What better place than my study journal to organize my thoughts for speaking in church on December 30. Not sure if I’ll use this or speak on something else, but at any rate here are some things I’ve learned about family history and temple work through my work on LDS.org

Good Afternoon Brothers and Sisters,

We indeed are the Valentine’s. When Brother Sorensen extended the opportunity to speak, he gave us open range on the conference addresses from this past year. And as always appropriate, he invited us to tie it back as much as we can to this time of year and the opportunity to speak and sing a little bit more about our Savior Jesus Christ.

As my wife mentioned, I work at the Church Office Building as web content manager for LDS.org. I am assigned a number of different groups and departments and my job is to help them get their content or updates to content up and out for the members to read or watch or use.

My number one assignment is the Family History department of the Church. If you’ll permit me, I’d like to share some of the insights I have learned in helping them prepare content to support the recent First Presidency Letter on temple and family history work, as well as Elder Scott’s address in this most recent conference.

Baptisms in the Mississippi

To start, and for some background I would like to go back to Nauvoo for a second. When Joseph Smith first received the revelation, the Nauvoo temple was still under construction. Until the basement of the temple was completed, the Lord permitted the work of baptisms for the dead to be done in the Mississippi River. Once the temple baptisty was completed the Lord no longer accepted baptisms in the river.

The saints were so excited about this news, many practically rushed down right after the meeting and started baptizing left and right, even men for women and women for men. Joseph had to come down and say, ‘wait, wait, there needs to be order in this and we need to keep records,” and so the work of family history work began.

As we built temples here in the west, records began to be compiled to check against to make sure the work indeed needed to be done for your ancestor. As you can imagine, without computers, this was really tedious. There were mountains of pedigrees to be checked against. Some of you might remember this from your own experience that it could take months to clear a single name for the temple.

Extraction

In the meantime we were building temples and members wanted to attend, and so President McKay begun the extraction work which allowed members to go to the temple and receive a name for whom to do work. This was a great blessing in its time because members could continue to go to the temple. In its own way it was like being able to do baptisms in the Mississippi: it allowed the work to go forward until a better way was prepared.

But one side effect of this was, at least, culturally,  we as a people compartmentalized temple work over here and family history work  over there for Auntie Clare to do for the family. That’s a generalization, but the percent of members that currently submit names to the temple is extremely low.

The Baptistry is Ready

Family History work is extremely interesting because when you consider the four-fold mission of the church, the Salvation of the dead is the only mission that requires technology to do and do effectively. Over the past decade plus, the Church has invested heavily in the resources and technology necessary to ‘build the baptisty’ that allows members to go about the work of saving their own dead.”

Elder Scott gently emphasized this point in conference,

“Perhaps you have been prompted to look for ancestors but feel you are not a genealogist. Can you see that you don’t have to be anymore? It all begins with love and a sincere desire to help those beyond the veil who can’t help themselves. Check around. There will be someone in your area who can help you have success.

This work is a spiritual work, a monumental effort of cooperation on both sides of the veil, where help is given in both directions. Anywhere you are in the world, with prayer, faith, determination, diligence, and some sacrifice, you can make a powerful contribution. Begin now.”

And so, the age of extraction is drawing to an end. Shortly after conference, the First Presidency sent out a letter encouraging members where ever possible, to bring their own names to the temple, or to look to family, their ward or their stake for work to perform before using a temple-provided name.

What we are learning through this process is how to experience the Spirit of Elijah. We talk about this influence here and there, but what I am discovering as sort of an observer while working with Family History is the blessings involved are not just for our ancestors: there are powerful ripples and incredible blessings for us today as we learn to turn our hearts to our fathers.

Both Halves of the Blessing

In Elder Scott’s address, he reminded us of the words of President Howard W. Hunter on our responsibility but also of the greater blessings available through turning our hearts and attention to our own ancestors as much as possible. He said,

“We must accomplish the priesthood temple ordinance work necessary for our own exaltation; then we must do the necessary work for those who did not have the opportunity to accept the gospel in life.  . . .

There are some members who engage in temple work but fail to do family history research on their own family lines. Although they perform a divine service in assisting others, they lose a blessing by not seeking their own kindred dead as divinely directed by latter-day prophets. …

“I have learned that those who engage in family history research and then perform the temple ordinance work for those whose names they have found will know the additional joy of receiving both halves of the blessing.”

Elder Scott continued with this additional promise and mention of blessings:

Do you young people want a sure way to eliminate the influence of the adversary in your life? Immerse yourself in searching for your ancestors, prepare their names for the sacred vicarious ordinances available in the temple, and then go to the temple to stand as proxy for them to receive the ordinances of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost. As you grow older, you will be able to participate in receiving the other ordinances as well. I can think of no greater protection from the influence of the adversary in your life.”

Elder Scott is not the first apostle to speak of the protecting power of combining temple and family history work in our lives. Elder Bednar also spoke of these blessings in October 2011, again, especially for the youth.

The Jess Family

This video was produced by members of the Family History team. It documents the real life experiences of the Jess Family as they learned the power of turning their hearts. At the end of this video, the father, Scott Jess, summarizes the experience:

“When our family started to learn about family history, it led us on a journey which helped us in so many other ways. … We thought we were blessing the lives of our deceased family members. That work ultimately saved our marriage. … Doing family history work blessed my family and may have saved our children and our children’s children.”

 

One in Christ

At the end of the video, Elder Bednar invites us to consider the doctrine involved. In every instance in the scriptures, it’s spoken of in terms of saving “our dead” and not “the dead.” The baptisty is being readied, and each of us are in a position far beyond the privilege of any earlier age. Considering the difficulties and challenges we faced today, we have an incredible force of sealing power and identity that comes from uniting, in Christ, the special work we do in the temple with the turning of our hearts to our ancestors. This is the day and age when all the pieces are lined up for these blessings to be poured out on the earth.

I testify that God is at the helm and that we have an opportunity to participate in a special work that grants Christ special access to our hearts, that His atonement can bond and seal our family ties for all time and eternity. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.