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The History of Polygamy
This topic means so much to me that it deserved its own section
DISPELLING MYTHS
First
off, I would like to dispel the myth held by some that it was
extremely common to marry teenagers in the 1800s. Perhaps it was
more common back then, but there are a few things that argue against
the widespread commonality. One is from gathered census data showing
that around 1840, the average age for a woman to marry for the first
time was somewhere between the ages of 21 and 22. This held fairly
consistently until it dipped to a low of 20 in the 1950s.1
Another
reason that marrying teenagers would have been odd back then is how
the age of puberty seems to be getting younger and younger as time
goes by. Whether it be improvements in health and diet or the use of
hormones in a lot of the food we eat, puberty for females is now
starting somewhere around the age of 9 ½. In the early 1800s,
puberty began around the age of 13.2
Again, puberty STARTED around the age 13. It takes a few years to
run its course, so to argue that it was not out of the norm that
Joseph married a number of 14, 16 and 17 year olds is a huge leap,
especially since he was almost 40 when he married most of them. The
girls that were marrying that young during that time mostly involved
arranged marriages among the aristocracy. It was not as normal as
some would like to argue.
Another
myth I would like to dispel is one spread by the presidents of the
church. President Joseph F. Smith declared before a congressional
hearing that only 3 percent of Mormons in Utah were polygamous.
Presiding Gordon B. Hinckley declared on Larry King Live that
“between 2 and 5 percent or our people were involved in it. It was
a very limited practice.”3 The
only way to get numbers this ridiculously low is if you count
up the number of men practicing polygamy and then divide by every
man, woman and maybe even some children in the church. That makes
absolutely no sense. To get a number that actually means something,
you would need to add up the men practicing and divide by the total
number of men (and maybe just married men, at that). That would give
you an idea of the percentage of polygamous households. The numbers
I have seen from LDS scholars tend to be around 15 to 25 percent,
while non-LDS scholars often place it between 20 and 30 percent. If
that was the number of men in polygamous relationships, then the
percentage of women would have been much higher.
Joseph
Smith had somewhere around 34 wives when he died. 11 of which were
already married to other men when he married them.
EMMA
HALE
I
better say something about Emma Smith first. Joseph married his
first wife, Emma Smith, in 1827. They first met in 1825 while Joseph
was living with her family. He was treasure hunting in the area with
Mr. Stowell, who wanted him for his supposed seer stone abilities. No
treasure was ever found, and Joseph left the area. However,
Joseph returned a number of times to seek Emma’s hand in marriage.
Emma’s father, Isaac Hale, would not allow it. Here is a part of
Isaac Hale’s testimony of the events,
“Smith,
and
his
father,
with
several other 'money-diggers' boarded at my
house while they were employed in digging for a mine that they
supposed had been opened and worked by the Spaniards, many years
since. Young Smith gave the 'money-diggers' great encouragement, at
first, but when they had arrived in digging, to near the place where
he had stated an immense treasure would be found - he said the
enchantment was so powerful that he could not see. They then became
discourged, and soon after dispersed. This took place about the 17th
of November, 1825; and one of the company gave me his note for $12.68
for his board, which is still unpaid.
After
these occurrences, young Smith made several visits at my house, and
at length asked my consent to his marrying my daughter Emma. This I
refused, and gave him my reasons for so doing; some of which were,
that he was a stranger, and followed a business that I could not
approve; he then left the place. Not long after this, he returned,
and while I was absent from home, carried off my daughter, into the
state of New York, where they were married without my approbation or
consent.”4
After
they elopement, Emma wrote her father asking for her things and
property. Isaac Hale continues,
“I
replied that her property was safe, and at her disposal. In short
time they returned, bringing with them a Peter Ingersol, and
subsequently came to the conclusion that they would move out, and
resided upon a place near my residence.
Smith stated to me, that
he had given up what he called "glass-looking," and that he
expected to work hard for a living, and was willing to do so. He also
made arrangements with my son Alva Hale, to go to Palmyra, and move
his furniture &c. to this place.”5
From
then on, Emma followed Joseph all the way to his death, even when she
HATED what he was doing. Emma hated polygamy. She could never come
to terms with it and even denied it was ever practiced.
POLYGAMY
IN
THE
SCRIPTURES
Now,
let’s get to the heart of the matter. First, I would like to
discuss the teachings in the scriptures. As I discussed in the
Divine History, if we once again go by the idea that Sidney Rigdon
wrote the Book of Mormon, it is important to note that Sidney was
strongly against polygamy. His feelings towards polygamy can be seen
very well in the Book of Mormon.
“5
And it came to pass that Riplakish did not do that which was right in
the sight of the Lord, for he did have many wives and concubines, and
did lay that upon men’s shoulders which was grievous to be borne;
yea, he did tax them with heavy taxes; and with the taxes he did
build many spacious buildings.” (Ether 10:5)
“1
And now it came to pass that Zeniff conferred the kingdom upon Noah,
one of his sons; therefore Noah began to reign in his stead; and he
did not walk in the ways of his father. 2
For behold, he did not keep the commandments of God, but he did walk
after the desires of his own heart. And he had many wives and
concubines.” (Mosiah 11:1-2)
“15
And now it came to pass that the people of Nephi, under the reign of
the second king, began to grow hard in their hearts, and indulge
themselves somewhat in wicked practices, such as like unto David of
old desiring many wives and concubines, and also Solomon, his son.”
(Jacob 1:15)
“23
But the word of God burdens me because of your grosser crimes. For
behold, thus saith the Lord: This people begin to wax in iniquity;
they understand not the scriptures, for they seek to excuse
themselves in committing whoredoms, because of the things which were
written concerning David, and Solomon his son. 24
Behold, David and Solomon truly had many wives and concubines, which
thing was abominable before me, saith the Lord. 25
Wherefore, thus saith the Lord, I have led this people forth out of
the land of Jerusalem, by the power of mine arm, that I might raise
up unto me a righteous branch from the fruit of the loins of
Joseph. 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.” (Jacob
2:23-28)
“5
Behold, the Lamanites your brethren, whom ye hate because of their
filthiness and the cursing which hath come upon their skins, are more
righteous than you; for they have not forgotten the commandment of
the Lord, which was given unto our father—that they should have
save it were one wife, and concubines they should have none, and
there should not be whoredoms committed among them.” (Jacob 3:5)
Sidney’s
vision
for
the
Kingdom
of God on Earth was not the same one as
Joseph’s, however. Joseph began secretly living a life of
polygamy. Eventually word started leaking out and people around
Joseph started getting upset at the rumors. Sidney and others argued
with Joseph about it and in 1844, after Joseph died, Sidney finally
went public with it in a letter sent to the church paper Messenger
and Advocate:
“It
is a fact so well known that the Twelve and their adherents have
endeavored to carry on this spiritual wife business … and have gone
to the most shameful and desperate lengths to keep from the public.
First, insulting innocent females, and when they resented the insult,
these monsters in human shape would assail their characters by lying,
and perjuries, with a multitude of desperate men to help them effect
the ruin of those whom they insulted, and all this to enable them to
keep these corrupt practices from the world.
How
often have these men and their accomplices stood up before the
congregation, and called God and all the holy Angels to witness, that
there was no such doctrine taught in the church; and it has now come
to light, by testimony which cannot be gainsaid, that at the time
they thus dared heaven and insulted the world, they were living in
the practice of these enormities; and there were multitudes of their
followers in the congregation at the time who knew it.”6
Despite
the
teachings
in
the
Book of Mormon and the arguments of those around
him, Joseph saw things differently. He brought forth this revelation
in 1843. It is the first recorded revelation approving polygamy,
although the practice seems to have been started as early as 1831. This
revelation was not added to the Doctrine and Covenants until the
1870s.
“1
Verily,
thus saith the Lord unto you my servant Joseph, that inasmuch as you
have inquired of my hand to know and understand wherein I, the Lord,
justified my servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as also Moses, David
and Solomon,
my servants, as touching the principle and doctrine of their having
many wives and concubines- 2
Behold, and lo, I am the Lord thy God, and will answer thee as
touching this matter. 3
Therefore, prepare thy heart to receive and obey the instructions
which I am about to give unto you; for all those who have this law
revealed unto them must obey the same. 4
For behold, I reveal unto you a new and an everlasting covenant; and
if ye abide not that covenant, then are ye damned; for no one can
reject this covenant and be permitted to enter into my glory. 38
David also received many wives and concubines, and also Solomon and
Moses my servants, as also many others of my servants, from the
beginning of creation until this time; and in nothing did they sin
save in those things which they received not of me. 39
David’s wives and concubines were given unto him of me, by the hand
of Nathan, my servant, and others of the prophets who had the keys of
this power; and in none of these things did he sin against me save in
the case of Uriah and his wife; and, therefore he hath fallen from
his exaltation, and received his portion; and he shall not inherit
them out of the world, for I gave them unto another, saith the Lord.”
(D&C 132: 1-4, 38-39)
These
words from the Lord are a far cry from the Lord’s words in the Book
of Mormon. The Lord can’t even seem to make up his mind if he
approved the wives and concubines of David and Solomon or not. He
went from saying “Behold,
David and Solomon truly had many wives and concubines, which thing
was abominable before me, saith the Lord”
to saying, “I,
the Lord, justified my servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as also
Moses, David and Solomon,
my servants, as touching the principle and doctrine of their having
many wives and concubines.” The 1843 revelation
continues that as long as the first wife is okay
with it, then the man can take another wife. This sounds pretty fair
at first, however, it later states that if she does not accept
polygamy she will be destroyed and the man is exempt from needing her
permission like Sarah gave permission for Abraham to take Hagar to
wife. So, no matter what, this revelation justifies a man in taking
as many wives as he wants without any wife’s permission:
61
And again, as pertaining to the law of the priesthood—if any man
espouse a virgin, and desire to espouse another, and the first give
her consent, and if he espouse the second, and they are virgins, and
have vowed to no other man, then is he justified; he cannot
commit adultery for they are given unto him; for he cannot commit
adultery with that that belongeth unto him and to no one else. 62
And if he have ten virgins given unto him by this law, he cannot
commit adultery, for they belong to him, and they are given unto him;
therefore is he justified. 63
But if one or either of the ten virgins, after she is espoused, shall
be with another man, she has committed adultery, and shall be
destroyed; for they are given unto him to multiply and replenish the
earth, according to my commandment, and to fulfil the promise which
was given by my Father before the foundation of the world, and for
their exaltation in the eternal worlds, that they may bear the souls
of men; for herein is the work of my Father continued, that he may be
glorified. 64
And again, verily, verily, I say unto you, if any man have a wife,
who
holds
the
keys
of this power, and he teaches unto her the law
of my priesthood, as pertaining to these things, then shall
she believe and administer unto him, or she shall be destroyed,
saith the Lord your God; for I will destroy her; for I will
magnify my name upon all those who receive and abide in my law.
65Therefore, it shall be lawful in me, if she receive not this law,
for him to receive all things whatsoever I, the Lord his God, will
give unto him, because she did not believe and administer unto him
according to my word; and she then becomes the transgressor; and
he is exempt from the law of Sarah, who administered unto Abraham
according to the law when I commanded Abraham to take Hagar to wife.
(D&C 132:61-66)
That
revelation was written down in 1843, but not added to the scriptures
in Doctrine and Covenants until 1876.
FIRST
SIGNS OF POLYGAMY (SCANDALS)
Let’s
jump back to 1831. The first glimpse of the church heading towards
polygamy may have involved the 16 year old Marinda Nancy Johnson. The
events surrounding this relationship lead to the first time that
Joseph Smith was tarred and feathered. One author writes:
“In
the summer of 1831 the Johnson family took Joseph and Emma Smith into
their home as boarders, and soon thereafter the prophet purportedly
bedded young Marinda. Unfortunately, the liaison did not go
unnoticed, and a gang of indignant Ohioans—including a number of
Mormons—resolved to castrate Joseph so that he would be disinclined
to commit such acts of depravity in the future.”7
The
castration did not go forward. Luke Johnson, Marinda’s brother,
states that “[the
mob] had Dr. Dennison there to perform the operation [of castration];
but when he saw the Prophet stripped and stretched on the plank, his
heart failed him and he refused to operate.”8
It
is not certain that the full reason for the mob was because of the
belief that Joseph was having or attempting relations with Marinda,
but it does appear that is why the Johnson brothers were a part of
the mob. They seem to be defending their sister’s honor. As Orson
Pratt later states, “Perhaps
Joseph was not discreet in his discussions about plural marriage,
because rumor and insinuation fed the fury of the mob that tarred and
feathered him. When the Johnson boys joined the mob that entered
their own home, they clearly suspected an improper association
between Joseph and their sixteen-year-old sister, Nancy Marinda.”9
The
other members of the mob seem to have been there for financial
reasons. Joseph and Sidney had brought forth what is now D&C 42
that talks of the law of consecration which involves giving up ones
property to the church, which would then be redistributed by the
church, as the church saw need. A few members of the church, and
people who had left the church after those teachings came out, felt
that Joseph and Sidney were unjustly trying to take their property
and that those requests were too much. So, a portion of the mob was
angry about their property and another portion of the mob seemed to
be angry about Joseph’s relationship with Marinda. Although the
castration did not happen Joseph and Sidney were tarred and
feathered.
Again,
it is unclear if Joseph married Marinda at this time, but he did
officially marry her years later while her husband, Orson Hyde, was
on a mission.
The
next tale of polygamy involves 16 year old Fanny Alger. She is
generally considered the first plural wife of Joseph Smith. LDS
scholars accept it as so, because if it was not ordained by God, then
serious questions would have to be raised. (It should be noted that
Joseph claims to have received the sealing keys from Elijah in 1836,
after the completion of the Kirtland Temple. His relationship with
Fanny Alger was in 1833. Which means that Joseph never made any
divine allowance for this relationship or the one that might have
occurred with Marinda Johnson previously.) Fanny was considered a
kind and pretty girl. In 1833, she came to live with the Smiths,
perhaps helping with housework and the children. Although
undocumented, if a marriage actually took place between Joseph and
Fanny, it would have been during that year. I will now take a
passage from the website www.wivesofjosephsmith.org. It
is a very balanced site maintained by an LDS woman. It contains
the stories of the main women said to be Joseph’s wives.
Ann Eliza Webb
writes:“Mrs.
Smith
had
an
adopted
daughter, a very pretty, pleasing young girl,
about seventeen years old. She was extremely fond of her; no
mother could be more devoted, and their affection for each other was
a constant object of remark, so absorbing and genuine did it
seem”. Joseph
kept
his
marriage
to
Fanny out of the view of the public, and his
wife Emma. Chauncey Webb recounts Emma’s later discovery of
the relationship: “Emma
was furious, and drove the girl, who was unable to conceal the
consequences of her celestial relation with the prophet, out of her
house”.
Ann
Eliza
again
recalls: “...it
was felt that [Emma] certainly must have had some very good reason
for her action. By degrees it became whispered about that Joseph’s
love for his adopted daughter was by no means a paternal affection,
and his wife, discovering the fact, at once took measures to place
the girl beyond his reach...Since Emma refused decidedly to allow her
to remain in her house...my mother offered to take her until she
could be sent to her relatives...” Book of
Mormon witness, Oliver Cowdery, felt the relationship was something
other than a marriage. He referred to it as “A
dirty, nasty, filthy affair...”
Fanny stayed with relatives in nearby Mayfield until about the time
Joseph fled Kirtland for Missouri. Benjamin Johnson remembers:“Soon
after the Prophet[‘s] flight in the winter of ’37...The Alger
Family left for the west and Stop[ped] in Indiana for a time...Soon
[Fanny] Married to one of the Citizens of ther & altho she never
left the State She did not turn from the Church nor from her
friendship for the Prophet while She lived..”
Benjamin continued, “And
I Can now See that as at Nauvoo – So at Kirtland That the Suspicion
or Knowledge of the Prophets Plural Relations was one of the Causes
of Apostacy & disruption at Kirtland altho at the time there was
little said publickly upon the Subject.”10
Word
started to spread about Joseph’s relationships and when the 1835
Doctrine and Covenants was printed, it included this verse in its
cannon:
"Inasmuch
as this Church of Christ has been reproached with the crime of
fornication and polygamy, we declare that we believe that one man
should have one wife, and one woman but one husband, except in the
case of death, when either is at liberty to marry again."11
This
scripture not only remained in the Mormon scriptures until 1876, but
was also printed numerous times in the church newspapers throughout
the years in order to deny the practice of polygamy among the Saints.
The papers would also reference the many scriptures in the Book of
Mormon that speak against polygamy as well.
SPIRITUAL THREATS AND INDULGENCES
Many
of the women proposed to were repulsed by the idea of polygamy. In
order to persuade them after their initial reactions, Joseph would
often promise exaltation for them as well as their entire family. He
would also tell them that an angel with a flaming sword had
threatened to kill him if he didn’t engage in the practice. The
first woman that mentions God threatening Joseph’s life is his
fifth wife, Zina Huntington Jacobs. Originally, he asked her to
marry him and she declined and married a man named Henry Jacobs. A
few months after her marriage to Henry, Zina wrote, “[Joseph]
sent word to me by my brother, saying, ‘Tell Zina, I put it off and
put it off till an angel with a drawn sword stood by me and told me
if I did not establish that principle upon the earth I would lose my
position and my life.’”12
For
God, and to save Joseph’s life from the wrath of God, she accepted
Joseph’s proposal. It is unclear how many husbands of the women
Joseph married were actually aware of their wife’s marriage to
Joseph, but Henry Jacobs was. He, however, was not around much after
Joseph married his wife. Over the next few years, he was sent on
missions to Chicago, New York and Tennessee. After Joseph died, Zina
married Brigham Young. Henry was then sent on a mission to England. “In
Henry’s absence, Zina began to live openly as Brigham’s wife and
remained so throughout her life in Utah. Henry seemed to
struggle with this arrangement and later wrote to Zina,”13
“Oh
how happy I would be if I only could see you and the little children,
bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh. I am unhappy, there is no peace
for poor me, my pleasure is you, my comfort has vanished…Oh Zina,
can I ever, will I ever get you again, answer the question please. Zina
my mind never will change from worlds without ends, no never,
the same affection is there and never can be moved. I do not murmur
nor complain of the handlings of God no verily, no but I feel alone
and no one to speak to, to call my own…I do not blame any person or
persons, no – May the Lord our Father bless Brother Brigham and all
pertains unto him forever. Tell him for me I have no feelings
against him nor never had, all is right according to the law of the
celestial kingdom of our God Joseph.”14
Sacrifice
has
a
powerful
effect
on people. I think that certain people reach a
point where they have sacrificed so much for a cause that they cannot
even allow themselves to question that very cause. Once people had
sold everything that they had, left their families and friends and
had virtually nothing left in life but the very cause that they
sacrificed for, they will not allow themselves to question that cause
anymore. The thought is too painful. That is what I see in both the
women who agree to enter a practice that they find abhorrent as well
as the husbands that are left broken and depressed, but cannot face
the idea that what they sacrificed for was the wrong cause. This
effect has been seen many times before. I feel so bad for Henry and
how he has been so broken that he even refers to Joseph Smith as his
God. These are not just nameless, faceless people. These are real
people with real feelings. I feel like what Henry writes about
Brigham Young and Joseph is not really what he feels deep down
inside, but rather that he is trying to convince himself of those
things, “...I am unhappy, there is no peace for poor me, my
pleasure is you, my comfort has vanished…Oh Zina, can I ever, will
I ever get you again, answer the question please…the same affection
is there...But I feel alone...I do not Blame Eny person...may the
Lord our Father bless Brother Brigham...tell him for me I have no
feelings against him...all is right according to the Law of the
Celestial Kingdom of our God Joseph.” He
has to convince himself of those things, because the alternative
is too painful to face. He is in denial.
And
while Jacob is being torn apart by the relationship, Zina is left as
one of the numerous wives of Brigham Young. Zina does not realize
the joy that can exist in a marriage because she is part of a
loveless, polygamous relationship. However, she learns to accept the
lack of love between her and Brigham. She comments on the complaints
of women who were unhappy in their polygamous marriages by saying
these words, “[they]
expect too much attention from the husband and…become sullen and
morose...”15 She
had come to the conclusion that, to have a successful polygamous
marriage, the wife “must
regard her husband with indifference, and with no other feeling than
that of reverence, for love we regard as a false sentiment; a feeling
which should have no existence in polygamy.”16
MY
OWN
QUESTIONS
I
find it interesting that it is not until the fifth wife that we first
hear Joseph say that God is threatening to kill him if he does not
“establish the principle” of polygamy. Aren’t two wives enough
to establish the principle? You have married two wives and have now
established the ancient principle. Tada! Was God still threatening
him after he already had four wives? What about 10? 20? 30? It
seems ludicrous that a God would do such a thing. It does not seem
ludicrous to me that a man would use that story as a way to convince
women and girls to marry him against their better judgment. People
in the church nowadays say that polygamy was necessary for the people
of God to have a lot of children here on the earth. If that is the
case, where are all of Joseph’s children from these marriages and
why did he marry 11 women who already had husbands? There are a few
people thought to be descendants of Joseph, but DNA evidence is
proving that not to be the case. In fact, contrary to the claims
that it was to increase the number of children, a number of
testimonies from the Nauvoo period mention the Dr. John C. Bennett
was usually on hand to do a “little job” for Joseph in case any
of the girls he had married (but didn’t already have husbands)
became pregnant. One testimony goes like this, “[Bennett
was en route to do] "a little job for Joseph [because] one of
his women was in trouble." Saying this, he took [out] a pretty
long instrument of a kind I had never seen before. It seemed to be of
steel and was crooked at one end. I heard afterwards that the
operation had been performed; that the woman was very sick, and that
Joseph was very much afraid that she might die, but she recovered.”17 Also,
if the purpose was to “raise seed,” then why is it that
during the early Utah period, the population statistics show that
there were, in fact, MORE men than women. Apostle John A. Widstoe
admits, “The
implied assumption in this theory, that there have been more female
than male members in the Church, is not supported by existing
evidence. On the contrary, there seems always to have been more males
than females in the Church... The United States census records from
1850 to 1940, and all available Church records, uniformly show a
preponderance of males in Utah, and in the Church. Indeed, the excess
in Utah has usually been larger than for the whole United States...
there was no surplus of women.”18 Hey,
I know! How about, follow your own scriptures, not have
polygamy, let those women marry the single men out there and you get
the same number of children, plus happier wives and less unhappy,
single men. Once again, tada!
SHAM
WEDDING
Another
interesting story from the many wives Joseph took is the story of 17
year old Sarah Ann Whitney. A number of weeks after their marriage,
the 36 year old Joseph was in hiding from the law (He and the saints
had broken many state and federal laws). During this time of hiding,
Joseph sent for Sarah to visit him. He told her how lonely he was,
but at the same time was telling her to visit him when Emma wasn’t
there. Which makes me bode the question: If Emma is there enough
that you have to sneak one of your wives in around her schedule, are
you really that lonely? In his words, [I] “know
it is the will of God that you should comfort me now in this time of
affliction...the only thing to be careful of; is to find out when
Emma comes then you cannot be safe, but when she is not here, there
is the most perfect safty...burn this letter as soon as you read it;
keep all locked up in your breasts...You will pardon me for my
earnestness on this subject when you consider how lonesome I must
be...I think emma wont come tonight if she dont dont fail to come.”19 The
next year, 1843, Joseph had Sarah marry a Joseph Kingsbury. Kingsbury
states “according
to President Joseph Smith[s] Council & others [I] agread to Stand
by Sarah Ann Whitney as Supposed to be her husband & had a
pretended marriage for the purpose of Bringing about the purposes of
God in these last days.”20 This
seems strange to me that they would have someone marry one of
Joseph’s wives. This had not been done before. He had married
other men’s wives, but never convinced a man to marry one of his
otherwise single wives. If they were worried about her getting
pregnant, why would they not just have the baby aborted, (assuming
that the testimonies of performed abortions were accurate)? After
thinking about this for awhile, I realized that by this time, 1843,
Dr. John C. Bennett had left the church. Dr. Bennett was supposed
to have been the one that performed abortions for Joseph. His
leaving the church meant that he was not around anymore to perform
them. This necessitated a change in procedure. No more abortions
meant that someone needed to marry her to keep polygamy a secret, in
case she became pregnant.
DR.
JOHN
C
BENNETT
I
will say a quick thing about John C. Bennett at this point. Make no
mistake, I do not think Bennett was a good man. He was a man that
throughout his years sought power and fame, and it seems that he used
Mormonism as a means to this end as well. He was first introduced to
Joseph in 1832. Nothing is recorded of what was said in their
conversation, but nothing seemed to come of it. Instead, he remained
among the Campbellites, where Alexandar Campbell frequently spoke out
against the Mormons and Sidney Rigdon in particular- who had formerly
been a Campbellite preacher. Perhaps he even read Alexander
Campbell’s “Delusions: An Analysys of the Book of Mormon.” In
1834, Bennett moved a short distance from Painesville, Ohio. Bennett
had a number of articles published in the Painsville Telegraph, a
publication edited by Eber D. Howe. Bennett probably became familiar
with Howe’s own publication “Mormonism Unveiled,” which was
published in November 1834. He attended a few Mormon meetings in
1835 (Painsville is only 13 miles from Kirtland), including meetings
with Joseph and Sidney preaching, but nothing seemed to come of this
encounter with Mormonism either. He does not fit the description of
anyone caught up in the fervor of religious conversion. In 1840, he
wrote 3 letters to Joseph talking about his wish to affiliate himself
with the Saints. On August 8, Joseph wrote back telling him to join
them. Bennett relocated to Nauvoo in September 1840. Around
Bennett’s baptism, Joseph received word that Bennett may not have
the best intentions, so Joseph sent George Miller to search into
Bennett’s past. After his searching, Miller wrote back to Joseph
on March 2, 1841, “By
your request I have made inquiries into the history of John Cook
Bennett.... It was soon manifest that he was a superficial character,
always uneasy, and moved from place to place ... it is not presumed
that less than twenty towns has been his place of residence at
differenttimes; he has the vanity to believe he is the smartest man
in the nation; and if he cannot at once be placed at the head of the
heap, he soon seeks a situation; he is always ready to fall in with
whatever is popular; by the use of his recommendations he has been
able to push himself into places and situations entirely beyond his
abilities; he has been a prominent personage in and about colleges
and universities, but had soon vanished; and the next thing his
friends hear of him he is off in some other direction; at one time he
was a promine[n]t Campbellite preacher. during many years his poor,
but confiding wife, followed him from place to place, with no
suspicion of his unfaithfulness to her; at length howevere, he became
so bold enough in his departures, that it was evident to all around
that he was a sore offender, and his wife left him under satisfactory
evidence of his adulterous connections; nor was this his only fault;
he used her bad otherwise.”21
Miller further declared that Bennett was, “an
impostor, and unworthy of the confidence of all good men.”22
Despite these warnings, which should have convinced any good man to
avoid close ties to John Bennett, Joseph had Bennett rise quickly in
the ranks. He held such prominent titles as Mayor of Nauvoo, General
of the Nauvoo Legion and Chancellor of the University of Nauvoo. He
also held a position that only Oliver Cowdery, Hyrum Smith and Sidney
Rigdon had held, that of Assistant President of the Church. This
position was higher than that of being in the First Presidency. His
call to this position was only temporary “until
President [Sidney] Rigdon's health should be restored,”23
but still very impressive. Obviously, he became very close to Joseph
during the year and a half he was in the church. He became second in
the church only to Joseph and lived in his household for 39 weeks. Why
would he make someone so loathsome his number two? Whether he
performed abortions for Joseph or not, Bennett became aware of the
secret practice of polygamy among some of the top leaders in the
church. After he was told of the practice of polygamy, Bennett
started following in Joseph’s footsteps. He started telling women
that Joseph had revealed the doctrine of spiritual wives and
convincing them that it was a good and virtuous practice, although it
appears he never formalized any of his practices with marriages. As
with Joseph, the women believed that what he said was from God. Bennett
was not as careful as the others, however, and eventually
rumors of his practices and his past spread. He was facing fierce
public scrutiny and Joseph turned on him. He resigned as mayor and
voluntarily left the church. He then went on to write two
publications exposing Mormon polygamy and other practices. In the
journal of an LDS member, Areot Lucious Hale, is recorded this
account of the final years of John C. Bennett’s life, “The
Prophet Joseph predicted a curse on John C. Bennett. He told him if
he did not repent of his sins and sin no more, the curse of God
Almighty would rest upon him, that he would die a vagabond upon the
face of the earth, without friends to bury him. He told him that he
stunk of women. In the year 1850, President Young was speaking about
the matter. He said that he had watched the life of John C. Bennett.
Bennett went to California in the great gold fever excitement, that
Bennett died in one of the lowest slums of California, that he was
dragged out with his boots on, put into a cart, hauled off, and
dumped into a hole, a rotten mass of corruption. This prediction or
prophecy came to pass as well as many others that I heard the Prophet
Joseph make.” Unfortunately for Areot,
Brigham and Joseph, Brigham’s report of
Bennett’s demise was greatly exaggerated. He was, in fact, not
dead in 1850. “He
was alive and well, living in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Bennett
continued to practice medicine, breed chickens and cattle, promote
anti-slavery issues, served as a surgeon in the Union army and
re-married.”24 He
even created several breeds of chicken, including the Plymouth
Rock fowl, and published “The Poultry Book.”25 In
1867, he died at the age of 64 in Polk City, Iowa, where they
even named a street after him.26
Brigham
Young
tended
to
make
up faith promoting stories like that, as well as
stories fabricated to get the saints emotions riled up. I will
discuss that later in the Mormon Battalion section.
POLYGAMY
ONCE
AGAIN
CONDEMNED
After
Bennett’s stories started being printed in the papers, the Mormons
quickly began trying to dispel rumors. On October 1, 1842, the Times
and
Seasons,
published an article reiterating the standing verse on marriage in
the Doctrine and Covenants by stating, “Inasmuch
as this church of Christ has been reproached with the crime of
fornication, and polygamy: we declare that we believe, that one man
should have one wife; and one woman, but one husband, except in case
of death, when either is at liberty to marry again… We have given
the above rule of marriage as the only one practiced in this church,
to show that Dr. J. C. Bennett's "secret wife system" is a
matter of his own manufacture; and further to disabuse the public
ear, and shew [show] that the said Bennett and his misanthropic
friend Origen Bachelor, are perpetrating a foul and infamous slander
upon an innocent people, and need but be known to be hated and
despise.”27 This
article was undersigned by a number of men and this was followed by a
declaration from the women in the Relief Society
Presidency, “We
the undersigned members of the ladies' relief society, and married
females do certify and declare that we know of no system of marriage
being practised [practiced] in the church of Jesus Christ of Latter
Day Saints save the one contained in the Book of Doctrine and
Covenants, and we give this certificate to the public to show that J.
C. Bennett's "secret wife system" is a disclosure of his
own make.”28
EMMA
vs ELIZA SNOW
It
is interesting that both Emma Smith and Eliza R. Snow signed this
document. Emma Smith had already had a number of arguments with
Joseph about his relationships with other women and Eliza R. Snow had
married Joseph in June of that year and had begun living with the
Smiths in August. Emma may not have been aware at that time that
Joseph had married Eliza. In February of the next year, a few
accounts tell of a commotion between Emma and Eliza. Charles Rich
who may have been an eyewitness told his son this story, “A
door opposite opened and dainty, little, dark-haired Eliza R. Snow
(she was "heavy with child") came out . . . Joseph then
walked on to the stairway, where he tenderly kissed Eliza, and then
came on down stairs toward Brother Rich. Just as he reached the
bottom step, there was a commotion on the stairway, and both Joseph
and Brother Rich turned quickly to see Eliza come tumbling down the
stairs. Emma had pushed her, in a fit of rage and jealousy; she stood
at the top of the stairs, glowering, her countenance a picture of
hell. Joseph quickly picked up the little lady, and with her in his
arms, he turned and looked up at Emma, who then burst into tears and
ran to her room. Joseph carried the hurt and bruised Eliza up the
stairs and to her room. ‘Her hip was injured and that is why she
always afterward favored that leg,’ said Charles C. Rich. ‘She
lost the unborn babe.’”29
Wilhelm Wyle reported, “Eliza
Snow . . . used to be much at the prophet's house and "Sister
Emma" treated her as a confidential friend. Very much interested
in Joseph's errands, Emma used to send Eliza after him as a spy.
Joseph found it out, and, to win over the gifted young poetess, he
made her one of his celestial brides. There is scarcely a Mormon
unacquainted with the fact, that Sister Emma, on the other side, soon
found out the little compromise arranged between Joseph and Eliza.
Feeling outraged as a wife and betrayed as a friend, Emma is
currently reported as having had recourse to a vulgar broomstick as
an instrument of revenge; and the harsh treatment received at Emma's
hand is said to have destroyed Eliza's hopes of becoming the mother
of a prophet's son.”30 Mary
A. Barzee Boyce writes, “Emma
went upstairs and pulled Eliza R. Snow downstairs by the hair of her
head as she was staying there… It was rumored while I, M. A. Barzee
Boyce, was in Nauvoo that she got in such a rage about it that she
left home and went down to Quincy but came back again while I was
there.”31 There
are a couple of other similar accounts. Whatever happened
between Emma and Eliza, Eliza left the Smith household on February
11, 1843. All Eliza records in her journal is, “Took
board and had my lodging removed to the residence of br. Holmes.”32
EMMA
AND THE GOLD WATCH
Another
interesting tale involves the 16 year old Flora Ann Woodworth. Joseph
married her in the spring of 1843. It seems that Emma became
aware of Flora’s relationship with the 37 year old Joseph when she
recognized a gold watch that Flora had been given by Joseph. William
Clayton, Joseph’s aforementioned scribe writes, “President
Joseph told me that he had difficulty with E[mma] yesterday. She rode
up to Woodworths with him and called while he came to the Temple.
When he returned she was demanding the gold watch of F[lora]. He
reproved her for her evil treatment. On their return home she abused
him much and also when he got home. He had to use harsh measures to
put a stop to her abuse but finally succeeded.”33
EMMA
PRESSURED
TO
CONFORM
Poor
Emma was not liking Joseph’s actions one bit. She fought him and
fought him over it, but eventually she broke down for a short period.
When the temple ceremonies came out, Emma was not allowed to get her
endowment until she accepted polygamy. In fact, Joseph was producing
revelations calling Emma out on her reluctance. The Lord even
threatens Emma in the D&C 132 revelation on polygamy by saying,
“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; for I am the Lord
thy God, and will destroy her if she abide not in my law.”34 It
would be hard to not buckle under such pressure, especially if
you know that these revelations may eventually be printed for the
public to see. I also wonder if Joseph would explain plural marriage
in such a way that she believed it only meant being sealed together
in the eternal perspective, rather than a marriage on earth as well.
There is an interesting story of Joseph marrying the two Partridge
girls that closely follows these events:
Emily, sixteen, and
Eliza, twenty, looked to “hire out” as maids to help support
their family. Emily recalls, “The
first door that opened for us was to go to [President] Smiths, which
we accepted.”
Emily said she was “a
nurse girl, for they had a young baby...That is what I delighted in,
tending babies...Joseph and Emma were very kind to us; they were
almost like a father and mother, and I loved Emma and the children.” After a year in the Smith
home, Emily remembers: “...in
the spring of 1842...Joseph said to me one day, ‘Emily, if you will
not betray me, I will tell you something for your benefit.’ Of
course I would keep his secret...he asked me if I would burn it if he
would write me a letter. I began to think that was not the proper
thing for me to do and I was about as miserable as I ever would wish
to be...I went to my room and knelt down and asked my father in
heaven to direct me...[At Joseph’s insistence] I could not speak to
any one on earth...I received no comfort till I went back...to say I
could not take a private letter from him. He asked me if I
wished the matter ended. I said I did.”
Emily recalls, “he
said no more to me [for many months].” Soon after Emily refused
Joseph’s letter, Elizabeth Durfee, who
had married Joseph the previous year, invited Emily and Eliza to her
home. Emily recalls being tested, “She
introduced the subject of spiritual wives as they called it in that
day. She wondered if there was any truth in the report she heard. I
thought I could tell her something that would make her open her eyes
if I chose, but I did not choose to. I kept my own council and said
nothing.”
Emily later learned “that
Mrs. Durfee was a friend to plurality and knew all about it.”
On their walk home from Mrs. Durfee’s, Emily raised courage enough
to mention Joseph’s offer to her sister: “[Eliza]
felt very bad indeed for a short time, but it served to prepare her
to receive the principles that were revealed soon after.” Joseph approached Emily
again on February 28, 1843, her nineteenth
birthday. Emily said, “He
taught me this principle of plural marriage...but we called it
celestial marriage, and he told me that this principle had been
revealed to him but it was not generally known.”
A week later, “Mrs.
Durf[ee] came to me...and said Joseph would like an opportunity to
talk with me...I was to meet him in the evening at Mr. [Heber C.]
Kimballs.”
Not wanting to incur any suspicion, Emily didn’t change from the
dress she had been working in that day. “When
I got there nobody was at home but [the Kimball children] William and
Hellen Kimball...I did not wait long before Br. Kimball came in.”
Emily recalls that Heber and Joseph sent the Kimball children to a
neighbor’s home, and pretended to send Emily away as well: “I
started for home as fast as I could so as to get beyond being called
back, for I still dreaded the interview. Soon I heard Br. Kimball
call, ‘Emily, Emily’ rather low but loud enough for me to hear. I
thought at first I would not go back and took no notice of his
calling. But he kept calling and was about to overtake me so I
stopped and went back with him.” Back at the Kimball home,
Joseph spoke to Emily: “I
cannot tell all Joseph said, but he said the Lord had commanded [him]
to enter into plural marriage and had given me to him and although I
had got badly frightened he knew I would yet have him...Well I was
married there and then. Joseph went home his way and I going my way
alone. A strange way of getting married wasen’t it?”
Although they did not spend their wedding night together, the [16
year old] Emily said she “slept
with”
Joseph on other occasions. Joseph’s property caretaker in
Macedonia, Benjamin Johnson, remembers the couple traveling there,“The
prophet...Came and...ocupied the Same Room & Bed with...the
Daughter of the Late Bishop Partridge”. Four
days after his marriage to Emily, Joseph married Emily’s sister,
Eliza. The details of the proposal and marriage are sparse.
Eliza kept a journal but later burned it because it was “too
full”.
Years
later
she
wrote,“While
[living
in Joseph’s house] he taught to us the plan of Celestial
marriage and asked us to enter into that order with him. This was
truly a great trial for me but I had the most implicit confidence in
him as a Prophet of the Lord and [could] not but believe his words
and as a matter of course accept the privilege of being sealed to him
as a wife for time and all eternity.”
Of the marriages, Emily said, “neither
of us knew about the other at the time, everything was so secret.” About this time Joseph
introduced select men to the endowment
ceremony. He taught that it was necessary for exaltation.
Women would also be receiving the endowment and Joseph wanted his
wife, Emma, to be the “Elect
Lady”:
the
first
women
to
receive the endowment. She would then
disseminate it to the other women. The endowment requires a
wife to be obedient to her husband. Because Emma was resisting
plural marriage, Joseph would not let her participate in the
endowment, thus risking her own exaltation as well as delaying
ceremonial endowments for other women. Carrying this burden,
Emma agreed to let Joseph marry additional wives; provided she could
select them. Unaware of their marriage to Joseph months
earlier, Emma selected her live-in helpers, Emily and Eliza.
Emily recalls, “I
do not know why she gave us to him, unless she thought we were where
she could watch us better...”
Emily continued, “To
save the family trouble Brother Joseph thought it best to have
another ceremony performed...[Emma] had her feelings, and so we
thought there was no use in saying anything about it so long as she
had chosen us herself...Accordingly...we were sealed to JS a second
time, in Emma’s presence.”
Within a week, Emma received her endowment. But Emma’s surrender
waned. Emily remembers: “We
remained in the family several months after this...She sent for us
one day to come to her room. Joseph was present, looking like a
martyr. Emma said some very hard things ...She would rather her blood
would run...than be polluted in this manner...Joseph came to us and
shook hands with us, and the understanding was that all was ended
between us.”35
I
wonder if Emma’s change of heart was when she realized that Joseph
sealing himself to the Partridge girls was more than just a sealing
in heaven.
SHARING
A
BED
A
month later, Joseph took his 22nd
wife, Almera Johnson. He accomplished this through his close
associate, Benjamin Johnson. As mentioned in the paragraph above, he
was Joseph’s property manager in Macedonia, Illinois. Benjamin
relates the encounter, “[One
morning Joseph said] ‘Come brother Bennie, let us have a walk’.
[As we walked Joseph explained] that the Lord had revealed to him
that plural....marriage was according to His law; [and] had commanded
him to obey it...He had Come now to ask me for my Sister Almera - His
words astonished me and almost took my breath – I Sat for a time
amazed...[I could not] comprehend anything. I....Said: ‘Brother
Joseph This is something I did not Expect...You know whether it is
right. I do not. I want to do just as you tell me.”36
Benjamin tried to convince Almera, but he was unable to do so. “So
Joseph asked Benjamin to bring Almera to Nauvoo. “...my
sister accompanied me to Nauvoo, where at my sister Delcena’s we
soon met the Prophet with his brother Hyrum and William Clayton”
Hyrum spoke to Almera: “I
know that Joseph was comanded to take more wives and he waited Untill
an Angel with drawn Sword Stood before him and declared that if [he]
longer delayed fulfilling that command he would Slay him...The Lord
has revealed the principle of plural marriage to me and I know that
it is true. I will have you for a sister, and you will be
blest.”37 The
two were sealed together and Joseph asked that she and her brother
stay in the Nauvoo Mansion. They did so for three weeks and then
returned to their home. Three weeks later, Joseph paid a visit to
the Johnsons in Macedonia. Benjamin reports, “The
Prphet again Came and at my house occupied the Same Room & Bed
with my Sister that the month previous he had occupied with the
Daughter of the Late Bishop Partridge...”38
Benjamin also wrote, perhaps referring to the same occassion, “Soon
after this he was at my house again, where he occupied my Sister
Almira's room and bed, and also asked me for my youngest sister,
Esther M. I told him she was promised in marriage to my wife's
brother.”39
14
YEAR
OLD
BRIDE
I
will only tell one more story of a girl accepting Joseph’s
proposals. One of the last wives Joseph took was the 14 year old
Helen Mar Kimball to be his wife. (I would now like to point out
that, by this time, the 37 year old Joseph had a 12 year old daughter
with Emma. A 12 year old daughter! And he’s marrying a 14 year
old! Does that not raise any red flags for anyone?!?) Helen was the
daughter of Heber C. Kimball, and Joseph used Heber, who had already
taken a second wife, to convince Helen to marry him. Helen later
writes:
Without
any preliminaries [my Father] asked me if I would believe him if he
told me that it was right for married men to take other wives...The
first impulse was anger...my sensibilities were painfully touched. I
felt such a sense of personal injury and displeasure; for to mention
such a thing to me I thought altogether unworthy of my father, and as
quick as he spoke, I replied to him, short and emphatically, ‘No I
wouldn’t!’...This was the first time that I ever openly
manifested anger towards him...Then he commenced talking seriously
and reasoned and explained the principle, and why it was again to be
established upon the earth. [This] had a similar effect to a sudden
shock of a small earthquake.” Then
father “asked
me
if
I
would
be sealed to Joseph...[and] left me to reflect upon it
for the next twenty-four hours...I was sceptical-one minute believed,
then doubted. I thought of the love and tenderness that he felt for
his only daughter, and I knew that he would not cast her off, and
this was the only convincing proof that I had of its being right. I
knew that he loved me too well to teach me anything that was not
strictly pure, virtuous and exalting in its tendencies; and no one
else could have influenced me at that time or brought me to accept of
a doctrine so utterly repugnant and so contrary to all of our former
ideas and traditions. Unknown
to Helen Mar, Heber and Joseph had already discussed the prospect of
Helen Mar becoming one of Joseph’s wives. Heber now sought
her agreement. Helen recalls, “Having
a great desire to be connected with the Prophet Joseph, he offered me
to him; this I afterwards learned from the Prophet’s own mouth. My
father had but one Ewe (female) Lamb, but willingly laid her upon the
alter.” The
next morning Joseph visited the Kimball home. "[He
explained] the principle of Celestial marrage...After which he said
to me, ‘If you will take this step, it will ensure your eternal
salvation & exaltation and that of your father’s household &
all of your kindred.[‘] This promise was so great that I willingly
gave myself to purchase so glorious a reward. None but God & his
angels could see my mother’s bleeding heart-when Joseph asked her
if she was willing...She had witnessed the sufferings of others, who
were older & who better understood the step they were taking, &
to see her child, who had scarcely seen her fifteenth summer,
following in the same thorny path, in her mind she saw the misery
which was as sure to come...; but it was all hidden from me.”
Helen’s mother reluctantly agreed and in May of 1843, Helen married
Joseph Smith.40
Helen
Later said,
"I would never have been sealed to Joseph had I known it was
anything more than ceremony. I was young, and they deceived me, by
saying the salvation of our whole family depended on it.”41 I
find this to be an interesting point since I think if we went by what
the church teaches today, it does not matter who is sealed to whom,
salvation is dependent upon an individual’s actions. It seems
rather ridiculous to tell a girl that she and her whole family will
be saved if that girl will agree to marry you.
Helen’s
father, Heber C. Kimball, would eventually marry thirty-nine wives.
Helen saw what torment it was causing her mother and she wrote, “I
had, in hours of temptation when seeing the trials of my mother, felt
to rebel. I hated polygamy in my heart.
”42 Later,
Helen became ill and, at some point during her illness, took this as
a sign that she was being chastised by God for not accepting
polygamy. In my opinion, Helen interpreted things incorrectly, but
to her it was God’s punishment. I wonder if similar stories can be
found among current polygamist sects, like the Warren Jeff’s group
–where the girls hate the idea of marrying a much older man, but
finally concede to it under great stress and pressure; they find it
easier to just accept it as a practice ordained of God than to fight
it.
CONTINUING
DECEIT
Remember
that
all
of
this
was happening while Joseph and others practicing
polygamy were swearing over and over again that they had nothing to
do with polygamy. The polygamy revelation of 1843 was not included
in the Doctrine and Covenants for 30 years. Until 1876, this verse
was still found in the Doctrine and Covenants, “Inasmuch as
this Church of Christ has been reproached with the crime of
fornication and polygamy, we declare that we believe that one man
should have one wife, and one woman but one husband, except in the
case of death, when either is at liberty to marry again.”
WOMEN
WHO SAID “NO”
Not
everyone was so inclined to acquiesce to Joseph’s marriage
requests. A few brave women said no. I am sure this would have been
hard to do considering the sacrifices they had already made to be
where they were, the pressure Joseph put on them, as well as the
celebrity status that Joseph held. These women were ridiculed,
slandered and defamed by Joseph and the church, but I commend them
for their courage.
Sarah
Pratt
Sarah
Pratt was married to Orson Pratt in 1836. Around 1840-1841, while
her husband was on a mission in England, she was approached by Joseph
Smith to be one of his wives. He is said to have declared, “Sister
Pratt, the Lord has given you to me as one of my spiritual
wives.
I
have
the
blessings
of Jacob granted me, as he granted holy men of
old, and I have long looked upon you with favor, and hope you will
not repulse or deny me.”43 Sarah
Pratt is said to have responded with, “Am
I called upon to break the marriage covenant … to my lawful
husband! I never will. I care not for the blessings of Jacob, and I
believe in NO SUCH revelations, neither will I consent under any
circumstances. I have one good husband, and that is enough for me.”44 As
with others that he convinced to marry him, he did not give up on
the first refusal. It is said that he tried again a few times and
finally Sarah told him, “Joseph,
if you ever attempt any thing of the kind with me again, I will tell
Mr. Pratt on his return home. Depend upon it, I will certainly do
it.”45 To
this Joseph was said to have threatened to ruin her reputation if
she exposed him. He is stated to have said, “Sister
Pratt, I hope you will not expose me; if I am to suffer, all suffer;
so do not expose me.... If you should tell, I will ruin your
reputation, remember that.”46
After Orson came home, but before anything was said to him, Joseph
had another meeting with Sarah in which an argument broke out. A
neighbor reports, “Sarah
ordered the Prophet out of the house, and the Prophet used obscene
language to her [declaring that he had found Bennett] in bed with
her.”47 After
this, Sarah told her husband about Joseph’s advances. Orson
Pratt became angry and confronted Joseph about it. He told Orson
that he had made no such advances and instead accused Sarah of lying
to cover up her adulterous activities with John C. Bennett and that
he could get a half a dozen affidavits saying so. Orson did not
believe Joseph and he and his wife left the church. In order to
contain any rumors that he was practicing plural marriage, Joseph
obtained those affidavits that he threatened to get and they were
printed in the Nauvoo
Wasp. One of the women who
signed an affidavit against Sarah Pratt was a
woman that Sarah had stayed with while Orson was on a mission. Sarah
stated that she went to her afterwards to confront her about the
charges and the woman sobbed, “It
is not my fault; Hyrum Smith came to our house, with the affidavits
all written out, and forced us to sign them. 'Joseph
and the Church must be saved,'
said he. We saw that resistance was useless, they would have ruined
us; so we signed the papers.”48
After
the falling out between Joseph and the Pratts, many cruel things were
said about Sarah. As an example, in the Sangamo
Journal
it was printed that Joseph publicly stated that Sarah Pratt was a
“whore
since
her
mother’s
breast.”49
It
is interesting to see the backlash received by those who dared to say
no to Joseph. He acts shocked that anyone would have the audacity to
accuse him of polygamy and, even worse, marrying another man’s
wife. The false anger that he shows is outrageous considering the
fact that, during his life, he married 34 or so women and teenagers,
11 of which were already married to other men. Umm…what’s so
shocking about the accusation? I would consider it a pattern.
After
leaving the church, Orson Pratt is said to have gone through a kind
of nervous breakdown and may have even contemplated suicide.50 The
trauma on his system must have been too much and Orson went back
to the church and was reinstated as an Apostle. This must have torn
Sarah up inside. I do not know why, perhaps because women did not
have as much control of their lives as they do now, perhaps because
she still loved her husband, perhaps for the sake of their children,
perhaps because she didn’t know where else to go, whatever the
reason, she followed her husband. It must have wounded her even more
when Orson started taking plural wives of his own. What an insult. She
had been slandered, defamed and condemned for accusing Joseph of
practicing polygamy and here was her husband practicing the same. She
lived with Orson until 1868 when Sarah had finally had enough. In that
year, Orson married the 16 year old Martha Graham.51
Martha was younger than 13 of Orson’s children! Sarah and Orson’s
oldest son was 31 years old and the Apostle Orson Pratt married a 16
year old. He had a kid twice her age! Sarah was disgusted with the
whole thing and left. She stated, “Here
was my husband, gray headed, taking to his bed young girls in mockery
of marriage. Of course there could be no joy for him in such an
intercourse except for the indulgence of his fanaticism and of
something else, perhaps, which I hesitate to mention.”52 Sarah
helped found the Anti-Polygamy Society in Utah and in 1874,
she was excommunicated from the church. In 1875, she stated “I
am the wife of Orson Pratt...I was formerly a member of the Mormon
church...I have not been a believer in the Mormon doctrines for
thirty years, and am now considered an apostate, I believe.”53 Sarah
died in 1888. I think she was fantastic.
Nancy
Rigdon
The
19 year old Nancy Rigdon was another that rejected Joseph’s
proposals. Nancy Rigdon was the daughter of Sidney Rigdon, so it
probably should not come as a surprise that she rejected Joseph’s
advances, knowing Sidney’s feelings about polygamy. Joseph had
Nancy meet him at the house of Orson Hyde. When she arrived, he took
her into a private room, swore her to secrecy and declared that he
had felt “affection
for her for several years, and wished that she should be his...the
Lord was well pleased with this matter...here was no sin in it
whatever...but, if she had any scruples of conscience about the
matter, he would marry her privately.”54 Nancy
was shocked and very forcibly turned down his offer. Joseph
then called in Mrs. Hyde to help win Nancy over. “Hyde volunteered
that she too was surprised upon first hearing of the tenet, but was
convinced it was true, and that ‘great exaltation would come to
those who received and embraced it.’ Incredulous, Nancy countered
that ‘if she ever got married she would marry a single man or none
at all.’ Grabbing her bonnet, she ordered the door opened or she
would ‘raise the neighbors.’”55
Joseph sent a letter to Nancy Rigdon the next day, calling on God to
convince her to marry him. In it are many quotes used by the church
in lesson manuals, although it is never explained to be part of a
letter written to convince a 19 year old to marry a man who already
had many wives. Such quotes as “That which is wrong under one
circumstance, may be, and often is, right under another,” and
“Whatever God requires is right, no matter what it is…” He
goes on to say that, “Blessings offered, but rejected, are no
longer blessings, but become like the talent hid in the earth by the
wicked and slothful servant.” Nancy was not won over by his
letter. When Nancy tells her father about Joseph’s attempt at
marrying her, Sidney became enraged and confronted him. They entered
an argument over it, but Sidney was continually in a sticky
situation. He did not like the direction Joseph was taking the
church in, but if Sidney truly penned the Book of Mormon, than the
two of them were bound together by their shared secret. Sidney had
to be careful because exposing Joseph meant exposing himself. Nancy
was slandered and defamed like the others that went public with their
knowledge of polygamy. Orson Hyde later referred to Nancy as a “poor
miserable girl out of the very slough of prostitution.”56
Martha
Brotherton
Martha
Brotherton was an 18 year old from Manchester, England. She joined
the church in England with her father, mother and two sisters. They
came to the Nauvoo area in late 1841. I will let Martha tell her own
account of events:
I
had been at Nauvoo near three weeks, during which time my father's
family received frequent visits from Elders Brigham Young and Heber
C. Kimball, two of the Mormon Apostles; when, early one morning, they
both came to my brother-in-law's (John Mcllwrick's) house, at which
place I then was on a visit, and particularly requested me to go and
spend a few days with them. I told them I could not at that time, as
my brother-in-law was not at home; however, they urged me to go the
next day, and spend one day with them. The day being fine, I
accordingly went. When I arrived at the foot of the hill, Young and
Kimball were standing conversing together. They both came to me, and,
after several flattering compliments, Kimball wished me to go to his
house first. I said it was immaterial to me, and accordingily went.
We had not, however, gone many steps when Young suddenly stopped, and
said he would go to that brother's, (pointing to a little log hut a
few yards distant,) and tell him that you (speaking to Kimball) and
brother Glover, or Grover, (I do not remember which,) will value his
land. When he had gone, Kimball turned to me and said, "Martha,
I want you to say to my wife, when you go to my house, that you want
to buy some things at Joseph's store, and I will say I am going with
you, to show you the way. You know you want to see the Prophet, and
you will then have an opportunity."
I made no reply. Young again made his appearance, and the subject was
dropped. We soon reached Kimball's house, where Young took his leave,
saying, "I
shall
see
you
again,
Martha."
I
remained at Kimball's near an hour, when Kimball, seeing that I
would not tell the lies he wished me to, told them to his wife
himself. He then went and whispered in her ear, and asked if that
would please her. "Yes,"
said she, "or
I
can
go
along
with you and Martha."
"No,"
said he, "I
have
some
business
to
do, and I will call for you afterwards to go
with me to the debate,"
meaning the debate between [Dr. Bennett] and Joseph. To this she
consented. So Kimball and I went to the store together. As we were
going along, he said, "Sister
Martha, are you willing to do all that the Prophet requires you to
do?"
I said I believed I was, thinking of course he
would require nothing wrong. "Then,"
said he, "are
you
ready
to
take
counsel?"
I answered in the affirmative, thinking of the great and glorious
blessings that had been pronounced upon my head, if I adhered to the
counsel of those placed over me in the Lord."Well,"
said he, "there
are
many
things
revealed
in these last days that the world would
laugh and scoff at; but unto us is given to know the mysteries of the
kingdom."
He
further
observed,
"Martha,
you
must
learn
to hold your tongue, and it will be well with you. You
will see Joseph, and very likely have some conversation with him, and
he will tell you what you shall do."
When we reached the building [Joseph's store], he led me up some
stairs to a small room, the door of which was locked, and on it the
following inscription: "Positively
no admittance."
He observed, "Ah!
brother Joseph must be sick, for, strange to say, he is not here.
Come down into the tithing-office, Martha."
He then left me in the tithing-office, and went out, I know not
where. In this office were two men writing, one of whom, William
Clayton, I had seen in England; the other I did not know. Young came
in, and seated himself before me, and asked where Kimball was. I said
he had gone out. He said it was all right. Soon after, Joseph came
in, and spoke to one of the clerks, and then went up stairs, followed
by Young. Immediately after, Kimball came in. "Now,
Martha,"
said
he,
"the
Prophet
has come; come up stairs."
I went, and we found Young and the Prophet alone. I was introduced to
the Prophet by Young. Joseph offered me his seat, and, to my
astonishment, the moment I was seated, Joseph and Kimball walked out
of the room, and left me with Young, who arose, locked the door,
closed the window, and drew the curtain. He then came and sat before
me, and said, "This
is our private room, Martha."
"Indeed,
sir,"
said I, "I
must
be
highly
honored
to be permitted to enter it."
He smiled, and then proceeded—"Sister
Martha, I want to ask you a few questions; will you answer them?"
"Yes
sir,"
said I. "And
will
you
promise
not
to mention them to any one?"
"If
it is your desire, sir,"
said I, "I
will
not."
"And
you will not think any the worse of me for it, will you Martha?"
said he. "No,
sir"
I replied. "Well,"
said he, "what
are
your
feelings
towards
me?"
I replied, "My feelings
are just the same towards you that they ever were, sir."
"But,
to come to the point more closely,"
said he, "have
not
you
an
affection
for me, that, were it lawful and right, you
could accept of me for your husband and companion?"
My feelings at that moment were indescribable. God only knows them.
What, thought I, are these men, that I thought almost perfection
itself, deceivers!
and is all my fancied happiness but a dream? 'Twas even so; but my
next thought was, which is the best way for me to act at this time?
If I say no, they may do as they think proper; and to say yes, I
never would. So I considered it best to ask for time to think and
pray about it. I therefore said, "If
it was lawful and right, perhaps I might; but you know, sir, it is
not."
"Well,
but,"
said he, "brother
Joseph
has
had
a
revelation from God that it is lawful and right for
a man to have two wives; for as it was in the days of Abraham, so it
shall be in these last days, and whoever is the first that is willing
to take up the cross will receive the greatest blessings; and if you
will accept of me, I will take you straight to the celestial kingdom;
and if you will have me in this world, I will have you in that which
is to come, and brother Joseph will marry us here to-day, and you can
go home this evening, and your parents will not know any thing about
it."
"Sir,"
said I, "I
should
not
like
to
do any thing of the kind without the permission of
my parents."
"Well,
but,"
said he, "you
are
of
age,
are
you not?"
"No,
sir,"
said I, "I
shall
not
be
until
the 24th of May."
"Well,"
said he, "that
does
not
make
any
difference. You will be of age before they know,
and you need not fear. If you will take my counsel, it will be well
with you, for I know it to be right before God, and if there is any
sin in it, I will answer for it. But brother Joseph wishes to have
some talk with you on the subject—he will explain things—will you
hear him?"
"I
do not mind,"
said I. "Well,
but
I
want
you
to say something,"
said he. "I
want
time
to
think
about it,"
said I. "Well,"
said he, "I
will
have
a
kiss,
any how",
and
then rose, and said he would bring Joseph. He then unlocked the
door, and took the key, and locked me up alone. He was absent about
ten minutes, and then returned with Joseph. "Well,"
said Young, "sister
Martha would be willing if she knew it was lawful and right before
God."
"Well,
Martha,"
said
Joseph,
"it
is
lawful and right before God—I know it is. Look here, sis; don't
you believe in me?"
I did not answer. "Well,
Martha,"
said
Joseph,
"justgo
ahead,
and do as Brigham wants you to—he is the best man in the
world, except me."
"O!"
said Brigham, "then
you are as good."
"Yes,"
said Joseph. "Well,"
said Young, "we
believe Joseph to be a Prophet. I have known him near eight years,
and always found him the same"
"Yes,"
said Joseph, "and
I know that this is lawful and right before God, and if there is any
sin in it, I will answer for it before God; and I have the keys of
the kingdom, and whatever I bind on earth is bound in heaven, and
whatever I loose on earth is loosed in heaven, and if you will accept
of Brigham, you shall be blessed—God shall bless you, and my
blessing shall rest upon you; and if you will be led by him, you will
do well; for I know Brigham will take care of you, and if he don't do
his duty to you, come to me, and I will make him; and if you do not
like it in a month or two, come to me, and I will make you free
again; and if he turns you off, I will take you on."
"Sir,"
said I, rather warmly, "it
will be too late to think in a month or two after. I want time to
think first."
"Well,
but,"
said he, "the
old
proverb
is,
"Nothing
ventured, nothing gained;" and it
would be the greatest blessing that was ever bestowed upon you."
"Yes,"
said Young, "and
you will never have reason to repent it—that is, if I do not turn
from righteousness, and that I trust I never shall; for I believe
God, who has kept me so long, will continue to keep me faithful. Did
you ever see me act in any way wrong in England, Martha?"
"No,
sir,"
said I. "No,"
said he; "neither
can
any
one
else
lay any thing to my charge."
"Well,
then,"
said
Joseph,
"what
areyou
afraid
of,
sis? Come, let me do the business for you."
"Sir,"
said I, "do
let
me
have
a
little time to think about it, and I will promise not
to mention it to any one."
"Well,
but look here,"
said he; "you
know
a
fellow
will
never be damned for doing the best he knows how."
"Well,
then,"
said
I,
"the
best
way I know of, is to go home and think and pray about it."
"Well,"
said Young, "I
shall leave it with .brother Joseph, whether it would be best for you
to have time or not."
"Well,"
said Joseph, "I
see no harm in her having time to think, if she will not fall into
temptation."
"O,
sir,"
said I, "there
is
no
fear
of
my falling into temptation."
"Well,
but,"
said Brigham, "you
must promise me you will never mention it to anyone."
"I
do promise it,"
said I. "Well,"
said Joseph, "you
must promise me the same."
I promised him the same. "Upon
your honor,"
said he, "you
will
not
tell?"
"No,
sir, I will lose my life first,"
said I. "Well,
that
will
do,"
said
he; "that
is
the
principle
we
go upon. I think I can trust you, Martha,"
said he. "Yes,"
said I, "I
think
you
ought."
Joseph
said,
"She
looks
as if she could keep a secret."
I then rose to go, when Joseph commenced to beg of me again. He said
it was the best opportunity they might have for months, for the room
was often engaged. I, however, had determined what to do. "Well,"
said Young, "I
will see you tomorrow. I am going to preach at the school-house,
opposite your house. I have never preached there yet; you will be
there, I suppose."
"Yes,"
said I.—The next day being Sunday, I sat down, instead of going to
meeting, and wrote the conversation, and gave it to my sister, who
was not a little surprised; but she said it would be best to go to
meeting in the afternoon. We went, and Young administered the
sacrament. After it was over, I was passing out, and Young stopped
me, saying, "Wait,Martha,
I
am
coming."
I
said,
"I
cannot;
my
sister is waiting for me."
He then threw his coat over his shoulders, and followed me out, and
whispered, "Have
you made up your mind, Martha?"
"Not
exactly, sir,"
said I; and we parted.57
Martha
had this account legally notarized and it was first published in theSt.
Louis Bulletin. Following its publication,
the church once again started sending out
affidavits declaring that polygamy was not practiced among the saints
and that Martha Brotherton was a liar. In response to Martha’s
affidavit, an Elder in the church declared that “such
evidence was given by prostitutes.”58 The
statement on the matter that most gets my blood boiling by the
depths of its deception is an article written in the Millennial
Star,
the church paper in England, trying to convince people there that
they should not be afraid to join the church, that they should come
to America and not be deceived by the lies being told by Martha. I
am offended by what it says about Martha. I am offended by the
willful lies about polygamy. I am offended by it being one of the
worst pieces of twisted, self-righteous propaganda that I have ever
read:
Apostacy.—The spirit
of apostacy has been quite prevalent of late, principally among those
who have emigrated from England to America....
Among the most
conspicuous of these apostates, we would notice a young female who
emigrated from Manchester in September last [1841], and who, after
conducting herself in a manner unworthy the character of one
professing godliness, at length conceived the plan of gaining
friendship and extraordinary notoriety with the world, or rather with
the enemies of truth, by striking a blow at the character of some of
its worthiest champions. She well knew that this would be received as
a sweet morsel by her old friends, the Methodists, and other enemies
of the Saints. She accordingly selected president J. [Joseph] Smith,
and elder B. [Brigham] Young for her victims, and wrote to England
that these men had been trying to seduce her, by making her believe
that God had given a revelation that men might have two wives; by
these disreputable means she thought to overthrow the Saints here, or
at least to bring a storm of persecution on them, and prevent others
from joining them; but in this thing she was completely deceived by
Satan....
But, for the
information of those who may be assailed by those foolish tales about
the two wives, we would say that no such principle ever existed among
the Latter-day Saints, and never will; this is well known to all who
are acquainted with our books and actions, the Book of Mormon,
Doctrine and Covenants; and also all our periodicals are very strict
and explicit on that subject, indeed far more so than the bible.59
It
gets my blood boiling just to read it. The only bit of truth in it
is that the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants and all the church
periodicals were indeed strictly and explicitly against polygamy. This
article was written by Parley P. Pratt, who had already married
his second wife by this time and would marry two more women in the
next two years. In total, Parley Pratt would have at least twelve
wives and, adding a bit of irony to the situation, it is interesting
that he would write such an article and later end up being killed by
a man that was angry at Parley for stealing his wife and kids.
Poor
Martha’s name was dragged through the mud like all the rest. As a
last insult to Martha’s memory, Brigham Young had her sealed to him
on August 1, 1870, after she had passed away.
MORE
DENIAL OF POLYGAMY
At
this point, I would like Sidney Rigdon’s words read again, “It
is a fact so well known that the Twelve and their adherents have
endeavored to carry on this spiritual wife business … and have gone
to the most shameful and desperate lengths to keep from the public.
First, insulting innocent females, and when they resented the insult,
these monsters in human shape would assail their characters by lying,
and perjuries, with a multitude of desperate men to help them effect
the ruin of those whom they insulted, and all this to enable them to
keep these corrupt practices from the world.” That
is truly what they did. I would also like to add this verse
from their own book of scriptures, the Book of Mormon, “Wo
unto the liar, for he shall be thrust down to hell.”60
TheTimes
and Seasons
published an editorial on March 15, 1843, stating, “We
are charged with advocating a plurality of wives, and common
property. Now this is as false as the many other ridiculous charges
which are brought against us. No sect has a greater reverence for
the laws of matrimony…we do what others do not, we practice what we
preach.”61
Joseph
Smith continued to publicly deny the practice of polygamy. Willard
Richards, another scribe for Joseph Smith, records in Joseph’s
diary on 5 October 1843 that Joseph “gave
instructions to try those who were preaching, teaching, or practicing
the doctrine of plurality of wives...Joseph forbids it and the
practice thereof. No man shall have but one wife.”62 When
added to the History of the Church, these words were changed to
say, “Gave
instructions to try those persons who were preaching, teaching, or
practicing the doctrine of plurality of wives; for, according to the
law, I hold the keys of this power in the last days; for there is
never but one on earth at a time on whom the power and its keys are
conferred; and
I have constantly said no man shall have but one wife at a time,
unless the Lord directs otherwise.”63 A
very convenient change for the saints in Utah practicing polygamy
and wishing to preserve the name of their prophet.
WILLIAM
LAW
REBELS
In
late 1843, Joseph Smith decided to tell William Law, counselor in his
First Presidency, about polygamy. Before being aware of the
practice, William had defended Joseph many times, stating that he
believed him to be a virtuous man. In an interview in 1887, William
Law tells the story of how he found out about the practice:
“What
do you know about the revelation on polygamy?"
"The
way I heard of it was that Hyrum gave it to me to read. I was never
in a High Council where it was read, all stories to the contrary
notwithstanding. Hyrum gave it to me in his office, told me to take
it home and read it and then be careful with it and bring it back
again. I took it home, and read it and showed it to my wife. She and
I were just turned upside down by it; we did not know what to do. I
said to my wife, that I would take it over to Joseph and ask him
about it. I did not believe that he would acknowledge it, and I said
so to my wife. But she was not of my opinion. She felt perfectly sure
that he would father it. When I came to Joseph and showed him the
paper, he said: 'Yes, that is a genuine revelation.' I said to the
prophet: 'But in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants there is a
revelation just the contrary of this.' 'Oh,'
said Joseph, 'that
was given when the church was in its infancy, then it was all right
to feed the people on milk, but now it is necessary to give them
strong meat' We
talked a long time about it, finally our discussion became very hot
and we gave it up. From that time on the breach between us became
more open and more decided every day, after having been prepared for
a long time. But the revelation gave the finishing touch to my doubts
and showed me clearly that he was a rascal. I took the revelation
back to my wife and told her that Joseph had acknowledged it. 'That
is what I fully expected.' said she. 'What shall we do?' said I. She
advised me to keep still try to sell my property quietly for what I
could get. But I did not follow her advice. My heart was burning. I
wanted to tread upon the viper.”64
It
is interesting to note that Joseph’s own counselor was unaware of
the practice of polygamy for some time when two revelations received
in 1830 and found in the Doctrine and Covenants had stated, “For
all things must be done in order, and by common consent in the
church, by the prayer of faith”65
and “And
all things shall be done by common consent in the church, by much
prayer and faith…”66
The
encounters between William and Joseph became more heated as the
months went on. In January of 1844, he was informed that he was no
longer a counselor in the First Presidency. William demanded that
his case be heard, since the standard procedures for removal from the
First Presidency were not followed. He was given another hearing,
but again was unsatisfied with the proceedings, but was informed the
next day that he was excommunicated. This did not end their
encounters. The debate between the two increased. Even while these
debates continued Joseph was still publicly denying polygamy. On
February 1st,
this notice of excommunication was published in the Times
and Seasons,
“As
we have lately been credibly informed that an elder of the church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, by the name of Hyrum Brown, has
been preaching polygamy and other false and corrupt doctrines, in the
county of Lapeer, Stat of Michigan, this is to notify him, and the
Church in general, that he has been cut off from the Church for his
iniquity…(Signed) Joseph Smith, and Hyrum Smith, Presidents of said
Church.”67
The
rift between William Law and Joseph continued to grow. William Law
and others even form another church called the True Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-Day Saints. On May 13, 1844 William writes in his
diary, “[Joseph]
ha[s] lately endeavored to seduce my wife, and ha[s] found her a
virtuous woman.”68 In a
public meeting the Laws spoke out. “'The
Prophet had made dishonorable proposals to [my] wife . . . under
cover of his asserted 'Revelation,' " Law stated. He further
explained thatJoseph
came to the Law home in the middle of the night when William was
absent and told Jane that "the Lord had commanded that he should
take spiritual wives, to add to his glory." Law then called on
his wife to corroborate what he had said. She did so and further
explained that Joseph had "asked her to give him half her love;
she was at liberty to keep the other half for her husband" Jane
refused the Prophet.”69 On
May 4th,
William and Jane Law, as well as a man named Austin Cowles, went
before the Justice of the Peace Robert D. Foster and signed these
affidavits.70
“I
hereby certify that Hyrum Smith did, (in his office) read to me a
certain written document, which he said was a revelation from God, he
said that he was with Joseph when it was received. He afterwards gave
me the document to read, and I took it to my house, and read it, and
showed it to my wife, and returned it next day. The revelation (so
called) authorized certain men to have more wives than one at a time,
in this world and in the world to come.”
(Signed)
William Law
“I
certify that I read the revelation referred to in the above affidavit
of my husband, it sustained in strong terms the doctrine of more
wives that one at a time, in this world, and in the next, it
authorized some to have to the number of ten, and set forth that
those women who would not allow their husbands to have more wives
than one should be under condemnation before God.”
(Signed)
Jane Law
“In
the latter part of the summer, 1843, the Patriarch, Hyrum Smith, did
in the High Council, of which I was a member, introduce what he said
was a revelation given through the Prophet; that the said Hyrum Smith
did essay to read the said revealtion in the said Council, that
according to his reading there was contained the following doctrines;
lst the sealing up of persons to eternal life, against all sins, save
that of sheding innocent blood or of consenting thereto; 2nd, the
doctrine of a plurality of wives, or marrying virgins; that "David
and Solomon had many wives, yet in this they sinned not save in the
matter of Uriah. This revelation with other evidence, that the
aforesaid heresies were taught and practiced in the Church;
determined me to leave the office of first counsellor to the
president of the Church at Nauvoo, inasmuch as I dared not teach or
administer such laws. And further deponent saith not.”
(Signed)
Austin Cowles
JOSEPH
RESPONDS TO ALLEGATIONS OF POLYGAMY
On
the 23rd
of May 1844, William files a formal complaint with the Hancock County
circuit court. As polygamy was against that law, he charges Joseph
Smith with “living in an open state of adultery” with Maria
Lawrence.71
(Joseph had married Maria and her younger sister Sarah a year
before. Their father had died and they were living in the Smith’s
home when Joseph married them. It was common for him to have
relations with the girls that came to live with him.)72 In
response to this formal charge, the History of the Church has an
account of Joseph’s testimony before a church High Council. Joseph
bore this testimony 3 days after William Law filed his formal
complaint. I will put a lot of it down here, because I believe that
his testimony is truly astonishing. I think it says a lot about what
Joseph thought of himself and a lot about his character.
“My
object is to let you know that I am right here on the spot where I
intend to stay. I, like Paul, have been in perils, and oftener than
anyone in this generation. As Paul boasted, I have suffered more than
Paul did. I should be like a fish out of water, if I were out of
persecutions. Perhaps my brethren think it requires all this to keep
me humble. The Lord has constituted me so curiously that I glory in
persecution. I am not nearly so humble as if I were not
persecuted.
If oppression will make a wise man mad, much more a fool. If they
want a beardless boy to whip all the world, I will get on the top of
a mountain and crow like a rooster: I shall always beat them. When
facts are proved, truth and innocence will prevail at last. My
enemies are no philosophers: they think that when they have my spoke
under, they will keep me down; but for the fools, I will hold on and
fly over them.
God
is in the still small voice.
In all these affidavits, indictments, it is all of the devil--all
corruption. Come on! ye prosecutors! ye false swearers! All hell,
boil over! Ye burning mountains, roll down your lava! for I will come
out on the top at last. I
have more to boast of than ever any man had.I am
the only man that has ever been able to keep a whole church together
since the days of
Adam.
A large majority of the whole have stood by me. Neither
Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast that no man ever
did such a work as I. The followers of Jesus ran away from Him; but
the Latter-day Saints never ran away from me yet. You know
my daily walk and conversation. I am in the bosom of a virtuous and
good people. How I do love to hear the wolves howl! When they
can get rid of me, the devil will also go…my enemies cannot prove
anything against me.”
Is
anyone else uncomfortable with what he just said?
Continuing,
he
begins
to
mock
William Law,
“Another
indictment
has
been
got
up against me. It appears a holy prophet has
arisen up, and he has testified against me: the reason is, he is so
holy. The Lord knows I do not care how many churches are in the
world. As many as believe me, may. If the doctrine that I preach is
true, the tree must be good. I have prophesied things that have come
to pass, and can still.
Inasmuch as there is a
new church, this must be old, and of course we ought to be set down
as orthodox. From henceforth let all the churches now no longer
persecute orthodoxy. I never built upon any other man's ground. I
never told the old Catholic that he was a fallen true prophet God
knows, then. that the charges against me are false.
I had not been
married scarcely five minutes, and made one proclamation of the
Gospel, before it was reported that I had seven wives.
I mean to live and proclaim the truth as long as I can.
This new holy prophet
[William Law] has gone to Carthage and swore that I had told him that
I was guilty of adultery. This spiritual wifeism! Why, a man dares
not speak or wink, for fear of being accused of this.
William Law testified
before forty policemen, and the assembly room full of witnesses, that
he testified under oath that he never had heard or seen or knew
anything immoral or criminal against me. He testified under oath that
he was my friend, and not the "Brutus." There was a
cogitation who was the "Brutus." I had not prophesied
against William Law. He swore under oath that he was satisfied that
he was ready to lay down his life for me, and he swears that I have
committed adultery.
I wish the grand jury
would tell me who they are—whether it will be a curse or blessing
to me. I am quite tired of the fools asking me.
A man asked me
whether the commandment was given that a man may have seven wives;
and now the new prophet has charged me with adultery. I never had any
fuss with these men until that Female Relief Society brought out the
paper against adulterers and adulteresses.
…
There is another Law,
not the prophet, who was cashiered for dishonesty and robbing the
government. Wilson Law also swears that I told him I was guilty of
adultery. Brother Jonathan Dunham can swear to the contrary. I have
been chained. I have rattled chains before in a dungeon for the
truth's sake. I am innocent of all these charges, and you can bear
witness of my innocence, for you know me yourselves.
…
Be meek and lowly,
upright and pure; render good for evil, If you bring on yourselves
your own destruction, I will complain. It is not right for a man to
bear down his neck to the oppressor always. Be humble and patient in
all circumstances of life; we shall then triumph more gloriously.What a thing it is for a man to be accused of committing adultery,
and having seven wives, when I can only find one.
I am the same man,
and as innocent as I was fourteen years ago; and I can prove them all
perjurers…
As
I grow older, my heart grows tenderer for you. I am at all times
willing to give up everything that is wrong, for I wish this people
to have a virtuous leader, I have set your minds at liberty by
letting you know the things of Christ Jesus. When I shrink not from
your defense will you throw me away for a new man who slanders you? I
love you for your reception of me…Brother Babbitt will address you.
I have nothing in my heart but good feelings.”73
I
don’t even know where to begin with this testimony. It is so
outrageous. The perjury that he is willing to commit and the ease at
which the lies flow from his mouth blow my mind. “What a
thing it is for a man to be accused of committing adultery, and
having seven wives, when I can only find one.”
What???? Joseph, you have 34 wives!!!! 11 of which already had
husbands!!!! 10 of them were teenagers!!!! What do you mean you can
only find one?!?!
NAUVOO
EXPOSITOR
After
this astounding testimony William Law and others decide to go more
public with their grievances against Joseph Smith. They start their
own newspaper called the Nauvoo
Expositor. Most members of the LDS
church have no idea what was in the Expositor. They assume it to be
a paper filled with inflammatory lies about Joseph Smith. It is not. In
fact, they even bare their testimony of the Book of Mormon. They
believe it to contain the teaching of Christ, but that Joseph had
since strayed from Christ’s teachings with polygamy and his
preaching about there being many Gods, as well as other practices.
Regarding polygamy, they go on to state,
“We
most
solemnly
and
sincerely
declare, God this Day being witness of
the truth and sincerity of our designs and statements, that happy
will it be with those who examine and scan Joseph Smith's pretensions
to righteousness; and take counsel of human affairs, and of the
experience of times gone by…We hope many items of doctrine, as now
taught, some of which, however, are taught secretly, and denied
openly, (which we know positively is the case,)and others publicly,
considerate men will treat with contempt; for we declare them
heretical and damnable in their influence, though they find many
devotees. How shall he, who had drank of the poisonous draft, teach
virtue?
We are earnestly
seeking to explode the vicious principles of Joseph Smith, and those
who practice the same abominations and whoredoms; which we verily
know are not accordant and consonant with the principles of Jesus
Christ and the Apostles; and for that purpose, and with that end in
view, with an eye single to the glory of God, we have dared to gird
on the armor, and with God at our head, we most solemnly and
sincerely declare that the sword of truth shall not depart from the
thigh, nor the buckler from the arm, until we can enjoy those
glorious privileges which nature's God and our country's laws have
guarantied to us-freedom of speech, the liberty of the press, and the
right to worship God as seemeth us good.
It
is absurd for men to assert that all is well, while wicked and
corrupt men are seeking our destruction, by a perversion
of sacred things;
for all is not well, while
whordoms and all manner of abominations are practiced under the cloak
of religion.
Lo! the wolf is in the fold, arrayed in sheep's clothing, and is
spreading death and devastation among the saints: and we say to the
watchmen standing upon the walls, cry aloud and spare not, for the
day of the Lord is at hand-a day cruel both with wrath and fierce
anger, to lay the land desolate.”74
They
then go on to describe a scene that sounds all too familiar.
“It
is a notorious fact, that many
females
in foreign climes, and in countries to us unknown, even in the most
distant regions of the Eastern hemisphere, have been induced, by the
sound of the gospel, to forsake friends, and embark
upon a voyage across waters that
lie stretched over the greater portion of the globe, as they
supposed, to glorify God, that they might thereby stand acquitted in
the great day of God Almighty. But
what is taught them on their arrival at this place?-
They are visited by some of the Strikers, for we know not what else
to call them, and are requested
to hold on and be faithful,
for there are great blessings awaiting the righteous; and that God
has great mysteries in store
for those who love the lord, and cling to brother Joseph. They are
also notified
that
Brother
Joseph
will
see them soon, and reveal the mysteries of
Heaven to
their full understanding, which seldom fails to inspire them with new
confidence in the Prophet, as well as a great anxiety to know what
God has laid up in store for them, in return for the great sacrifice
of father of mother, of gold and silver, which they gladly left far
behind, that they might be gathered into the fold, and numbered among
the chosen of God.--They are visited
again, and what is the result?
They are requested
to
meet
brother
Joseph,
or some of the Twelve, at some insulated point, or at some
particularly described place on the bank of the Mississippi, or at
some room, which wears upon its front--Positively NO Admittance. The
harmless, inoffensive, and unsuspecting creatures, are so devoted to
the Prophet, and the cause of Jesus Christ, that they do not dream of
the deep laid and fatal scheme which prostrates happiness, and
renders death itself desireable; but they meet him, expecting to
receive through him a blessing, and learn the will of the Lord
concerning them, and what awaits the faithful follower of Joseph, the
Apostle and Prophet of God, When in the stead thereof, they are told,after
having been sworn in one of the most solemn manners,
to never
divulge what is revealed to them,
with a penalty of death attached that God Almighty has revealed it to
him, that she
should
be
his
(Joseph's)
Spiritual wife;
for it was right anciently, and God will tolerate it again: but we
must keep those pleasures and blessings from the world, for until
there is a change in the government, we will endanger ourselves by
practicing it-but we can enjoy the blessings of Jacob, David, and
others, as well as to be deprived of them, if we do not expose
ourselves to the law of the land. She is thunder-struck, faints
recovers, and refuses. The
Prophet damns her if she rejects.
She thinks of the great sacrifice and of the many thousand miles she
has traveled over sea and land, that she might save her soul from
pending ruin, and replies, God's will be done and not mine. The
Prophet and his devotees in this way are gratified. The next step to
avoid public exposition from the common course of things, they are
sent away for a time, until all is well; after which they return, as
from a long visit.”75
Wow.
They couldn’t have painted a better picture than that. I invite
everyone to read the Nauvoo Expositor online. It is quite a
document.
EXPOSITOR
AFTERMATH
(DEATH)
Three
days later, on June 10th,
Joseph and Hyrum meet with the Nauvoo City council. They each
testify and, in fact, contradict one another in their excuses. Hyrum
declares that the revelation on polygamy only referred to former
times. The minutes read, “Councillor
H. Smith referred to the revelation read to the High Council of the
church, which has caused so much talk about a multiplicity of wives,
that said revelation was in answer to a question concerning things
which transpired in former
days, and had no reference to the present time.”76
Joseph argues what is already published in the Doctrine and
Covenants, that a man may marry again after his first wife has died.
His minutes read, “Then
Mayor Joseph Smith said: They make a criminality for a man to have a
wife on the earth while he has one in heaven, according to the keys
of the Holy Priesthood - that he had never preached the revelation inprivate
as
he
had
in
public - had not taught it to the annointed in the
church in private, which statement many present confirmed...”77 After
these contradicting and false statements, the Nauvoo Expositor
is declared a “public nuisance” and is destroyed. Joseph was
probably not prepared for the public outcry across the country at
this affront to freedom of the press and freedom of speech. This
nation was founded on these principals. He had broken laws before,
but this time, he was not going to get away with it. Warrants were
brought into Nauvoo for Joseph’s arrest, but the Nauvoo courts
dismissed them. Sensing the tension rising, Joseph illegally
declared martial law on June 18th
and called up the Nauvoo Legion. Instead of fighting, Joseph fled
the city. After being in hiding a short time, he returns to stand
trial. He is taken to Carthage Jail where he is killed by a mob on
June 27th.
EMMA
AND THE RLDS
Emma
Smith could never come to terms with polygamy. After Joseph’s
death, she remained in Nauvoo for a number of years. Some
believed that her sons were the true heirs to the prophetic
throne, since they were blood descendants of Joseph. Claiming that
they held the right to follow Joseph as leader of the church, the
RLDS church was formed. Emma wanted to give her boys a father they
could be proud of. Instead of telling the truth about her husband,
she told them the story she wanted them to hear. To her dying day she
proclaimed that polygamy never existed among the saints during
Joseph’s time. Her testimony is recorded as, “No such
thing as polygamy, or spiritual wifery, was taught, publicly or
privately, before my husband's death, that I have now, or ever had
any knowledge of...He had no other wife but me; nor did he to my
knowledge ever have.” That is what she told
her sons and that is what they were raised to believe. Sarah Pratt
went to visit Joseph Smith III who was acting as prophet in the RLDS
church at the time. She records their encounter like this, “I
saw that he was not inclined to believe the truth about his father,
so I said to him: 'You pretend to have revelations from the Lord. Why
don't
you
ask
the
Lord to tell you what kind of a man your father
really was?' He answered: 'If my father had so many connections
with women, where is the progeny?' I said to him: 'Your father had
mostly intercourse with married women, and as to single ones, Dr.
Bennett was always on hand, when anything happened.”
As
people
will
often do, when faced with facts they do not want to
hear, they will twist and distort information. Joseph III published
this version of his encounter with Sarah Pratt for his church to see,
“Did he ever at such times or at any other time or place
make improper overtures to you, or proposals of an improper
nature—begging your pardon for the apparent indelicacy of this
question? To this Mrs. Pratt replied, quietly but firmly, "No,
Joseph; your father never said an improper word to me in his life. He
knew better." Sister Pratt, it has been frequently told that he
behaved improperly in your presence, and I have been told that I dare
not come to you and ask you about your relations with him, for fear
you would tell me things which would be unwelcome to me. "You
need have no such fear," she repeated. "Your father was
never guilty of an action or proposal of an improper nature in my
house, towards me, or in my presence, at any time or place. There is
no truth in the reports that have been circulated about him in this
regard. He was always the Christian gentleman, and a noble man.” Anyone familiar with Sarah Pratt would know that
this last account
is laughable.
Another
leader
in
the
RLDS
church and grandson of Joseph Smith sets up a very
excellent argument. He is arguing that the saints that followed
Brigham Young are wrong no matter what. He declares that either
Joseph Smith had only one wife, or he was a hypocrite and a fraud. His
words are,
“On
page
411
of
the
sixth volume of the church history published by the
Utah Mormon church appears a remarkable statement, purporting to come
from the lips of Joseph Smith the Martyr. It is found in a synopsis
of a sermon delivered by the prophet from the stand in Nauvoo,
Sunday, May 26, 1844 (only a month before his death). He is replying
to the charges made in the Nauvoo Expositor. He says: "What a
thing it is for a man to be accused of committing adultery, and
having seven wives, when I can find only one." Our Gentile
friend may twist the statement as made here in a ridiculous way. But
our Mormon friends claim to present Joseph Smith as a prophet whose
testimony may be relied upon. Clearly his intention was to say
plainly that at that time he had but the one wife. We are indebted to
our Utah friends for having preserved and published this statement
unwittingly.
There is no halfway
ground. Either Joseph Smith was true and clean, open and above board,
as the Reorganized Church claims; or else he was a hypocrite and a
fraud through and through, as his enemies claim. The Utah Mormons
cannot long continue seriously to contend that he was a real prophet
of God, and a good man, yet blowing hot in private and cold in
public, a monogamist in the pulpit and press and a polygamist in his
home, a pure milk of the word man by daylight and a strong meat man
after dark.”78
So,
in
other
words,
either
Joseph was an honest monogamist or a lying
polygamist. In recent years, the RLDS church has changed its name to
the Community of Christ Church and has largely abandoned their Mormon
roots. It seems that their people have finally realized that the
latter was the case when it comes to Joseph Smith.
CONTINUED
DENIAL
Even
after Joseph’s death, the lies continued.
In
the Times and Seasons
in May 1845 was printed this article, “The Latter-day Saints
are charged by their enemies, with the blackest crimes. Treason,
murder, theft, polygamy, and adultery, are among the many crimes laid
to their charge.-The press reiterates and gives publicity to these
charges. Under these circumstances, it is but right, that they should
be heard in their defence [defense]. I shall, therefore, in this
communication, briefly examine and refute a few of the charges, for
it would need a legion of writers to answer all the lies told about
us.
Most of the stories
against the Mormons have been propagated by apostates and traitors,
(who have generally been cut off from the church for their crimes.)
They publish their lies, and straightway they are believed, and
hawked about as awful disclosures, and received by community with
trembling and holy horror. Sidney Rigdon, I see by the papers, has
made an exposition of Mormonism, charging Joseph Smith and the
Mormons with polygamy, &c. It does not require a very sagacious
mind to fathom Mr. Rigdon's motive for so doing. Soon after the
murder of the Smiths, he declared in a pvblic [public] address in
Nauvoo that Joseph Smith died approved of God-that the Latter-day
Saints were a blessed people, &c. His tone is now changed, and
why? Because he sought to be presiding elder, and on account of his
corruption, was rejected. On the 10th of September, last, he was
tried before the church and excommunicated as a schismatic. If he
knew such enormities to exist among the Mormons, why did he call them
a blessed people, and endeavor to place himself at the head of their
church? Mr. Rigdon's spiritual wife system was never known till it
was hatched by John C. Bennett who was cut off from the church for
seduction.
As to the charge of
polygamy, I will quote from the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, which
is the subscribed faith of the church and is strictly enforced.
Article Marriage, sec. 91, par. 4, says, "Inasmuch as this
church of Christ has been reproached with the crime of fornication
and polygamy, we declare that we believe that one man should have BUT
ONE WIFE, and one woman but one husband except in case of death when
either is at liberty to marry again." Sec. 13, par. 7. Thou
shalt love thy wife with all thy heart and shall cleave unto her and
NONE ELSE.
”79
POLYGAMY
IN UTAH
After
Joseph’s death, his followers went off in many directions,
following different leaders. A large portion of the followers of
Joseph Smith moved to Utah with Brigham Young. Brigham Young married
a total of 55 women in his life. 10 of them left or divorced him.
That’s a lot of women for one man to marry in order to “raise
seed” when there are more men than women in Utah. It is also a
fairly large amount of women who were smart and brave enough to leave
him. A fifth of them were strong enough to say no. One of the women
that divorced him, Ann Eliza Webb, even wrote a book about her
experience. Her book is called “Wife No. 19.” (Although she was
actually wife number 52.) She married him while she was 24 and he
was 66.80
Continued 'Lying for the
Lord'
In
1850, John Taylor had over 7 wives and yet he declares the same old,
tired rhetoric,
“We
are accused here of polygamy, and actions the most indelicate,
obscene, and disgusting, such that none but a corrupt and depraved
heart could have contrived. These things are too outrageous to admit
of belief; therefore ... I shall content myself by reading our views
of chastity and marriage, from a work published by us, containing
some of the articles of our Faith. 'Doctrine and Covenants,' ...
‘Inasmuch as this Church of Jesus Christ has been reproached with
the crime of fornication, and polygamy, we declare that we believe
that one man should have one wife, and one woman but one husband,
except in case of death, when either is at liberty to marry
again’...”81
1852
Polygamy Announced to the Church
After
years of lying, perjury, deception, the leaders finally announced the
practice publicly to the body of the church in 1852. Orson Pratt
gave a talk in general conference where it was finally acknowledged.
Necessity
of
the Practice?
After
it was announced to the general church body, it became a matter of
convincing the rest to join the practice, and convincing women to
like it.
Reasons
they
should
participate
(I
will only quote a few):
“I
reveal unto you a new and an everlasting covenant; and if ye abide
not that covenant, then are ye damned.” – Doctrine and Covenants
132: 4
“Now
if any of you will deny the plurality of wives, and continue to do
so, I promise that you will be damned.”82
– Brigham Young 1855, 2nd
President of the Church
"I
have noticed that a
man who has but one wife,
and is inclined to that doctrine, soon
begins to wither and dry up,while
a man who goes into plurality [of wives] looks fresh, young, and
sprightly."83
– Heber C. Kimball 1857, Apostle and First Counselor to Brigham
Young
“But,
says the objector, we cannot see how this doctrine can be embraced as
a matter of religion and faith; we can hardly conceive how it can be
embraced only as a kind of domestic concern, something that pertains
to domestic pleasures, in no way connected with religion. In reply we
will show you that it is incorporated as a part of our religion, andnecessary
for
our
exaltation
to the fulness of the Lord’s glory in the eternal world.”84
– Orson Pratt 1852, Apostle
“Now,where
a man in this Church says, "I don't want but one wife, I will
live my religion with one,"
he will perhaps be saved in the celestial kingdom; but when he gets
there he
will
not
find
himself
in possession of any wife at all.
He has had a talent that he has hid up. He will come forward and say,
"Here is that which thou gavest me, I have not wasted it, and
here is the one talent," and he will not enjoy it, but it
will be taken and given to those who have improved the talents they
received, and he will find himself without any wife, and he will
remain single for ever and ever.
But if the woman is determined not to enter into a plural marriage,
that woman when she comes forth will have the privilege of living in
single blessedness through all eternity. Well, that is very good, a
very nice place to be a minister to the wants of others.”85
– Brigham Young 1873, 2nd
President of the Church
“Some
people have supposed that the doctrine of plural marriage was a sort
of superfluity, or non-essential to the salvation or exaltation of
mankind. In other words, some
of the Saints have said, and believe, that a man with one wife,
sealed to him by the authority of the Priesthood for time and
eternity, will receive an exaltation as great and glorious, if he is
faithful, as he possibly could with more than one.I
want
here
to
enter
my solemn protest against this idea, for I know it
is false...It
is useless to tell me that there is no blessing attached to obedience
to the law, or that a man with only one wife can obtain as great a
reward, glory or kingdom as he can with more than one, being equally
faithful.”86
– Joseph F. Smith 1878, 6th
President of the Church
“If
we were to do away with polygamy, it would only be one feather in the
bird, one ordinance in the Church and kingdom. Do away with that,
then we must do away with prophets and Apostles, with revelation and
the gifts and graces of the Gospel, and finally give up our religion
altogether and turn sectarians and do as the world does, then all
would be right.”87
– Wilford Woodruff 1869, 4th
President of the Church
“I
wish here to say to the Elders of Israel, and to all the members of
this Church and kingdom, that it is in the hearts of many of them to
wish that the doctrine of polygamy was not taught and practiced by
us. It may be hard for many, and especially for the ladies, yet it is
no harder for them than it is for the gentlemen…The
only men who become Gods, even the Sons of God, are those who enter
into polygamy.
Others attain unto a glory and may even be permitted to come into the
presence of the Father and the Son; but they cannot reign as kings in
glory, because they had blessing offered unto them, and they refused
to accept them...Do
you think that we shall ever be admitted as a State into the Union
without denying the principle of polygamy? If we are not admitted
until then, we shall never be admitted.”88
– Brigham Young 1866, 2nd
President of the Church
“We
are told that if we would give
up polygamy-which
we know to be a doctrine revealed from heaven, and it is God and the
world for it-but suppose
this Church should give up this holy order of marriage, then would
the devil,
and all who are in league with him against the cause of God,
rejoice
that they had prevailed upon the Saints to refuse to obey one of the
revelations and commandments of God to them… Will
the Latter-day Saints do this? No; they will not to please anybody.
Shall we have a warfare? We shall.”89
– Brigham Young 1866, 2nd
President of the Church
“Plurality
is a law which God established for his elect before the world was
formed, for a continuation of seeds forever. It would be as easy for
the United States to build a tower to remove
the sun as to remove polygamy,
or the Church and the Kingdom of God.”90
– Heber C. Kimball 1867, Apostle and First Counselor to Brigham
Young
Women
Upset
It
seems that many women did not like the idea of sharing a husband. I
do not find that surprising. Here are some quotes from talks telling
the women to stop complaining and be happy with what they have. Once
again, I would like to mention that there were more men than women in
Utah at this time:
"And we
have women here who like any thing but the celestial law of God;
and if they could break asunder the cable of the Church of Christ,
there is scarcely a mother in Israel but would do it this day. And
they take it to their husbands, to their daughters, and to their
neighbors, and say they have not seen a week's happiness since they
became acquainted with that law [plural marriage], or since their
husbands took a second wife.
...We
have been trying long enough with this people, and I go in for
letting the sword of the Almighty be unsheathed, not only in word,
but in deed. I go in for letting the wrath of the Almighty burn up
the dross and the filth; and if the people will not glorify the Lord
by sanctifying themselves, let the wrath of the Almighty God burn
against them,
and the wrath of Joseph and of Brigham, and of Heber, and of high
heaven."91
– J.M.
Grant 1856, Apostle and Second Counselor to Brigham Young
“Now
for my proposition; it is more particularly for my sisters, as it is
frequently happening that women say they are unhappy. Men will say,'My
wife, though a most excellent woman, has not seen a happy day since I
took my second wife;' 'No, not a happy day for a year,' says one; and
another has not seen a happy day for five years.
It is said that women are tied down and abused: that they are misused
and have not the liberty they Ought to have; that many
of them are wading through a perfect flood of tears,
because of the conduct of some men, together with their own folly…
I am going to give you from this time to the 6th day of October next,
for reflection, that you may determine whether you wish to stay with
your husbands or not, and then I am going to set every woman at
liberty
and say to them, Now go your way, my women with the rest, go your
way. And
my wives have got to do one of two things; either round up their
shoulders to endure the afflictions of this world, and live their
religion, or they may leave, for I will not have them about me. And then let
the father be the head of the family,
the master of his own household… and
let the wives and the children say amen to what he says,
and be subject to his dictates, instead of their dictating the man,
instead of their trying to govern him. But the
first wife will say, 'It is hard, for I have lived with my husband
twenty years, or thirty, and have raised a family of children for
him, and it is a great trial to me for him to have more women;' then
I say it is time that you gave him up to other women who will bear
children. If my wife had borne me all the children that she ever
would bare, the celestial law would teach me to take young women that
would have children. Sisters, I
am not joking,
I do not throw out my proposition to banter your feelings, to see
whether you will leave your husbands, all or any of you. But I do
know thatthere
is no cessation to the everlasting whining of many of the women in
this Territory.”92
– Brigham Young 1856, 2nd
President of the Church
I
wonder where these women were supposed to go.
“Delight
yourselves in your duties, mothers. Here are the middle-aged and the
young. I
am
now
almost
daily
sealing young girls to men of age and experience. Love your duties,
sisters...It is for you to bear fruit and bring
forth, to the praise of God, the spirits that are born in yonder
heavens and are to take tabernacles on earth...That is what plurality
of wives is for, and not to gratify lustful desires. Sisters,
do you wish to make yourselves happy? Then
what is your duty? It is for you to bear children in the name of the
Lord...Do
you
look
forward
to
that? or are
you
tormenting yourselves by thinking that your husbands do not love
you? I
would not care whether they loved a particle or not;
but I would cry out, like one of old, in the joy of my heart, 'I have
got a man from the Lord! 'Hallelujah! I am a mother--'...Sisters,
do not ask whether you can make yourselves happy, but whether you can
do your husband's will...The
mother that takes this course will be a happy mother-a happy woman. But
where you find women jealous of each other and 'I am watching,' I
would ask, Where are your children? They are nearly all the
time in the mud, or in some mischief. And
what are you doing, mother? You are 'watching that man.’”93
– Brigham Young 1861, 2nd
President of the Church
I
will stop there, because these quotes make me upset.
Leaders
Get
the Wives of Other Men
The
last thing that I would like to mention is the idea that some call a
pre-emptive wife. It’s a kind of wife swap. It was instituted by
Brigham Young. It allowed any woman to leave her husband, even if he
was a faithful member, for a man that held a higher priesthood
position.
“The
second way in which a wife can be separated from her husband while he
continues to be faithful to his God and his priesthood, I have not
revealed, except to a few persons in this Church; and a few have
received it from Joseph the prophet – as well as myself. If a
woman can find a man holding the keys of the priesthood with a higher
power and authority than her husband, and he is disposed to take her,
he can do so, otherwise she has to remain where she is.”94
– Brigham Young 1861, 2nd
President of the Church
“It
takes a higher power than a bill of divorce to take a woman away from
a man who is a good man and honors his priesthood. It must be a man
who possesses a higher power in the priesthood or else a woman is
bound to her husband forever and ever.”95
– Brigham Young 1874, 2nd
President of the Church
I
read an account of this practice in a book:
“In
my own family history, my Great Aunt Phoebe went to an L.D.S Stake
conference in Cedar City, Utah, married to one man and then went home
that same day married to another man who held a higher position in
the Church than her husband. This change was made by a visiting
apostle from Salt Lake City.”96
This
is just one more thing about polygamy that leaves me uncomfortable.
This was allowed even when the man was “faithful to his God and
priesthood”? It seems rather convenient that Brigham Young would
allow women to leave their husbands for men with higher positions in
the church, when he holds the highest position in the church. What
happens to the previous husband? Does he just lose his wife and
kids?
CONCLUSION
I
do not think that polygamy was instituted by God. I believe that
Joseph Smith established it for his own purposes. He was a man that
would lie and manipulate to get power and pleasure. So many women
were hurt by polygamy. So many men were corrupted by polygamy. How
right Sidney Rigdon was when he wrote about
polygamy in the Book of Mormon(assuming he wrote the Book of Mormon):
31
For behold, I, the Lord, have seen the sorrow, and heard the mourning
of the daughters of my people in the land of Jerusalem, yea, and in
all the lands of my people, because of the wickedness and
abominations of their husbands. 32
And I will not suffer, saith the Lord of Hosts, that the cries of the
fair daughters of this people, which I have led out of the land of
Jerusalem, shall come up unto me against the men of my people, saith
the Lord of Hosts. (Jacob 2:31-32)
Sarah
Pratt puts it another way, “[polygamy] completely
demoralizes good men and makes bad men correspondingly worse. As for
the women—well, God help them! First wives it renders desperate, or
else heart-broken, mean-spirited creatures.”
Amen,
Sarah. Amen.
______________________________________________________________________________
1 U.S. Census Bureau, Table MS-2, “Estimated
Age at First Marriage, by sex: 1890 to Presents,” Smith, D.S – 1993.
“American Family and Demographic Patterns and the Northwest European
Model”, continuity and change 8(December):389-415.
6 Sidney Rigdon, “Messenger and Advocate,”
October 15, 1844.
7 Jon Krakauer, “Under the Banner of
Heaven,” pg. 90.
9 Orson Pratt, “Latter-day Saints Millenial
Star,: Liverpool England, 16 Dec. 1878.
11 D&C 101:4, 1835 edition
14 Henry Jacobs, Letter to his wife, “The
Keystone of Mormonism,” pg.182.
15 In Sacred Loneliness, 108, 466-467.
18 Apostle
John
A.
Widstoe,
Evidences and Reconciliations, 1960, pages 390-392
21 RLDS History of the Church 2:591-592.
23 History of the Church, Vol. 4 pg. 341.
27Times and Seasons, 1 October 1842.
29 "Emma,
Eliza,
and
the
Stairs: An Investigation," BYU
Studies 22 [Winter 1982]
86-94
30 Wilhelm
Wyl,Mormon Portraits:
or the Truth About the Mormon Leaders, 1830-1886, p 58.
31 Reminiscences
of
Mary
A.
Barzee Boice, in John Boice Blessing Book , MS 8129, Church
Archives, Historical Department, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, Salt Lake City
39 Elder Benjamin F. Johnson,
Autobiography “My Life’s Review.”
41 Close friend of Helen, Mormon Polygamy:
A History, Richard Van Wagoner, p. 53.
47 Mary Ettie V. Smith, Van Wagoner
1986, Bennett 1842.
48 Smith 1971, Van Wagoner 1986.
52 Sarah Pratt Interview, 1877. Van
Wagoner, 1986.
53 Sarah Pratt, 1875. Van Wagoner 1986.
54 Sidney Rigdon Biography, Van Wagoner,
p.295.
57 Martha Brotherton, St. Louis Bulletin,
July 15, 1842. See:
59
Millennial Star 3 [August 1842]: 73–74.
62 Journal of Willard Richards, October
15, 1843. LDS Church Archives. Diaries and Journals of Joseph Smith,
417.
63 History of the Church Vol. 6, Pg. 46
69 Mormon Polygamy, Van Wagoner, Pg. 44.
73 History
of
the
Church,
Vol.6, pg.408-412
76 Millennial Star, Vol.23
p.754,770,816. Nauvoo Neighbor, June 19, 1844.
78 Saints Herald, 27 February 1918.
81 History of the Church, Vol. 2, pg.734.
82 Journal of Discourses, 3:266.
83 Journal of Discourses Vol 5, page
22.
85 Journal of Discourses Vol. 16, pg
166-167.
86 Journal of Discourses, Vol. 20,
pg.28-30.
87 Journal of Discourses Vol.13,
p.165-p166.
88 Journal of Discourses, Vol. 11,
pg. 268-269.
89 Journal of Discourses, Vol. 11, pg.
239.
90 Millennial Star, Vol. 28, 190.
91 Journal
of Discourses Vol. 4, pg. 49-51
92 Journal of Discourses, Vol. 4, pg.
55-57.
93 Journal of Discourses, Vol.9, pg.37-38.
94 Sermon by Brigham Young on October 8,
1861. “For Men Only,” Dennis R. Short, pg.85.
95 Journal of Discourses 17: 119.
96 The Keystone of Mormonism, Arza Evans,
2003. |