A Facebook application titled “We’re Related,” produced by FamilyLink, had over 20 million people use the software this month alone. This summer they hit a milestone of over 50 million links; that is, 50 million people have established family relationships with one another. While this is not a “family tree” per se (it doesn’t really account for those are not on Facebook), it is becoming a very effective tool at linking the human family to one another. Without even realizing it, those who participate in defining their familial relationships with one another on Facebook are subtly becoming genealogists. Being an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints automatically associates me with genealogy, because of our peculiar belief that everyone has a chance to hear the Gospel—including those who have passed on. The Church has some of the world’s largest genealogical resources available to the public, and most of it is now accessible at FamilySearch.org. One cool part of FamilySearch is Ancestry File, which allows individual genealogists to upload his or her own family tree. The main goal of Ancestry File is to provide a single, universal family tree. I believe there is a lot of potential to combine FamilyLink’s collection of living, breathing links to Ancestry File’s database of those who have passed on. Not only would you be able to see your distant relatives, you would also learn much about your family history, all with providing relatively little information. This, I believe, will help ignite the spirit of family history in millions more people.
