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Have you ever wondered when visiting new.FamilySearch.org: Are there temple ordinances ready in my family tree right now?
One way to find them is to use RootsMagic Essentials, which is free. (Additional options are listed at the end of the article.) Usually the most common missing ordinance will be the sealing of parents to children.
Steps
1) Create an LDS Username to login
- Create an LDS username and password at ldsaccount.lds.org (which then can be used at any LDS website, such as lds.org/tools). You will need your membership record number, which is available on an "individual ordinance summary" printout from a ward clerk. It is also on your temple recommend.
- If you have never visited new.familysearch.org before(include the "new"), take a moment to log in and look around. View your family tree in the "Me and My Ancestors" tab and look for missing persons. Also, you can see the ordinance status (a green checkmark by the name if complete, a green arrow if ordinances are ready, and a yellow triangle for "needs more information"). You may want to browse higher levels by clicking the triangular arrows on the right side.
- Note: You may notice that there is no list for those with "temple ordinances ready". Right now, it is required to just happen to find them by viewing the family tree -- so we must use a different program to help us.
2) Import your family tree
- Download
RootsMagic Essentials, a free program at rootsmagic.com/essentials and install it on your computer
-
Open the program and "Create a new file"

Check the boxes for new.familysearch support:
- After it is created, you should see a "FamilyTree" button in the toolbar near the top:
If you don't see this FamilyTree button, you may go to "tools" then to
"file options" to check the boxes in "general" and "familysearch" for
LDS support and then restart the RootsMagic Program. It might be under
the "file" menu called "family search central".
- Login using the LDS username and password.

This program will log you in to new.familysearch.org, so all you have to do is work in Roots Magic and it will comminucate the work into new.familysearch.org for you.
- Click "Import".

It is probably best only to import 9 or 10 generations and no more--and this can sometimes take over 24 hours,
so be sure to check your "computer sleep" options so it doesn't
automatically shut down in a few hours. (Windows users: go to Control
Panel, Power Options.)
- After the program is done importing, hopefully getting between 5,000 and
10,000 names, then the next step is to close and reopen "Family
Search Central". Now close that pop-up section and re-open it by clicking
the Family Tree button once more:

- In the "What's New" section and in the pie chart section (the bottom, right corner), you will see that it is collecting information for each status such as "Ready" and "Needs More Information". Usually this step can take a few hours, too.
3) When it is done, click the "Ready" link in the pie chart
section
4) This will take you to the Ordinance section, filtered for names "ready for temple ordinances"
5) Check for Duplicates
- Even though at first it may appear that many ordinances are needed, there will be many duplicates. Combining duplicate records is an important part of cleaning up your family tree so that you know which ordinances are really needed.
- In this tutorial we will use the Roots Magic tool to combine duplicates; however, there is also a way at new.familysearch.org: see the tutorial at help.familysearch.org for "Combining Duplicate Records".
RootsMagic is easier to use because it color-coordinates the matching information.
- Select a name on the left, then click "Find Matches"
- It will automatically try to find some duplicates. You can also click "Search for More Matches".

- Double Click the names to bring up a more detailed comparison
- One good thing about Roots Magic is the coloring: green = matches, yellow = maybe matches, red = doesn't match

- Check the boxes of the names you want to match
- Click the button "Match with FamilySearch"
- Now that you have combined the duplicate records, click on the "Ordinances" tab

- Check to see if the Ordinances are still needed. Perhaps 90% of the time it will already be complete, but you are not wasting your time in this. You are cleaning up your family tree so that duplicate temple work is not done--a very worthwhile endeavor.
- If they are still needed, check the box by the ordinances and click "Reserve Selected Ordinances".
- Select "I will do the ordinances" -- the other option isn't working
- Read the church policies (very brief and important), and reserve it.
- If you now see "reserved" instead of "ready" then you were successful
- When you have reserved enough names to do a temple trip, print out your reservation list
- Two options to print out your temple ordination reservation list:
- Log in to new.familysearch.org (same username and password)
- Click the tab near the top for "Temple Ordinances"
- Click the button to Print or Reprint Request
- Take that sheet of paper to the temple, and they will give you the temple ordinance cards
- Use Roots Magic
- Go to the first main "Family Search Central" page
- Click "Temple Work" and click "Print Request"
- Take that sheet of paper to the temple, and they will provide the temple ordinance cards
- Note: You can also "unreserve" names if you want to give them to other relatives--just tell them how to reserve it at new.familysearch.org after you unreserve it. (They have to type in the ID number at new.familysearch.org and click the link under "LDS Ordinances" to reserve them. See Step 12 for information.)
To Find Specific Types of Ordinances: Use the RootsMagic List "LDS Ordinances"
- After the Import is done, use the "Reports" Menu and select "Lists"

- Select LDS ORDINANCE LIST
- Select "Only Those Missing Ordinances" and potentially "Marriage Sealings". Then click "Generate Report".
- The free version allows you to "print". You will need to either print it or create a PDF as follows:
Use the free PDF Creator, which will "print" a copy into PDF.
- Then go through the list, looking for names missing the baptismal ordinance.
- Next: go back to the Family Tree icon (the Family Search Central section).
- This time, click on the "ready" link in the bottom right corner:

- Now match the name with the missing ordinance with the names in the left column. Double check if the ordinance is really missing and check for duplicates in the same way as listed above, #5
If preferred, you can also use the new.familysearch.org method of combining duplicate records:
- You can get the "Unique Identifier" # near the persons name:
In this case the "Unique Identifier" is MY29-FSQ.
- Next is the step to check for duplicates at new.familysearch.org or by clicking the "search for more duplicates" button in Roots Magic and by double clicking a name it suggests for in-depth analysys
- If there is no duplicate, then the next step is to click on the "LDS Ordinances" tab (or Reserve Ordinance in Roots Magic). Then click on "This individual needs temple ordinances. Click here to do them". Check the box by the name of that individual and click "continue". After finishing that section, the name will show up under the "Temple Ordinances" tab at the top. On this tab you can print a document that you bring to the temple, and the temple worker will give you the cards.
Another way that costs money (25$): www.ancestorswaiting.com
Also: www.sharingtime.com (15$ annually, but it doesn't have a distinct "log in as helper" ability, combining the information).
You could use Legacy's family tree import (free); however, it doesn't obtain LDS Ordinance information until each person is checked for duplicates. You may want to use this method, but you won't be able to filter for a specific type of ordinance until the list of ancestors has been checked for duplicates.
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