“Currently a few stakes of the church are on the pilot. Your stake will be notified when the pilot is extended to your area.”
Introduction
Limited-use recommends are issued to unendowed individuals who are performing proxy baptism work or participating in, or observing, a living sealing. These recommends are now two separate recommends that are completed and issued electronically through Leader and Clerk Resources. Interview questions and policy guidelines are found on the Limited-Use Recommend pages in Leader and Clerk Resources as well as in section 3, “Temples and Marriage,” of Handbook 1: Stake Presidents and Bishops (2010).
Preparing a Recommend for Baptism
1. To access the limited-use recommend page, go to ChurchofJesusChrist.org, and sign in using your LDS account.
2. After signing in, select My Account. From the drop-down menu, select Leader and Clerk Resources. This will open up a new page with submenu options.
3. Select Membership from the submenu bar, and then select Recommend for Baptisms from the drop-down menu.
Note: Membership is only available to bishoprics, branch presidents, clerks, and executive secretaries.
4. The system will open to a Member Information page. Enter the person’s membership number or name. As the information is entered, a window will open displaying the person’s name, age, and gender, or a list of names will appear, from which the person’s name may be chosen. After selecting the name, the fields will populate with the person’s personal information.
5. If there are policy issues that disqualify the person from receiving a recommend, a message will display stating the policy. Some examples include not being baptized, not confirmed, not having the Aaronic Priesthood, and already endowed.
6. Conduct a temple worthiness interview (this may occur before or after printing the recommend). Interview questions may be viewed by selecting Temple Recommend Interview Questions found on the Member Information page.
If you have questions regarding policies, please select the Instructions for Issuing Limited-Use Recommends for Baptisms link also found on the Member Information page.
7. Next, select Issue Recommend. A window will display informing the priesthood leader that a recommend has been issued with the displayed information.
8. Select Print Recommend to display a PDF of the recommend in either a new tab or in a pop-up window.
9. Load the printer paper tray with white paper 8-1/2 in. x 11 in. (21.59 cm x 27.94 cm).
10. Next, select CTRL + P to print the recommend. In the Print window, make sure the following options are checked:
- Check the box for “Print in grayscale (black and white).”
- Under Paper Size & Handling, choose Actual Size.
- Under Orientation, choose Portrait.
- Ensure the paper size is set to US Letter or A4. To do this, select Page Setup. (If a Page Setup dialog box opens, select Yes. This window may be bypassed by checking the “Do not show this message” box.) Select US letter or A4 in the Page Setup menu. Close this window, and go back to the Print window.
- Select Print.
11. Check that the final cut size of the recommend will be 3.0 by 4.75 inches (7.6 by 12.0 centimeters). If the size is correct, cut the recommend according to the guidelines and fold it along the fold lines.
Note: If the recommend printed out smaller or larger than the required dimensions, repeat the print setup steps in step 10. If the recommend is still printing out incorrectly, you can change the scale of it under Paper Size & Handling in the Print menu.
12. Ensure that both you and the member sign the recommend. The recommend is activated in the system once it is printed, but is not valid at the temple without both signatures.
13. Destroy the old recommend. Once a new recommend is activated, the old recommend is automatically canceled in the system.
14. When you close the PDF of the recommend printing page, the system will return to the member’s information page. A message will display with links to a new Search page or to a Help page.
Issuing a Recommend when a Recommend Exists
1. If a member has an active limited-use recommend that is not expiring in the month the new recommend is issued, the following message will display after Issue Recommend is selected. Select Yes to proceed with canceling the current recommend and issuing a new recommend.
2. The message that a new recommend has been issued will then display. Select Print Recommend and follow steps 9 and 10 in the previous section to print the recommend.
Preparing a Recommend for Sealings
1. To issue a recommend for persons participating in, or observing, a living sealing, select Membership from the submenu bar, and then select Recommend for Sealings from the drop-down menu.
2. The system will open to a page with instructions on who qualifies to be on a limited-use recommend for sealings. There are also links to the recommend, interview questions, and policy guidelines. Please carefully review all policy guidelines regarding sealings and limited-use recommends. Ensure that all qualified individuals are interviewed and have answered the questions.
3. Either before or after all individuals have been interviewed, select Print Limited-Use Temple Recommend for Sealings. The recommend will display as a PDF in a preview window.
4. Load the printer paper tray with white paper 8-1/2 in. x 11 in. (21.59 cm x 27.94 cm).
5. Next, select CTRL + P to print the recommend. In the Print window, make sure the following options are checked:
- Check the box for “Print in grayscale (black and white).”
- Under Paper Size & Handling, choose Actual Size.
- Under Orientation, choose Portrait.
6. Ensure the paper size is set to US Letter or A4. To do this, select Page Setup. Select Yes if a Page Setup dialog box opens (this window may be by-passed by checking the “Do not show this message” box), otherwise select US letter or A4 in the Page Setup menu. Close this window, and go back to the Print window.
7. Select Print
8. Complete the recommend legibly with the required information. Cross out the lines that will not be used.
9. After signing the recommend, give it to the family and instruct them to make an appointment with the stake presidency to have it signed. Remind them that the recommend is only valid when both the bishopric and stake presidency have signed it and that the recommend expires a year from the current date.
Canceling a Limited-Use Recommend for Baptism
Limited-use recommends that were issued online should be canceled or reported as lost or stolen in the Leader and Clerk Resources system. Book recommends should be canceled following current procedures.
1. After logging into Leader and Clerk Resources, enter the membership number of the person whose recommend needs to be canceled or reported as lost or stolen.
2. On the Member Information page that opens, select Active under Temple Recommend (Limited-Use).
3. A Limited-Use Recommend window will display showing the recommend number. Select the Edit button.
4. In the Limited-Use Temple Recommend for Baptisms window, click on the up/down arrows to display the drop-down menu. In this menu, select Canceled or Lost or Stolen to indicate the current status of the recommend.
5. Select Save to complete the status change. A message will display confirming the change.
Note: Once a recommend has been canceled or reported as lost or stolen, it cannot be reactivated. A new recommend will need to be created under Recommend for Baptisms.
Viewing a Recommend Status Report
A recommend status report may be found on the Limited-Use Temple Recommend for Baptisms main page or under the Reports tab on the Leader and Clerk Resources submenu bar.
1. To view a recommend status report of just the youth in your unit, go to the Limited-Use Temple Recommend for Baptisms main page and select the Youth Recommend Report link on the page. You may also view this report under the Reports tab (see step 2).
2. To view a status report of recommends held by all members in your unit, in Leader and Clerk Resources, select the Reports tab. Under the Temple Recommends headings, click on Temple Recommend Status.
3. A list of the ward or branch members that hold recommends will display. You can filter for the type of recommend in the third drop-down window from the left.
Help and Feedback
If you experience problems with issuing a limited-use recommend, please contact the Global Service Center for your area by going to Contact Information. A contact page will display, where you may select your country. This will then display a page of contact numbers.