Main articles: Plural marriage and Mormon fundamentalism
Mormonism is closely associated in both public discourse and LDS Scriptures
[2] with
polygamy. In the 1830s,
Joseph Smith, Jr. secretly instituted a form of polygamy referred to now as
plural marriage, which
Brigham Young first acknowledged and promoted after the church's move to Utah. Upon learning about the practice, mainstream religions and political forces in the
United States mounted a vigorous campaign to stamp it out. The
United States Congress passed laws criminalizing the practice and dissolving polygamous families, disincorporated the church, and began seizing church property. A few months after a
U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding the legality of the church's disincorporation and forfeiture of property, the church issued its
1890 Manifesto renouncing the practice of polygamy. Today, the church strongly rejects the practice and excommunicates members who engage in it.
The 1890 renunciation of polygamy by the LDS Church also led to a number of
schisms involving relatively small groups who describe themselves as
Mormon fundamentalists, who still practice polygamy as well as other elements of
19th century Mormonism that have been rejected or denounced by the LDS Church. These organizations believe that their doctrines and practices are more true to the original teachings of
Joseph Smith, Jr. and
Brigham Young.
).
