Posted on 08/06/2011 3:13:50 PM PDT by Colofornian
As a Texas jury considers a possible life sentence for polygamist leader Warren Jeffs, a coalition of polygamist groups is condemning the sexual abuse that led to Jeffs' conviction.
"We are alarmed that such depravity could have been perpetrated by anyone," says a written statement from the Principle Rights Coalition, a group representing five polygamist groups in Arizona and Utah, as well as "numerous other independent Fundamentalist Mormons."
The groups advocate and practice polygamy as it was taught by early leaders of the Mormon Church, which renounced plural marriage in 1890 and does not tolerate it now.
"It is especially devastating to discover that sexual assault of young children may have occurred behind the false pretense of a religious ideology," the statement says. "If any members of our communities are in fact guilty, we fully support their being brought to justice."
Jeffs heads the nation's largest polygamous faith, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints or FLDS, and was convicted in Texas Thursday of two counts of child sexual assault. The victims in the case were 12 and 15 when Jeffs consummated his FLDS "marriages" to the girls. An audio recording played to the jury was characterized by the prosecution as a sexual assault of the 12-year-old.
Seven other FLDS men were convicted of sexual assault and bigamy charges in Texas. Jeffs and some of his followers faced similar charges in Utah and Arizona but prosecutors in Texas have been more successful in obtaining convictions. That's because the Texas cases are bolstered by detailed and incriminating diaries, photographs, recordings and other documents seized in a raid on an FLDS ranch in Texas in 2008.
Jeffs moved some of his members and leaders to Texas, and built the faith's first and only temple there, in response to crackdowns in Arizona and Utah, where the FLDS group is based.
Other polygamist groups fear that the revelations about the FLDS practice of plural marriages involving underage girls would trigger more widespread attempts to prosecute polygamy.
The Principle Rights Coalition suggests decriminalizing polygamy would help root out child sexual abuse among those practicing "the principle," the religious term the groups apply to the practice.
"In some cases, years of isolation and secrecy may have cultivated and concealed abuse, since those who might ordinarily have come forward feared the threat of prosecution should their plural family arrangement be disclosed," the Coalition writes. "These reports of abuse illustrate the necessity of decriminalizing plural, consenting-adult relationships, while convicting those specific individuals who have victimized children."
The Coalition includes the Centennial Park polygamous group in Arizona, which has a settlement just down the road from the main FLDS towns of Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah. The Centennial Park group was formed by people who left the FLDS faith and is considered more open and progressive, and intolerant of child marriages.
The Davis County Cooperative Society also signed the Coalition's letter. Also known as the "Kingston clan," three top members of the group either pleaded "no contest" or guilty, or were convicted, in response to criminal charges in the last decade of child abuse, incest and unlawful sexual conduct involving girls as young as 15.
Another group, the Apostolic United Brethren, added its own separate statement.
"We repudiate and denounce Warren Jeffs' inappropriate actions in linking his despicable and unconscionable acts to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to Joseph Smith Jr. and Mormonism," the group writes. "Such acts and so-called ordinances are not and never have been condoned by the Gospel as it was established and restored by Joseph Smith."
Joseph Smith is the founder of the Mormon Church, who Mormons say "restored" the Mormon Gospel. Smith promoted and practiced polygamy in the early days of the faith. One of his many wives, Helen Mar Kimball, was 14 when she married Smith. There is a vigorous debate about whether Kimball and Smith consummated that marriage with sex.
The Mormon Church abandoned polygamy in 1890 in what many historians consider a political accommodation. The existence of polygamy in Utah led to strong resistance in Congress when the territory sought statehood. There's strong evidence the practice continued secretly among a select group until the 1930s.
A firm and final rejection then of polygamy by Mormon leaders prompted the formation of the so-called "fundamentalist" groups that persist today. Many share common origins and beliefs with the FLDS group. None are considered part of the mainstream Mormon faith.
Individual, unaffiliated polygamists have also been targeted for prosecution. In 2002, Tom Green was convicted of child rape for his marriage to one of his five wives when she was 13.
Jeffs was convicted in Utah in 2007 of facilitating rape for his role in the marriage of a 14-year-old girl to her 19-year-old first cousin. That conviction was reversed last year by the Utah Supreme Court.
Also last year, similar charges in Arizona were dismissed after two key witnesses declined to testify against Jeffs.
It's unclear how the Jeffs conviction in Texas will affect the FLDS faithful. Even while in prison awaiting trial, Jeffs emerged as the victor in an internal challenge to his continued leadership. He has also continued to purge from the faith members he has considered unfaithful, including some of the group's top leaders
The reality behind Smith bedding a 14 yo is that he routinely took the wives of other Mormon men. The reason he got 14 yo Helen Mar Kimball is because he wanted Helen Mar's mother, who was already married to Heber C. Kimball. Heber C. instead offered up a living sacrifice on the altar of Joseph Smith's sexual scheme.
..."11 of his wives were already wed to other men 'and cohabitating with them when Smith married them.' Nine of his first dozen wives were the spouses of some of his closest friends, many of whom were important LDS leaders. Although the wives continued to live with their husbands, they would receive conjugal visits from Smith whenver the need arose." (Richard Abanes, Inside Today's Mormonism, pp. 236-237, Harvest House, 2004...Abanes cited Todd Compton's book on polygamy)
From the article: The groups advocate and practice polygamy as it was taught by early leaders of the Mormon Church, which renounced plural marriage in 1890 and does not tolerate it now...The Mormon Church abandoned polygamy in 1890 in what many historians consider a political accommodation. The existence of polygamy in Utah led to strong resistance in Congress when the territory sought statehood. There's strong evidence the practice continued secretly among a select group until the 1930s.
The LDS publicly renounced polygamy in 1890 but as the article says, "There's strong evidence the practice continued secretly among a select group until the 1930s." Church leaders, in fact, continued to secretly solemnize plural weddings.
B. Carmon Hardy has documented 262 between 1890-1910 in the appendix of his book Solemn Covenant.
Take my wives... please!
What a prince of a man that Smith was huh?
Joseph Smith is the founder of the Mormon Church, who Mormons say "restored" the Mormon Gospel. Smith promoted and practiced polygamy in the early days of the faith. One of his many wives, Helen Mar Kimball, was 14 when she married Smith. There is a vigorous debate about whether Kimball and Smith consummated that marriage with sex.
Warren Jeffs is part of Joseph Smith's personal legacy...and why hell is forever.
Many of our sins publicly infect others, which in turn leads not only to devastation for them, but for their victims.
The Bible melds individual responsibility with corporate responsibility, especially among false prophets...Yes, Jeffs is responsible, accountable, & culpable for what he has done...but so is Joseph Smith: 10 They will bear their guilt—the prophet will be as guilty as the one who consults him. (Ezekiel 14:10)
Polygamist denials of wrongdoing are hollow.
Joseph Smith denied it when confronted, while having numerous wives at the time.
John Taylor, another president, denied doing it while continuing the practice.
Wilford Woodruff officially discontinued the practice in order for Utah to join the union, but kept his harem intact.
The original section 101 of Doctrine & Covenants denied doing it and protested the wrong of polygamy; it was removed and replaced with section 132.
Joseph Smith started the practice of marrying underage girls, and his true disciples continue it today.
I’m not sure why I am being pinged to this article. I do appreciate notification of Catholic ones, and I’m interested in other ones where a defense of the truth about Catholicism might be needed. But Jeffs just sounds like a criminal. If it weren’t religion, he’d find some other way to justify what he’s done. And though this might be similar to early Mormonism, mainstream Mormons of today have done much to distance themselves from it, and have also done a great deal for conservative causes. Besides which, neither of these Mormon groupings are mentioning Catholicism, in this article, even if they both claim the Catholic Church is a false one because they each claim to be the ‘restored gospel’.
Why? Because it was of passing interest. Sorry if it wasn’t the right thing for you.
It is of passing interest, so thanks in that regard, but it’s unrelated to Catholicism, as far as I can see, and that’s the ping list I was interested in being on.
Give me another reasonable suggestion why he would marry a 14 year-old girl.
52 And let mine handmaid, Emma Smith, areceive all those that have been given unto my servant Joseph, and who are virtuous and pure before me; and those who are not pure, and have said they were pure, shall be destroyed, saith the Lord God.
53 For I am the Lord thy God, and ye shall obey my voice; and I give unto my servant Joseph that he shall be made ruler over many things; for he hath been afaithful over a few things, and from henceforth I will strengthen him.
54 And I command mine handmaid, Emma Smith, to abide and acleave unto my servant Joseph, and to none else. But if she will not abide this commandment she shall be bdestroyed, saith the Lord; for I am the Lord thy God, and will destroy her if she abide not in my law.
55 But if she will not abide this commandment, then shall my servant Joseph do all things for her, even as he hath said; and I will bless him and multiply him and give unto him an ahundredfold in this world, of fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, houses and lands, wives and children, and crowns of beternal lives in the eternal worlds.
56 And again, verily I say, let mine handmaid aforgive my servant Joseph his trespasses; and then shall she be forgiven her trespasses, wherein she has trespassed against me; and I, the Lord thy God, will bless her, and multiply her, and make her heart to brejoice.
~ Wilford Woodruff, 4th LDS President
Uh... Emma didn’t understand him...
Uh... He was lonely...
Uh... He has these, amen, needs...
Uh... When he looked deep into her eyes, he knew he’d found his soulmate...
Uh...
amen
ahem
what’s the difference...
Understand - my ping list is multi-faceted - pro-life, Catholic and varied interest.
Thanks, I’m familiar with Mormons declaring they were giving up plural marriage in or around 1890. It was I think part of Utah being granted statehood after its territory status. I’m also familiar with the deception involved where new plural marriages were performed after this, and how their polygamy continued well into the 1900’s.
Is what you posted indicating how their prophet at the time might have justified this to himself, and worked a bit of dissimulation in his and their favor with our government?
Alright, I misunderstood, sorry. Please remove me from the ping list. I was just interested in the Catholic posts you were linking to, and considered the pro-life ones part of that.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
