Sister Wives and Polygamy

What's with polygamy and Mormonism anyway?
The questions surrounding polygamy are virtually endless. One term that has become almost synonymous with the word “polygamy” is the word “Mormon.” Any person with an elementary understanding about the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons) will tell you, “Mormons don’t practice polygamy.” But what about those who claim to be Mormons, and yet still practice it? Better yet, why?

A brief history of Mormon polygamy
As early as 1831, Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of the Latter-day Saint movement was asking questions about plural marriage. Latter-day Saints consider themselves to be “Restorationists”; that is, restoring the beliefs and practices of the early Christian church and the Bible through modern theological applications. Plural marriage was believed to be a part of the practices of the ancient prophets, as illustrated through such Biblical passages as Genesis 16: 1-11; 25:1; 29:8; 30:4, 9, 26; Exodus 21:10; Deuteronomy 17:15-17; 21:15; 2 Samuel 2:2; 5:13; 12:7-9; 1 Kings 11:1-4; 2 Chronicles 13:21; 24:3; and Isaiah 4:1.

Joseph Smith began practicing plural marriage as early as 1833 to 1835 by marrying Fanny Alger; a relationship that quickly dissolved without much notice from lay members of the Church initially, though Oliver Cowdery, a major figure in Mormon history would later refer to the relationship as a “dirty, nasty, filthy affair.” In 1843, a revelation to Joseph concerning certain aspects of plural marriage in relation to Mormon temple practices and theology was received. Joseph would be killed within a year by a mob of critics and dissenters who counted plural marriage among their list of grievances against him.

The "Principle"
Even after Joseph’s death, plural marriage was not set up as a commandment among practicing Mormons. In 1852, Brigham Young, Joseph’s successor, would make the practice known to the Church as a whole. Within ten years, the first legislation banning plural marriage was passed in Congress. Most Mormons never practiced polygamy, as only 15-25% were ever involved in it. While the Territory of Utah had several thousand emigrants arriving each year, statehood was not possible as long as plural marriage was being practiced among the Mormons. Utah had also granted women the right to vote, which angered anti-polygamy lawmakers in the east. In 1890, an Official Proclamation to the Church was read by Mormon Church President Wilford Woodruff, setting in stone a system of policies that would eventually prohibit polygamy among the Mormons.

Why did it end?
Eventually, questions would arise concerning the validity of Joseph Smith’s first revelation. If Joseph was told by God to practice polygamy, why would God prohibit it later? There are a number of factors that must be applied in properly answering this question. It may surprise some readers of this blog to know that the Book of Mormon, the “keystone” of the Mormon religion, relatively frowns on polygamy. Jacob, an ancient prophet in the Book of Mormon narrative condemned the unauthorized practice of plural marriage; that is, those who felt they were justified in taking additional wives without a revelation or approval from God. Said Jacob:

“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.” (Jacob 2: 27-30)

Thus the feasible reason to justify plural marriage according to the Book of Mormon was for the purpose of “raising up seed,” otherwise, monogamy was always the commandment. What then, about the revelation? Was it meant to be eternal? Was it temporal? Aren’t the laws of God higher than the laws of men? Why did polygamy stop? A revelation in the Doctrine and Covenants answers this question completely.

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, that when I give a commandment to any of the sons of men to do a work unto my name, and those sons of men go with all their might and with all they have to perform that work, and cease not their diligence, and their enemies come upon them and hinder them from performing that work, behold, it behooveth me to require that work no more at the hands of those sons of men, but to accept of their offerings.” (D&C 124:49)

As far as plural marriage was concerned, all that had been required among the Mormons had been complete. They had fought legislation for over 30 years. Church leaders were forced to go into hiding, many of whom spent time in prison for the practice. Church property was being confiscated and the Church was being disenfranchised. Wilford Woodruff’s Official Declaration reconciled the demands of the United States’ Government and the freedom of worship among Latter-day Saints. Those who practiced the principle were no longer required to live in plural marriages.

The rise of Mormon fundamentalism
Polygamy still continued among the Mormons after the 1890 manifesto. In 1904, LDS Church President Joseph F. Smith (himself a polygamist) ended the practice completely by releasing a second manifesto. Soon, all those who entered into plural marriages after the second manifesto were excommunicated. The new policy did not sit well with a small number of Mormons, particularly those who were already living the principle.

Eventually, splinter groups formed in spite of the new policies. All Mormons who were found participating in these groups were excommunicated. Those who joined these splinter groups are known as fundamentalists, or “Mormon fundamentalists.” The two largest fundamentalist splinter groups are the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the Apostolic United Brethren, also referred to as “The Work,” “The Priesthood,” or “The Group.” The AUB is much more open to media outlets than the FLDS and are much less oppressive, not typically wearing “prairie burkas” that have been associated with other fundamentalist groups. The group forbids underage marriage, assimilates relatively well into surrounding communities and allows children to attend public schools due in large part to the late Owen Allred, a former leader of the sect.

Where do the Brown’s fit into this picture?
Sister Wives - First Sneak Peek
Kody, the family patriarch was raised in Northern Wyoming. His father in turn, joined the Apostolic United Brethren while Kody was a teenager. Kody subsequently joined the sect and married Meri (raised in a polygamist home) Janelle (formerly LDS raised in a monogamous home) and Christine (raised in a polygamist home). From the first episode, Kody has done a good job at distinguishing the differences between his own sect and that of the mainstream LDS Church which prohibited plural marriage over a hundred years ago, a comparison he likens to “Catholics and Protestants.”

The only other mention of the LDS Church was made by Janelle, who of course was raised in an LDS home, became friends with Kody and Meri, and subsequently joined the sect and married Kody after she experienced what she called a “spiritual witness.” The family has daily prayers, formatted similarly to prayers said in typical Latter-day Saint homes. The children kneel and “fold their arms” like typical LDS families, which may be an influence from Janelle’s LDS upbringing. The Brown family policy is that “love should be multiplied, not divided.”

Sister Wives chronicles the Brown family’s adjustment to Kody taking a fourth wife, Robyn, who was raised in a polygamous home and is a divorced mother of three. As a side note her home featured a painting of Christ by the popular Latter-day Saint artist Greg Olsen. Given the fact that Olsen’s paintings can be found in homes of those of virtually any faith, the existence of such a painting is not conclusive evidence that Robyn is a member of the LDS faith.

What does this all mean?
In my opinion, members of the LDS Church should not be concerned with Sister Wives or the misconceptions and caricatures that are often associated with polygamy and the LDS Church. While I do not support the practice of plural marriage by fundamentalist sects, as a Latter-day Saint I feel that as long as proper clarifications are made between the groups, there should be no relative repercussions from inquiring minds as future episodes of Sister Wives continue to unfold. Latter-day Saints and inquiring minds need only know that plural marriage, as it was practiced from 1852-1904 is no longer practiced by the Church today. There is no relationship whatsoever between the LDS Church and the Apostolic United Brethren.