A Study Of The Mormon’s Practice Of Polygamy
My audience is comprised of African American women born and raised within the Baptist Church. My audience is convinced that Mormons are all polygamists and practice this belief. Anything that is not in the King James Bible, or those who practice other religions, will be given to hell. My culture is ignorant of the many types of Mormons. However, they believe that all Mormons are fundamentalist Mormons. My audience is not interested in Mormons and not even in a positive manner. My paper is a critique of the history of Jesus Christ. Mormons are Christian, but my paper is not. Fundamentalist Mormons would not be viewed as people living normal lives. My personal culture is unaware that Mormons, regardless of their beliefs or fundamentalism, share common values and beliefs. Mormons believe in charity and family as well as a common Protestant belief.
A polygamous marital relationship is where four wives and seventeen children live together. The entertainer’s perspective on the lives of fundamentalist Mormons is reflected in reality TV shows like TLC’s Sister Wives. But not all Mormons believe that polygamy is possible. The few who do are known as Fundamentalist Mormons. Despite their controversial beliefs and shared values with many mainstream religions, they remain a part of the Christian church. They are still a part of the Christian denomination and share some values with other mainstream religions. Richard Wagoner suggests that Smith had privately advocated for polygamous marriages, but it was only in 1852 that the Mormons officially announced their support for them (IX). Wagoner asserts that polygamy was banned by the United States in 1890 after public outcry. (IX). Wagoner says that polygamy continued until 1904, when Joseph F. Smith was pressured to end the practice. Wagoner says that some Mormons continued to practice polygamy and the teachings from the broader Mormon religion. Many still believe Fundamentalist Mormons and Church of Latter-Day Saints to be the same. Polygamy is an important part the Mormon faith. This belief has been shared by many religions, even Christian ones. Wagoner first published his book in 1949. The Census Bureau estimates that there were six-million Latter-Day Saints in 2009 and that only three percent were Fundamentalists. Despite this, Fundamentalist Mormons hold close to the original Protestant values, with polygamy added.
The FLDS church has a few values that are important to them. Fundamentalist Mormons are not likely to work if members don’t want to be there. People who are interested in charity, volunteer work, and mission trips should do so because it is difficult and rewarding. Nate Tabak interviewed Daniel Harlow to get a better understanding of the FLDS missionary program. Harlow is a young European national who spent many months in Kosovo without much communication back home. Harlow’s faith and dedication helped him to overcome the distance and isolation from his family and friends. Richard Foltz says that Fundamentalist Mormons allow their boys to become priests by the age of twelve. They also encourage their sons to dedicate two years of their lives to missions or education (5). Foltz also revealed that Mormons believe that there is a lost soul waiting to be born. Parents are expected to bring them down to Earth. Fundamentalist men often take on multiple wives, bringing back the lost souls. Mosiah of Book of Mormon states that all of us are beggars. We all depend upon the one Being, even God, to have all that we have. This is why fundamentalists become so dedicated. God is the reason human beings are here (Mosiah 4.99). Foltz reveals that believers believe that with much dedication and devotion they can become gods. Fundamentalist Mormons will give everything to their faith in order to achieve fulfillment and brighter afterlives.
Family is very important to Fundamentalist Mormons. A large family includes more than a man, his woman, and his children. Family members must make sacrifices for their children. The FLDS members understood this and gave their religious twist. “Any sacrifices we made for one another were rewarded tenfold.” We learned to worship together and share our sorrows together. We also learned to play together and to rejoice together. This quote was made by a polygamous husband (qtd Wagoner in 1994). The wife represents the love that one has for his or her family and how important it is to their daily life. The wives and children of large polygamous couples sacrificed for their families. Wagoner explains that men had to care for their spouses and children regardless of whether they were married in the sanctity or second or third marriage. Wagoner goes on and quotes Apostle George Cannon. Cannon states that, “not only is the husband bound to respect his wife’s wishes to that end,” meaning that he has to pay her and her children a portion of his total property. According to the Polygamy Journal, a polygamous marriage can result in one spouse being infertile while others are capable of bearing many children. The couple doesn’t have to consider divorce an option. William Jankowiak states that “sister wives”, who believe in the family bond beyond death, feel that everyone should have one mind. Jankowiak explains that the father-son connection is essential in Fundamentalist Mormon culture (166). This is how the social-cultural rules and beliefs of the faith are transmitted from generation to generation. Jankowiak provides an example: Abraham passed the keys to God’s kingdom to Isaac (166). Family values are based on the belief that everyone is important and has a function in the family. Fundamentalist Mormons emphasize that dedication to family should not be an option.
FLDS believes all church members should be involved in missionary work to follow the example of Jesus Christ. This culture shares a lot of missionary work. The Doctrine to Covenants says that the Lord commands His people to “proclaim My Gospel from Land to Land, and from City to City… bear witness to every place, Unto Every People” (Doctrine to Covenants 66.5). This is how fundamentalist believers send missionaries to spread gospel and increase population. The missionaries wear business clothes and rarely wear casual attire when on duty (see figure 2). Tabak speaks with Daniel Harlow about his mission. He said that “our purpose is to invite other people to Christ.” We don’t make anyone do anything. (“The Mormon Missionary”) While most mission trips consist of giving out flyers to convert people and talking with them about conversion, FLDS missionaries find that charity work can also be a way to fill the time they are away from their families. Tabak describes missionaries who are separated from their families and have to concentrate on their jobs (“The Mormon Missionary”) when they go on mission trips. Harlow, aged 19 years, must wake at 6:30 in the morning, and be asleep at 10:30 at night. Harlow is limited to sending two emails per year and one call each week to his family and friends back at home. Tabak states that Harlow can only speak to women if it’s about his missionary work. He is prohibited from dating. The importance of missionary work was also demonstrated in the 1830s when Mormonism began. Kim Ostman reports that the church’s missionaries traveled from North America to Europe. Then they moved to Europe, where they met up with civil authorities. Ostman describes how civil authorities threatened missionaries to have them removed from their land. Ostman states that the missionaries refused to leave their land and Ostman says they continued to meet in houses to talk to people about joining the FLDS church (269). Fundamentalist Mormons will risk their lives and jail time to promote missionary work.
The greatest value associated to Fundamentalism’s Mormon faith is polygamy. The practice of having more than one spouse at once (usually wives) is polygamy. Many of the most well-known polygamy methods have been turned into television shows, such as Sister Wives or Big Love. (see figure 3). Wagoner exposes the handful of radicals who formed their own church and decided to leave the Church of Latter-Day Saints. Joseph Smith believed in polygamy in private, but only 29. O’Kendall White explains that Joseph Smith left behind private journals detailing his private life and a book that wiped out the condemnation for polygamous conduct (166). Wagoner further relates that Joseph Smith realized in the Old Testament that polygamy could be practiced, so he decided it was a “true principles” for his people (107). Fundamentalist Mormons were able to hold onto this book, earning the title Fundamentalist Mormons. Jankowaik reports on the tolerance of Fundamentalist Mormons living in the West. The continued practice of polygamy in west communities is a “public secret”. Jankowaik claims that polygamy was made illegal after rumors of sexual abuse were circulating. The government then raided the towns and arrested the men. However, they later agreed to stop if there were more reports (164). Another decrease in FLDS members was caused by this negative connotation. Fundamentalists did not use the decline in polygamy practice to create a new church, but instead built communities to stay together. Jankowaik explains that Colorado City/Centennial Park hosts forty-five% of polygamous households (165). It is isolated from the rest of the world and can practice its beliefs peacefully because it has very little or no contact with outside towns and cities. They adapted to any obstacle to their faith and their belief in polygamy by the Fundamentalist Mormons.
Although fundamentalist Mormons believe polygamy is important, they also value many other things. The FLDS church is also committed to understanding the family’s role and dedication. Members who do missionary work within and outside the church are able to understand and apply the values. The FLDS church is more than a collection of beliefs. It is all the beliefs. The entire Latter-Day Saint church is growing. In fact, it has been called that the fastest-growing religion. They are trying to prove they are just like everyone else and not sexual deviants. They have a house with one man and four wives and seventeen children. But they still live in a world where survival is possible.
