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Finding Family Names for Temple Ordinances

Finding Family Names for Temple Ordinances

young adult woman at a computer

Purpose

Learn how to find ancestors who need temple work—and cousins too! In case you wondered, “cousins” are descendants of your ancestors. You can bring great joy to your family on the other side as you help them receive temple ordinances.

Description

FamilySearch Family Tree contains the names of many people who have had their temple ordinances done. But did you know that many people still need to be added to Family Tree? Even if you have a lot of names in your tree, chances are good that you can find names to add.

If you are new to family history, you may want to ask your ward or branch temple and family history consultant to help your group with the steps below. In fact, depending on the size of your group, it may help to have several temple and family history consultants there.

  1. Start with a prayer for guidance. Ask to be led to someone who wants temple ordinances.

  2. Go to http://familysearch.org/tree and sign in with your LDS Account. If you don’t have an LDS Account, follow the instructions in this activity to create one.

  3. You should see a family tree chart with yourself on the left. Other family members such as parents and grandparents may appear on the right.

  4. Discover who might be missing from Family Tree. You could talk to relatives or search in historical records on FamilySearch.org or other sites like Ancestry.com.

  5. You can add the people you discover by following the instructions in this FamilySearch knowledge article. If you see empty spaces in your first four generations, try using My Family: Stories That Bring Us Together to gather information and put it in Family Tree.

  6. Be sure to attach some sources to the people you add!

  7. When you’re ready, reserve the names for temple ordinances.

More Ideas

  • Get free partner access—Visit the partner access page and sign up for a free account with one or more FamilySearch partners. These partner sites contain some of the same records as FamilySearch, as well as many additional records to help you find information about your family.

  • Family Tree 101—Finding people who need ordinances is a lot more than just clicking a green temple in Family Tree. Ask your temple and family history consultant or another knowledgeable person to teach your group about Family Tree: where the names in Family Tree come from, how to verify the names that are there, and how to add names that aren’t there. It wouldn’t hurt to have them share some tips about how to navigate and search as well!

  • Become an expert—There are a lot of great resources online for learning about family history (both the spiritual and practical aspects). For example, as a group you could watch one or more of the most recent RootsTech videos or webinars available from the BYU Family History Library.

  • Hold a youth family history camp—Plan and host a family history camp for youth in your ward or stake. Get tips from this blog article.

Discussion

Encourage participants to talk about what they are learning. Discussions can take place before, during, or after the activity. You could ask questions like the following:

  • Why do you think it’s important to find ancestors and cousins who need temple ordinances?

  • When have you been blessed by feeling a connection with your ancestors or cousins?

  • What feelings or impressions do you have about doing temple ordinances for your deceased family members?

  • How can you apply what you are learning in your life?

Related Resources

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