LDS Church: Mormon founder Joseph Smith wed 40 wives

[Bill the Cat]

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/11/living/mormon-founder-polygamy/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

(CNN) -- The founder of the Mormon church, Joseph Smith, wed as many as 40 wives, including some who were already married and one as young as 14 years old, the church acknowledged in a surprising new essay.

Smith's marital history had been the subject of frequent historical debate, but until recently Mormon leaders had taken pains to present its founding prophet as happily married to one woman. Now, the church says, "careful estimates put the number between 30 and 40."

The church, officially called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, disavowed plural marriage in 1890 under pressure from the U.S. government, which had imprisoned polygamists and seized their assets.

© Copyright Original Source

[Sparko]

and at least one was only 14.

But it was for their own good, I am sure.

[One Bad Pig]

I get the idea that LDS leadership is coming to realize that trying to hide this sort of thing is hurting more than it's helping. This comes right on the heels of their coming clean about Mormon underwear.

[Cow Poke]

Yup, like maybe if they admit what we already know, we'll leave them alone? Will they next admit that they stole the "Temple Ceremony" from the Masons?

[Sparko]

The scary thing is that many of their own members don't know all of this crazy stuff.

[seven7up]

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/11/living/mormon-founder-polygamy/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

(CNN) -- The founder of the Mormon church, Joseph Smith, wed as many as 40 wives, including some who were already married and one as young as 14 years old, the church acknowledged in a surprising new essay.

Smith's marital history had been the subject of frequent historical debate, but until recently Mormon leaders had taken pains to present its founding prophet as happily married to one woman. Now, the church says, "careful estimates put the number between 30 and 40."

The church, officially called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, disavowed plural marriage in 1890 under pressure from the U.S. government, which had imprisoned polygamists and seized their assets.

© Copyright Original Source

Here is the official church statement about plural wives in the time when Joseph Smith and other early church members performed plural marriages.

https://www.lds.org/topics/plural-ma...auvoo?lang=eng

-7up

[Cow Poke]

Here is the official church statement about plural wives in the time when Joseph Smith and other early church members performed plural marriages.

https://www.lds.org/topics/plural-ma...auvoo?lang=eng

-7up

Doesn't change the point of BTC's OP at all -- your Church is being forced to "fess up".

Eventually, it's possibly YOU will even be led to the truth.

[Bill the Cat]

Here is the official church statement about plural wives in the time when Joseph Smith and other early church members performed plural marriages.

https://www.lds.org/topics/plural-ma...auvoo?lang=eng

-7up

Here is Joseph's "Address of the Prophet—His Testimony Against the Dissenters at Nauvoo." on his marital situation:

Source: https://byustudies.byu.edu/hc/hcpgs/hc.aspx

What a thing it is for a man to be accused of committing adultery, and having seven wives, when I can only find one.

© Copyright Original Source

So, he declared, one month before he died, that he only had one wife.

[Sparko]

The LDS apologists like to claim that God allowed and then disallowed plural marriage at different times.

Yet their own scripture shows that during a time when the Hebrews practiced plural marriage (the OT) God said it was an abomination to him.

Jacob 2: 24 Behold, David and Solomon truly had many wives and concubines, which thing was abominable before me, saith the Lord.
26 Wherefore, I the Lord God will not suffer that this people shall do like unto them of old.
27 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;
28 For I, the Lord God, delight in the chastity of women. And whoredoms are an abomination before me; thus saith the Lord of Hosts.

for something that God simply allowed and disallowed depending on his purposes, using words like "whoredoms" and "abomination" seem pretty strong, especially since this was supposedly happening during a time when God supposedly allowed plural marriages.

[Cow Poke]

Here is Joseph's "Address of the Prophet—His Testimony Against the Dissenters at Nauvoo." on his marital situation:

Source: https://byustudies.byu.edu/hc/hcpgs/hc.aspx

What a thing it is for a man to be accused of committing adultery, and having seven wives, when I can only find one.

© Copyright Original Source

So, he declared, one month before he died, that he only had one wife.

He said he could only FIND one ---- the others ran away in repulsion!

[rogue06]

Here is the official church statement about plural wives in the time when Joseph Smith and other early church members performed plural marriages.

https://www.lds.org/topics/plural-ma...auvoo?lang=eng

-7up

I noticed that according to this statement that Smith "told associates that an angel appeared to him three times between 1834 and 1842 and commanded him to proceed with plural marriage when he hesitated to move forward. During the third and final appearance, the angel came with a drawn sword, threatening Joseph with destruction unless he went forward and obeyed the commandment fully."

So an angel made him do it.

Whenever some cult leader wants to do something that everyone knows is wrong they always employ the same excuse: they were commanded to do so either by God or one of His messengers.

[rogue06]

The scary thing is that many of their own members don't know all of this crazy stuff.

Perhaps explaining this

Source: Mormon Church Admits Founder Joseph Smith Had Up To 40 Wives

...

Reiss says that approach can be harmful to some Mormons. "If you don't find out about those controversial things at church ... instead you find out about it in a late-night Google search when you're at home alone, scratching your head, thinking why in the world did no one ever tell me this, then everything else is called into question as well."

Mormon church historian Elder Steven E. Snow agrees with that idea. He told the New York Times:

" 'There is so much out there on the Internet that we felt we owed our members a safe place where they could go to get reliable, faith-promoting information that was true about some of these more difficult aspects of our history.

" 'We need to be truthful, and we need to understand our history,' Elder Snow said. 'I believe our history is full of stories of faith and devotion and sacrifice, but these people weren't perfect.' "

Source

© Copyright Original Source

[Cow Poke]

I noticed that according to this statement that Smith "told associates that an angel appeared to him three times between 1834 and 1842 and commanded him to proceed with plural marriage when he hesitated to move forward. During the third and final appearance, the angel came with a drawn sword, threatening Joseph with destruction unless he went forward and obeyed the commandment fully."

So an angel made him do it.

Whenever some cult leader wants to do something that everyone knows is wrong they always employ the same excuse: they were commanded to do so either by God or one of His messengers.

Mormons sure have MEAN angels --- I wonder if that's the same one that would have destroyed Emma if she hadn't gone along with Smith's perversions.

[Cow Poke]

So an angel made him do it.

I'm trying to think of ANYWHERE ELSE in the Bible where an angel threatens to destroy an otherwise obedient follower. Smith was supposedly God's agent, and Emma was his faithful wife.

[Kind Debater]

I've been reading the responses to this on a Mormon forum. There's at least one person who still insists that Smith wasn't a polygamist. Many seem to chalk up Smith's denials of polygamy to either his being human or to having to keep it secret, even from the church at large, due to persecution (particularly from people who left the church).

Polygamy is a frequent topic there. It breaks my heart that 1) there are several LDS who are asking really good questions* about this and other topics, but they still believe and 2) there are people who have the right attitude, if you will, of being committed to God no matter what, but they use this to defend JS and polygamy.

*Someone even pointed out that one of the things that bothers them is how many cult leaders institute polygamy within their cults.