[2ndDivisionVet]

They’d re-adopt it in an Ogden minute if it became acceptable to mainstream society.

[Jack Hydrazine]

“* Of the remaining people surveyed, 11% said polygamy was “not a moral issue,” and only 2% declared it morally acceptable. I’m assuming that the other 1% had no opinion; see Campbell et al, p. 58.”

[aMorePerfectUnion]

“86% of Mormons say that polygamy is morally wrong?* “

And yet their cult teaches that there is still eternal polygamy. That’s a lot of celestial sex!

[MeganC]

This is Mormons responding to an emotionally charged question from outsiders. Of course they’ll say they oppose polygamy because there’s an obvious pressure on them over the question. In private I’d be inclined to say the numbers would shift dramatically.

Personally, any more I have no problem with the Mormons practicing poly if they want. There’s no legal justification to prevent three men or three women from marrying each other so why can’t a heterosexual (group?) have the same rights?

[ansel12]

Being part of a cult means doing what you are told, the Mormons are a large group, so a memo from their Pope after his revelation from God won’t instantly change the polling, but the organization will have the rank and file lined up pretty quickly as they explain to them that they have switched back to the polygamy of it’s origins.

[SkyDancer]

Polygamy beer: http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/28908/1683/

[I still care]

From what I can see, many Mormons do not understand the beginnings of their own faith. Some do not even believe Joseph Smith was a real polygamist.

They just came out with some real proofs that he was deeply, truly committed to polygamy, and the comments in Mormon magazines by people who have been Mormons for years have been sort of stunning. They have no idea of who their founder really is. He’s the “prophet” who had a “revelation” and led “his people” and was “martyred” but they know nothing of this character problems at all. Which is not really to be unexpected, when you think about it.

[I still care]

Here, Morgana, take a gander at this. And you will see the power of historical revisionism when it comes to Mormonism.

http://restorationbookstore.org/jsfp-index.htm

[I still care]

Now the LDS just a few months ago admitted yes, JS WAS a polygamist, so all false stories like the following that people were believing caused a little bit of a shakeup.

Part of it:

Joseph Smith: Innocent of Polygamy

By Richard Price

History affirms that the Prophet Joseph Smith was innocent of the teaching and practice of polygamy. This false doctrine was introduced into the Church in the early days of the Restoration Movement by men who conspired to use his name to create a theology that would cover their own sins.

It is a very simple matter to determine that Joseph was not a polygamist: He fathered no children by plural wives, even though his wife, Emma, bore him nine. It would have been impossible for Joseph to have had at least twenty-seven wives, as the Mormon Church in Utah claims, without having fathered at least one child by a polygamous wife—especially when the only purpose of polygamy (according to its advocates) was to have children born of polygamous parents. And yet Joseph fathered not one such child! This fact alone proves that he did not practice that doctrine.

The truth is that Joseph Smith was “framed”— that is, the doctrine of polygamy which found its way into the Church came in through the Cochranites. It also came through three different groups of men who falsely claimed that Joseph was its author in order to justify their own evil activities.

The Prophet Israel A. Smith understood this “framing” of his grandfather and wrote, “Joseph Smith was the greatest victim of fraud and conspiracy of the last 500 years. Nothing like it in recorded history. He was simply lied about when something had to be done to justify the filth and rottenness of Utah Mormon Polygamy” (letter to Mrs. Richard Price, September 17, 1956).

[TruthWillWin]

Wonder what % of Mormans are against drinking coffee?

[CardCarryingMember.VastRightWC]

Morgana, I think it's *you* who doesn't "get the point".

It's nonsense to try to find significance by comparing the numbers in this way - ie, "86% VERSUS 74%! WOW! *WOW* DID YOU HEAR THAT?!"

If you take a list of hot-button issues and try to relatively rank them via a poll among any group of religious conservatives, your results will vary over time, up and down, up and down, depending on what's "in the news" at any moment.

Every time the media screams about the latest school shooting, polls show support for gun control spiking upwards. Then they settle down. The cycle repeats endlessly. It's because it's "what's in the news" today.

When a ghoulish abortion "doctor" is in the news, support for abortion immediately declines somewhat.

Now, most people on these types of issues do *not* first blow one way and then the other, but stay consistent in their answers. So the fluctuation up & down of the *overall* poll results are dependent on those respondents whose answers are affected by the latest news.

And when it comes to Mormons, the issue of Polygamy is always "in the news". They are constantly getting hammered over their church's history (18?? to 1890?) of polygamy. Every time a polygamist and his harem from some hick area of Utah/Ariz/etc get in the news, it's used to slam the Mormons. The late night comedians especially love this "twofer" of Religion plus Sex rolled into one. Even when no P-cult is in the national news, the issue is still "In The News" for Mormons ... *all* the time.

It's undoubtedly the one moral issue Mormons are the most sensitive about, because the rest of us will never let them forget it. So when they're asked their opinion on a set of issues that includes Polygamy, that one loaded word will stand out from among the others on the list, and set off a kneejerk reaction of "No! No! Never! Never!" among many/most of the respondents.

If a poll of evangelical Christians rated polygamy as more of a concern than abortion, I would be concerned. The fact that Mormons do so is just one big "Duh!"

[Tennessee Nana]

Just a smidgen eh ???

[svcw]

Huh?
mormonISM practices polygamy today, they call it celestial marriage and there are many of them.
The whole abortion ‘handbook thing’ is true however the last part is if you pray about it and the lds god says its OK. its OK.

[Elsie]

teppe: you may want to chime in HERE; too.

[Elsie]

...here’s a breakdown of how many Mormons declared that certain activities were “morally wrong.”

And THIS was left OUT?!?!?

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What is your church doing to help the male to stay true?

 

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"All of this should be conveyed without having priesthood leaders focus upon intimate matters which are a part of husband and wife relationships. Skillful interviewing and counseling can occur without discussion of clinical details by placing firm responsibility on individual members of the Church to put their lives in order before exercising the privilege of entering a house of the Lord. The First Presidency has interpreted oral sex as constituting an unnatural, impure, or unholy practice. If a person is engaged in a practice which troubles him enough to ask about it, he should discontinue it."
- Official Declaration of the First Presidency of the Church, January 5th, 1982

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"Prophets anciently and today condemn masturbation. It induces feelings of guilt and shame. It is detrimental to spirituality. It indicates slavery to the flesh, not that mastery of it and the growth toward godhood which is the object of our mortal life. Our modern prophet has indicated that no young man should be called on a mission who is not free from this practice. What is more, it too often leads to grievous sin, even to that sin against nature, homosexuality. For, done in private, it evolves often into mutual masturbation-practiced with another person of the same sex and thence into total homosexuality...."
- Prophet Spencer W. Kimball, The Miracle of Forgiveness, Pages 77-79, 81-82

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"Among the most common sexual sins our young people commit are necking and petting. Not only do these improper relations often lead to fornication, [unwed] pregnancy, and abortions - all ugly sins - but in and of themselves they are pernicious evils, and it is often difficult for youth to distinguish where one ends and another begins. They awaken lust and stir evil thoughts and sex desires. They are but parts of the whole family of related sins and indiscretions. Almost like twins, 'petting' and fornication are alike."
- Prophet Spencer W. Kimball, The Miracle of Forgiveness, page 65

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"Also far-reaching is the effect of the loss of chastity. Once given or taken or stolen it can never be regained. Even in a forced contact such as rape or incest, the injured one is greatly outraged. If she has not cooperated and contributed to the foul deed, she is of course in a more favorable position. There is no condemnation where there is no voluntary participation. It is better to die in defending one's virtue than to live having lost it without a struggle."
- Prophet Spencer W. Kimball, The Miracle of Forgiveness, page 196

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"And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth." (Genesis 4:9-14.) That was true of murder. It is also true of illicit sex, which, of course, includes all petting, fornication, adultery, homosexual acts, and all other perversions. The Lord may say to offenders, as He did to Cain, "What hast thou done?" The children thus conceived make damning charges against you; the companions who have been frustrated and violated condemn you; the body that has been defiled cries out against you; the spirit which has been dwarfed convicts you. You will have difficulty throughout the ages in totally forgiving yourself."
-Prophet Spencer W. Kimball, "Love Versus Lust", BYU Speech January 5, 1965. Often-used quote still used today in LDS seminary classes.

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"I do not find in the Bible the modern terms "petting" nor "homosexuality," yet I found numerous scriptures which forbade such acts under by whatever names they might be called. I could not find the term "homosexuality," but I did find numerous places where the Lord condemned such a practice with such vigor that even the death penalty was assessed."
- Apostle Spencer W. Kimball, "Love Versus Lust", BYU Speech January 5, 1965

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"If adultery or fornication justified the death penalty in the old days, and still in Christ's day, is the sin any less today because the laws of the land do not assess the death penalty for it? Is the act less grievous? There must be a washing, a purging, a changing of attitudes, a correcting of appraisals, a strengthening toward self-mastery. There must be many prayers, and volumes of tears. There must be an inner conviction giving to the sin its full diabolical weight. There must be increased devotion and much thought and study. And this takes energy and time and often is accompanied with sore embarrassment, heavy deprivations and deep trials, even if indeed one is not excommunicated from the Church, losing all spiritual blessings."
-Prophet Spencer W. Kimball, The Miracle of Forgiveness, Page 155

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"How like the mistletoe is immorality. The killer plant starts with a sticky sweet berry. Little indiscretions are the berries -- indiscretions like sex thoughts sex discussions, passionate kissing, pornography. The leaves and little twigs are masturbation and necking and such, growing with every exercise. The full-grown plant is petting and sex looseness. It confounds, frustrates, and destroys like the parasite if it is not cut out and destroyed, for, in time it robs the tree, bleeds its life, and leaves it barren and dry; and, strangely enough, the parasite dies with its host."
- Apostle Spencer W. Kimball, General Conference Address, April 1, 1967.