Processing of Names for Temple to Be Done Locally

Members in the United States and Canada are reminded that after 1 June 1995, all processing of names for temple ordinance work will occur in local stakes and wards. In its 8 November 1993 announcement of the new TempleReady™ computer program, the First Presidency advised that after 1 June 1995, the Church would no longer process names for temple work at Church headquarters. After this date, Church members in the United States and Canada will need to use TempleReady in their stake or district to prepare their ancestors’ names to be sent to the temple.

Many members are familiar with TempleReady, which is part of the FamilySearch^® computer system. Using TempleReady, members can prepare ancestors’ names for temple ordinances in a few minutes rather than send names to Church headquarters and wait several months for them to be processed. As names are prepared in TempleReady, they are saved on a computer diskette. The diskette is then sent to the temple. After the temple receives the diskette, they need one day to process the information, and then members may perform sacred ordinances (in their proper sequence) in behalf of their ancestors.

TempleReady is available in family history centers and on computers in many clerks’ offices in meetinghouses. Every stake in the United States and Canada should have at least one computer equipped with TempleReady or be located near a family history center with TempleReady.

Stake and ward family history consultants are available to help members learn where and how to use TempleReady. Some members may have difficulty getting to a TempleReady site or using the computer once they are there. Under the direction of priesthood leaders, stake and ward family history consultants can provide special assistance to these members. In addition, every family should have a copy of A Member’s Guide to Temple and Family History Work (no. 34697), which explains the basic steps to providing temple ordinances for our ancestors.

President Hunter said:”In recent years we have begun using information technology to hasten the sacred work of providing ordinances for the deceased. The role of technology in this work has been accelerated by the Lord himself, who has had a guiding hand in its development and will continue to do so” (Ensign, Mar. 1995, p. 65). Enabling members to prepare names locally to send to the temple is a significant step forward in hastening the sacred work of redeeming the dead.

Member processes names for temple work in stake family history center.

Family history primer