Are Mormons still practicing pl\olygamy?

Question

A Mormon reports the following:

"In fact, polygamy still happens among members of the LDS church, just so long as those practicing in it are discrete, but not a moment longer.

"When the church abandoned plural marriage with the second manifesto, existing polygamists were granted amnesty by the government, and were allowed by the church and the state to continue living polygamy until they died. The last practicing polygamist LDS prophet died in 1918. It is believed that the last church-sanctioned polygamist died in 1976.

"It's not really the practice of polygamy that is punishable, but the flaunting of it to the rest of the world. Course, I walk on the fringes of the LDS church, and see many things that are not evident to the more mainstream LDS members.

"Based on the polygamists that I have known over the years, I estimate that about 3% of those you see in an LDS church on Sunday are practicing polygamy."

Answer 1

Sure, discreet Mormons and indiscreet Muslims practice polygamy.

So take your choice if you want many wives.

But if you want multiple wives and also want to feel superior to the Christians and Jews, then heed Omar, the caliph who succeeded Mohammed. He delineated in his Charter of Omar the twelve laws under which a dhimmi, or non-Muslim, was allowed to exist as a "nonbeliever" among "believers." The Charter codified the conditions of life for Jews under Islam -- a life which was forfeited if the dhimmi broke this law. Among the restrictions of the Charter: Jews were forbidden to touch the Koran; forced to wear a distinctive (sometimes dark blue or black) habit with sash; compelled to wear a yellow piece of cloth as a badge (blue for Christians); not allowed to perform their religious practices in public; not allowed to own a horse, because horses were deemed noble; not permitted to drink wine in public; and required to bury their dead without letting their grief be heard by the Muslims.

Answer 2

Tonyamail explained it real well but let me add this. He may be correct about the ones after the Manafesto but over all it was abandoned.

As of 1890 it has NOT been practiced, and any members that do enter into Polygamist marriages or advocate the lifestyle are EXCOMMUNICATED from the church. Also 90% of the people that do currently practice it now ARE/HAVE NEVER BEEN MEMBERS of the church. They claim that for their own purposes to use the Freedom of Religion.

Even when it was started only approximately 20% of the members were called to practice it, and even most of them did have a problem with it. It wasn't for the sexual aspect of it, it was for the support of the women and children as a lot of the men were killed or died on the trek across the plains.

There is NO SUCH thing as a Fundamentalist Mormon or any sects. A person is either a member of the LDS church or they aren't.

Answer 3

NO!! Mormons - members of the Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day Saints, do NOT practice polygamy. The person you are quoting is speaking in half truths. Yes it is true the church USED to practice plural marriage, however, when the law of the land changed to forbidding plural marriage, then the Manifesto was declared and from that point no plural marriages were performed. Yes, those who were already in plural marriages were given a sort of amnesty - after a while.
BUT, the fact that this person admits to being on the fringes of the church proves that he/she is not a member of the LDS church with over 12.5 million members based in Salt Lake City, but rather a member of some splinter group who believes everything the SLC based Mormons do "except...".

Now, there are polygamists in southern Utah and northern Arizona, but they are not associated with the LDS Mormon church. They go by different names, most of which have the word Mormon or latter-day Saints in the title, but they are NOT members of the Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day Saints.

UPDATE: In response to Loyal P's third paragraph: Men are not allowed to marry anyone if they are already married. That is polygamy and is against the law. The only possible exception that could POSSIBLY be construed as a plural marriage is when a man (single) marries a woman (single) and they marry in the temple for time and all eternity, then the woman dies and the man remarries. I THINK technically they CAN marry in the temple. And if so, then in an eternal sense he is sealed to both women and will have to choose when he dies who he wants to be married to. However, I would think this second marriage in the temple would not happen very often. At least the people I know who's spouse has died and they have remarried, have chosen not to remarry in the temple, as they still love their dead spouse and want to be sealed to them for time and all eternity.

Answer 4

No. I am LDS and have lived in Utah (the Mormon headquarters) and in various other places in the US and abroad, and I can tell you that polygamy is no longer practiced in the LDS church in any form.

Though I don't understand the scorn the practice seems to receive from "mainstream" Christians... Nearly all the biblical prophets were polygamists...

Answer 5

Yes. Some Mormons continued to practice polygamy even after the Second Manifesto prohibiting it in 1904. They either separated themselves from the LDS Church, believing it had gone into apostasy when it disavowed polygamy, or they continued to practice polygamy secretly and were eventually excommunicated.

For them, polygamy would always be the "most Holy Principle" as it was referred to before being discontinued. These people, known today as "Fundamentalist Mormons," still believe that polygamy is an "everlasting covenant" just as Joseph Smith had declared in "Doctrine and Covenants" 132. And they are indeed "Mormons" as they trace their historical and doctrinal roots back to Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon, and his revelations.

Further, members of the LDS Church do expect to practice polygamy again in the Celestial Kingdom. Mormon men are allowed to marry more than one woman in this life, but it is with the understanding that the marriage is "for eternity." Though they do not enter into physical relations with their plural wife or wives, they expect to do so once they reach heaven.

Muslims have no such restrictions. What other religion encourages beating wives when they do not obey their twice-as-smart husbands? You do not even have to worry if she is beaten too hard and she is disfigured; it is licit to divorce and marry as many times as desired. You only have to say "I divorce you" three times consecutively.

It is even permissible to marry for an hour just for sex. Even when divorced, women do not keep your children with her nor receive anything from their ex-husbands, except grief.

Another advantage is that a man can divorce his wife for any or no reason and does not have to tell her. She will know this when she is kicked out the house. Women, we do this for your protection, because men are smarter and Allah has made us your protector. Allah is so fair and merciful that he allows women to get half of what men get as their inheritance. After all, women are only half of intelligent as men.

Allahu Akbar!

Answer 6

To implied that polygamists who have been excommunicated , as acceptable members of mainstream LDS is not correct.

But then people like you , intended only to damage that which is good do not care much about the truth. Your statements are not to be trusted.

Answer 7

Oh please.... will we dispense with the Anti-Mormon rhetoric? I did as you reported, "googled" and all i'm getting is a set of Anti BS. it isn't a theory it really is taught. in spite of the undeniable fact that, mendacity and some questionable honesty might want to be got here upon contained in the scriptures. as an example, Abraham mendacity that Sarah become his sister. Joseph deceiving his brothers, Nephi wearing the garments of Laban and claiming he become Laban to receive the brass plates etc., The saving of Moses' life by way of his kinfolk and then the daughter of Pharaoh adopting him and Miriam carry Moses' mom so as that he would nicely be nursed by way of his real mom. i'm fairly particular their are different questionable honesty practices got here upon contained in the scriptures yet those are those i'll imagine off the right of my head. some more effective cutting-edge examples, human beings in the course of the holocaust hiding Jews or doing each little thing to declare that Jews weren't Jews. it really is no longer precisely honesty and forthrightness now might want to be it? in spite of the undeniable fact that the examples I staggering forth teach that some thing questionable in honesty is being carried out and yet the Lord or maybe human beings in society are happy with it. i imagine you want to re-research your position because their is somewhat a grey and shadow in issues. As for Romney, i'll't answer that, no clue if he's being straightforward or no longer. yet i'll guarantee you that mendacity for the Lord isn't a Mormon training, basically an excellent type of BS from those who imagine they comprehend more effective than Mormons yet extremely do not.

Answer 8

No. No LDS people practice polygamy - one of are beliefs is that WE FOLLOW THE LAWS... polygamy is illegal...

"We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, and in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law." -LDS Article of Faith #12.

The only thing that you might consider "polygamy" that I think lots of people do is if a man's first wife dies and he re-marries, which is legal in our church just as it is for everyone else.

Answer 9

The ones who take the "prophet" Joseph Smith and his main man Brigham Young seriously do. They both claimed that it was a spiritual imperative to practice polygamy.

Answer 10

This is a question? I know it happens. Congratulations.