Tech Forum

I am 99% sure the answer is no, but is there a way to extract from stake MLS a list of ordained bishops? It does not appear that bishop ordinations are recorded on membership records.

mlh78 wrote:I am 99% sure the answer is no, but is there a way to extract from stake MLS a list of ordained bishops? It does not appear that bishop ordinations are recorded on membership records.

Bishop ordinations are recorded on membership records, but the information is not available at ward or stake MLS. So your 99% estimate is pretty good, sorry.

lajackson wrote:Bishop ordinations are recorded on membership records, but the information is not available at ward or stake MLS. So your 99% estimate is pretty good, sorry.

None of the bishops in our stake have their bishop ordination on their membership record. Are you suggesting that it is recorded on a more robust membership record kept at church headquarters?

mlh78 wrote:None of the bishops in our stake have their bishop ordination on their membership record. Are you suggesting that it is recorded on a more robust membership record kept at church headquarters?

Bishop ordinations are recorded in CDOL not on the membership record. That being said there isn't a way to see all members of a unit that have that ordination.

You could submit feedback via CDOL and ask for that information (or as a feature request), but I don't know what kind of reason would be considered sufficient to provide it.

JonesRK wrote:You could submit feedback via CDOL and ask for that information (or as a feature request), but I don't know what kind of reason would be considered sufficient to provide it.

Some of the uses could be:

1. For preparing the new bishop recommendation form (which asks for information regarding previous service as a bishop)
2. So that when a bishop is set apart and claims to have been previously ordained, the stake president can verify the ordination.
3. To help identify brethren for consideration for certain callings (e.g., new stake presidency counselor).
4. For general background information on stake membership.

JonesRK wrote:Bishop ordinations are recorded in CDOL not on the membership record.

IIRC, back in the days of the paper records, there was a place in the priesthood ordination sections for "Bishop". But I noticed that in my test system, MLS doesn't allow anything higher then "High Priest".

JonesRK wrote:Bishop ordinations are recorded in CDOL not on the membership record.

This would represent a change from past procedure, if the ordination is not actually in the membership record information kept at Church headquarters. Is it possible it went away when it was decided that other Aaronic Priesthood ordinations would no longer be kept on the records?

The ordination is definitely recorded on the membership record. Any ward with a newly ordained bishop can verify this, as a Membership action record comes through shortly after the ordination indicating "Bishop ordination recorded," just like any other ordination. It's been almost two years since the last bishop ordination in our stake, but I believe that as stake clerk, I actually submitted the ordination information via stake MLS. (And I'm confident there is much more information stored on the membership record than is available via MLS.)

I would also like to reinforce the reasons why having access to this information would be helpful -- hint: this is for you, any lurking Local Unit Support personnel :

- Nothing fuels rumors about a pending new bishop, especially when associated with ward boundary changes, like informal polling of who in the stake and wards are ordained bishops. We have some wards with decent turnover, and there can easily be 1/3 of the high priest quorum who have moved into the ward in a 1 - 2 year span. Most former bishops I know don't introduce themselves as "Hi, my name is John. Our family just moved here from XXXX, and I'm a former bishop."

- Infrequently, a training topic arises where our stake presidency values insight from those who have served as bishops. Similarly, when looking for brethren who can assist with welfare counseling, former bishops fill this role beautifully.

- When seeking new high councilors, our stake presidency considers former bishops. It's not a requirement by any stretch, but it is something that gets asked, and I don't have an easy way to get the information.

Rather than provide this information via MLS, I think it would be appropriate for the stake clerks to be able to get this list by calling Local Unit Support. I have called in the past and made this request, and I received the equivalent of crickets chirping and a "let me check and get back to you."

+1

I would add in addition, Mission Presidents, Temple Presidents, Patriarchs, Stake Presidents, and Stake Presidency Counselors - it is extremely valuable to have this information from time-to-time.

A manual workaround for those who are interested. In our stake, the stake presidency makes it a point to interview every high priest who moves into the stake. Bishops are under penalty of extended service if they do not let the presidency know of a new arrival. This may not work in a stake with large turnover, but it works here even with several a month.

And in those interviews, the presidency ferrets out past experience and keeps a record of it.

Although, to be perfectly honest, just knowing the people you serve goes a long ways toward radically reducing the need for such lists. The challenge is for new leaders who are not familiar with their members to get to know them better.