Church: Mormon Founder Joseph Smith Wed 40 Wives, One As Young As 14

[Defensor Christi]

"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...."

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

LDS...thoughts?

 

[TasteForTruth]

Old news. That's what I think.

 

[RevelationTestament]

"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...."

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

LDS...thoughts?

Nowhere in the Bible is polygamy in itself a sin. It can be practiced in a manner which is sinful as can monogamous marriage. In fact the Bible has laws which recognize the practice...a law of inheritance if a man have 2 wives, etc, and God helped Israel marry his second wife.

Your quote is a little misleading as it implies Joseph Smith consummated marriages with other married women. Joseph did seal himself to women that were married to other men.
During the era in which plural marriage was practiced, Latter-day Saints distinguished between sealings for time and eternity and sealings for eternity only. Sealings for time and eternity included commitments and relationships during this life. Eternity-only sealings indicated relationships in the next life alone as marriage according to U.S. law ended "until death do we part."

"Evidence indicates that Joseph Smith participated in both types of sealings. The exact number of women to whom he was sealed in his lifetime is unknown because the evidence is fragmentary. Some of the women who were sealed to Joseph Smith later testified that their marriages were for time and eternity, while others indicated that their relationships were for eternity alone."

 

[xTx]

"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...."

Church: Mormon founder Joseph Smith wed 40 wives - CNN.com

LDS...thoughts?

That is statutory rape.

 

[RevelationTestament]

That is statutory rape.

Odds are one of your great, great, great grandparents married a teenager.

 

[drstevej]

Old news. That's what I think.

Here's a old tune.

Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven;
Earth must atone for the blood of that man.
Wake up the world for the conflict of justice.
Millions shall know "Brother Joseph" again.

So do you sing this?
I will not sing Praise to a Predator (whether Jeffs or Joseph)

 

[Ran77]

LDS...thoughts?

A large number of threads about this already exist. The topics have been discussed repeatedly. Feel free to look through any of those threads to see what the LDS thoughts are on the topic.

 

[BigDaddy4]

"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...."

Church: Mormon founder Joseph Smith wed 40 wives - CNN.com

LDS...thoughts?

It's about time the lds church recognize their founding prophet for what he was.

This quote is precious

Joseph 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.

What a great story to attempt to get Emma's buy in to placate his lust for power and sexual gratification.

I can just imagine... "But Emma, an angel held a sword to me and demanded I obey this commandment to go get sealed with these other women. Don't worry, I won't have sex with all of them, just some of them. OK?"

 

[drstevej]

And just to overcome any reluctance, a CONVENIENT Smith-made revelation to threaten her with destruction of she does not consent to stay in this soap opera.

D&C 132
54 And I command mine handmaid, Emma Smith, to abide and cleave unto my servant Joseph, and to none else. But if she will not abide this commandment she shall be destroyed, saith the Lord

 

[TasteForTruth]

Here's a old tune.

So do you sing this?
I will not sing Praise to a Predator (whether Jeffs or Joseph)

I do sing it, but I don't sing it to a predator. I sing it to Joseph Smith, who was a virtuous and good man—and a prophet of God.

And just to overcome any reluctance, a CONVENIENT Smith-made revelation to threaten her with destruction of she does not consent to stay in this soap opera.

D&C 132
54 And I command mine handmaid, Emma Smith, to abide and cleave unto my servant Joseph, and to none else. But if she will not abide this commandment she shall be destroyed, saith the Lord

I'm pretty sure that there was nothing of convenience for Joseph in that revelation. You are aware of how Joseph felt about plural marriage, right? (as opposed to how you like to imagine he felt about it)

 

[TasteForTruth]

It's about time the lds church recognize their founding prophet for what he was.

The LDS church has not changed its position on "what Joseph Smith was." The Church continues to recognize him as a prophet of God, which he was.

 

[drstevej]

According to Mosiah Hancock, writing in 1896, Joseph did not approach Fanny directly. Rather, he enlisted Levi Hancock, the brother-in-law of Fanny’s father, to serve as an intermediary. Levi asked Samuel Alger:

Samuel, the Prophet Joseph loves your daughter Fanny and wishes her for a wife. What say you?” Uncle Sam says, “Go and talk to the old woman [Levi’s sister and Fanny’s mother] about it. Twill be as she says.” Father goes to his sister and said, “Clarissy, Brother Joseph the Prophet of the most high God loves Fanny and wishes her for a wife. What say you?” Said she, “Go and talk to Fanny. It will be all right with me.” Father goes to Fanny and said, “Fanny, Brother Joseph the Prophet loves you and wishes you for a wife. Will you be his wife?” “I will Levi,” said she. Father takes Fanny to Joseph and said, “Brother Joseph I have been successful in my mission.” Father gave her to Joseph, repeating the ceremony as Joseph repeated to him.

Fanny Alger? « Joseph Smith's Polygamy

Playing the Prophet of God card to a teenager.
Emma is given an ultimatum not a say.

 

[TasteForTruth]

Odds are one of your great, great, great grandparents married a teenager.

Possibly. I think that people forget (or never knew in the first place) that the minimum marrying age of 12 (for females; 14 for males) was both common and legal in western societies since the days of the Roman Empire. And if memory serves, these minimum ages were written into the ecclesiastical law of the Roman Catholic Church and later the Anglican Church. Additionally, they were written into English law and became Colonial law in the pre-U.S. colonies.

People might also be surprised to learn that there are states today in which people as young as 13 (Wyoming; in several others it is 14 or 15 or 16) can consent to sex outside marriage. Seems odd that people can consent to sex (fornication) at younger ages than they can unilaterally consent to marriage (except in Mississippi (15)).

But people are going to judge on the basis of their imagination, rather than the facts. That's just reality.

 

[TasteForTruth]

Playing the Prophet of God card to a teenager.
Emma is given an ultimatum not a say.

Emma didn't have a say in what God commanded Joseph. Nor did Joseph. She did have a say in how she responded to the situation, and to the "ultimatum" God gave her, just as Joseph had a say in how he responded to God's commandments and ultimatums (which he also received).

 

[BigDaddy4]

The LDS church has not changed its position on "what Joseph Smith was." The Church continues to recognize him as a prophet of God, which he was.

An opportunistic power hungry predatory polygamist, true.

 

[MormonFriend]

It's about time the lds church recognize their founding prophet for what he was.

This quote is precious

Joseph 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.

What a great story to attempt to get Emma's buy in to placate his lust for power and sexual gratification.

I can just imagine... "But Emma, an angel held a sword to me and demanded I obey this commandment to go get sealed with these other women. Don't worry, I won't have sex with all of them, just some of them. OK?"

Please see my signature below.

And what is the point of this? Even if it was as you see it, do you negate all that Paul and David taught?

 

[joneysd]

"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...."

Church: Mormon founder Joseph Smith wed 40 wives - CNN.com

LDS...thoughts?

i'm sure its ok because god said he could...

how many of the wives he had were already married to someone else i wonder...

 

[ChetSinger]

When the article describes his group of wives as "...including some who were already married..." does that actually mean that these women had two husbands at the same time?

 

[Colter]

How did he keep up with all those birthdays an anniversaries and OMGosh, all those mother in-laws! Bet he probably still forgot to take out the garbage.

 

[RevelationTestament]

When the article describes his group of wives as "...including some who were already married..." does that actually mean that these women had two husbands at the same time?

That would be a real problem for me, if it were true, because of the law against adultery. Did you read Post 3:
Joseph did seal himself to women that were married to other men.
During the era in which plural marriage was practiced, Latter-day Saints distinguished between sealings for time and eternity and sealings for eternity only. Sealings for time and eternity included commitments and relationships during this life. Eternity-only sealings indicated relationships in the next life alone as marriage according to U.S. law ended "until death do we part."

"Evidence indicates that Joseph Smith participated in both types of sealings. The exact number of women to whom he was sealed in his lifetime is unknown because the evidence is fragmentary. Some of the women who were sealed to Joseph Smith later testified that their marriages were for time and eternity, while others indicated that their relationships were for eternity alone."