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PAUL - I was ordained a High Priest 30 years ago and the person who performed the ordinance has disappeared or died. I have only his last name and he is/was an indian man with no family that I know of. I therefore am unable to get my PLA from him. Do I simply tell those whom I have ordained to the Priesthood that I cannot supply them with their PLA or would it be allowable or proper to trace my PLA through my ordination to an Elder? I read what the handbook says in 1978, but looks like if I can't find the fellow who ordained me a HP I'm out of luck as are not a few people whom I have ordained to Elder.

JOEL - There is no requirement for one to have their priesthood line of authority. The verification of the priesthood that you hold is its appearance on your membership record and the certificate that you may receive of your ordination. It should also be recorded in the minutes of the Ward in which you were ordained.
However, if you want to provide a line of authority in the proper way, according to Church policy, one would provide a line of authority based on the office they curently hold. So if a person is a High Priest they would construct a current line of authority through the person who ordained them a High Priest; not the person who confered the Melchizedek priesthood on them or ordained them an elder.

According to a Church statement:
“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)

The Church will provide you with your line of authority upon request. The following site explains how this is done:

Priesthoodline.com

See also:

LineofAuthority.com

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