Mormons Only!!!(No anti-Mormon question)?

Question

In the Book of Mormon, God forbids practicing polygamy. However, some prophets of the latter-days did. The Church officially says it was according to the command of God. However, it's confusing when God banned certain practice in his book but allowed to the people later.
Do you believe that practice of polygamy was true command of God, or mistakes of prophets, who were still human beings even though they were guided by God?

P.S: Anti-Mormons, no black-jokes are welcome. Please, don't.

Ronnie B T/ Oh, no. I didn't mean what you meant by the word "black joke". It refers to sarcastic jokes that makes people feel bad.

Moreover, I was saying that to Anti-Mormons, not to Mormons.

Answer 1

Hi friend. If you'll read the passage in the Book of Mormon carefully, you'll see it doesn't actually forbid polygamy. It forbids polygamy in all cases except when authorized by God. Jacob 2:27-30 states: "Wherefore, my brethren, hear me, and hearken to the word of the Lord: For there shall not any man among you have save it be one wife; and concubines he shall have none; For I, the Lord God, delight in the chastity of women. And whoredoms are an abomination before me; thus saith the Lord of Hosts. Wherefore, this people shall keep my commandments, saith the Lord of Hosts, or cursed be the land for their sakes. FOR IF I WILL, SAITH THE LORD OF HOSTS, RAISE UP SEED UNTO ME, I WILL COMMAND MY PEOPLE.; otherwise they shall hearken unto these things. "

As you know, the phrase "modern Mormon polygamist" is a misnomer. Mormons today do not practice polygamy because we believe that in our day, God has not authorized it. Even in cultures where polygamy is acceptable (some Muslim countries, for example), Mormons NEVER have more than one wife. Any member found to have more than one wife is excommunicated.

Those that practice polygamy in Utah and Arizona are not Mormons. They belong to separate religions (usually FLDS).

http://www.allaboutmormons.com

Answer 2

I don't understand your black-jokes thing. I have never heard a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints put down blacks in my 72 year life. In fact my congregation that I attend is 80% Black. So no black jokes from you. And for those who might want to tell black jokes. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the most integrated church society in the USA. I heard the reverand Sharpten criticize the churches in the USA because they are not integrated, 2 separate congregations. My and every other congregation in the church are fully integrated and always have been.

Now, in the old testament there was polygamy. The prophet Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and many others practiced it. There was a good reason to practice it in the early days of the church because the LDS was a frontier religion. Far West Mo, was really way out there. So was Navoo Ill. Navoo was almost as large as Chicago will about 13,000 inhabitants. Then we moved west to Iowa and then on to the Utah Territory. It was hard for a woman to be on the plains alone, particularly with children. Only about 3% or slightly more of the men were called to live this law. It was abandoned when the US government made it against the law in the late 1800's. There are now 13,000,000 LDS people in the world. None of them practice polygamy. There is a group called Fundamentalist who give the church a bad name. There is a about 20,000 of them. They do all kinds of strange things. If I were to take a 2nd wife (who would want to ) I would be excommunicated from the church immediately if not sooner.

Answer 3

I don't recall anyhwere in the BOM where it says that polygamy is a sin, and you don't provide us with any. Furthermore, there are lots of places where the Bible says it is not, and in fact it was a Biblical practice for a time, as evidenced by Abraham (see Gen. 25:1-6) and Jacob (see Gen. 29 and 30). The prophet and king David had multiple wives (2 Samuel 12:7-9), as did Solomon (including wives who worshipped strange gods, which was forbidden), Gideon (Judges 8:30), and Jehoiada the priest (2 Chronicles 24:2-3). Deuteronomy 21:15-17 shows polygamy accepted as a valid practice and gives rules governing the inheritance for children of polygamous wives.

Further, there is the biblical practice called the levirate, given as a divine commandment to Moses. In this practice, if a married man dies without children, his brother must take the deceased man's wife as a wife and raise up children to ensure that the deceased man has successors (Deuteronomy 25:5-7; see also Mark 12:19-23; Matthew 22:24-28; and Gen. 38:8). This duty appears to remain in force whether the living brother is already married or not.

Plural marriage was taught and practiced in the Church for a relatively brief period. Joseph Smith received the revelation about plural marriage as early as 1831 in answer to his inquiry concerning the appropriateness of revered prophets and patriarchs who had more than one wife. Joseph was reluctant to introduce the practice and did so only after divine warning. He first taught the principle privately in the 1840s. The Church began teaching it publicly in 1852. Plural marriage brought public hostility against the Church and eventually federal antipolygamy legislation that stripped Latter-day Saints of their rights as citizens, disincorporated the Church, and permitted the seizure of Church property. Plural marriage challenged those within the Church also. Early participants first wrestled with the prospect and then embraced the principle only after receiving personal spiritual confirmation that they should do so. Studies suggest that a maximum of 20 to 25 percent of Latter-day Saint adults were members of polygamous households during this era. Again by revelation, Church President Wilford Woodruff issued the Manifesto in October 1890 announcing an official end to the Church practice of plural marriage. Since 1904, it has been uniform Church policy to excommunicate any member either practicing or openly advocating the practice of polygamy.

Answer 4

I am not Mormon, but I don't want to bash anyone either. I feel that if the book, the Book of Mormon, is part of the foundation/basis of the Mormon faith, and it states that polygamy is forbidden, then no one, no matter what (or who they are) should be allowed for any reason to practice polygamy.
Often in many different religions across time and space have 'forbiden' certain practices and then those who find themselves in power in these religion go against those teachings - as if they are better than/above the teachings.
What hypocrites!
Prophets areall human beings and have the choice of free will. Judge their actions or not, it is up to you.
I myself do not believe in polygamy (it's too complicated anyway).

Answer 5

I believe the church leadership at the time saw a problem, Too many widows, and single women in the church for the male populace, and prayed, and came up with a solution they felt was inspired.
Sure they were human, and sure the practice was abused. But so were the Mormons who were chased from state to state in a country that was supposed to value religious liberty, and tolerance.
The practice DID have a benefit of giving all those woman who had lost their husbands to violence and forced migrations a more or less respectable life, when otherwise they would have been destitute, and out on their own.

Answer 6

I think the real reason polygamy was practiced in the 19th century was to compensate for the loss of a potential number of strong leaders who died in the Civil War. These men were not members of the Church, but I believe they would have joined the Church if the Civil War had never happened. It is interesting to note that Joseph Smith had a revelation about the Civil War and how it would start about 30 years before it actually did.

Answer 7

Have you ever noticed a time and season for something within your life? Sometimes there is a time and season for the church as well. In the days of ancient Israel, Moses was could not give the Israelites the higher law [he threw the first tablets down, breaking them into pieces and went back and received a lesser law]. The Savior, Jesus Christ, during his ministry on earth, fulfilled the law of Moses or the law of sacrifice and instituted a higher law -- and taught people to love one another, even as He loved us.

From my readings and research, I have learned to compare, in certain respects, Joseph Smith's acceptance of polygamy to the command from the Lord given to Abraham, to sacrifice his son, Isaac. These men did not want to do what the Lord commanded, but they obeyed [Joseph was rebuked by the Lord and told he would be lose his prophetic calling if he continued to rebel against this commandment from the Lord - and it is recorded that he broke down in tears as he humbled himself before the Lord and accepted the commandment.]

We often apply human reasoning to the original practise of polygamy [that it protected and sheltered the widows; that there were more women than men, etc]. But, in this and in some other things, we ultimately can offer up no better explaination than Adam did when he built the alter and worshiped God after being cast out of the Garden of Eden. We know not, save the Lord has commanded it.

I do not claim to understand all of God's ways - merely that He loves me, wants what is best for me, and it is up to me to follow the gospel of Jesus Christ to the best of my ability with the hope that in the eternities, I will be able to grow sufficient in wisdom and knowledge that I may grow to understand.

When a man is called by God to be His prophet on earth - only God can remove that calling. For men to cry that a prophet was once true but has become false and is leading the church astray -- cannot be truth. We understand that God will not allow His prophet to lead the church astray - God would remove him first [through death - God can do that, you know]. Men who claim that the authority of a prophet is no more are those who are seeking power for themselves or are excusing their weaknesses and wickedness.

Merry Christmas

Answer 8

Examples of what you ask are found repeatedly in the Bible as well as the Book of Mormon.
To answer your question directly, God seems to me to be in charge, on top of what is going on with his children here on earth, and will give commandments that are important for the period of time.

Like in Old Testament Bible times, it is now no longer necessary for us to sacrifice our first born animals on an alter. However, we have needs now that did not seem required in other times.
To me, if is so gratifying to know that God is aware of us and can (and does) reveal his will to us in these times , as well as of in old times.

Answer 9

God has often forbidden things and than later allowed it happen.
He has also allowed things to happen and later forbidden the same thing.
Read the New Testament and compare it with the Old Testament. There are so many examples it would take too much room to list them all.

Answer 10

I am not an "anti-mormon" but,
I wouldnt worry about it too much, its not real. Major
mistake of the "prophet".