President Ruggero, listeners gain a multifaceted understanding of faith in action, the transformative power of temple worship, and the profound impact of community support and divine intervention. This episode serves as both an informative and inspirational guide for members seeking to deepen their faith and understanding of their spiritual heritage.

---

For more insightful discussions and resources, visit standardoftruth.com.

Transcript

[Dr. Garrett Dirkmot]

Welcome to the Standard of Truth podcast. In this podcast, Dr. Garrett Dirkmot and Dr. Richard Leduc explore the early history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the life and teachings of Prophet Joseph Smith. They examine the original historical sources and provide context for events of the past. They approach the history of the church with faith expertise and humor.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Foreign.

Hi and welcome to another episode of the Standard of Truth podcast. I'm Dr. Garrett Dirkmaat's friend, Dr. Richard Leduc. Happy Hanukkah and happy belated Christmas. We hope that you're having a wonderful holiday season with kith and kin. This week's episode is going to be a little bit different. We had a couple of different interviews with couple of folks and we wanted to air them here. The first will be an interview with Garrett and super friend of the show, jt. JT is a younger litner to the podcast and Garrett had an opportunity to meet up with JT and his folks for lunch and they recorded a short little interview that we wanted to play here. Following the interview with jt, I'm going to read the official letter that President Ruggero sent out to the Rio Gallegos district announcing the temple trip. And then we are going to have an interview that Garrett and I had with President Ruggiero where he expresses his gratitude to the litners of the podcast for their donations and shares several powerful experiences that he had in the preparation for the temple trip, as well as that he experienced when we were all together in the Buenos Aires temple. So we hope that you will enjoy these two interviews. Thank you for another wonderful year of the Standard of Truth podcast. We're very excited for next year as we study the Doctrine and Covenants and are excited for a bunch of changes that we will be announcing in the upcoming year as we go in depth on things that Garrett actually knows something about. We've been making it up for the past three years, but this year. Oh boy. Get ready.

Well, I am here with one of the podcast superfans. Would you say, jt, that you're a super fan?

[JT]

I would say I am a super fan, yes.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

You say you're a super fan. How old are you, JT?

[JT]

14 years old.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

14. When did you start listening to the podcast?

[JT]

Say about a year and a half ago.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

About a year and a half ago. Was that because it was some kind of a punishment your parents meted out or was that like if you don't get all A's, then you have to listen to the podcast?

[JT]

My mom basically pulled an officer R and trapped me in the car and made me listen to it.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

So, look, there's a lot of people who love the officer R style, the forced listening. It's how we get most of our listeners. That and missionaries. Yeah, those are the two. I'm actually here with JT's parents. You don't want to. They don't have a mic in front, but you want to introduce them.

[JT]

So I'm here with my dad, Mike, and my mom, Nikki, and they've gone to the live event, and I didn't. And I'm not happy about that.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

So they didn't invite you to the live event or you had chores to do?

[JT]

I had. So I crew for my school. They're a theater school, and I had a play I had to crew that day.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Okay, what play was it?

[JT]

I.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Clearly not very memorable. You know what have been more memorable? The live event.

[JT]

It would have been. I just could not say no because my teacher.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

If it makes you feel any better, I didn't want to do the live event at all. So you not being there was actually my dream because I didn't want to be there. But Richard, I think we all know that, you know, ever since he's gotten closer and closer to the doctor, now he is doctor. He runs the show. He just. He tells me this is what we'll be doing. And I say, but I don't want to do that. And then, sure enough, there I am. Live event.

[JT]

Isn't that how. How it always is?

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

It's how it is with. With. With. With good friends. Good friends are always making you do things you don't want to do. And parents. Yeah, they're. They're. Both of them are doing that. Yeah. So what grade are you in?

[JT]

Ninth.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Ninth grade. Okay. And we're here at a Mod Pizza in Spanish Fork. Recording. That's where you might hear it. It's a little loud in the background. I mean, it's. Anyone who listens to the podcast is already going to not be distracted at all. We haven't mentioned any sporting bets.

[JT]

No one listens to the podcast.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

No one listens. Only jt. Apparently. Not even. Not even your mom anymore listens. Right. She. Because she got you to do it, and then she stopped because it was a punishment, right? Yeah.

[JT]

Yeah, pretty much.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Pretty much. Very nice. So you're in ninth grade, and where do you go to school?

[JT]

Early Light Academy. It's a chart Charger School.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Okay. We're at.

[JT]

Right on the corner between South Jordan.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

You don't have to give them the Exact address. I don't need anyone trying to kidnap you from school, but.

[JT]

Oh, that would be fun.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

But. But. So you're. You're a freshman then.

[JT]

Yes.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yeah. Okay. So what do you want to. What do you want to do with your life?

[JT]

I have no idea.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

So you don't want to just become a podcaster?

[JT]

It's not particular.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Super lucrative.

[JT]

I'm sure it is.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yeah. I mean, the. The filthy lucre is everywhere with it, but.

[JT]

I'm sure it is. But I would like to have a.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Good living, and, boy, that good living could be taken in many different ways at this point. There's a lot of. A lot of problems with it. So what. What, your. Your mom made you listen to it? But I have several teenagers, and mainly when I make them do things, it doesn't. They don't. They don't respond well. Like, if I make them go to Disneyland, then they're okay with that. If I make them take a hundred dollars for themselves, they seem to be fine with that. But. But when I make them do other things that they don't want to do, they don't respond to us. What made you say, you know what? This is not as horrible as I thought it would be.

[JT]

So I'm a really weird teenager, and I love History. And it was one of your less funny episodes. And more insight. And I mean, I'm.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

When you say one of your less funny episodes, that. So that's all of the episodes. I mean, this episode that we're going to be airing this on, people are going to be referring this to as one of the less funny episodes. You need a better marker.

[JT]

That's true. Let me put it this way. Less attempts to be funny.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Less attempts to be funny. It was. And it was on History.

[JT]

Yes. Which I have always liked. And so it just got me hooked. And I started listening. Started from the beginning and just loved it.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Well, that's great. And so you're listening to the premium content, too.

[JT]

Yes.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yes. So you listen to the American history stuff.

[JT]

Yes.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

It's better than the church history stuff for you.

[President Ruggero]

It is.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Here's. He has a look on his face like, I don't want to say that it's better, but also it's better. That's.

[JT]

I'll admit. Yes, it's better.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Okay. You're the only person who thinks that. No, that we have. We have several people who don't want to listen to the podcast at all, actually, who are forced to. They're arrested, they're put in the back of cars. So that's pretty similar. Yeah.

[JT]

Yeah.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

So why would you tell people that they should listen if you, if you hate the rest of the podcast?

[JT]

I have to think about this one. I would say, well, yeah, English is, English is hard.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Talking is hard.

[JT]

Yes, it is. It is very hard. I would say that it's very fun and it's something that you can do to like, calm down if you're upset because you can just listen to their mistakes and.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yeah, it makes you feel better about yourself. Yeah, no, that's a great. Yeah.

[JT]

Learning aspects, fun.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

But, but nothing's more fun than knowing that we do a bad product and that makes you feel better about yourself. Yeah, yeah, that's. I, I think Richard, if he were here, he would say that was actually our business model is if we could put out a product that's so bad that people feel better about themselves. It's like throwing starfish back in the ocean. Yeah, yeah. We, we are responsible for so much better mental health. And we, we like that. So you love theater. What other things do you like to do?

[JT]

I like to sing.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Like to sing and football. Okay, so you're a, you're a real triple threat there. You're gonna both act and also play football. Do you ever find your acting and singing skills help on the football field? Like someone pushes you and you go flying out of bounds and get a, get a penalty thrown. Is that.

[JT]

Yes. Okay, it does help.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

It does help. Like, I assume that everyone who plays, you know, English football or soccer, that they've all taken acting classes. If you watch a game, you know, someone slide tackles within, within three yards of them and doesn't make any contact and they roll around on the ground as if they've, they've died. Which is apparently what it's like for you to listen to the podcast. It's just as painful. So you're probably the first fan that we've talked to who just really hates the content but listens to it for a self esteem reason. I feel like we could market that. We could market the self esteem aspect of it.

[JT]

You could, you totally could.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

What position do you play in football?

[JT]

Line. Both offensive and defensive. Like guard, tackle, guard, center, little bit of center. And then I'm learning tackle.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Okay. They always say that, you know, the center is the smartest guy on the offensive line. Right. So you're going to have to kick it up a notch with the grades.

[JT]

Yeah.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

In order to. Yeah, yeah. If you're going to be the Jason Kelsey of where you play, you're gonna have to, you're gonna have to kick it up in the grades.

[JT]

Yeah, I will.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

So what are your other hobbies? Interests?

[JT]

I like building stuff.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Like from scratch?

[JT]

Yeah.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Or like Legos.

[JT]

Like from scratch. Okay, like, and Legos.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

What's something you've built?

[JT]

My room.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Aside from your self esteem from having listened to the podcast Mistakes.

[JT]

My room.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

You built your room?

[JT]

Yeah.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Like on your house. Like you just subcontracted it out to yourself and just ran some cable and built a room.

[JT]

Yes. Two by fours and everything.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Is it a basement room then? So you finished a basement?

[JT]

No, we took our roof off. We took our whole roof off and then we got the snow.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Okay.

[JT]

Yeah, I built my room.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

It's good. It's a merry Christmas that you have a roof over your head then.

[JT]

Yes.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yeah. Since you took the roof off, where did you live when the roof was off?

[JT]

My grandparents basement. They have. What is it called?

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

A mother in law.

[JT]

A mother in law apartment. Yeah.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yeah. Okay.

[JT]

We just lived there.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Well, it's been fascinating getting to know you. And I assume that you've shared this podcast with all of your friends.

[JT]

Yes.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yeah. And none of them have said that they would listen.

[JT]

Not a single one.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yeah, of course they wouldn't. You know, our demographic is, as Richard was likes to say is more people that are entering hospice. Hospice. Not because they have a natural end of life scenario, but because they listen to the podcast and they hate it so much that they say, that's it, I can't go on anymore. It's a very odd hospice. But now you can share this episode with your friends. Hey, that was me. And there was like four people, including Garrett's mom, you know, and also Rachel's mom that listen.

[JT]

Yeah.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Is there anything else you want to. Want to say? No. No. Just please don't ever do this again.

[JT]

Yes.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yeah, you can thank your parents. JT's parents surprised him with this, so we're catching him very much on the spot. They thought that they were going to a riveting meeting with a work supplier and instead it was a riveting meeting with. With me. So thanks so much for listening to the podcast, jt.

Dear brethren, in recent times the First Presidency has emphasized the importance of making covenants in the temple more than at any time remembered. All of these things are clear evidence of when the Lord declared, behold, I will hasten my work in its time. Doctrine and Covenants, Section 88, Verse 73. Every conference is an invitation to be prepared with a current recommendation and to attend the temple as our circumstances permit by making and keeping covenants in the temple. We are promised that no wicked combination shall prevail over those who worship in the house of the Lord. Understanding the spiritual privileges that the temple makes possible is vital for us today. The word endowment means gift. Then temple endowment is literally a gift from God by which he blesses his children and it can only be received in the holy temple. Some of the gifts that members receive through the temple endowment are Increased knowledge of the Lord's purposes and teachings Power to do all that Heavenly Father desires His children to do Divine direction in serving the Lord, their families and others Increased hope, comfort and peace. In the last General Conference, the Lord's prophet declared, My dear brothers and sisters, this is my promise. Nothing will help you hold fast to the iron rod more than worshiping in the temple as regularly as your circumstances permit. Nothing will protect you more as you face the dark mists of the world. Nothing will strengthen your testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ and His atonement. More. And nothing will help you understand God's magnificent plan. More. Nothing will soothe your spirit more in times of sorrow, nothing will open the heavens more. Nothing. Our Heavenly Father knows our needs before we ask him and understands how far away the nearest temple is for us. However, nothing is impossible for God and miracles follow those who believe without doubting anything because God is a God of miracles. It is for this reason that we are pleased to announce with great joy that in the month of November of this year 2024, our district will have a contingent to the temple between November 25th and 29th. This trip is possible thanks to selfless contribution of brothers and sisters of the church who consecrate their temporal goods to help those brothers and sisters who need the ordinances of the temple. On this occasion and as a priority, emphasis will be placed on those families who have been prepared and who will need to be sealed for eternity, as well as those brothers and sisters who are ready to receive their own endowment. The possibility that more members, including some young people, may travel is not ruled out, but this will be communicated. As details of the trip are finalized in the coming days, the branch presidents will immediately begin to coordinate interviews with these brothers and sisters. We encourage you to continue preparing yourself spiritually to receive all the blessings that the Lord promises to the faithful through service in his holy house. Sincerely, Rio Gajego's District Presidency well, so.

[Carlos Cruz]

So President, I wanted to introduce you to my friend Dr. Dirk Mott. He teaches at the at the BYU and it was his podcast that where we did the promotion and where we raised over $42,000 to pay for everything.

[President Ruggero]

What's up, President?

[Carlos Cruz]

When. When? So just really.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

When.

[Carlos Cruz]

When I told him, I, I told him many stories yesterday when we got home, and I think that he might believe that you didn't exist, that you were one of the three Nephites.

[President Ruggero]

Historic. No.

Nice to meet you, Garrett.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Good to meet you, President. My Spanish is worse than Richard's. Really, really bad.

[President Ruggero]

With Richard.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Way worse than Richard.

[President Ruggero]

Richard.

It's perfect.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Good to meet you, President.

[Carlos Cruz]

That's good.

[President Ruggero]

Well, she's the voice to the Pocket podcast.

[Carlos Cruz]

Yes, the voice and the brains and the whole thing.

[President Ruggero]

Okay. He said he listened to the podcast the other day of my. On Joseph Smith, so recognizes the voice.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Oh, yeah, well, sorry, I don't have it in Spanish. It's.

[President Ruggero]

I can work on that.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

Yeah.

[Carlos Cruz]

So, Carlos. So by the way, Garrett, this is my good friend Carlos Cruz.

[President Ruggero]

Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you.

[Carlos Cruz]

So. So, President, thank you so much for, for your time. Just wanted to. For me, we, we wanted to. I just, just have a. A discussion with you about your thoughts and, and, and feelings and express and, and, you know, experiences as it related to the, the last week for my family. It was life changing and we, We're. We're so blessed to, to have the opportunity to get to know you and your family, but we wanted to kind of get. Just get your impressions and then, and then, if it's okay, we wanted to share those with all of the listeners to the podcast so that they could feel like they were part of it because they, they were, even though they weren't there.

[President Ruggero]

Lit nurse.

[Carlos Cruz]

You don't know how funny that is.

[President Ruggero]

Hi, Midnight. My name is Pablo Rogero from Argentina.

Well, I'm happy to share my thoughts and my impressions. First, I'm happy to meet you, Garrett, and, And of course, Richard. I, I have, like I said, many, many impressions, many thoughts. What comes to mind first are that. That there is revelation. The revelation that flowed to kind of make this possible, and the fact that miracles occur, that miracles happen again to make this possible over the past seven months. So this started with really just a tiny bit of faith, just a desire for additional faith. When I was called to be the district president here in this district, Rio Gallegos, in last November, it was clear to me that. That we needed to be not we, but us as a district. The members in the district needed to be at the temple. We needed to increase our hope and our desire to be at the temple.

I need your help. I need your help for this.

So I Got together with my counselors, my presidency, and, and we. We talked about faith, and we talked about how we needed to demonstrate faith to. To have miracles. And in November 2022, or I'm sorry, not November, but President Nelson in 2022, in one of his addresses in General Conference, you know, he. He said that through the faith of the saints, that there would be miracles wrought among, you know, in the church, that. I'm going to get this quote wrong, but basically that this. That there would be miracles that unlike any we've seen before. And I believe that it's exactly. This is exactly one of those miracles that because of the faith of the saints, that this miracle occurred over this past few days while I was at the temple. I did, you know, I did have your listeners in mind because I'm aware of how this happened. So I did have them in mind. I could imagine, or I could kind of see their faces in my mind. I could imagine them making a very small donation even. Yeah. As if it were a widow's might, and even thought that some might have even considered that their small donation wasn't making a difference or was it enough? Well, then I thought, how much is enough? And of course, we know that we are not necessarily judged by our actions only, but also by what our intentions, our good intentions. And I could sincerely feel the intentions of these good people. And while I was at the temple, I. I could feel hugs, as it were, from. From these people while I was at the temple, you know, and I wouldn't have been able to. To do any of that without the help of people like Richard, like Karen, a bad translator even. But I've heard Carlos in there.

[Carlos Cruz]

I heard Carlos.

[President Ruggero]

Yeah. Yeah. And. But. But none of this would have been possible without the help of everyone. It's, you know, it wasn't just a single person's effort. You know, I, I could sense that there was anxiety, worry on your side because you're not familiar with. You're not familiar with the, The. The culture, you're not familiar with the surroundings, the economy, like any of it. And so I could definitely sense the. The worry as we were planning and leading up to this event.

[Carlos Cruz]

Well, so if I could. If I could speak to that, I was terrified. So apparently I would be. I would not be good at playing poker. My poker face is bad. There were. There were two things that were of worry to me. The one is that we would be able, because there was a tremendous amount of logistical coordination to make it work. And so I wanted to so desperately that people would be able to get to the temple, that they'd be able to have the experience that President Nelson had promised them the last two general conferences. That was number one. The number two is when you accept donations from people, it's terrifying. You want to make sure that you are a good steward of that money because they so faithfully donated. And to your point, the vast majority of the donations were relatively small in number and in value, but large in number because I view many of the donations as being the widow's mites that were donated. And I was very concerned to make sure that we were good stewards of that money.

[Dr. Richard Leduc]

I asked President how, how did you announce the temple trip to your members because you had already been praying about it. How did you. Did you. Did. Did anyone see that? It was, it was so soon after you, you guys put your faith in God that, that you suddenly had this announcement to them to, to a way for them to go to the temple.

[Carlos Cruz]

And, and, and to that, to that point, Carlos, we, we heard from people because originally we, we only had $10,000 committed. And so president had to make. He had rank people and we heard from some people that they didn't make the first cut. And so what, what, what was that like as then the money came in and everybody was able to go.

[President Ruggero]

So the announcement was made on June 30, 2024. And he said that he's got a letter basically that he read to the district. He went for. He went to each sacrament meeting that, that Sunday and read a letter and he's going to share that with us. But he said during, during this whole experience, I, I really felt guided. I was receiving revelation, you know, other since my mission. I feel this is the closest I've ever been to the Spirit. Did you have a comment, Richard?

[Carlos Cruz]

I, I was talking to Garrett yesterday and that's exactly what I told Garrett.

[President Ruggero]

But to finish the, the comment, you know, this is the closest ever felt to the Spirit. And perhaps there was this. The Spirit was always there even before this. But you know, we always have distractions that make us maybe not listen to the Spirit or make us unaware of it, but, but the night before this announcement was made, even that my presidency, you know, one of the questions we pondered was how are we going to make this announcement? And so I, I did. I, I of course prayed with very much intent to know how to do that. And, and this letter is the result of that. In that moment, I remember that call because Becky was on mute and she didn't say anything. The whole call and Then she took herself off of mute and then she said, president, we're going to get your youth to the temple. And that's all she said. And when I heard her say those words, first of all, there was a quiet moment right after that and I don't know if everybody was just surprised by the commitment she had just made, but he just said that when she said those words.

[Carlos Cruz]

He.

[President Ruggero]

With such certainty, you know, he believed what she said, not because of anything more than it was the faith behind the words that she said. And so I knew that it was going to happen. Somehow I think that the donations that were made, I consider that also to be made by the hands of the Lord. You know, the, the listeners that made these donations, I truly consider them to be as, as part of an extension of the hands of the Lord. These experiences that the members had were truly life changing. They were able to go to the temple and make eternal covenants and in some cases these were even life saving. Some, many, not many, but some members were kind of stuck and even into depression. And this experience at the temple really helped them. Again, a life saving experience. So thank you and I would just like I said to, to Becky and to, to you all that last night we were there that if there was a to. To these people who made donations, if, if I knew the celestial word for gratitude, that is exactly how I feel to you. Very, very grateful. Just. There's also even a few, a handful of youth who, whoever, you know, they're committed to serving a mission whereas they weren't before. And, but really I think that one of the takeaways as well is just the love that we can have for one another, especially with the group that came from the us that virtual strangers up to that moment we met. And he said, you know, the hugs that we exchanged when we first met are forever in my mind. Richard. I've actually got it recorded and I'll share that with you sometime. But that initial hug that we shared is. We were strangers and here we were shedding tears with one another. So I think that it's amazing that we can have love for people that we had never even met and yet feel such, such great closeness and, and love for one another. Yeah.

[Carlos Cruz]

We, we felt the, the exact same same way. We, as we were in the airport on our way home, we. We talked about how could we just do this for the rest of our lives and just do this, only this.

[President Ruggero]

So I have a question for you too as well. And the question is tell me about or. Yeah, I guess it's More of a. Yeah, it's a question. Tell me about your experience as. As you were preparing, you know, even reaching out to me as. As a leader of. Of a church group. What I'm curious to know how. How. How. How your experience, from your point of view, was in dealing with. With the members, including myself, here in. In this part of the world.

[Carlos Cruz]

So if we could just pause, I would love it. Would she mind sharing the experience she had? I think it was. Was it Tuesday or Wednesday? Oh, yeah, that was. That was such a sweet moment. We all didn't know what was going on. We just knew that everybody was crying. We wanted to understand what was happening when you. When you ran into the gentleman at the. At the hotel.

[President Ruggero]

Well, we. You know, when this kind of got going, we were sharing this temple trip in our social media, you know, kind of letting people know that we're going to be going to the temple. And so I imagine that's how he saw or heard about this. But. But I never heard from him. He never said, messaged me or anything. Never reached out to me that he might make it, you know, might make a connection while I'm in Buenos Aires. But nevertheless, maybe he got busy or whatever. I knew he was in this area, but we just. I never heard. So I didn't expect to see him. But that day when we were at the temple and I walked into the. You know, after we finished that morning work for that morning and walked into the hostel, I. I saw him, and I immediately recognized him. I knew exactly who he was. And so here, you know, 20 years ago, when I was 18, and he was a missionary, and now I'm. I'm 44, so that's actually a little more than 20 years ago. But it was. I immediately recognize him, and I didn't have time to plan a reaction or anything. My immediate reaction was just to shed tears. And so that was my emotion, just a very, very happy moment of reuniting with my missionary. This was my missionary.

[Carlos Cruz]

It reminded me, or it made me think of what the reunion between Alma the Younger and the sons of Mosiah were after their missions, when they come together, that they were both still brothers in. In the Lord. And. And that I. My guess is, is that it made him more happy than it made her to. To see for. For him to see her.

[President Ruggero]

So I shared with him with my missionary that I. I. Of course, I have. I'm. I'm married in the temple, and I have children that are sealed to me. I have a son who is on a Mission right now is about to come home, actually, and he himself is teaching others, you know, just like you did many years ago, teaching others about this wonderful gospel and spreading this gospel of hope and love to others in Italy. And so, you know, and I just shared with him that he had everything to do with the blessings that I have in my life.

[Carlos Cruz]

That's, yeah, that's, that's incredible. I, I, I've already taken way too much of their, of their time. But I, I did want to say one other thing that we are very excited to see. President Rogero talked about a dream that he had with all of the youth at the temple. And, and actually, could you just tell him, I think that I took more than five minutes. Could you just say that I think I took six? So.

[President Ruggero]

Sorry.

[Carlos Cruz]

But so when he had that dream, it was impossible. It was impossible. It could have only happened because that's what the Lord wanted to happen. It's the only way. The, the youth seemed to just, many of them that we had the opportunity to meet just seemed to catch on fire. And many of them were so new to the church, so many recent converts. And we are so excited to see the impact that the temple will have on their lives as they share the gospel with their friends and with their family. And we're, we're very excited to, to follow them and their, and their lives for only getting to spend a couple of days with them. We grew to love them very, very much.

[President Ruggero]

So, so Fabrizio Titi, I don't know if you remember who he is.

[Carlos Cruz]

Oh, he's a baptizing machine.

[President Ruggero]

Yeah.

[Carlos Cruz]

Goodbye. Goodbye.

[President Ruggero]

Well, he was, he actually almost didn't make the trip to the temple. So, you know, he was on a list. He was going to go. And then I got a call from his mom to say, well, he's not going to make the trip to the temple. And I, I asked her, why, why, why not? What happened? And so, well, he's got a birthday. He's got a birthday that week. But one of the things about him is that he was not planning on going on a mission, but he is now.

[Carlos Cruz]

That, so that's, that's, that's surprising that he wasn't, because he came across like, like he seemed to catch on fire more than anybody.

[President Ruggero]

I, from day one, from the first moment, I feel like, like immediately, right.

[Carlos Cruz]

Like, he seemed like, ah, that, that's awesome.

[President Ruggero]

So the conversation went like this when she told me that he wasn't going to go to the temple because it was his birthday and, and his Sisters had organized or were organizing a surprise birthday party that he didn't know about. And so when she called me to tell me that he was going to be there. Just a side note that, you know, this sister, she's has. She has other, other kids and they have all left the church. None of them are active. He's the last one that is still at the time, you know, he's some. On the fence. He's somewhat. Doesn't really know what's going to happen. And. And she got divorced some years ago. And so more or less kind of a broken family, kind of in some terms. But, but so here I have her on the phone and I. And I explained to her. Well, I told her, I said, I don't care about your birthday party. I don't care about the money that you've committed to this birthday party. I don't care about anything except your son. He needs to be on a mission. And, and if you're going to be teaching him that these other things are, are important or more important than the, than the gospel, he's going to end up like the rest of your kids. I care about him and I want what's good for him. And this is what it needs to do. He needs to be at the temple with us. This, on this, on this trip. And so again, I don't. These other things don't matter. This, this is what matters. He needs to go to the temple. And so I made it very clear to her that he, that he needs to come afterwards. I had, I felt perhaps I was a little too direct with. A little too strong. Yeah, perhaps I was a little bit too directly strong. But in retrospect, I felt that this really was the last opportunity we had to reach him. And he needed to be in the house of the Lord so that the Lord could talk to him and give him that message that he needed to hear that that was the only place he might hear it. And so I felt like I needed to let her know that, that this was our opportunity for him, for her son.

[Carlos Cruz]

Well, so in my, the, the family dynamic between me and my wife is I'm. I'm generally a little bit softer. I'm a little bit, you know, trying to make sure that everybody feels good and comfortable. And then my wife is a straight shooter where she tells you exactly what she thinks and what you need to do. And we need that dynamic. Sometimes we need somebody to tell us exactly how it is so that they can. Because sometimes it's the only way they'll hear.

[President Ruggero]

So I took my. I took it upon myself to invite each and every One of the 98 people that came to the temple. I myself. And the reason is because I wanted to make sure that the invitation was clear. And so my invitation to each of them was something like this. He said, carlos, the Lord would like to have you at his house. At his. At his house. And he wants you to have. He wants to have you there because he wants you to receive a message. He wants you to receive a message from him at his house. Will you accept his invitation? And that was the invitation that he gave to each of them. That's good.

[Carlos Cruz]

I'm gonna steal that. And I'm going to do that. I'm gonna do that myself. That's. That's powerful. That's beautiful.

[President Ruggero]

And so when they. When they would accept the invitation, I, of course, just followed up by letting them know, well, the Lord looks forward to seeing you at his house, and he looks forward to having a conversation with you there. So I'll share also that personally, I felt like this was kind of like an exam that I was taking, and. And I felt like I. Like I passed, but only. Only in the sense that I had. There were times when there were leaders in. In the district that I kind of was counting on that didn't meet. They didn't Met not measure up, but they didn't follow through with some of the expectations I had of them, including some in my presidency. But I think that something that we all witnessed, not just me, but everyone here in the district, is that God's will will be done in one way or another. He doesn't necessarily need us like me personally or you personally. His will will be done. He just needs one. He just needs one willing heart and mind. And if he has one, that's all he needs because he can work with that. And we were able to witness that. And when you go to Chile or you go to Kenya, you just need one person that's willing and has the faith and the God will work with that one person.

[Carlos Cruz]

Yeah. Well, thank you so much. We love you so much. We.

[President Ruggero]

We.

[Carlos Cruz]

We didn't even know you. And we loved you then. We love you so much more now, and we look forward to remaining friends for eternity.

[President Ruggero]

So when I was first called to be the president of the district, I. I remember having this feeling that I was going to get my popcorn and I was going to a movie, and I was in the front row and I was going to witness miracles. And that's what I feel is happening, is that I'M witnessing miracles not because I made them happen, but because of the faith of many miracles are happening. And that's exactly what this was like, is that I have a front row seat, you know, with you to kind of witness this. It was amazing. It was wonderful and amazing. And, you know, the other members in our, in our district would notice the relationship that we had, you know, you and us and with my family and, and how bonded we were already. And it was. I think they were taken aback a little bit about, you know, you don't know these people. How is it that you're so close with them? But I think that's one of the miracles, you know, that, that we've formed this bond, this eternal bond that, that, that is now going to be there for forever. So that. That's one of the miracles. Wow.

[Carlos Cruz]

Thank you so much. Thank you for your time.

[President Ruggero]

Wow. Wow. So. So we both are the only members in our families, you know, we, we've shared with them in the past, but, but, but it's just us, at least on this side of the veil that, but we're the only members in our each, each of our families.

[Carlos Cruz]

That's the case for my mother, and I know that. And she, her whole family's Jewish. And so that was, it was something that was very different for her compared to my dad's side. But because of the goodness of the Lord and his temples, we're going to get them all.

[President Ruggero]

Agreed. So a big part of all of this is, of course, the love, the love that makes it all happen. Because of course, you raised the money to physically move people from Rio Cachegos to Buenos Aires and back. But the fact that you drank mate with us, you drank even though you didn't like it. Oh, mate. Is so gross. You played card games. He loves playing Kanta. See?

[Carlos Cruz]

Yeah.

[President Ruggero]

So, yeah. So I could. A list of things that you did to show your love. The, the small gifts that you gave to the missionaries, the, you know, you cried with us in the temple, outside the temple. Just the many, many things that, that you did for us to show that, that you care and that you love us. It just demonstrates that again, all of this happens because of the love that we have for one another. You know, the memories that, that the members have is not the money that was given or anything. It's, it's, it's the love that you showed by doing the many things that you did. The, you know, the ordinances that we shared together, the, the time that we spent together. It's the love that we felt That's. That's the memory that we have of. Of each of you.

[Carlos Cruz]

That's wonderful. Wow. Yes, quite. Quite so. Anyway, well, thank you so much. We're so grateful for the opportunity to get to know you and your wonderful family and your wonderful district.

[President Ruggero]

Do you remember when we were trying to get to find a spot for a gathering? We were trying to find a private place.

[Carlos Cruz]

Yeah, you bet. Yeah.

[President Ruggero]

So there were two things. There were two things that happened the day I was changing out of my clothes to leave. I was literally changing to my street clothes to go to the airport. And there was an old man, a missionary, senior missionary. He. He was at the first meeting we had Tuesday night, and he said to me, he said, I have never witnessed what I witnessed that night. I. I never thought in my lifetime that I would see something like that. He told me, I imagined something like this possible in. But I never thought it possible that something like this could happen. And he said, are you the district president for this group? And I. I told him, yes. And he said, well, I. I listened to one of your, you know, one of your gatherings there in the dining area. And before that, I kind of lost. Not lost interest, but I even just lost hope in attending the temple. But because of what I witnessed and because of this, I have once again renewed my desire to get to the temple. So he wanted to say thank you for that. So this was similar to Abinadi, who didn't get to see the fruits of his. Of his labor. This. This man who came to talk to me was kind of the Alma. Right. That an outsider, not really a part of this whole experience, but an outsider who witnessed it. And. And now he is going to be. He's kind of been the recipient of. Of the love and the. The effort that we've put into all of this.

[Carlos Cruz]

I met a woman Thursday night who is by herself. She has no children. She has no husband. She serves in the temple every Friday and every Saturday, every week for years. And she has become very discouraged. She's very alone, and she feels very discouraged that all of her service and all of her efforts that she. She doesn't feel like anyone notices, anyone cares. And she's. She's still struggling with all the same. These same problems. And so she. She wasn't part of our group, but was having dinner during the testimony meeting. And. And so she pulled me aside out in the parking lot, and she shared this with me. And it was. It was very, very sad and very touching. And she said the biggest thing is she didn't feel like. Like God was aware of her circumstance and like. Like the two of you. She's the only member in her family, none of the rest of her family. She joined the church just a couple of years ago, but because she was able to be there and hear the testimony meeting, when she found out that. That this group came up from Rio Gallegos, she got very emotional because her only living relative is her sister who lives in Rio Gallegos. And she felt. She felt that because we spoke a lot in that meeting about the miracles that occurred to get everybody to the temple. And she felt that it was a tender mercy of the Lord to let her know that he is aware of her and that great miracles are possible.

[President Ruggero]

And that's how we can make plans. We can. We can try that the Lord will have. Will. Will have it his way.

[Carlos Cruz]

This is right. Yes. Well, well, thank you. And thank you so much for the time. And Carlos, thank you so much for the two hours. I believe I blocked off 30 minutes.

[President Ruggero]

Totally fine. I love being a part of this.

[Dr. Garrett Dirkmot]

Thank you for listening to the Standard of Truth podcast, hosted by historian Dr. Garrett Dirkmot. If you know anybody that could benefit from the material in this episode, please share it with them. And for more resources, visit standardoftruth.com until next time.