Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

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Luke
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Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Luke »

  • D&C 101 (1835 Edition)

    4 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 will have no fellowship whatever with any Elder belonging to the quorums of the Seventies who is guilty of polygamy or any offence of the kind, and who does not in all things conform to the laws of the church.” (Messenger and Advocate 3:511, May 1837)
  • “5th the charge that was preferred before the quorum against Elder Sollomon Freeman by William Perry for the crime of polygamy was brought forward. Elder Freeman plead not guilty of the charge testimony for the Complainant came forward (Dexter Stilman) and Stated that Elder Freeman had a wife in Tollan township Co of Berkshire in Mass, and it was told him there that he (E. Freeman) Came a way [without his] wife. Elder Harlow Redfield Stated that when he and Elder Stilman went to See Elder Freeman. Elder Freeman acknowledged that he come away and left his wife as was testified Elder Freeman acknowledged before the quorum that he had left his first wife came away with and Soon Commenced living with another woman he further Stated he did not know but his first wife was yet living he further Stated he would not go across the room to obtain a bill from her Elder Freeman Manifest a Careless indifferent spirit.” (Kirtland Elders’ Quorum Record, 29 November 1837)
  • “Do the Mormons believe in having more wives than one? No, not at the same time. But they believe, that if their companion dies, they have a right to marry again.” (Joseph Smith, TPJS 119, 8 May 1838)
  • “We have heard that it is reported by some, that some of us should have said, that we not only dedicated our property, but our families also to the Lord; and Satan, taking advantage of this, has perverted it into licentiousness, such as a community of wives, which is an abomination in the sight of God.” (Joseph Smith, Letter from Liberty Jail, TPJS 127, 16 December 1838)
  • “Their religion is a peculiar one; that is neither Bhoodism nor Mahometanism nor Judaism, nor Christiany—but it is a faith which they say encourages no vice, nor immorality, nor departure from established laws and usages; neither polygamy, nor promiscuous intercourse, nor community of property.” (Report by a non-Mormon, published in Times and Seasons 2:580, 15 October 1841)
  • “I preached in the grove and pronounced a curse upon all adulterers and fornicators, and unvirtuous persons and those who have made use of my name to carry on their iniquitous designs.” (Joseph Smith, DHC 4:587, 10 April 1842)
  • “Brother Joseph was crossing the yard from the house to the store and met Dr. Bennett on the way; he reached out his hand to Br. Joseph and said, will you forgive me, weeping at the time; he said Br. Joseph, I am guilty, I acknowledge it, and I beg of you not to expose me, for it will ruin me; Joseph replied, Doctor! why are you using my name to carry on your hellish wickedness? Have I ever taught you that fornication and adultery was right, or polygamy or any such practices? He said you never did. Did I ever teach you any thing that was not virtuous—that was iniquitous, either in public or private? He said you never did. Did you ever know anything unvirtuous or unrighteous in my conduct or actions at any time, either in public or in private? he said, I did not; are you willing to make oath to this before an Alderman of the city? he said I am willing to do so. Joseph said Dr., go into my office, and write what you can in conscience subscribe your name to, and I will be satisfied.” (Hyrum Smith, Times and Seasons 3:870-871, 1 August 1842)
  • “NOTICE. There was a book [called the Peace Maker, which advocated polygamy] printed at my office, a short time since, written by Udney H. Jacobs, on marriage, without my knowledge; and had I been apprised of it, I should not have printed it; not that I am opposed to any man enjoying his privileges; but I do not wish to have my name associated with the authors, in such an unmeaning rigmarole of nonsense, folly, and trash. Joseph Smith.” (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons 4:32, 1 December 1842)
  • “He [Benjamin Winchester] spoke of the various publications of Bennett and others, and of the prejudices which they had necessarily excited—that the Mormons were charged with sanctioning a community of wives and of goods, with polygamy, and various other enormities, not one word of which was true. He had belonged to the society almost from its origin, and had always seen vice discountenanced as in other societies. Members retained their own property; were confined to one wife; and required to live morally and uprightly, and were subject to be expelled for misconduct. This was the case with Bennett, who had been expelled for his deviations from virtue. . . . The society is governed by rules accessible to all; some of which he read, and to which there could be no exception.” (Baltimore Clipper, reprinted in Times and Seasons 4:28, 1 December 1842)
  • “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 have a greater reverence for the laws of matrimony, or the rights of private property, and we do what others do not, practice what we preach.” (Times and Seasons 4:143, 15 March 1843)
  • “Gave instruction to try those who were preaching teaching or practicing the doctrine of plurality of wives. On this law Joseph forbids it and the practice thereof—No man shall have but one wife.” (Joseph Smith, Joseph Smith Journal, 5 October 1843)
  • “Stop this spinning street yarn and talking about spiritual wives . . . I proclaim in the name of the Lord God that I will have nothing but virtue and integrity and uprightness.” (Joseph Smith, Joseph Smith Journal, 15 October 1843)
  • “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. . . . We wish these doctrines to be taught by all that are in the ministry, that the people may know our faith respecting them, and also to correct the public mind in respect to the Church; and we hope, that the Saints will hearken to this counsel for their own good, and for the prosperity of the cause of God.” (The Latter-Day Saints’ Millennial Star 4:144, January 1844)
  • “NOTICE. As we have lately been credibly informed, that an Elder of the Church of Jesus Christ, of Latter­day Saints, by the name of Hiram Brown, has been preaching Polygamy, and other false and corrupt doctrines, in the county of Lapeer, state of Michigan. This is to notify him and the Church in general, that he has been cut off from the church, for his iniquity; and he is further notified to appear at the Special Conference, on the 6th of April next, to make answer to these charges. JOSEPH SMITH. HYRUM SMITH. Presidents of said church.” (Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, Times and Seasons 5:423, 1 February 1844)
  • “The corruption of wickedness which manifested itself in such horrible deformity on the trial of Orsemus F. Bostwick last week, for slandering President Hyrum Smith and the Widows of the City of Nauvoo, has awakened all the kindly feelings of female benevolence, compassion and pity, for the softer sex to spread forth the mantle of charity to shield the characters of the virtuous mothers, wives and daughters of Nauvoo, from the blasting breath and poisonous touch of debauchees, vagabonds, and rakes, who have jammed themselves into our city to offer strange fire at the shrines of infamy, disgrace and degradation; as they and their kindred spirits have done in all the great cities throughout the world: corrupting their way: on the earth, and bringing woman, poor defenceless woman, to wretchedness and ruin. As such ignoble blood now begins to stain the peaceable habitations of the Saints, and taint the pure air of the only City in the world that pretends, to work righteousness in Union, as the sine qua non, for happiness, glory and salvation: and, as such ungodly wretches, burning or smarting with the sting of their own shame, have doubtless, transported with them; some of the miserable dupes of their licentiousness, for the purpose of defiling the fame of this goodly city: mildewing the honesty of our mothers: blasting the chastity of widows and wives, and corrupting the virtue of our unsuspecting daughters, it becomes US in defence of our rights, for the glory of our fathers; for the honor of our Mothers; for the happiness of our husbands; and for the well fare of our dear children, to rebuke such an outrage upon the sanctity of Society; to thwart such a death blow at the hallowed marriage covenant: and to ward off such poisoned daggers from the hearts of our innocent daughters, for the honor of Nauvoo; and write with indellible Ink, upon every such villain: Vitare perditoris! Beware of the Wretch! and, so put in every virtuous woman’s hand a rod, to scourge such tormentors of domestic felicity, with vengeance throughout the world: Curse the man that preys upon female virtue! Curse the man that slanders a woman: Let the righteous indignation of insulted innocence, and virtue spurn him from society; Let the dignity of the Mother’s of Israel kick the blood thirsty pimp from the pale of social communion. Let the widows and wives who tread in the foot steps of their queenly mother Eve, drive such fag ends of creation, as was Cain, to the Land of Nod, and let the timid daughters of Nauvoo, dread such Canker worms more than the pestilence that walketh in darkness, and shun them as the serpent on the land and the shark in the Sea. . . . Resolved unanimously that while we render credence to the doctrines of Paul, that neither the man is without the woman; neither is woman without the man in the Lord, yet we raise our voices and hands against John C. Bennett’s ‘Spiritual Wife System,’ as a scheme of profligates to seduce women; and they that harp upon it, wish to make it popular for the convenience of their own cupidity: wherefore, while the marriage bed, undefiled is honorable, let polygamy, bigamy, fornication, adultery, and prostitution, be frowned out of the hearts of honest men to drop in the gulf of fallen nature, ‘where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched!’ and let all the Saints say Amen!” (The Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo, 29 February 1844, published in Nauvoo Neighbor, March 20, 1844)
  • “Whereas Brother Richard Hewitt has called on me today to know my views concerning some doctrines that are preached in your place, and states to me that some of your elders say, that a man having a certain priesthood may have as many wives as he pleases, and that doctrine is taught here: I say unto you that that man teaches false doctrine, for there is no such doctrine taught here. And any man that is found teaching privately or publicly any such doctrine, is culpable, and will stand a chance to be brought before the high council, and lose his license and membership also; therefore he had better beware what he is about.” (Hyrum Smith, letter to the brethren of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, living on China Creek, in Hancock County, 8 March 1844, Times and Seasons 5:474, 15 March 1844; History, 1838–1856, volume E-1 [1 July 1843–30 April 1844], pg. 1931, The Joseph Smith Papers)
  • “We very frequently receive letters from elders and individuals abroad, inquiring of us whether certain statements that they hear, and have written to them, are true: some pertaining to John C. Bennet’s spiritual wife system; others in regard to immoral conduct, practiced by individuals, and sanctioned by the Church; and as it is impossible for us to answer all of them, we take this opportunity of answering them all, once for all. In the first place, we cannot but express our surprise that any elder or priest who has been in Nauvoo, and has had an opportunity of hearing the principles of truth advanced, should for one moment give credence to the idea that any thing like iniquity is practised, much less taught or sanctioned, by the authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We are the more surprised, since every species of iniquity is spoken against, and exposed publicly at the stand, and every means made use of that possibly can be, to suppress vice, both religious and civil; not only so, but every species of iniquity has frequently been exposed in the Times and Seasons, and its practisers and advocates held up to the world as corrupt men that ought to be avoided. . . . There are other men who are corrupt and sensual, and who teach corrupt principles for the sake of gratifying their sensual appetites, at the expense and ruin of virtue and innocence. Such men ought to be avoided as pests to society, and be frowned down upon with contempt by every virtuous man and woman. . . . They are high and lifted up, and would trample upon the humble, and the meek, and the unassuming, and are not afraid to teach for the commandment of God, their own corrupt, and devilish doctrines, and principles; let no man therefore, be deceived by them, let no man harbor them, nor bid them God speed; don’t be partakers of their evil deeds. If any man writes to you, or preaches to you, doctrines contrary to the Bible, the Book of Mormon, or the book of Doctrine and Covenants, set him down as an imposter. You need not write to us to know what you are to do with such men; you have the authority with you.—Try them by the principles contained in the acknowledged word of God; if they preach, or teach, or practice contrary to that, disfellowship them; cut them off from among you as useless and dangerous branches, and if they are belonging to any of the quorums in the Church, report them to the president of the quorum to which they belong, and if you cannot find that out, if they are members of an official standing, belonging to Nauvoo, report them to us. Follow after purity, virtue, holiness, integrity, Godliness, and every thing that has a tendency to exalt and ennoble the human mind; and shun every man who teaches any other principles.” (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons 5: 490–491, 1 April 1844)
  • “One reason I speak to the Elders is, in consequence of the Ten thousand reports which come to me from abroad—almost every foolish man runs to me, to enquire if such and such things are true, and how many spiritual wives a man may have. I know nothing about it; what he might call a spiritual wife, I should not know anything about. In about half an hour after he has gone, another person begins to say: 'the Elders tell such and such things all over the country.' I am authorized to tell you from henceforth, that any man who comes in and tells any such damn fool doctrine, to tell him to give up his license. None but a fool teaches such stuff; the devil himself is not such a fool, and every Elder who teaches such stuff ought to have his nose wrung; any one found guilty of such teaching will be published and his license will be taken from him. When Elders are sent to preach the Gospel, they are not to preach anything but the Gospel, if they wish to shew themselves approved and not fools, like the old man who went to preach such wonderful things, old daddy Matthews the Tinman. I wish the Elders of Israel to understand it is lawful for a man to marry a wife, but it is unlawful to have more, and God has not commanded any of you to have more; and if any of you dare to presume to do any such things, it will spoil your fun, for you will never have the spirit to preach the Gospel. I despise a man who teaches a pack of stuff that will disgrace himself so; for a man to go into the world, and talk of this spiritual wife system he is as empty as an open sepulchre. . . . I believe every good man should have one wife in this life, and I know if I had two I should not know what to do with them; they might quarrel about me, and I might get a whipping. One is enough, and I warn all of you not to attempt it; if a man should begin to find you out, you would get into some cell in Alton. Be careful what you teach; if you say anything one thousand miles off, it comes here. There are God’s spirits and the Devil’s spirits, and some carry it. If any man preach any false doctrine I shall disgrace him.” (Hyrum Smith, Conference Address, 8 April 1844, History, 1838–1856, volume E-1 [1 July 1843–30 April 1844], pg. 1984-1985, 1988, The Joseph Smith Papers)
  • “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 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 [The Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo] against adulterers and adulteresses. . . . 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. . . . 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.” (Joseph Smith, DHC 6:408-412, 26 May 1844)

jim
captain of 10
Posts: 47

Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by jim »

Those are a lot of good finds, many of which I'd never seen before. I think it's also important to remember how close many of these denouncements of polygamy occur to the day that Joseph and Hyrum were killed, 27 June, 1844.

Zathura
Follow the Prophet
Posts: 8801

Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Zathura »

After having put a lot of effort into understanding the history of polygamy and the history of men like Clayton and William Law and putting in a lot of effort to inform others about this aspect of church history, it sure is comforting to me that there is so much more out there that I haven't even seen to confirm what I have come to believe.

I don't claim to KNOW anything, but I have come to hold some opinions. It was tough coming to believe these things having been raised in the church. I love the church, I love it's leaders, all of them. To choose to believe that the church may have been lied to on many topics, in spite of the abundance of evidence, was incredibly difficult for me. I'm glad that Luke is choosing to share his research

Brighidara
captain of 50
Posts: 70

Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Brighidara »

Luke wrote: September 30th, 2020, 3:07 am
  • D&C 101 (1835 Edition)

    4 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 will have no fellowship whatever with any Elder belonging to the quorums of the Seventies who is guilty of polygamy or any offence of the kind, and who does not in all things conform to the laws of the church.” (Messenger and Advocate 3:511, May 1837)
  • “5th the charge that was preferred before the quorum against Elder Sollomon Freeman by William Perry for the crime of polygamy was brought forward. Elder Freeman plead not guilty of the charge testimony for the Complainant came forward (Dexter Stilman) and Stated that Elder Freeman had a wife in Tollan township Co of Berkshire in Mass, and it was told him there that he (E. Freeman) Came a way [without his] wife. Elder Harlow Redfield Stated that when he and Elder Stilman went to See Elder Freeman. Elder Freeman acknowledged that he come away and left his wife as was testified Elder Freeman acknowledged before the quorum that he had left his first wife came away with and Soon Commenced living with another woman he further Stated he did not know but his first wife was yet living he further Stated he would not go across the room to obtain a bill from her Elder Freeman Manifest a Careless indifferent spirit.” (Kirtland Elders’ Quorum Record, 29 November 1837)
  • “Do the Mormons believe in having more wives than one? No, not at the same time. But they believe, that if their companion dies, they have a right to marry again.” (Joseph Smith, TPJS 119, 8 May 1838)
  • “We have heard that it is reported by some, that some of us should have said, that we not only dedicated our property, but our families also to the Lord; and Satan, taking advantage of this, has perverted it into licentiousness, such as a community of wives, which is an abomination in the sight of God.” (Joseph Smith, Letter from Liberty Jail, TPJS 127, 16 December 1838)
  • “Their religion is a peculiar one; that is neither Bhoodism nor Mahometanism nor Judaism, nor Christiany—but it is a faith which they say encourages no vice, nor immorality, nor departure from established laws and usages; neither polygamy, nor promiscuous intercourse, nor community of property.” (Report by a non-Mormon, published in Times and Seasons 2:580, 15 October 1841)
  • “I preached in the grove and pronounced a curse upon all adulterers and fornicators, and unvirtuous persons and those who have made use of my name to carry on their iniquitous designs.” (Joseph Smith, DHC 4:587, 10 April 1842)
  • “Brother Joseph was crossing the yard from the house to the store and met Dr. Bennett on the way; he reached out his hand to Br. Joseph and said, will you forgive me, weeping at the time; he said Br. Joseph, I am guilty, I acknowledge it, and I beg of you not to expose me, for it will ruin me; Joseph replied, Doctor! why are you using my name to carry on your hellish wickedness? Have I ever taught you that fornication and adultery was right, or polygamy or any such practices? He said you never did. Did I ever teach you any thing that was not virtuous—that was iniquitous, either in public or private? He said you never did. Did you ever know anything unvirtuous or unrighteous in my conduct or actions at any time, either in public or in private? he said, I did not; are you willing to make oath to this before an Alderman of the city? he said I am willing to do so. Joseph said Dr., go into my office, and write what you can in conscience subscribe your name to, and I will be satisfied.” (Hyrum Smith, Times and Seasons 3:870-871, 1 August 1842)
  • “NOTICE. There was a book [called the Peace Maker, which advocated polygamy] printed at my office, a short time since, written by Udney H. Jacobs, on marriage, without my knowledge; and had I been apprised of it, I should not have printed it; not that I am opposed to any man enjoying his privileges; but I do not wish to have my name associated with the authors, in such an unmeaning rigmarole of nonsense, folly, and trash. Joseph Smith.” (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons 4:32, 1 December 1842)
  • “He [Benjamin Winchester] spoke of the various publications of Bennett and others, and of the prejudices which they had necessarily excited—that the Mormons were charged with sanctioning a community of wives and of goods, with polygamy, and various other enormities, not one word of which was true. He had belonged to the society almost from its origin, and had always seen vice discountenanced as in other societies. Members retained their own property; were confined to one wife; and required to live morally and uprightly, and were subject to be expelled for misconduct. This was the case with Bennett, who had been expelled for his deviations from virtue. . . . The society is governed by rules accessible to all; some of which he read, and to which there could be no exception.” (Baltimore Clipper, reprinted in Times and Seasons 4:28, 1 December 1842)
  • “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 have a greater reverence for the laws of matrimony, or the rights of private property, and we do what others do not, practice what we preach.” (Times and Seasons 4:143, 15 March 1843)
  • “Gave instruction to try those who were preaching teaching or practicing the doctrine of plurality of wives. On this law Joseph forbids it and the practice thereof—No man shall have but one wife.” (Joseph Smith, Joseph Smith Journal, 5 October 1843)
  • “Stop this spinning street yarn and talking about spiritual wives . . . I proclaim in the name of the Lord God that I will have nothing but virtue and integrity and uprightness.” (Joseph Smith, Joseph Smith Journal, 15 October 1843)
  • “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. . . . We wish these doctrines to be taught by all that are in the ministry, that the people may know our faith respecting them, and also to correct the public mind in respect to the Church; and we hope, that the Saints will hearken to this counsel for their own good, and for the prosperity of the cause of God.” (The Latter-Day Saints’ Millennial Star 4:144, January 1844)
  • “NOTICE. As we have lately been credibly informed, that an Elder of the Church of Jesus Christ, of Latter­day Saints, by the name of Hiram Brown, has been preaching Polygamy, and other false and corrupt doctrines, in the county of Lapeer, state of Michigan. This is to notify him and the Church in general, that he has been cut off from the church, for his iniquity; and he is further notified to appear at the Special Conference, on the 6th of April next, to make answer to these charges. JOSEPH SMITH. HYRUM SMITH. Presidents of said church.” (Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, Times and Seasons 5:423, 1 February 1844)
  • “The corruption of wickedness which manifested itself in such horrible deformity on the trial of Orsemus F. Bostwick last week, for slandering President Hyrum Smith and the Widows of the City of Nauvoo, has awakened all the kindly feelings of female benevolence, compassion and pity, for the softer sex to spread forth the mantle of charity to shield the characters of the virtuous mothers, wives and daughters of Nauvoo, from the blasting breath and poisonous touch of debauchees, vagabonds, and rakes, who have jammed themselves into our city to offer strange fire at the shrines of infamy, disgrace and degradation; as they and their kindred spirits have done in all the great cities throughout the world: corrupting their way: on the earth, and bringing woman, poor defenceless woman, to wretchedness and ruin. As such ignoble blood now begins to stain the peaceable habitations of the Saints, and taint the pure air of the only City in the world that pretends, to work righteousness in Union, as the sine qua non, for happiness, glory and salvation: and, as such ungodly wretches, burning or smarting with the sting of their own shame, have doubtless, transported with them; some of the miserable dupes of their licentiousness, for the purpose of defiling the fame of this goodly city: mildewing the honesty of our mothers: blasting the chastity of widows and wives, and corrupting the virtue of our unsuspecting daughters, it becomes US in defence of our rights, for the glory of our fathers; for the honor of our Mothers; for the happiness of our husbands; and for the well fare of our dear children, to rebuke such an outrage upon the sanctity of Society; to thwart such a death blow at the hallowed marriage covenant: and to ward off such poisoned daggers from the hearts of our innocent daughters, for the honor of Nauvoo; and write with indellible Ink, upon every such villain: Vitare perditoris! Beware of the Wretch! and, so put in every virtuous woman’s hand a rod, to scourge such tormentors of domestic felicity, with vengeance throughout the world: Curse the man that preys upon female virtue! Curse the man that slanders a woman: Let the righteous indignation of insulted innocence, and virtue spurn him from society; Let the dignity of the Mother’s of Israel kick the blood thirsty pimp from the pale of social communion. Let the widows and wives who tread in the foot steps of their queenly mother Eve, drive such fag ends of creation, as was Cain, to the Land of Nod, and let the timid daughters of Nauvoo, dread such Canker worms more than the pestilence that walketh in darkness, and shun them as the serpent on the land and the shark in the Sea. . . . Resolved unanimously that while we render credence to the doctrines of Paul, that neither the man is without the woman; neither is woman without the man in the Lord, yet we raise our voices and hands against John C. Bennett’s ‘Spiritual Wife System,’ as a scheme of profligates to seduce women; and they that harp upon it, wish to make it popular for the convenience of their own cupidity: wherefore, while the marriage bed, undefiled is honorable, let polygamy, bigamy, fornication, adultery, and prostitution, be frowned out of the hearts of honest men to drop in the gulf of fallen nature, ‘where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched!’ and let all the Saints say Amen!” (The Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo, 29 February 1844, published in Nauvoo Neighbor, March 20, 1844)
  • “Whereas Brother Richard Hewitt has called on me today to know my views concerning some doctrines that are preached in your place, and states to me that some of your elders say, that a man having a certain priesthood may have as many wives as he pleases, and that doctrine is taught here: I say unto you that that man teaches false doctrine, for there is no such doctrine taught here. And any man that is found teaching privately or publicly any such doctrine, is culpable, and will stand a chance to be brought before the high council, and lose his license and membership also; therefore he had better beware what he is about.” (Hyrum Smith, letter to the brethren of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, living on China Creek, in Hancock County, 8 March 1844, Times and Seasons 5:474, 15 March 1844; History, 1838–1856, volume E-1 [1 July 1843–30 April 1844], pg. 1931, The Joseph Smith Papers)
  • “We very frequently receive letters from elders and individuals abroad, inquiring of us whether certain statements that they hear, and have written to them, are true: some pertaining to John C. Bennet’s spiritual wife system; others in regard to immoral conduct, practiced by individuals, and sanctioned by the Church; and as it is impossible for us to answer all of them, we take this opportunity of answering them all, once for all. In the first place, we cannot but express our surprise that any elder or priest who has been in Nauvoo, and has had an opportunity of hearing the principles of truth advanced, should for one moment give credence to the idea that any thing like iniquity is practised, much less taught or sanctioned, by the authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We are the more surprised, since every species of iniquity is spoken against, and exposed publicly at the stand, and every means made use of that possibly can be, to suppress vice, both religious and civil; not only so, but every species of iniquity has frequently been exposed in the Times and Seasons, and its practisers and advocates held up to the world as corrupt men that ought to be avoided. . . . There are other men who are corrupt and sensual, and who teach corrupt principles for the sake of gratifying their sensual appetites, at the expense and ruin of virtue and innocence. Such men ought to be avoided as pests to society, and be frowned down upon with contempt by every virtuous man and woman. . . . They are high and lifted up, and would trample upon the humble, and the meek, and the unassuming, and are not afraid to teach for the commandment of God, their own corrupt, and devilish doctrines, and principles; let no man therefore, be deceived by them, let no man harbor them, nor bid them God speed; don’t be partakers of their evil deeds. If any man writes to you, or preaches to you, doctrines contrary to the Bible, the Book of Mormon, or the book of Doctrine and Covenants, set him down as an imposter. You need not write to us to know what you are to do with such men; you have the authority with you.—Try them by the principles contained in the acknowledged word of God; if they preach, or teach, or practice contrary to that, disfellowship them; cut them off from among you as useless and dangerous branches, and if they are belonging to any of the quorums in the Church, report them to the president of the quorum to which they belong, and if you cannot find that out, if they are members of an official standing, belonging to Nauvoo, report them to us. Follow after purity, virtue, holiness, integrity, Godliness, and every thing that has a tendency to exalt and ennoble the human mind; and shun every man who teaches any other principles.” (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons 5: 490–491, 1 April 1844)
  • “One reason I speak to the Elders is, in consequence of the Ten thousand reports which come to me from abroad—almost every foolish man runs to me, to enquire if such and such things are true, and how many spiritual wives a man may have. I know nothing about it; what he might call a spiritual wife, I should not know anything about. In about half an hour after he has gone, another person begins to say: 'the Elders tell such and such things all over the country.' I am authorized to tell you from henceforth, that any man who comes in and tells any such damn fool doctrine, to tell him to give up his license. None but a fool teaches such stuff; the devil himself is not such a fool, and every Elder who teaches such stuff ought to have his nose wrung; any one found guilty of such teaching will be published and his license will be taken from him. When Elders are sent to preach the Gospel, they are not to preach anything but the Gospel, if they wish to shew themselves approved and not fools, like the old man who went to preach such wonderful things, old daddy Matthews the Tinman. I wish the Elders of Israel to understand it is lawful for a man to marry a wife, but it is unlawful to have more, and God has not commanded any of you to have more; and if any of you dare to presume to do any such things, it will spoil your fun, for you will never have the spirit to preach the Gospel. I despise a man who teaches a pack of stuff that will disgrace himself so; for a man to go into the world, and talk of this spiritual wife system he is as empty as an open sepulchre. . . . I believe every good man should have one wife in this life, and I know if I had two I should not know what to do with them; they might quarrel about me, and I might get a whipping. One is enough, and I warn all of you not to attempt it; if a man should begin to find you out, you would get into some cell in Alton. Be careful what you teach; if you say anything one thousand miles off, it comes here. There are God’s spirits and the Devil’s spirits, and some carry it. If any man preach any false doctrine I shall disgrace him.” (Hyrum Smith, Conference Address, 8 April 1844, History, 1838–1856, volume E-1 [1 July 1843–30 April 1844], pg. 1984-1985, 1988, The Joseph Smith Papers)
  • “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 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 [The Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo] against adulterers and adulteresses. . . . 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. . . . 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.” (Joseph Smith, DHC 6:408-412, 26 May 1844)
If any who believe Joseph practiced polygamy would mind reading through these and explaining how they reconcile this, I’m genuinely seeking to understand. May any discussion that ensues be Christlike with highest respect, free of contention so I don’t feel to repent of inquiring. Thank you!

Shortly after the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Edmund Briggs had a vision of polygamy:
"In the vision, I stood north of the city of Nauvoo, Illinois, and saw the woods and prairie north and northeast of the city, with scattering houses in the timber, on the hill, and down the sloping plain to the lowland along the river.
While I viewed the city, I saw a thin mist like crape, descending from the northeast of the city. It settled down on the trees first, but did not stop its course until it settled down closely over all the city; and while I stood wondering in my mind what it was, a voice nearby, to the right and a little back of me, said, 'It is the spirit of whoredom, and it will be poured out upon the Church first, and then it will be poured out upon the whole world:
"And immediately I stood in a room. A fireplace was in the west end. The door and door casings were made of heavy lumber, very nicely finished and polished. The window casings,
mantelpiece, and baseboards were of the same material, and resembled black walnut lumber; and while noticing the fine workmanship, I saw two women near the east end of the room.
"They were clothed in nicely fitting black, and wore bonnets fastened like the Shaker, tied close under the chin. They walked side by side as though they took hold of each other's arms, but yet they did not. Each was in tears, crying, and wringing her hands as if in distress, and one of them said, 'Is that so?' They walked toward the fireplace, and again one of them spoke out in her sobs as though her heart would break, 'My God! Is that so?' By this time I was much moved by sympathy for them, and I exclaimed, 'My God! What does this mean?'
And again one them said, 'If it was not for the future, I would not do it.' I then seemed to understand that they were being taught something repugnant to their feelings, that caused them great sorrow and anguish of heart as they sobbed and wrung their hands and slowly walked toward the fireplace.
"And immediately I saw two Mormon elders following these women. They, too, walked side by side, and their raiment was fine broadcloth in shining luster. They were gleefully talking together, making rather awkward gestures with their hands. I then noticed the contrast between the women and the men. The first were in agony of soul; the others in a mood of laughing indifference, full of glee. The first in plain, dead black; the others in fine broadcloth. And while I gazed at them with wonder and astonishment, again one of the women exclaimed, 'My God! Is it so?' And I repeated in the anguish of my heart, 'What does this mean?' And a person I had not noticed before seemed to stand at my right, and said, 'They are being taught whoredom under a new name to take away the reproach, and whoredom sits a queen over all manner of corruption.
"And immediately after I saw a pail of blood splash on the floor just behind the men, and the person standing at my right passed behind me, went up to them, took hold of one of their coat collars, showed me the seams of the collar, then took hold of the sleeves and pointed to the seams of the sleeves, then took hold of the skirt and showed me all the seams of the coat, and around the skirts, and every seam was lined with blood, and he then said, 'That is murder, and murder is the sister of the queen; and the queen and her sister sit and preside over all manner of corruption that flesh is heir to."
-Vision of Edmund Briggs, late summer 1844

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Gadianton Slayer
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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Gadianton Slayer »

Luke is my favorite anti-polygamist.

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Luke
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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Luke »

Brighidara wrote: June 1st, 2023, 8:55 am
Luke wrote: September 30th, 2020, 3:07 am
  • D&C 101 (1835 Edition)

    4 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 will have no fellowship whatever with any Elder belonging to the quorums of the Seventies who is guilty of polygamy or any offence of the kind, and who does not in all things conform to the laws of the church.” (Messenger and Advocate 3:511, May 1837)
  • “5th the charge that was preferred before the quorum against Elder Sollomon Freeman by William Perry for the crime of polygamy was brought forward. Elder Freeman plead not guilty of the charge testimony for the Complainant came forward (Dexter Stilman) and Stated that Elder Freeman had a wife in Tollan township Co of Berkshire in Mass, and it was told him there that he (E. Freeman) Came a way [without his] wife. Elder Harlow Redfield Stated that when he and Elder Stilman went to See Elder Freeman. Elder Freeman acknowledged that he come away and left his wife as was testified Elder Freeman acknowledged before the quorum that he had left his first wife came away with and Soon Commenced living with another woman he further Stated he did not know but his first wife was yet living he further Stated he would not go across the room to obtain a bill from her Elder Freeman Manifest a Careless indifferent spirit.” (Kirtland Elders’ Quorum Record, 29 November 1837)
  • “Do the Mormons believe in having more wives than one? No, not at the same time. But they believe, that if their companion dies, they have a right to marry again.” (Joseph Smith, TPJS 119, 8 May 1838)
  • “We have heard that it is reported by some, that some of us should have said, that we not only dedicated our property, but our families also to the Lord; and Satan, taking advantage of this, has perverted it into licentiousness, such as a community of wives, which is an abomination in the sight of God.” (Joseph Smith, Letter from Liberty Jail, TPJS 127, 16 December 1838)
  • “Their religion is a peculiar one; that is neither Bhoodism nor Mahometanism nor Judaism, nor Christiany—but it is a faith which they say encourages no vice, nor immorality, nor departure from established laws and usages; neither polygamy, nor promiscuous intercourse, nor community of property.” (Report by a non-Mormon, published in Times and Seasons 2:580, 15 October 1841)
  • “I preached in the grove and pronounced a curse upon all adulterers and fornicators, and unvirtuous persons and those who have made use of my name to carry on their iniquitous designs.” (Joseph Smith, DHC 4:587, 10 April 1842)
  • “Brother Joseph was crossing the yard from the house to the store and met Dr. Bennett on the way; he reached out his hand to Br. Joseph and said, will you forgive me, weeping at the time; he said Br. Joseph, I am guilty, I acknowledge it, and I beg of you not to expose me, for it will ruin me; Joseph replied, Doctor! why are you using my name to carry on your hellish wickedness? Have I ever taught you that fornication and adultery was right, or polygamy or any such practices? He said you never did. Did I ever teach you any thing that was not virtuous—that was iniquitous, either in public or private? He said you never did. Did you ever know anything unvirtuous or unrighteous in my conduct or actions at any time, either in public or in private? he said, I did not; are you willing to make oath to this before an Alderman of the city? he said I am willing to do so. Joseph said Dr., go into my office, and write what you can in conscience subscribe your name to, and I will be satisfied.” (Hyrum Smith, Times and Seasons 3:870-871, 1 August 1842)
  • “NOTICE. There was a book [called the Peace Maker, which advocated polygamy] printed at my office, a short time since, written by Udney H. Jacobs, on marriage, without my knowledge; and had I been apprised of it, I should not have printed it; not that I am opposed to any man enjoying his privileges; but I do not wish to have my name associated with the authors, in such an unmeaning rigmarole of nonsense, folly, and trash. Joseph Smith.” (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons 4:32, 1 December 1842)
  • “He [Benjamin Winchester] spoke of the various publications of Bennett and others, and of the prejudices which they had necessarily excited—that the Mormons were charged with sanctioning a community of wives and of goods, with polygamy, and various other enormities, not one word of which was true. He had belonged to the society almost from its origin, and had always seen vice discountenanced as in other societies. Members retained their own property; were confined to one wife; and required to live morally and uprightly, and were subject to be expelled for misconduct. This was the case with Bennett, who had been expelled for his deviations from virtue. . . . The society is governed by rules accessible to all; some of which he read, and to which there could be no exception.” (Baltimore Clipper, reprinted in Times and Seasons 4:28, 1 December 1842)
  • “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 have a greater reverence for the laws of matrimony, or the rights of private property, and we do what others do not, practice what we preach.” (Times and Seasons 4:143, 15 March 1843)
  • “Gave instruction to try those who were preaching teaching or practicing the doctrine of plurality of wives. On this law Joseph forbids it and the practice thereof—No man shall have but one wife.” (Joseph Smith, Joseph Smith Journal, 5 October 1843)
  • “Stop this spinning street yarn and talking about spiritual wives . . . I proclaim in the name of the Lord God that I will have nothing but virtue and integrity and uprightness.” (Joseph Smith, Joseph Smith Journal, 15 October 1843)
  • “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. . . . We wish these doctrines to be taught by all that are in the ministry, that the people may know our faith respecting them, and also to correct the public mind in respect to the Church; and we hope, that the Saints will hearken to this counsel for their own good, and for the prosperity of the cause of God.” (The Latter-Day Saints’ Millennial Star 4:144, January 1844)
  • “NOTICE. As we have lately been credibly informed, that an Elder of the Church of Jesus Christ, of Latter­day Saints, by the name of Hiram Brown, has been preaching Polygamy, and other false and corrupt doctrines, in the county of Lapeer, state of Michigan. This is to notify him and the Church in general, that he has been cut off from the church, for his iniquity; and he is further notified to appear at the Special Conference, on the 6th of April next, to make answer to these charges. JOSEPH SMITH. HYRUM SMITH. Presidents of said church.” (Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, Times and Seasons 5:423, 1 February 1844)
  • “The corruption of wickedness which manifested itself in such horrible deformity on the trial of Orsemus F. Bostwick last week, for slandering President Hyrum Smith and the Widows of the City of Nauvoo, has awakened all the kindly feelings of female benevolence, compassion and pity, for the softer sex to spread forth the mantle of charity to shield the characters of the virtuous mothers, wives and daughters of Nauvoo, from the blasting breath and poisonous touch of debauchees, vagabonds, and rakes, who have jammed themselves into our city to offer strange fire at the shrines of infamy, disgrace and degradation; as they and their kindred spirits have done in all the great cities throughout the world: corrupting their way: on the earth, and bringing woman, poor defenceless woman, to wretchedness and ruin. As such ignoble blood now begins to stain the peaceable habitations of the Saints, and taint the pure air of the only City in the world that pretends, to work righteousness in Union, as the sine qua non, for happiness, glory and salvation: and, as such ungodly wretches, burning or smarting with the sting of their own shame, have doubtless, transported with them; some of the miserable dupes of their licentiousness, for the purpose of defiling the fame of this goodly city: mildewing the honesty of our mothers: blasting the chastity of widows and wives, and corrupting the virtue of our unsuspecting daughters, it becomes US in defence of our rights, for the glory of our fathers; for the honor of our Mothers; for the happiness of our husbands; and for the well fare of our dear children, to rebuke such an outrage upon the sanctity of Society; to thwart such a death blow at the hallowed marriage covenant: and to ward off such poisoned daggers from the hearts of our innocent daughters, for the honor of Nauvoo; and write with indellible Ink, upon every such villain: Vitare perditoris! Beware of the Wretch! and, so put in every virtuous woman’s hand a rod, to scourge such tormentors of domestic felicity, with vengeance throughout the world: Curse the man that preys upon female virtue! Curse the man that slanders a woman: Let the righteous indignation of insulted innocence, and virtue spurn him from society; Let the dignity of the Mother’s of Israel kick the blood thirsty pimp from the pale of social communion. Let the widows and wives who tread in the foot steps of their queenly mother Eve, drive such fag ends of creation, as was Cain, to the Land of Nod, and let the timid daughters of Nauvoo, dread such Canker worms more than the pestilence that walketh in darkness, and shun them as the serpent on the land and the shark in the Sea. . . . Resolved unanimously that while we render credence to the doctrines of Paul, that neither the man is without the woman; neither is woman without the man in the Lord, yet we raise our voices and hands against John C. Bennett’s ‘Spiritual Wife System,’ as a scheme of profligates to seduce women; and they that harp upon it, wish to make it popular for the convenience of their own cupidity: wherefore, while the marriage bed, undefiled is honorable, let polygamy, bigamy, fornication, adultery, and prostitution, be frowned out of the hearts of honest men to drop in the gulf of fallen nature, ‘where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched!’ and let all the Saints say Amen!” (The Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo, 29 February 1844, published in Nauvoo Neighbor, March 20, 1844)
  • “Whereas Brother Richard Hewitt has called on me today to know my views concerning some doctrines that are preached in your place, and states to me that some of your elders say, that a man having a certain priesthood may have as many wives as he pleases, and that doctrine is taught here: I say unto you that that man teaches false doctrine, for there is no such doctrine taught here. And any man that is found teaching privately or publicly any such doctrine, is culpable, and will stand a chance to be brought before the high council, and lose his license and membership also; therefore he had better beware what he is about.” (Hyrum Smith, letter to the brethren of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, living on China Creek, in Hancock County, 8 March 1844, Times and Seasons 5:474, 15 March 1844; History, 1838–1856, volume E-1 [1 July 1843–30 April 1844], pg. 1931, The Joseph Smith Papers)
  • “We very frequently receive letters from elders and individuals abroad, inquiring of us whether certain statements that they hear, and have written to them, are true: some pertaining to John C. Bennet’s spiritual wife system; others in regard to immoral conduct, practiced by individuals, and sanctioned by the Church; and as it is impossible for us to answer all of them, we take this opportunity of answering them all, once for all. In the first place, we cannot but express our surprise that any elder or priest who has been in Nauvoo, and has had an opportunity of hearing the principles of truth advanced, should for one moment give credence to the idea that any thing like iniquity is practised, much less taught or sanctioned, by the authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We are the more surprised, since every species of iniquity is spoken against, and exposed publicly at the stand, and every means made use of that possibly can be, to suppress vice, both religious and civil; not only so, but every species of iniquity has frequently been exposed in the Times and Seasons, and its practisers and advocates held up to the world as corrupt men that ought to be avoided. . . . There are other men who are corrupt and sensual, and who teach corrupt principles for the sake of gratifying their sensual appetites, at the expense and ruin of virtue and innocence. Such men ought to be avoided as pests to society, and be frowned down upon with contempt by every virtuous man and woman. . . . They are high and lifted up, and would trample upon the humble, and the meek, and the unassuming, and are not afraid to teach for the commandment of God, their own corrupt, and devilish doctrines, and principles; let no man therefore, be deceived by them, let no man harbor them, nor bid them God speed; don’t be partakers of their evil deeds. If any man writes to you, or preaches to you, doctrines contrary to the Bible, the Book of Mormon, or the book of Doctrine and Covenants, set him down as an imposter. You need not write to us to know what you are to do with such men; you have the authority with you.—Try them by the principles contained in the acknowledged word of God; if they preach, or teach, or practice contrary to that, disfellowship them; cut them off from among you as useless and dangerous branches, and if they are belonging to any of the quorums in the Church, report them to the president of the quorum to which they belong, and if you cannot find that out, if they are members of an official standing, belonging to Nauvoo, report them to us. Follow after purity, virtue, holiness, integrity, Godliness, and every thing that has a tendency to exalt and ennoble the human mind; and shun every man who teaches any other principles.” (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons 5: 490–491, 1 April 1844)
  • “One reason I speak to the Elders is, in consequence of the Ten thousand reports which come to me from abroad—almost every foolish man runs to me, to enquire if such and such things are true, and how many spiritual wives a man may have. I know nothing about it; what he might call a spiritual wife, I should not know anything about. In about half an hour after he has gone, another person begins to say: 'the Elders tell such and such things all over the country.' I am authorized to tell you from henceforth, that any man who comes in and tells any such damn fool doctrine, to tell him to give up his license. None but a fool teaches such stuff; the devil himself is not such a fool, and every Elder who teaches such stuff ought to have his nose wrung; any one found guilty of such teaching will be published and his license will be taken from him. When Elders are sent to preach the Gospel, they are not to preach anything but the Gospel, if they wish to shew themselves approved and not fools, like the old man who went to preach such wonderful things, old daddy Matthews the Tinman. I wish the Elders of Israel to understand it is lawful for a man to marry a wife, but it is unlawful to have more, and God has not commanded any of you to have more; and if any of you dare to presume to do any such things, it will spoil your fun, for you will never have the spirit to preach the Gospel. I despise a man who teaches a pack of stuff that will disgrace himself so; for a man to go into the world, and talk of this spiritual wife system he is as empty as an open sepulchre. . . . I believe every good man should have one wife in this life, and I know if I had two I should not know what to do with them; they might quarrel about me, and I might get a whipping. One is enough, and I warn all of you not to attempt it; if a man should begin to find you out, you would get into some cell in Alton. Be careful what you teach; if you say anything one thousand miles off, it comes here. There are God’s spirits and the Devil’s spirits, and some carry it. If any man preach any false doctrine I shall disgrace him.” (Hyrum Smith, Conference Address, 8 April 1844, History, 1838–1856, volume E-1 [1 July 1843–30 April 1844], pg. 1984-1985, 1988, The Joseph Smith Papers)
  • “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 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 [The Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo] against adulterers and adulteresses. . . . 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. . . . 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.” (Joseph Smith, DHC 6:408-412, 26 May 1844)
If any who believe Joseph practiced polygamy would mind reading through these and explaining how they reconcile this, I’m genuinely seeking to understand. May any discussion that ensues be Christlike with highest respect, free of contention so I don’t feel to repent of inquiring. Thank you!

Shortly after the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Edmund Briggs had a vision of polygamy:
"In the vision, I stood north of the city of Nauvoo, Illinois, and saw the woods and prairie north and northeast of the city, with scattering houses in the timber, on the hill, and down the sloping plain to the lowland along the river.
While I viewed the city, I saw a thin mist like crape, descending from the northeast of the city. It settled down on the trees first, but did not stop its course until it settled down closely over all the city; and while I stood wondering in my mind what it was, a voice nearby, to the right and a little back of me, said, 'It is the spirit of whoredom, and it will be poured out upon the Church first, and then it will be poured out upon the whole world:
"And immediately I stood in a room. A fireplace was in the west end. The door and door casings were made of heavy lumber, very nicely finished and polished. The window casings,
mantelpiece, and baseboards were of the same material, and resembled black walnut lumber; and while noticing the fine workmanship, I saw two women near the east end of the room.
"They were clothed in nicely fitting black, and wore bonnets fastened like the Shaker, tied close under the chin. They walked side by side as though they took hold of each other's arms, but yet they did not. Each was in tears, crying, and wringing her hands as if in distress, and one of them said, 'Is that so?' They walked toward the fireplace, and again one of them spoke out in her sobs as though her heart would break, 'My God! Is that so?' By this time I was much moved by sympathy for them, and I exclaimed, 'My God! What does this mean?'
And again one them said, 'If it was not for the future, I would not do it.' I then seemed to understand that they were being taught something repugnant to their feelings, that caused them great sorrow and anguish of heart as they sobbed and wrung their hands and slowly walked toward the fireplace.
"And immediately I saw two Mormon elders following these women. They, too, walked side by side, and their raiment was fine broadcloth in shining luster. They were gleefully talking together, making rather awkward gestures with their hands. I then noticed the contrast between the women and the men. The first were in agony of soul; the others in a mood of laughing indifference, full of glee. The first in plain, dead black; the others in fine broadcloth. And while I gazed at them with wonder and astonishment, again one of the women exclaimed, 'My God! Is it so?' And I repeated in the anguish of my heart, 'What does this mean?' And a person I had not noticed before seemed to stand at my right, and said, 'They are being taught whoredom under a new name to take away the reproach, and whoredom sits a queen over all manner of corruption.
"And immediately after I saw a pail of blood splash on the floor just behind the men, and the person standing at my right passed behind me, went up to them, took hold of one of their coat collars, showed me the seams of the collar, then took hold of the sleeves and pointed to the seams of the sleeves, then took hold of the skirt and showed me all the seams of the coat, and around the skirts, and every seam was lined with blood, and he then said, 'That is murder, and murder is the sister of the queen; and the queen and her sister sit and preside over all manner of corruption that flesh is heir to."
-Vision of Edmund Briggs, late summer 1844
You should ignore everything I’ve written on this thread 🤣

Actually, no, don’t quite ignore it (though you should ignore the position I took then). But consider it in its context. Joseph and Hyrum denied polygamy in public yet practised it in secret. It’s just a fact of history. Do we have any record of Joseph telling people to use words in public to throw off the enemy? Yes, in the Council of Fifty Minutes. They were up against the worst of the worst people.

Polygamy is a true principle.

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Luke
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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Luke »

Gadianton Slayer wrote: June 1st, 2023, 8:59 am Luke is my favorite anti-polygamist.
That Luke is thankfully long since gone 😁

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Telavian
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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Telavian »

One thing I have found is no quote or scripture really matters to most members. They just say, "continuing revelation" and then accept whatever the current belief at the time is.
Honestly, for most practical purposes the scriptures don't matter at all since we get living scriptures every 6 months and then spend the following 6 months repeating that over and over.

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BigT
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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by BigT »

Telavian wrote: June 1st, 2023, 10:00 am One thing I have found is no quote or scripture really matters to most members. They just say, "continuing revelation" and then accept whatever the current belief at the time is.
Honestly, for most practical purposes the scriptures don't matter at all since we get living scriptures every 6 months and then spend the following 6 months repeating that over and over.
Unfortunately, true.

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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Arm Chair Quarterback »

This is a no win situation if you want the restored church to come out looking like the restored church of Christ "should" look like. It doesn't. No matter how much lipstick you put on this polygamy pig, it's still a pig.

Either Joseph practiced polygamy and lied about it in public---which brings to mind all the other religious leaders over the centuries who invoked revelation from God to justify their sexual perversions and adultery--or he didn't practice polygamy. Which then brings all the other actors into the mix like Brigham Young and John Taylor, and Wilford Woodruff and the list goes on--men who practiced polygamy like all the religious leader over the centuries who invoked revelation from God to justify their sexual perversions and adultery. And the irony is that the Book of Mormon declares the practice abominable. The justifications and the twisting in the wind would be hilarious if they weren't so fundamentally fraudulent.

Two members of the first presidency, Oliver Cowdery and William Law, were excommunicated by Joseph Smith because they dared point out that Joseph's practice of polygamy as early as 1835 was adultery. Gone. Exed. Thrown out with the bath water. Immediately. Joseph had little patience ounce he no longer controlled the narrative. And it's hard to control the adultery narrative when Jesus himself, the being whose church and religious practices you claim to restore, spoke adamantly against adultery. And the apostles, whose charge to keep the church of Christ in order you claim to have restored, spoke adamantly that any leader of the church of Christ must be monogamous.

It interesting that William Law, in an interview with the Salt Lake Tribune a decade after his excommunication, stated that it was his belief based on personal eye witness accounts of Emma's behavior and comments to William Law, that she was in on the whole affair from the beginning. She allowed Joseph his adultery as long as all the property (house, animals, estate, wealth, etc) was transferred to her name---a legal twist which protected their wealth from confiscation should Joseph be incarcerated and found guilty of practicing polygamy. It was an estate management plan which other polygamists like Brigham Young and John Taylor used as well in order to avoid losing their wealth. In their world, you really could have your cake and eat it too.

Here's the William Law interview from the Tribune in the next post down:
Last edited by Arm Chair Quarterback on June 1st, 2023, 4:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Arm Chair Quarterback
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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Arm Chair Quarterback »

Dr. William Law lives with his son, Judge “Tommy” Law. The house is a fine cottage, large, well-kept grounds surround it. We entered a cheerful looking room and there sat William Law, dressed in black, a most venerable looking figure. The head has a striking expression of intelligence, the large clear eyes are of a remarkably deep steel blue; the general impression is that of a thinker, of a benevolent and just man. He greeted me in a fatherly way. I expressed my joy at seeing at last so important a witness of a history, to whose study I had devoted two years.

I sat down near the venerable figure. I hesitated to put any question to him, but he made my task easy by saying: “You speak, in your book, of Joseph Smith having sent Rockwell to kill Governor Boggs. Let me tell you, that Joe Smith, told me the fact himself. The words were substantially like this, “I sent Rockwell to kill Boggs, but he missed him, it was a failure; he wounded him instead of sending him to Hell.”

This beginning gave me some courage and I began the pumping business, in a cautious way, though, that I might not frighten my subject. I had put down in my notebook a score of questions or so. So I glanced over them now and then, stealthily, and ventured this or that question, waiting till the good doctor would get warm in the recollections of the past. This happened soon and then I could ask with more liberty.

“What position had Rockwell in Joseph’s house?”

“Rockwell was the lackey of the house. He used to comb and shave Joseph, blackened his boots and drove his carriage. He would have done anything Joe wanted him to do. I never saw a horse or carriage belonging to Rockwell which you say he got from Joseph for the attempt to kill Boggs.”

The reader will easily understand that I had particular reasons to ask about the Expositor, Wm. Law being the only surviving publisher and editor of that celebrated sheet, born and killed June 7th, 1844. So I began:

“I suppose that you originated the Expositor, Doctor Law?”

“Yes, I originated the idea to publish that paper. I had friends in many parts of the country. They knew that I had become a member of the Mormon religion. I wanted to show them, by publishing the paper, that I had not been in a fraud willingly (here the old man’s eyes filled with tears and his voice trembled). I started the idea, and my brother, Wilson, stood to me like a brother should. I don’t remember whether it was I, or not, who gave the name “Expositor.” But I and my brother, we gave the money, about $2000. I gave the biggest part. The Higbees etc., had scarcely a dollar in it.”

“You were well off at that time. Dr. Law?”

“We had property to the amount of about $30,000, which was a good deal in those days. We had farms in Nauvoo, city lots and our residences. My brother had a fine brick two story building. By starting the Expositor we lost nearly everything.”

“Didn’t you have a store and a mill?”

“Yes, we had a large steam flour and saw mill and a store. It would have been the smart thing to do, to remain quiet, sell our property without noise for what we could get and move away. That would have been smart, but I wasn’t cool and smart then. I wanted to do my duty and nothing else, and didn’t care for the consequences, not a bit. Many friends advised me to be smart and remain quiet, but I would not hear of it and spoke my mind whenever an opportunity offered. When the Smiths saw that we were against them, then they applied to us their usual system, that is, to freeze us out. Secret orders went out that nobody could buy property without the permission of Joseph Smith, Hyrum or the authorities, as they called them, so our property was practically worthless. Yes, my brother Wilson stood to me like a man, fully, fearlessly. He died, here in Shullsburgh, of a stroke of apoplexy, after an illness of three days, ten years ago. He was a very fine and tremendously strong man. He wrestled with Joe in Nauvoo and threw him on his back.”

“How did you become a Mormon, Doctor?”

“John Taylor and Almon W. Babbitt came as missionaries to Canada and preached where I lived, twenty-five miles south of Toronto. I believe that Taylor was sincere then and I believe he was to a late day. Finally the greed of power and money killed his conscience. There was, now and then, a good man in Mormondom, for instance Wm. Marks. He was a very good man and knew as little of the secret crimes of the leaders as I knew myself.”

“The letters you wrote me, made me suppose that the Smiths tried to kill you when they saw an enemy in you?”

“They tried to get rid of me in different ways. One was by poisoning. I was already out of the church when Hyrum called one day and invited me for the next day to a reconciliation dinner as he called it, to his house. He said Joseph would come, too. He invited me and my wife. He was very urgent about the matter, but I declined the invitation. Now I must tell you that I, in those dangerous days, did not neglect to look out somewhat for the safety of my person and that I kept a detective or two among those who were in the confidence of the Smiths. That very same evening of the day on which Hyrum had been to my house inviting me, my detective told me that they had conceived the plan to poison me at the reconciliation dinner. Their object was a double one. My going to the dinner would have shown to the people that I was reconciled and my death would have freed them of an enemy. You may imagine that I didn’t regret having declined that amiable invitation.”

“Have you had any knowledge of cases of poisoning in Nauvoo, ordered by the authorities?”

“I know that several men, six or seven, died under very suspicious circumstances. Among them were two secretaries of the prophet, Mulholland and Blaskel Thompson. I saw Mulholland die and the symptoms looked very suspicious to me. Dr. Foster, who was a very good physician, believed firmly that those six or seven men had been poisoned, and told me so repeatedly.”

“What may have been the reason for poisoning the secretaries?”

(With a smile) “They knew too much, probably.”

“What do you know about the Dani
tes?”

“Nothing of my personal knowledge. They existed, but their workings were kept very secret. I never belonged to the initiated. Smith tried very hard to get them to kill me. One day my detective told me, that two Danites had gone to Joseph and told him that they wanted to put me out of the way. Joseph said: “Don’t–he (Law) is too influential; his death would bring the country down upon us; wait.” Later when I was thoroughly aware of my danger, they tried in all manners to use me up and had Danites all day and night after me, but I looked out and kept myself safe. Whatever there was of crime in Nauvoo, was kept secret. On the outside everything looked nice and smooth. There were lots of strangers every Sunday as visitors and then the best speakers were put on the stand as samples of the fruits of this fine religion.”

“Did Emma, the elect lady, come to your house and complain about Joseph?”

“No. She never came to my house for that purpose. But I met her sometimes on the street and then she used to complain, especially because of the girls whom Joseph kept in the house, devoting his attention to them. You have overrated her, she was dishonest.”

“Do you mean to say that she was so outside of the influence Joseph had over her?”

“Yes, that is exactly what I mean. Let me tell you a case that will be full proof to you. Soon after my arrive in Nauvoo the two L[awrence] girls came to the holy city, two very young girls, 15 to 17 years of age. They had been converted in Canada, were orphans and worth about $8000 in English gold. Joseph got to be appointed their Guardian, probably with the help of Dr. Bennett. He naturally put the gold in his pocket and had the Girls sealed to him. He asked me to go on his bond as a guardian, as Sidney Rigdon had done. “It is only a formality,” he said. Foolishly enough, and not yet suspecting anything, I put my name on the paper. Emma complained about Joseph’s living with the L[awrence] girls, but not very violently. It is my conviction that she was his full accomplice, that she was not a bit better than he. When I saw how things went I should have taken steps to be released of that bond, but I never thought of it. After Joseph’s death, A. W. Babbitt became guardian of the two girls. He asked Emma for a settlement about the $8000. Emma said she had nothing to do with her husband’s debts. Now Babbitt asked for the books and she gave them to him. Babbitt found that Joseph had counted an expense of about $3000 for board and clothing of the girls. Now Babbitt wanted the $5000 that was to be paid Babbitt, who was a straight, good, honest, sincere man, set about to find out property to pay the $5000 with. He could find none. Two splendid farms near Nauvoo, a big brick house, worth from $3000 to $4000, the hotel kept by Joe, a mass of vacant town lots, all were in Emma’s name, not transferred later, but transferred from the beginning. She always looked out for her part. When I saw how things stood I wrote to Babbitt to take hold of all the property left by me in Nauvoo and of all claims held by me again in people in Nauvoo. And so the debt was paid by me–Emma didn’t pay a cent.”

We had chatted about an hour when Dr. Law said that he felt a little tired. I kept silent for a few minutes. The old gentleman rallied very soon, and began to speak without being questioned.

“I told you that the Smiths tried to poison me. When Joseph saw that I had no great appetite for reconciliation dinners, he tried with the Indians. The plan was, that somebody should use me up who was not openly connected with the church, he was yet afraid of the people because of my influence. Later he would have killed me without any regard. One day about one hundred redskins came to town and twenty or thirty were sent to my house. We tried to get rid of them, but could not and we saw clearly that they had a dark plan for the night. But we had to keep them, gave them blankets and they were all night in our hall. Wilson Law, I and some friends, though, kept good watch all night, with barricaded windows and doors and guns and pistols ready.”

“You have known the parents of the prophet, old Lucy and old Joe, the Abraham of this new dispensation?”

“Oh, yes, I knew them. Old Lucy was in her dotage at that time; she seemed a harmless old woman. Old Joe sold blessings, so much a head, always in the same style–that my sons should be emperors and my daughters mothers of queens, and that everybody should have as many children as there was sands on the shore. Old Joe was an old tramp.”

“How about Dr. Bennett?”

“Bennett was very smart and clever, but a thorough scoundrel. Never could find out the reason of his downfall. Mrs. Pratt was a most excellent, pure woman, but the fact that Bennett visited her sometimes, was used by Joseph to ruin her character. He had his spies everywhere, and if a woman refused him, he sent his fellows out to whisper stories around about her.”

“What do you remember about Emma’s relations to the revelation on celestial marriage?”

“Well, I told you that she used to complain to me about Joseph’s escapades whenever she met me on the street. She spoke repeatedly about that pretended revelation. She said once: “The revelation says I must submit or be destroyed. Well, I guess I have to submit.” On another day she said: “Joe and I have settled our troubles on the basis of equal rights.” * * * Emma was a full accomplice of Joseph’s crimes. She was a large, coarse woman, as deep a woman as there was, always full of schemes and smooth as oil. They were worthy of each other, she was not a particle better than he.”

“You think that Joseph was an infidel?”

“Yes, that he was I have not the slightest doubt. What proofs have I? Well, my general and intimate knowledge of his character. And is it possible that a man who ascribes all kinds of impudent lies to the Lord, could have been anything else but an infidel?”

“Did you ever see the celebrated peepstone?”

“No. I never saw it and I never saw Joseph giving a revelation. But Hyrum told me once that Joseph, in his younger years, used to hunt for hidden treasures with a peepstone.”

“Was Joseph a habitual drunkard?”

“I don’t believe he was. I only saw him drunk once. I found Joseph and Hyrum at a place where they kept quantities of wine. I remember that Joseph drank heavily, and that I talked to Hyrum begging him to take his brother away, but that was the only time I saw the prophet drunk.”

“Have you ever heard of the old woman that was drowned in the interest of the church?”

“I have heard of a woman being put aside. They said she had been brought over the river and buried on an island near the shore or on the other shore, near the water. But at that time I did not believe a word of rumors of this kind, and did not investigate them.”

“Did you ever hear of abortion being practiced in Nauvoo?”

“Yes. There was some talk about Joseph getting no issue from all the women he had intercourse with. Dr. Foster spoke to me about the fact. But I don’t remember what was told about abortion. If I heard things of the kind, I didn’t believe in them at that time. Joseph was very free in his talk about his women. He told me one day of a certain girl and remarked, that she had given him more pleasure than any girl he had ever enjoyed. I told him it was horrible to talk like this.”

“What do you know about robbery being practiced for the benefit of the church?”

“That sort of business was kept very secret. Hyrum had once a very fine, brand new blue suit, and people told me the suit was the produce of the spoils of the Gentiles. I have no doubt, that Hyrum played an important role in this department of church affairs. I think I can prove it. There was one day a “little council” called in Hyrum’s office, and I was invited to come. Joseph called at my house and took me to the little council. Eight or ten were present, all leaders in the church. Hyrum made a long a
rgument–said he: “The Missourians have robbed, plundered and murdered our people. We should take our revenge on them as thoroughly as possible, and regain what we have lost in Missouri. The simplest way would be if our people would go to Missouri and buy their horses and cattle on credit and then not pay for them; and our merchants would go to St Louis and take their large quantities of goods on credit and then, when the notes became due, simply not pay them; our people always go there and pay for everything. That’s foolish, very foolish, but it is just the thing that, for instance, Brother Law is doing. He has paid thousands of dollars there; but get all these things from them for nothing, horses, cattle and goods, that would help the people wonderfully. Our merchants should transfer all they have–not only their stock in trade, but their lots, houses and farms, too; to their wives and friends in general, so that the creditors could not get a cent out of them.” Some of those present applauded the proposition, and said that would be only fair. I said nothing. Then somebody said: Brother Law has said nothing. I said: This seems to me not only wrong and unjust, but at the same time very ridiculous, because it is not practicable. You cannot buy horses and cattle on credit without having established a credit by long trading; and as to St. Louis, I was always of the opinion that the people there had been very good to the Mormons. So you would ruin your friends to injure your enemies, punish the innocent to hurt the guilty. The St. Louis merchants were surely not the men that persecuted you in Missouri. Hyrum got up, furious. ready to attack me. But Joseph rose and said: “I move that we adjourn this meeting. Brother Law has said his opinion, and that is all you wanted from him. Joseph went home with me and on the way he told me that he shared my views fully, and that I had exactly spoken his mind. He praised me very much for the justice and honesty of my views. ‘I did not talk,’ said he, ‘since you took the very words from my lips.’ I need not tell you, that this was diplomacy on Joseph’s part, but Hyrum hated me from that moment, and never forgave me for what I had said at that little council. But Hyrum hated me for another reason.”

“Was that in the robbery line, too?”

“No. That was from a political reason. It was because I opposed him in the dirty political trade he made with Hoge against Walker. Walker had bought Joseph’s influence by declaring that the city charter of Nauvoo secured the habeas corpus. I stood by them when Joseph promised that he should have nine out of every ten Mormon votes. But Hyrum went to Galena to meet the Democratic convention there, and promised the support of the church to Mr. Hoge for a seat in Congress. Yes, General Hyrum Smith was to sit in Congress next year. Saturday came and I went to Hyrum and had a talk with him. He said he would tell the people to vote for Hoge, and I said I would oppose him on the stand. He made objections but finally had to consent to my speaking on the stand in this matter. When it came to the speaking in public Hyrum did all he could to obstruct me by putting longwinded speakers on the stand, one after the other, so that it was nearly dark when I got on the stand. Now, I showed the people how shamefully they had treated Mr. Walker, and I made such an impression that they began to shout for Mr. Walker. Then, Hyrum jumped on the stand and declared that he had a revelation from the Lord, that the people should vote for Mr. Hoge. This was Saturday. Sunday morning I went to Joseph and told him what Hyrum had done. We went over to the meeting and Joseph told Hyrum what I had said. Hyrum insisted that he had had a revelation. Oh, said Joseph, if this is a revelation, then it is all right, and he went on the stand and said to the people: ‘My office is so high, that I could not think of bothering the Lord with political affairs. But brother Hyrum has had a revelation–when the Lord speaks let the people obey.'”

“Had you ever some dramatic scene with Joseph about the difficulties between you and him?”

“He avoided me. But once I got hold of him in the street and told him in very plain terms what I thought of him. I said: ‘You are a hypocrite and a vulgar scoundrel, you want to destroy me.’ Instead of knocking me down, which he could have done very easily, being so much bigger and stronger than I, he went away hurriedly without uttering a single word.”

“Were you in Nauvoo when the Expositor was destroyed?”

“No. I was in Carthage. There was a meeting at the court house, many people were present and it was considered what should be done regarding the Mormons. I think Stephen A. Douglas was present at the meeting. My friends urged me to come to Carthage with the press immediately. No conclusion was arrived at, however. The same evening we went home and when we came to Nauvoo we rode over our type, that was scattered in the street, and over our broken office furniture. The work of Joseph’s agents had been very complete; it had been done bv a mob of about 200. The building, a new, pretty brick structure, had been perfectly gutted, not a bit had been left of anything.”

“Had anything been prepared for a second number?”

“Yes, the inside of number two had been set up. Seeing what had been done, I my abode, for safety’s sake, at my brother’s. I left Nauvoo on a large new steam ferry-boat, which transported me, my family and my brother to Burlington, Iowa. While we had people packing our things in my house, we rode, my brother and I, through the city in an open carriage, to show that we were not afraid.”

“Did you ever see Joseph again after you left Nauvoo?”

“Only once. I saw him in Carthage at the trial. We spoke not to each other and he seemed greatly preoccupied. We left Nauvoo on the second day after the passing of the ordinance which put the press under the absolute will of Joseph and his creatures. This ordinance gave them power to imprison and fine us at liberty.”

“What opinion have you of Governor Ford?”

“Ford made a good impression upon me; he was surely a good, straight man.”

“What kind of a life did the prophet lead in Nauvoo?”

“Joseph lived in great plenty. He entertained his friends and had a right good time. He was a jolly fellow. I don t think that in his family tea and coffee were used, but they were served to the strangers when he entertained as tavern-keeper. At least, I suppose so. The Smiths had plenty of money. Why, when I came to Nauvoo I paid Hyrum $700 in gold for a barren lot and at that rate they sold any amount of lots after having got the land very cheap, to be sure Their principle was to weaken a man in his purse, and in this way take power and influence from him. Weaken everybody, that was their motto. Joseph’s maxim was, when you have taken all the money a fellow has got, you can do with him whatever you please.”

“What became of Dr. Bennett?”

“The last thing I heard of him was that he went up the river with a large lot of fancy fowls, a speculation of his.”

“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.”

“You returned the revelation to Hyrum?”

“Yes, I did. I was astonished to see in your book that the revelation was such a long document. I remember DISTINCTLY that the original given me by Hyrum was MUCH SHORTER. It covered not more than two or three pages of foolscap. The contents are substantially the same, but there was not that theological introduction. The thing consisted simply in the command of doing it, and that command was restricted to the High Priesthood and to virgins and widows. But as to Joseph, himself, the Lord’s chosen servant, it was restricted to virgins only, to clean vessels, from which to procure a pure seed to the Lord.”

“In what manner would Joseph succeed to keep you and others from knowing what was going on behind the curtain?”

“Marks, Yves, I and some others had, for a long time, no idea of the depravity that was going on. This was simply the result of a very smart system adopted by the prophet and his intimate friends like Brigham Young, Kimball and others. They first tried a man to see whether they could make a criminal tool out of him. When they felt that he would not be the stuff to make a criminal of, they kept him outside the inner circle and used him to show him up as an example of their religion, as a good, virtuous, universally respected brother.”

“Was Joseph a coward?”

“Yes, he was a coward and so was Hyrum. You see it already in the fact that when I attacked him on the street with most violent words, he did not dare to answer a word.”

“How did the prophets dress?”

“Joe and Hyrum were always dressed well, generally in blue, sometimes in black. Joseph was a fine man, no doubt of it.”

“How was it with Joseph’s wrestling?”

“The forces of the prophet in this line have been exaggerated. My brother Wilson wrestled once with him and he laid him down on the floor like a baby. Wilson could throw a lead bar much farther than Joe could. But Wilson was an uncommonly fine and strong man, over 6 feet. He could hold a weight of 56 pounds on his little finger and write his name on the wall in big letters. Joseph was flabby; he never worked at anything and that probably made him so. Rockwell did everything about the house.”

“Had you any idea that there was a sort of conspiracy to kill Joseph in jail?”

“No. I had no idea, no idea. I had been ruined by that man; all my property was gone; all my dearest illusions destroyed, and through my connection with him I got a black spot on my life, which will pain me to the very last minute of my existence. But I tell you [The old gentlemen buried his head in his hands and when he removed them, his eyes were wet.] I tell you, no, if I had had any idea of any such scheme, I would have taken steps to stop it. I have always considered the killing of Joseph Smith a wrong action. It is my opinion that he deserved his fate fully, much more than thousands of men who paid the penalty of their crime to Judge Lynch–but I would have preferred that he should have been tried by court and sent to the Penitentiary.”

“Did you practice medicine in Nauvoo, Doctor?”

“Only occasionally. I came to Nauvoo with money. I had had a mill in Canada, already. Joseph said to me: ‘You must not be a doctor here. Buy lands, build mills and keep a store to keep you running. As to practicing and not making anything, let some Gentiles come and do that. You look out for business and profit. I practiced, however, occasionally. Once John Taylor was taken with a very malignant fever. He was treated by his regular physician. I think Dr. Wells was his name. He grew worse and worse. At last I was called in, saw him and prescribed for him. They followed my prescriptions and he got better. This is, I believe, the worst thing I did in Nauvoo or anywhere else!” –[Dr. Law followed this joke with a chuckle, so as to give me to understand that it was a sin to cure so great a rascal]

“What kind of men were the other editors of the Expositor?”

“Dr. Foster was a fine physician and surgeon and a very agreeable, lively, interesting man. The Higbees had been very good friends of Joseph in Missouri and had served his cause there with a kind of boyish enthusiasm. Frank died long ago and Chauncey only lately. He had studied law, was an attorney and sat on the bench for a while. He was quite intelligent. The father of the Higbees had been an excellent man. He died rather suddenly, and from that time there was something between his boys and Joseph.”

“What kind of a physician was Dr. Bennett?”

“He was a physician of the old school. I could not say whether he was very successful as a doctor or not. He was so much occupied for Joseph, that he had no time to attend the sick.”

“Did Joseph pay any salary to this Bismarck of his?”

“I don’t know, but in that honeymoon of favor, which he enjoyed in his first Nauvoo time, Joseph gave him surely all he wanted.”

“Did you ever hear Joseph speak of his money?”

“Oh yes, he used to boast of his riches. He expressed the opinion, that it was all-important that he should be rich. I heard him say myself, ‘it would be better that every man in the church should lose his last cent, than that I should fall and go down.'”

After pumping the dear, good old Doctor for two hours. I relaxed my hold on him and our conversation began to run on in an easier style. He made some interesting remarks, still, indeed he didn’t say anything that wasn’t interesting, every instance bearing the strong impress of his keen intelligence and interesting strong, manly character. Let me quote one more detail. Said Wm. Law: “What saved me from death in 1844 was, 1, my caution; 2, the devotion of my detectives and 3, Joseph himself. He had inculcated into the minds of his followers the rule, that the “heads” of the church must be safe before all. This became a strong superstition in the minds of his people, so strong that they did not dare to touch me. And he himself feared me so much because of my popularity and good standing, that he tried for a long time to put me out of the way in a manner that the church could not be charged with it. At last, however, he became desperate and would have killed me in any manner–but then it was too late in the day.”

What I got out of the venerable Patriarch, William Law, the friends of the study of Mormon History owe entirely to the masterly tact and diplomacy of Judge Law, the son of the good Doctor. Judge Tommy J. Law is an attorney and the publisher of a very successful weekly paper. He is a splendid figure of a man, with a flowing beard, every inch a whole hearted, frank gentleman. He venerates his father and the memory of his mother. “My father,” he says proudly, “was considered the best speaker in the Mississippi valley; many men said he would have beaten Beecher had he followed that career. I heard him myself some thirty years ago, deliver a Fourth of July speech. He kept his audience spellbound, his influence was truly magnetic. Wilson Law was one of the finest and strongest of men, but intellectually he was below my father. He was a few years older and died 70 years old. He had been a farmer for many years. We are five boys, two are lawyers, two doctors, and one is
a merchant. John is a leading physician in Leadville, Colorado. He is 45 years. The merchant, now a man of about 54, R. S. Law, lives in California. William Law junior lives in Chicago and is a very successful law practitioner. W. R. Law, a physician, about 40 years old (the youngest) lives in Darlington, Wisconsin. Our only sister, Mrs. Douglas, is the wife of the president of the Shullsburgh Bank. My mother was a most excellent woman, good to the people in the highest degree, charitable, visiting the sick. Everybody loved her and the whole country turned out when she was buried. My father received a terrible shock through her death. I don’t believe there was ever a happier couple. For many months after her death he used to break down whenever he saw anybody who had known her. We all thought he would follow her soon. But he rallied, though he is yet unable to speak of her without tears. What has been said about Joseph having made an attempt on her is not true. In such a case my father would not have started a paper against him–he would have shot his head off. No man can be more delicate and conscientious about the relations of husband and wife and more apt to be terrible in such a case, than my father. Two years ago he had an attack of pneumonia. My brother came from Leadville and nursed father for two weeks. His life was despaired of but he rallied once more. He said at that time: “Well, my life has anyhow been a failure.” Nobody can cure him of this idea, that Mormonism has ruined his career. A man less sensitive, less retiring would have made capital out of what he knew, lectured all over the country, etc. After leaving Burlington, Iowa, my father came to Wisconsin and lived for many years on a farm. He was the confidential physician of all his neighbors for ten miles around, the most popular physician there ever was. We always want him to give up practicing, but there are so many people who absolutely must have Dr. Law when they are sick.

“Yes, I was once in Utah, I saw Brigham Young but had no talk with him. One of his brothers, a very stout man, who kept a store, told me not to be on the street after dark. ‘There are always some hotheaded young fellows,’ said he, ‘who would think of gaining great merit and reputation if they would injure a man of your kind. It is so very difficult to control them–so you had better keep at home after dark.'”

This is what Judge Law told me about the history of the Law family: “My father was born in Ireland, Tyrone County, his parents were of Scottish descent. They emigrated to America, when William Law was nine years old. He lived with his parents for years in Pennsylvania; he studied in Philadelphia and Pittsburg [sic]. His father was a wealthy farmer. Wm. Law later emigrated to Canada and married there a lady of the Silverthorn family and lived there till he went to Nauvoo. Wilson Law never lived in Canada. William Law was the youngest of five brothers, and he is the only surviving one.”

I have tried hard to verify Judge Law’s opinion about his father by asking lots of people in Shullsburgh and on the train. I heard nothing but “Oh, Dr. Law is a fine old gentleman; the most popular man we have round here.” Mr. Sheaby, who keeps the hotel, in which I spent two days, said: “Dr. Law is a good, fine old man, honest and very kind to the people. I don’t think that this old man has a single enemy, and his wife was loved by everybody, too, she was the soul of kindness.”

The good Doctor had been quite sick for a good many weeks and it was very doubtful, whether he would receive me or not. Judge Law convinced him, that I was a pretty decent fellow and succeeded in getting admission for me, though the Doctor had said, pretty energetically, when he heard of my arrival: “I don’t want to be interviewed.” When I had finished my operations, the Dr. said: “I hope you will do the Laws more justice now”–and he said it with a good, dear look in those wonderfully eloquent, steel-blue eyes.

There is nothing in the aspect of the old gentleman that indicates 78 summers, except the white hands, that tremble a little. I said: “God bless you, Dr. Law,” when I went to the door. I looked round and I couldn’t help it–went back to shake his hand once more. I held out both hands; he put aside his black staff and grasped both my hands, and gave me such a hearty, warm, good shake. I said: “Doctor, be cheerful. You will live twenty years yet like William of Prussia. The Williams are a good race, I belong to it myself.”

There is a strong resemblance between the Law and the Godbe movement and still a stronger one between the great heart of Wm. Law and the deep, unselfish, noble soul of Wm. S. Godbe. The rebellions of 1844 and 1870, both came from great hearts, that had been destroyed by the lies and driven to despair by the cruel egotism of the Mormon leaders. And while speaking of hearts crushed by Mormonism, was there ever a kinder, a purer, a braver one than that beating in the bosom of Mrs. Sarah Pratt? And was this grand woman’s heart not martyrized a thousand times worse, than those of our justly celebrated friends Law and Godbe? Men can resist, oppose, fight and wound and finally win and overthrow–but the wife and mother, what is her prize? The tears of her children on her grave–that is all. Well, may the Lord–not Joe’s Lord–bless those three Great souls and all those excellent friends that helped me to study and understand Mormon History; and may they all see the downfall of one of the greatest infamies in human history. God bless them all and may He bless the great, good, patriotic paper, the joy of the student, the consolation of the philosopher, the hope of the Gentile and Mormon sufferer.

THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE

W.WYL.

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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Arm Chair Quarterback »

No one ever mentions the doctrine that grew out of the Nauvoo polygamy debacle. No longer was it adultery. Instead, it was exaltation. It was a 180 degree flip. In the time of Christ, adultery could severely limit your salvation. But in Nauvoo adultery suddenly becomes the covenant path to exaltation. In fact, Joseph Smith made exaltation into the clarion call of the day. No longer was it about salvation (a Hebrew word that means liberty, deliverance, and freedom). My, what odd doctrines have to be invented in order to cover the sin of adultery. Exaltation became something you earned by your practice of polygamy. Does that not seem odd to anyone else but me?

What no one ever stops to think about is that the pursuit of exaltation turns grace and christ and the cross and atonement on its head, the same way living the Law of Moses did in Ancient times.The Jews didn't need a Messiah. The law was their God. They could perfect themselves as long as they lived the law perfectly. In the restored church you really don't need Jesus. He's just a figurehead. The atonement is something that legitimizes the religion but really isn't that important because, hey, we save ourselves by our temple rites. What everyone in the restored church seeks is Exaltation. You don't need Jesus for that. He was all about that silly deliverance, freedom, and liberty he called salvation. In the restored church you just need a covenant path which includes polygamy. No need for a savior in that pathway when you can save yourself. Just get married. Multiple times. We don't really need Jesus in the restored Church. He's just cover for the real deal. Saving yourself through exalting temple rituals. The sad reality is that the doctrine of salvation through Christ is thrown out in favor of the doctrine of exaltation through ritual--something you can do for yourself, on your own, without any grace, or atoning sacrifice. And to think that this doctrinal temple fiasco was introduced to coerce women to commit adultery with church leaders on the promise of eternal exaltation, and then as an added bonus, commit the adulterers to total secrecy through death oaths. A two for one deal that hid the truth for far too long.

Does anyone not recognize the pattern here? Joseph Smith promises eternal blessing and rewards that just keep getting bigger and better until he comes up with this idea of exaltation. When your state in eternity is in question, people will do the darnedest things. Then, when it looks like the gig may be up, you double down by swearing people to secrecy with blood oaths. Not only will you lose your "exhalation", but you lose your life on earth. It's a no win situation for the member and a win win for the church leader. That pattern of promising eternal blessing which you never have to deliver on in this life is common practice for Jospeh Smith through out his entire career as a prophet. And ounce the narrative gets out of his control, regardless if its treasure hunting, golden plates, preisthood authority, or polygamy, you get rid of the naysayers and witnesses quickly, and double down with more authoritarian administration of exaltation. Its a coercive, troubling pattern that keeps repeating through the entirety of church history during the life of Joseph Smith and continued by his later follower-leaders.

What a mess.
Last edited by Arm Chair Quarterback on June 1st, 2023, 4:40 pm, edited 5 times in total.

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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Pazooka »

Arm Chair Quarterback wrote: June 1st, 2023, 4:08 pm This is a no win situation if you want the restored church to come out looking like the restored church of Christ "should" look like. It doesn't. No matter how much lipstick you put on this polygamy pig, it's still a pig.

Either Joseph practiced polygamy and lied about it in public---which brings to mind all the other religious leaders over the centuries who invoked revelation from God to justify their sexual perversions and adultery--or he didn't practice polygamy. Which then brings all the other actors into the mix like Brigham Young and John Taylor, and Wilford Woodruff and the list goes on--men who practiced polygamy like all the religious leader over the centuries who invoked revelation from God to justify their sexual perversions and adultery. And the irony is that the Book of Mormon declares the practice abominable. The justifications and the twisting in the wind would be hilarious if they weren't so fundamentally fraudulent.

Two members of the first presidency, Oliver Cowdery and William Law, were excommunicated by Joseph Smith because they dared point out that Joseph's practice of polygamy as early as 1835 was adultery. Gone. Exed. Thrown out with the bath water. Immediately. Joseph had little patience ounce he no longer controlled the narrative. And it's hard to control the adultery narrative when Jesus himself, the being whose church and religious practices you claim to restore, spoke adamantly against adultery. And the apostles, whose charge to keep the church of Christ in order you claim to have restored, spoke adamantly that any leader of the church of Christ must be monogamous.

It interesting that William Law, in an interview with the Salt Lake Tribune a decade after his excommunication, stated that it was his belief based on personal eye witness accounts of Emma's behavior and comments to William Law, that she was in on the whole affair from the beginning. She allowed Joseph his adultery as long as all the property (house, animals, estate, wealth, etc) was transferred to her name---a legal twist which protected their wealth from confiscation should Joseph be incarcerated and found guilty of practicing polygamy. It was an estate management plan which other polygamists like Brigham Young and John Taylor used as well in order to avoid losing their wealth. In their world, you really could have your cake and eat it too.

Here's the William Law interview from the Tribune in the next post down:
What I found surprising is the manner of Wm Law’s excommunication contrary to documented policy - Abrupt and irregular.

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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Arm Chair Quarterback »

And another thought. If exaltation was the end-all, be-all of eternal progression and godliness why did Jesus only ever talk about salvation? He never mentions exalation until polygamy becomes a thing in Nauvoo---though the doctrine had its beginning in Kirtland about 1835 with the Fanny Alger mess. Adultery morphs into exaltation in 1835 Kirtland. Am I the only one who thinks that Jospeh Smith was forming doctrine based on need and circumstance rather than revelation?

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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Reluctant Watchman »

Luke wrote: September 30th, 2020, 3:07 am
  • D&C 101 (1835 Edition)

    4 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 will have no fellowship whatever with any Elder belonging to the quorums of the Seventies who is guilty of polygamy or any offence of the kind, and who does not in all things conform to the laws of the church.” (Messenger and Advocate 3:511, May 1837)
  • “5th the charge that was preferred before the quorum against Elder Sollomon Freeman by William Perry for the crime of polygamy was brought forward. Elder Freeman plead not guilty of the charge testimony for the Complainant came forward (Dexter Stilman) and Stated that Elder Freeman had a wife in Tollan township Co of Berkshire in Mass, and it was told him there that he (E. Freeman) Came a way [without his] wife. Elder Harlow Redfield Stated that when he and Elder Stilman went to See Elder Freeman. Elder Freeman acknowledged that he come away and left his wife as was testified Elder Freeman acknowledged before the quorum that he had left his first wife came away with and Soon Commenced living with another woman he further Stated he did not know but his first wife was yet living he further Stated he would not go across the room to obtain a bill from her Elder Freeman Manifest a Careless indifferent spirit.” (Kirtland Elders’ Quorum Record, 29 November 1837)
  • “Do the Mormons believe in having more wives than one? No, not at the same time. But they believe, that if their companion dies, they have a right to marry again.” (Joseph Smith, TPJS 119, 8 May 1838)
  • “We have heard that it is reported by some, that some of us should have said, that we not only dedicated our property, but our families also to the Lord; and Satan, taking advantage of this, has perverted it into licentiousness, such as a community of wives, which is an abomination in the sight of God.” (Joseph Smith, Letter from Liberty Jail, TPJS 127, 16 December 1838)
  • “Their religion is a peculiar one; that is neither Bhoodism nor Mahometanism nor Judaism, nor Christiany—but it is a faith which they say encourages no vice, nor immorality, nor departure from established laws and usages; neither polygamy, nor promiscuous intercourse, nor community of property.” (Report by a non-Mormon, published in Times and Seasons 2:580, 15 October 1841)
  • “I preached in the grove and pronounced a curse upon all adulterers and fornicators, and unvirtuous persons and those who have made use of my name to carry on their iniquitous designs.” (Joseph Smith, DHC 4:587, 10 April 1842)
  • “Brother Joseph was crossing the yard from the house to the store and met Dr. Bennett on the way; he reached out his hand to Br. Joseph and said, will you forgive me, weeping at the time; he said Br. Joseph, I am guilty, I acknowledge it, and I beg of you not to expose me, for it will ruin me; Joseph replied, Doctor! why are you using my name to carry on your hellish wickedness? Have I ever taught you that fornication and adultery was right, or polygamy or any such practices? He said you never did. Did I ever teach you any thing that was not virtuous—that was iniquitous, either in public or private? He said you never did. Did you ever know anything unvirtuous or unrighteous in my conduct or actions at any time, either in public or in private? he said, I did not; are you willing to make oath to this before an Alderman of the city? he said I am willing to do so. Joseph said Dr., go into my office, and write what you can in conscience subscribe your name to, and I will be satisfied.” (Hyrum Smith, Times and Seasons 3:870-871, 1 August 1842)
  • “NOTICE. There was a book [called the Peace Maker, which advocated polygamy] printed at my office, a short time since, written by Udney H. Jacobs, on marriage, without my knowledge; and had I been apprised of it, I should not have printed it; not that I am opposed to any man enjoying his privileges; but I do not wish to have my name associated with the authors, in such an unmeaning rigmarole of nonsense, folly, and trash. Joseph Smith.” (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons 4:32, 1 December 1842)
  • “He [Benjamin Winchester] spoke of the various publications of Bennett and others, and of the prejudices which they had necessarily excited—that the Mormons were charged with sanctioning a community of wives and of goods, with polygamy, and various other enormities, not one word of which was true. He had belonged to the society almost from its origin, and had always seen vice discountenanced as in other societies. Members retained their own property; were confined to one wife; and required to live morally and uprightly, and were subject to be expelled for misconduct. This was the case with Bennett, who had been expelled for his deviations from virtue. . . . The society is governed by rules accessible to all; some of which he read, and to which there could be no exception.” (Baltimore Clipper, reprinted in Times and Seasons 4:28, 1 December 1842)
  • “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 have a greater reverence for the laws of matrimony, or the rights of private property, and we do what others do not, practice what we preach.” (Times and Seasons 4:143, 15 March 1843)
  • “Gave instruction to try those who were preaching teaching or practicing the doctrine of plurality of wives. On this law Joseph forbids it and the practice thereof—No man shall have but one wife.” (Joseph Smith, Joseph Smith Journal, 5 October 1843)
  • “Stop this spinning street yarn and talking about spiritual wives . . . I proclaim in the name of the Lord God that I will have nothing but virtue and integrity and uprightness.” (Joseph Smith, Joseph Smith Journal, 15 October 1843)
  • “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. . . . We wish these doctrines to be taught by all that are in the ministry, that the people may know our faith respecting them, and also to correct the public mind in respect to the Church; and we hope, that the Saints will hearken to this counsel for their own good, and for the prosperity of the cause of God.” (The Latter-Day Saints’ Millennial Star 4:144, January 1844)
  • “NOTICE. As we have lately been credibly informed, that an Elder of the Church of Jesus Christ, of Latter­day Saints, by the name of Hiram Brown, has been preaching Polygamy, and other false and corrupt doctrines, in the county of Lapeer, state of Michigan. This is to notify him and the Church in general, that he has been cut off from the church, for his iniquity; and he is further notified to appear at the Special Conference, on the 6th of April next, to make answer to these charges. JOSEPH SMITH. HYRUM SMITH. Presidents of said church.” (Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, Times and Seasons 5:423, 1 February 1844)
  • “The corruption of wickedness which manifested itself in such horrible deformity on the trial of Orsemus F. Bostwick last week, for slandering President Hyrum Smith and the Widows of the City of Nauvoo, has awakened all the kindly feelings of female benevolence, compassion and pity, for the softer sex to spread forth the mantle of charity to shield the characters of the virtuous mothers, wives and daughters of Nauvoo, from the blasting breath and poisonous touch of debauchees, vagabonds, and rakes, who have jammed themselves into our city to offer strange fire at the shrines of infamy, disgrace and degradation; as they and their kindred spirits have done in all the great cities throughout the world: corrupting their way: on the earth, and bringing woman, poor defenceless woman, to wretchedness and ruin. As such ignoble blood now begins to stain the peaceable habitations of the Saints, and taint the pure air of the only City in the world that pretends, to work righteousness in Union, as the sine qua non, for happiness, glory and salvation: and, as such ungodly wretches, burning or smarting with the sting of their own shame, have doubtless, transported with them; some of the miserable dupes of their licentiousness, for the purpose of defiling the fame of this goodly city: mildewing the honesty of our mothers: blasting the chastity of widows and wives, and corrupting the virtue of our unsuspecting daughters, it becomes US in defence of our rights, for the glory of our fathers; for the honor of our Mothers; for the happiness of our husbands; and for the well fare of our dear children, to rebuke such an outrage upon the sanctity of Society; to thwart such a death blow at the hallowed marriage covenant: and to ward off such poisoned daggers from the hearts of our innocent daughters, for the honor of Nauvoo; and write with indellible Ink, upon every such villain: Vitare perditoris! Beware of the Wretch! and, so put in every virtuous woman’s hand a rod, to scourge such tormentors of domestic felicity, with vengeance throughout the world: Curse the man that preys upon female virtue! Curse the man that slanders a woman: Let the righteous indignation of insulted innocence, and virtue spurn him from society; Let the dignity of the Mother’s of Israel kick the blood thirsty pimp from the pale of social communion. Let the widows and wives who tread in the foot steps of their queenly mother Eve, drive such fag ends of creation, as was Cain, to the Land of Nod, and let the timid daughters of Nauvoo, dread such Canker worms more than the pestilence that walketh in darkness, and shun them as the serpent on the land and the shark in the Sea. . . . Resolved unanimously that while we render credence to the doctrines of Paul, that neither the man is without the woman; neither is woman without the man in the Lord, yet we raise our voices and hands against John C. Bennett’s ‘Spiritual Wife System,’ as a scheme of profligates to seduce women; and they that harp upon it, wish to make it popular for the convenience of their own cupidity: wherefore, while the marriage bed, undefiled is honorable, let polygamy, bigamy, fornication, adultery, and prostitution, be frowned out of the hearts of honest men to drop in the gulf of fallen nature, ‘where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched!’ and let all the Saints say Amen!” (The Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo, 29 February 1844, published in Nauvoo Neighbor, March 20, 1844)
  • “Whereas Brother Richard Hewitt has called on me today to know my views concerning some doctrines that are preached in your place, and states to me that some of your elders say, that a man having a certain priesthood may have as many wives as he pleases, and that doctrine is taught here: I say unto you that that man teaches false doctrine, for there is no such doctrine taught here. And any man that is found teaching privately or publicly any such doctrine, is culpable, and will stand a chance to be brought before the high council, and lose his license and membership also; therefore he had better beware what he is about.” (Hyrum Smith, letter to the brethren of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, living on China Creek, in Hancock County, 8 March 1844, Times and Seasons 5:474, 15 March 1844; History, 1838–1856, volume E-1 [1 July 1843–30 April 1844], pg. 1931, The Joseph Smith Papers)
  • “We very frequently receive letters from elders and individuals abroad, inquiring of us whether certain statements that they hear, and have written to them, are true: some pertaining to John C. Bennet’s spiritual wife system; others in regard to immoral conduct, practiced by individuals, and sanctioned by the Church; and as it is impossible for us to answer all of them, we take this opportunity of answering them all, once for all. In the first place, we cannot but express our surprise that any elder or priest who has been in Nauvoo, and has had an opportunity of hearing the principles of truth advanced, should for one moment give credence to the idea that any thing like iniquity is practised, much less taught or sanctioned, by the authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We are the more surprised, since every species of iniquity is spoken against, and exposed publicly at the stand, and every means made use of that possibly can be, to suppress vice, both religious and civil; not only so, but every species of iniquity has frequently been exposed in the Times and Seasons, and its practisers and advocates held up to the world as corrupt men that ought to be avoided. . . . There are other men who are corrupt and sensual, and who teach corrupt principles for the sake of gratifying their sensual appetites, at the expense and ruin of virtue and innocence. Such men ought to be avoided as pests to society, and be frowned down upon with contempt by every virtuous man and woman. . . . They are high and lifted up, and would trample upon the humble, and the meek, and the unassuming, and are not afraid to teach for the commandment of God, their own corrupt, and devilish doctrines, and principles; let no man therefore, be deceived by them, let no man harbor them, nor bid them God speed; don’t be partakers of their evil deeds. If any man writes to you, or preaches to you, doctrines contrary to the Bible, the Book of Mormon, or the book of Doctrine and Covenants, set him down as an imposter. You need not write to us to know what you are to do with such men; you have the authority with you.—Try them by the principles contained in the acknowledged word of God; if they preach, or teach, or practice contrary to that, disfellowship them; cut them off from among you as useless and dangerous branches, and if they are belonging to any of the quorums in the Church, report them to the president of the quorum to which they belong, and if you cannot find that out, if they are members of an official standing, belonging to Nauvoo, report them to us. Follow after purity, virtue, holiness, integrity, Godliness, and every thing that has a tendency to exalt and ennoble the human mind; and shun every man who teaches any other principles.” (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons 5: 490–491, 1 April 1844)
  • “One reason I speak to the Elders is, in consequence of the Ten thousand reports which come to me from abroad—almost every foolish man runs to me, to enquire if such and such things are true, and how many spiritual wives a man may have. I know nothing about it; what he might call a spiritual wife, I should not know anything about. In about half an hour after he has gone, another person begins to say: 'the Elders tell such and such things all over the country.' I am authorized to tell you from henceforth, that any man who comes in and tells any such damn fool doctrine, to tell him to give up his license. None but a fool teaches such stuff; the devil himself is not such a fool, and every Elder who teaches such stuff ought to have his nose wrung; any one found guilty of such teaching will be published and his license will be taken from him. When Elders are sent to preach the Gospel, they are not to preach anything but the Gospel, if they wish to shew themselves approved and not fools, like the old man who went to preach such wonderful things, old daddy Matthews the Tinman. I wish the Elders of Israel to understand it is lawful for a man to marry a wife, but it is unlawful to have more, and God has not commanded any of you to have more; and if any of you dare to presume to do any such things, it will spoil your fun, for you will never have the spirit to preach the Gospel. I despise a man who teaches a pack of stuff that will disgrace himself so; for a man to go into the world, and talk of this spiritual wife system he is as empty as an open sepulchre. . . . I believe every good man should have one wife in this life, and I know if I had two I should not know what to do with them; they might quarrel about me, and I might get a whipping. One is enough, and I warn all of you not to attempt it; if a man should begin to find you out, you would get into some cell in Alton. Be careful what you teach; if you say anything one thousand miles off, it comes here. There are God’s spirits and the Devil’s spirits, and some carry it. If any man preach any false doctrine I shall disgrace him.” (Hyrum Smith, Conference Address, 8 April 1844, History, 1838–1856, volume E-1 [1 July 1843–30 April 1844], pg. 1984-1985, 1988, The Joseph Smith Papers)
  • “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 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 [The Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo] against adulterers and adulteresses. . . . 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. . . . 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.” (Joseph Smith, DHC 6:408-412, 26 May 1844)
Interesting what a difference a few years makes… :)

I was looking for a quote from Joseph and Google cataloged this page from LDSFF. I was curious if that quote was actually from Joseph where he said, “If any man writes to you, or preaches to you, doctrines contrary to the Bible, the Book of Mormon, or the book of Doctrine and Covenants, set him down as an imposter.”

The beginning of this section in Times & Seasons is found here (pg. 487): https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/c ... 46/id/8235

Yet the pagination jumps to page 490 for this quote about no contradicting the scriptures: https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/c ... 46/id/8236

I found another website that said this was John Taylor speaking… from what I could find, there is no way to verify if this was JT, but based on the section start on page 487, it seems to be Joseph.

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Reluctant Watchman
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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Reluctant Watchman »

Ok, I found the actual T&S PDF and, from what it appears, Joseph was the author of that quote. There is a section break: TO THE ELDERS ABROAD, but no distinguishing author, other than Joseph at the beginning of this section.

https://www.latterdaytruth.org/pdf/100150.pdf


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Luke
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Re: Joseph, Hyrum and the Church continually denounced and fought against polygamy

Post by Luke »

Reluctant Watchman wrote: October 9th, 2023, 9:13 pm Interesting what a difference a few years makes… :)
Haha it certainly does
Reluctant Watchman wrote: October 9th, 2023, 9:13 pm I was looking for a quote from Joseph and Google cataloged this page from LDSFF. I was curious if that quote was actually from Joseph where he said, “If any man writes to you, or preaches to you, doctrines contrary to the Bible, the Book of Mormon, or the book of Doctrine and Covenants, set him down as an imposter.”

The beginning of this section in Times & Seasons is found here (pg. 487): https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/c ... 46/id/8235

Yet the pagination jumps to page 490 for this quote about no contradicting the scriptures: https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/c ... 46/id/8236

I found another website that said this was John Taylor speaking… from what I could find, there is no way to verify if this was JT, but based on the section start on page 487, it seems to be Joseph.
It was either JS or JT — which is the case with a lot of T&S editorials.

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