Each
Priesthood holder's Line of Authority is very special.
It is his link back to the Lord Jesus Christ, showing
the power that man holds to 
exercise
the priesthood in ordinances of the Gospel.
George
Q. Cannon, a member of the First Presidency in 1884,
prophesied, "I believe
the time will come when it will be necessary for every
man to trace the line in which he has received the Priesthood
that he exercises. It
is therefore of great importance in our Church that records
should be kept, and that every man should know whence
he derives his authority--from what source, through what
channel he has received the holy Priesthood, and by what
right he exercises that authority and administers the
ordinances thereof. I believe this is of extreme importance,
and that where there are doubts as to a man's legitimately
exercising that authority, that doubt should be removed.
Every man should be careful on this point, to know where
he gets his Priesthood; that it has come to him clean
and undefiled, legitimately;" (18 October 1884, Journal
of Discourses 26:247)
Our
Responsibility
Times
are changing and it is easy to see how important this information
will be one day. There is already much confusion in the
world. Men of God may required to show proof of their
ability to perform priesthood ordinances.
This
is an excerpt from the "I Have a Question" section
of the July 1994 Ensign:
Are
members of the Church able to obtain copies of priesthood
lines of authority from Church headquarters?
Answered
by Glenn N. Rowe, President of the Japan Tokyo South
Mission, on leave from his position as director of special
projects in the Church Historical Department.
Recent
growth of the Church and the simplification of the Church’s
record-keeping procedures have made it increasingly difficult
for the Church Historical Department to trace a member’s
priesthood line of authority. As a result, the
Church Historical Department no longer traces each member’s
priesthood authority line.
These
changes have placed the responsibility and opportunity
of record keeping squarely on the family and on the individual.
It is important for each of us to recognize that it is
our responsibility and privilege, not the Church’s, to
preserve records about ourselves and our families.
A
priesthood authority line traces a priesthood holder’s
authority from the person ordaining him back to Peter,
James, and John, who conferred the Melchizedek Priesthood
on the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1829. For decades, the
Church Historical Department provided members with a
printed priesthood authority line for their ordination
to their current priesthood office. This service required
lengthy searches of ordinance and action records, old
membership records, Church census records, vast volumes
of minutes of ward and stake meetings, ward and stake
annual historical reports, and other records. Through
the years, Church curriculum materials and handbooks
encouraged priesthood holders, young and old, to obtain
their priesthood lines of authority and to provide copies
to those whom they ordained.
Through
the nineteenth century and most of the current century,
clerks and record keepers meticulously kept a record
of most ordinances involving individual Church members.
These records have been retained by the Church Historical
Department. However, the Church’s worldwide growth has
necessitated the discontinuing of certain types of records
about members. New, simplified membership recording systems
have been implemented, and new membership records now
record only information about a priesthood holder’s current
priesthood office. Further, only a very simplified summary
of historical events is submitted by stakes, missions,
and districts. With the limited information now being
recorded, it is no longer possible to trace individual
priesthood authority lines.
One
of the easiest ways to obtain a priesthood line of authority
is for the ordained individual to request an authority
line from the priesthood holder who ordained him. If
that priesthood holder does not have an authority line,
he might, in turn, seek out the person who performed
his ordination.
Thousands
of ordinances are performed weekly throughout the Church.
These ordinances are to be performed by priesthood holders
who have been properly ordained and properly authorized
by one who has the keys to authorize the ordinance under
the direction of the prophet. Therefore, it is “known
to the church that he has authority and has been regularly
ordained by the heads of the church” (D&C 42:11).
This trust comes because of the wisdom of the Lord in
establishing an orderly procedure in which delegation
of the keys of the priesthood is always held by the living
prophet.
Individuals
and families are encouraged to keep their own records
of priesthood ordinances, such as blessings of babies,
baptisms, priesthood ordinations, patriarchal blessings,
missionary calls, marriages, and so forth.
Notice: The church has recently started to trace lines of authority once again. Read more here.
Questions
I
have a question about my personal priesthood line of
authority. Should the line of authority change from when
a person is ordained an Elder, when he receives the Melchizedek
Priesthood,and change again when he ordained to the office
of a High Priest by a different person? I have looked
everywhere and there is no reference to it in any Church
publications. My father ordained me to all of the offices
of the priesthood. But he was ordained an Elder by his
father, a Seventy by another person, and yet a High Priest
by another. Which line of authority do I follow?
Your
actual line of authority goes back through the person
who last ordained you to whatever office you now
hold. Here is a statement from the
First Presidency:
"If
a priesthood bearer desires to trace his own line
of authority, he should pursue his current office
in the priesthood—not former offices. Bishops
and patriarchs should trace their line of authority
as high priests. In completing an authority line,
each step should go back through the office held
by the person at the time he performed the ordination.
It is not appropriate to trace the line of authority
in cases of setting apart or for other ordinances." (General
Handbook Supplement, Number 1, July 1, 1976)
