When a former (excommunicated) Mormon dies having been through the temple, can the individual be baptized for the dead? If so, does said baptism "reactivate" previous temple work, or would it need to be redone?
by 
seanmcox
ANSWERS: 5
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A quistion like this has never been asked before. I spoke to my bishop last night, and he said that eaven if a person is excommunicated that any work he did in the temple is still done. Just becuase he isn't worthy, doesn't mean that the people he did baptism's, sealings, or any other church ordinances done in the temple has to suffer. After the work is done it stays on record.Hope this helped you.
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Answer found per the FamilySearch help center: "Temple work for deceased excommunicated members does not follow the same process as for deceased individuals who never accepted the gospel during their lives. The excommunicated individual needs a 'restoration of blessings,' since the ordinances were completed at some point." "The handbook states: 'First Presidency approval is required to perform temple ordinances for deceased persons who, at the time of their death, were excommunicated or had their names removed from Church membership records' (Church Handbook of Instructions,Book 1: Stake Presidencies and Bishoprics, 88)."
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it would be nice if you had a particular person in mind.
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John Doyle Lee was a Bishop at the time of the Mountain Meadows Massacre. In addition to being the only person tried by the law of the land for that crime, he was the only person excommunicated for participation. John D. Lee was executed by firing squad before he had a chance for rebaptism. Generations later, Lee's descendants got special permission from the First Presidency to rebaptize their ancestor and have his temple work restored. IIRC, baptism and confirmation were the only ordinances which had to be re-realized.
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I would assume that you would follow the same procedure that the excommunicated member would follow in the flesh if he/she were alive only in proxy for them. In other words, the process would be rebaptism followed by a blessing of restoration of all rights, priveleges, blessings, covenants, bestowals, etc. which restores all temple work in one fell swoop. So I would assume that you would just do that in proxy. However, since an excommunicated member would first need his local clergy's reccomendation for re-baptism (and possibly clearance from church HQ), I would assume that for deceased persons, this would fall to the approval of the first presidency. Perhaps this is why records are kept so that these sorts of special cases can be dealt with during the millenium when assumedly Christ reigns personally on the earth and can oversee and administrate over these sorts of matters.
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