Elder Mark A. Bragg on how temple and family history unify families in Christ [5:00-10:03]

do, that's, that's what's important. Can I tell you a story? We were just in a, in an archive in Vienna, a Lutheran archive. And the archivists, really supportive and, and so we're digitizing. And they took me down quite literally to the basement, right, where these two sisters, volunteers from the Church of Jesus Christ, Lardey Saints, they, they were down there in a room, half the size of the room were in, and no windows. And they're just digitizing, you know, eight to ten hours a day for 18 months. And they, they feel like they're in heaven. They, they've been going at these two sisters, have been going on missions. They, they met each other. They didn't really know each other. They met each other about 10 years ago. They said, yeah, we had to go on a family history mission. So they went down to Australia, loved it. So then they came here to Salt Lake and did another mission. Then they went to the Midwest, did another mission. And then they heard about this opportunity in Vienna. They don't speak the language. They said, this would be fantastic. So for the last decade, quite literally, almost nonstop, they've just been serving a family history mission. And, and so then we, we, we ask the archivists, um, how do you like him? Are they, they get along? They, everything going okay? And he's just, these are the greatest people I've ever met in my life. They, they are so captured by this work. And he says, it inspires me to, to want to do more. So I just, we can't do this work without them. And, um, and we can't say enough, uh, how much, how appreciative we are of, of all that they do. The other thing, we get to go to these archives. And we, we get to see these treasures. So I always ask, what's, what's your, what's your greatest treasure? And, you know, last week that we were in Marburg, Germany. And St. Elizabeth is from Marburg, Germany. And, uh, they showed us this, this decree. I think it was from Pope Gregory, from the 700s, uh, decry, canonizing, Elizabeth. And, and it's just right there in your hands. It's, it's incredible. The, the things that are, are captured in, in the world today. And we just never want to lose them. And we're working together on all of that. Exactly. You might be inspiring some people to want to serve a mission. Well, I hope so. We need them. Those who are listening, that's something to think about. Yeah. And the work that can be done, I think to about how I'm not a professional, but what is my part to play in family history, temple and family history? Yeah. So this is, this is the great question. Um, and I, I want to answer this the right way. What the best thing you can do is just go onto family search and add what you know. You know, start with, start with the savior. This is his work. He'll lead you. He'll inspire you. This is his, as he says, his work in his glory. But then you just go and add what you know, uh, photos, documents, just start that. And that will, that will touch your heart. And then if you'll just go on to, um, ordinances ready, all the work that's being done by members and, and individuals throughout the world to build this tree, what we're doing, you know, with, uh, artificial intelligence to help build the tree, you'll see you'll go on to ordinances ready. And, and you'll see members of your family ancestors that need ordinances. So the one thing I talk about is as glorious as this effort is to find our ancestors. And I love it. And it's important the finding does not exalt them. It's the ordinances performed in the house of the Lord that allow them to progress and to be linked for eternity and to be with us in the celestial kingdom. So I, I sometimes fear that we might fall short in our vision where we say, okay, the finding is everything. No, the, the main thing, what we say here in the Family History Department is to keep the main thing, the main, the main thing is to keep the main thing, the main thing. And the main thing is helping our ancestors receive the ordinances necessary to, to make the covenants that are required and to live a life that will allow them and to learn the things that they need to do and, and understand to be able to live in the presence of our Heavenly Father. Yeah, this is why so many temples, so many houses of the Lord are being built, closer to the people, for their own saving ordinances, but for those on the other side of the veil, gathering Israel on both sides of the veil. Yeah, and, and that is, that is the glory that we're experiencing right now. We're, we're entering into this new, really incredible phase. So, what does the Lord know that we don't know? He inspired President Monson and President Nelson, in particular, and, and is inspiring President Oaks to, to announce temples and build temples and