Mormons - how many wives were they orignally..

Originally posted by eaglecap ..allowed by your prophet Joseph Smith and Brigham Young? Was it like Islam limited to a certain number or as many as they, in the 1800's, could support?

Edited by Cryptic - 07-Jan-2008 at 17:12

Originally posted by eaglecap I do believe it was their Prophet Brigham Young who suddenly had a revelation and suddenly changed it to one wife only.

Edited by Cryptic - 07-Jan-2008 at 21:25

Originally posted by Cryptic Originally posted by eaglecap I do believe it was their Prophet Brigham Young who suddenly had a revelation and suddenly changed it to one wife only.   Yes, it was Brigham Young.   The issue of sudden revelations aside, Brigham Young was a very capable and wise leader.  When faced with changes ordered from outside powers, many other theocrats would have ordered their followers to fight a holy war rather than change the religion or surrender their own authority.   Young, however, saw the "writing on the wall".  Utah was eventually going to become a state instead of a Mormon theocracy.   The rest of the USA was not going to accept polygamy.   Armed resistance (holy war) was futile, would result in the loss of many Mormon lives and would probably result in the destruction of Mormonism as a functioning religion.   Brigham Young then took the big step by renouncing alot of his personal power and by banning polygamy through a sudden revelation.   No lives were lost and the Mormon religion survives and thrives.

Remember the controversy over polygamy was also one of the reason's why Utah didn't become a state until the practice was abandoned by the Jesus Christ Church of Latter-Day Saints. However they doesn't stop many especially more fringe elements in the state from still continuing the practice even to this day in many areas of the state.

Originally posted by JanusRook I will have to look it up but there was a slaughter of innocent settlers by a group of Mormons and their Indian allies- can anyone recall this incident? Of course that would be the Mormon War or perhaps the Utah War.

It was the Utah war or the Mountain Meadow massacre.
The confrontation between the Mormon militia and the U.S. Army involved some destruction of property but no actual battles between the contending military forces. However, at the height of the conflict, more than 100 California-bound settlers from Arkansas were killed by Mormon militia allied with local Paiutes, in what was later called the Mountain Meadows massacre.

Originally posted by Cryptic Originally posted by eaglecap However, at the height of the conflict, more than 100 California-bound settlers from Arkansas were killed by Mormon militia allied with local Paiutes, in what was later called the Mountain Meadows massacre. � As a side note, almost all the settlers were killed after they surrendered and were in Mormon custody.�� It is very hard to find unbiased information on the incident.� I have read some accounts stating that there were very few Piautes present during�the siege and that there were none present when the settlers surrendered. � � � �

It happened and it is now history and the Mormon church has greatly reformed since then. I know there are some sects or off shoots that still practice polygomy. I also heard rumors that some Mormons will marry in the church more wives but this could be false or more likely some offshoots. I do not think the main stream Mormon church would allow this. There use to be several Mormons on this site- what happened?

just curious, what

I have been a member of the LDS church for 16 years, which by no means makes me an expert in Mormon history.  For what its worth I have a few random comments relating to the previous posts:

Yes, the Mountain Meadows Massacre was a brutal slaughter of unarmed men, women, and children.  Yes it was organized and carried out by local church members.  No, there is no good evidence indicating that church leaders beyond the local level were involved.  Brigham Young condemned the act after the fact.  The church has erected a memorial, but has never apologized or admitted responsibility (for which it has received much criticism).

The practice of polygamy by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is prohibited.  Those who break this law are excommunicated.  There are several groups who identify themselves as "Mormon" that practice polygamy.  These groups are in no way affiliated with the LDS church.  On the contrary, they are a thorn in the church's side because every time one of their leaders rapes a 13-year-old the press gets the story and doesn't make the effort to distinguish between the mainstream LDS church and the group that is committing the crime.

Wilford Woodruff received the revelation banning plural marriage.  Brigham Young had over 50 wives and he never gave any indication that the practice should be discontinued.

Past LDS leaders have stated that the US Constitution was a divinely inspired document.   As a group, Mormons are politically conservative and very patriotic.

The angel on the temple is Moroni.

As previously stated, LDS doctrine does not teach that Adam was God.  We believe in God the Father, in Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost like all Christians.  However, the doctrine parts from "orthodox" Christianity in that we believe the three are separate personages (ie Jesus is not the mortal manifestation of God the Father, but rather his son).  This was never difficult for me to accept, but I suppose it could be considered one of the "unusual" beliefs.

P.S.- Would also like to add my kudos to this thread.  While not all the info is 100 percent accurate, I found the questions to be genuine and the posts to be respectful.  In my limited experiences on other boards, this is not typically the case.  Thanks.


Edited by Vir0n - 06-Mar-2008 at 05:48

I wonder why if God told their Prophet that many wives were ok but when they came under pressure from the US government Brigham young suddenly said God changed his mind and now you can have only one wife-???
I wonder how much their doctrine has changed over time?
I was shown a 1950's version of the book of Mormon and then a newer one and some versus were totally omitted- why??
I do not care what one believes and today many Mormons live a good Christian lifestyle but still I wonder. I do believe that if they had remained isolated Mormonism would be different today. I should ask these of my Mormons friends but I avoid religion with them to prevent conflict.

Originally posted by Omar al Hashim Originally posted by eaglecap I will have to look it up but there was a slaughter of innocent settlers by a group of Mormons and their Indian allies- can anyone recall this incident? Innocent settlers?

Meaning the attack was unprovoked!

Originally posted by eaglecap good reply