Latter-day Saints and Polygamy

Between 1852 and 1890, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially taught and practiced plural marriage (or polygamy). The history of plural marriage in the Church is complicated and generates lots of questions for people today. This article discusses how and why polygamy was practiced historically by the Latter-day Saints.

What is polygamy?

Polygamy is a form of marriage where someone is "married to more than one person at the same time."[1] Polygamous marriage systems have been documented widely among both ancient and modern human cultures, although polygamy is seldom practiced today.[2]

Polygamy is often used to refer to polygyny, which is when a man is married to multiple women at the same time.[3]

What is polygamy in the context of Mormon history?

Between 1852 and 1890,[4] members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints taught and practiced polygamy (or plural marriage—a man having more than one wife) as a Church doctrine and marriage system.[5]

The History of Plural Marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

The Origins of Plural Marriage

ca. 1831

Joseph Smith[BIO] learns that plural marriage will be a part of the restoration, as recalled by Orson Pratt,[BIO] Helen Mar Kimball,[BIO] and others.[6]

ca. 1835

Joseph Smith is sealed to Fanny Alger,[BIO] whom most historians considered to be Joseph's first plural wife.[7]

Circa 1841–1843

Joseph Smith privately teaches plural marriage in Nauvoo and marries additional women as plural wives.[8]

July 12, 1843

Joseph Smith records the revelation now canonized as section 132 of the Doctrine and Covenants, which discusses both eternal marriage and the principle of plural marriage.[9]

June 27, 1844

Joseph Smith is murdered in Carthage, Illinois.[10]

Plural Marriage in Utah

August 29, 1852

Orson Pratt publicly announces plural marriage as a practice of the Church.[11]

February 1853–July 1854

Orson Pratt publishes the periodical The Seer in Washington, D.C., which outlines the theology and practice of plural marriage in the Church.[12]

1862

The United States Congress enacts the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act, which overturns polygamy laws passed in Utah, restricts the property holdings of religious organizations, and criminalizes polygamy with penalties of up to five years in prison.[13]

1876

Joseph Smith's July 12, 1843 revelation (Section 132) is canonized in the Doctrine and Covenants.[14] Two years later, it is also republished in the Pearl of Great Price.[15]

1879

The United States Supreme Court hands down a landmark decision in Reynolds v. United States, upholding the constitutionality of the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act and determining that the practice of plural marriage is not protected under the First Amendment.[16]

1882

Congress passes the Edmunds Act, which makes polygamy and "unlawful cohabitation" a federal misdemeanor.[17]

ca. 1882–1887

Many Church leaders, including President John Taylor,[BIO] go into hiding or exile to escape federal prosecution and imprisonment under the Edmunds Act.[18]

1887

Congress passes the Edmunds-Tucker Act and strengthens the provisions of the Edmunds Act by removing the legal status of the Church, confiscating Church property, and removing the right for women to vote in Utah.[19]

May 19, 1890

The Supreme Court rules that the Edmunds-Tucker Act is constitutional.[20]

October 6, 1890

Wilford Woodruff[BIO] issues the Manifesto, stating, "My advice to the Latter-day Saints is to refrain from contracting any marriage forbidden by the law of the land."[21]

Plural Marriage After the Manifesto

January 4, 1893

United States President Benjamin Harrison[BIO] grants amnesty and pardon to Latter-day Saints who had been targeted by federal anti-polygamy legislation.[22]

January 4, 1896

Utah adopts a state constitution that says "polygamous or plural marriages are forever prohibited" and becomes the 45th state in the Union.[23]

ca. 1890–1904

Church leaders continue to perform a limited number of plural marriages in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.[24]

1903–1907

A congressional hearing is undertaken to determine if Reed Smoot,[BIO] an apostle who was elected to the United States Senate, is eligible to be seated and concludes with a vote allowing Smoot to serve in the Senate.[25]

April 6, 1904

Joseph F. Smith[BIO] issues the "Second Manifesto" which states that members who enter into plural marriage will be excommunicated.[26]

April, 1911

The First Presidency, consisting of Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund,[BIO] and John Henry Smith,[BIO] reaffirms the "Second Manifesto" in general conference.[27]

April, 1921

Heber J. Grant,[BIO] speaking in general conference, reaffirms the policy of his predecessor Joseph F. Smith of excommunicating members who enter into plural marriages.[28]

June 17, 1933

The First Presidency, consisting of Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins,[BIO] and J. Reuben Clark,[BIO] reaffirms that entering into plural marriage will result in excommunication.[29]

65 years pass

September, 1998

Gordon B. Hinckley,[BIO] speaking first with Larry King[BIO] and then at general conference, condemns the practice of polygamy by fundamentalist groups.[30]

September, 2018

Quentin L. Cook[BIO] of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles says in a broadcast that is later published in the Liahona magazine that current Church leaders consider plural marriage as historically practiced as having "served its purpose."[31]

Expand Timeline

When did polygamy start in the modern dispensation?

Joseph Smith reportedly taught the principle as early as 1831,[32] but it was not until the early 1840s that plural marriage was introduced and practiced by a limited number of Latter-day Saints.[33]

The practice was officially announced in a special conference of the Church on August 29, 1852.[34]

Read More Difficult Questions

345 Primary Sources

Footnotes

BIOJoseph Smith, Jr.
Joseph Smith (1805–1844) organized The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Born in Sharon, Vermont, he began to experience visions of deity and angels at a young age. One vision featured the Angel Moroni, who revealed the location of gold plates with an account of ancient Americans. He translated this record and published it as The Book of Mormon. He continued to receive revelations throughout his life which serve as the foundation for the Church's doctrine today. He led the Latter-day Saints across the country from New York to Illinois. In 1844, he was martyred while awaiting trial in Carthage, Illinois.
BIOOrson Pratt
Orson Pratt (1811–1881) was born in Hartford, New York, and was an apostle for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was called on many missions. He was excommunicated from the Church in August 1842, after allegations of Joseph Smith's impropriety. Pratt was rebaptized in January 1843 and served as a leading pamphleteer for the Church and defender of the faith.
BIOHelen Mar Kimball Whitney
Helen Mar Kimball Whitney (August 22, 1828–November 15, 1896) was the daughter of Heber C. and Vilate Kimball and the youngest of Joseph Smith's plural wives, being sealed to Joseph in May 1843. She married Horace K. Whitney in 1846 and moved to Utah in 1848. Helen went on to become an outspoken defender of plural marriage and Joseph Smith, publishing two books on the subject (Plural Marriage, As Taught by the Prophet Joseph in 1882 and Why We Practice Plural Marriage in 1884) as well as multiple articles. She died in Salt Lake City in 1896.
BIOFanny Alger
Fanny Alger (1817?–1889) was born in New York. Her family moved to Ohio during the 1820s. Alger became a housekeeper for the Smith family around 1833. She probably became a plural wife of Joseph Smith in 1835. Alger left the Smith household and moved to Indiana in 1836. She married Solomon Custer in 1836 and bore nine children. Alger joined the Universalists in 1874.
BIOJohn Taylor
John Taylor (1808–1887) was born in Westmorland, England. He was the third president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He moved to Canada in 1832 and joined the Church four years later. Taylor was soon appointed to the apostleship and became a prominent advocate for Latter-day Saint doctrine during his mission to the United Kingdom. Taylor accompanied Joseph Smith to Carthage Jail in 1844, where Joseph and Hyrum Smith were martyred. Taylor received a bullet wound to the thigh. He served in the apostleship and First Presidency until his appointment to the Presidency in 1880. Taylor oversaw the Church administration as the Church faced sustained prosecution from federal authorities for the practice of polygamy. He died while in hiding from federal authorities in Kaysville at the age of 79.
BIOWilford Woodruff
Wilford Woodruff (1807–1898) was the fourth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He joined the faith in 1833 and became an apostle in 1839. He served as an apostle until he became President of the Church in 1889.
BIOBenjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison (1833-1901), born in North Bend, Ohio in 1833, was the grandson of President William Henry Harrison. He built a diverse career as an attorney, church leader in the Presbyterian community, and a politician in Indiana. During the American Civil War, he served as an officer for the Union Army. Post-war, he became an Indiana senator and was elected U.S. president in 1888. His presidency saw the introduction of antitrust laws, high tariffs, and the establishment of national forests. However, he lost the 1892 presidential race to Grover Cleveland. After his term, Harrison went back to practicing law in Indiana and passed away from influenza in 1901.
BIOReed Smoot
Reed Smoot (1862-1941) was a U.S. Senator from Utah and a high-ranking official in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, Smoot was the son of Mormon pioneer Abraham O. Smoot. He served a mission for the Church in Europe from 1890 to 1892, and upon his return, he was called as an Apostle by President Wilford Woodruff. He served as an Apostle in the Church from 1900 until his death. He was elected as Utah's senator in 1902. This began a series of hearings from 1904 to 1907 known as the Smoot Hearings during which the teachings and practices of the Church (especially polygamy) were scrutinized. He served as senator until 1933 and died in 1941 in Florida.
BIOJoseph F. Smith
Joseph F. Smith (1838–1918) was born in Far West, Missouri to Hyrum and Mary Fielding Smith. At age 15, he was called to serve his first mission to the Sandwich Islands under the direction of apostle Parley P. Pratt. During the 1858-59 session of the Utah territorial legislature, he served as the sergeant-at-arms. He served another mission for the Church in Great Britain from 1860 to 1863.
Smith was ordained an apostle by Brigham Young in July 1866. He served as a counselor in the First Presidency under John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, and Lorenzo Snow. He became the president of the Church in 1901. Smith issued the Second Manifesto, declaring that any church officer who performed a plural marriage would be excommunicated, alongside the couple themselves. He also received what is now canonized as section 138 of the Doctrine and Covenants, a vision of the spirit world in 1918.
BIOAnthon H. Lund
Anthon H. Lund (1844–1921) was a leader in the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He served as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles from 1889–1901 and a councilor in the First Presidency from 1901–1921.
BIOJohn Henry Smith
John Henry Smith (1848-1911) was the son of apostle George A. Smith. John Henry Smith served as an apostle and First Presidency member in the Church from 1880 until his death.
BIOHeber J. Grant
Heber J. Grant (1856-1945) served as the seventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Jedediah Grant (a counselor in the First Presidency) and Rachel Ivins Grant (a long-term Relief Society President in Salt Lake City). Grant worked as a clerk for Zion's bank and started an insurance company and a Utah Sugar Company. He became an apostle in 1882 and established the Church's first mission in Japan. He became Church president in 1918 and served for 27 years.
BIOAnthony W. Ivins
Anthony Woodward Ivins (1852–1934) was born in Toms River, New Jersey. His family immigrated to Utah in 1853. In 1861, his family was called to go with the first settlers to St. George, Utah. Ivins was called on multiple missions, including to Arizona, New Mexico, and Mexico. He was a constable, rancher, prosecuting attorney, mayor, and city council member in St. George. Ivans was a mission president in Mexico City and also became the first stake president of the Juarez Stake, the first Latter-day Saint stake in Mexico. Ivins was called and ordained as an apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was a member of the First Presidency from 1921 until his death.
BIOJ. Reuben Clark
Joshua Reuben Clark Jr. (September 1, 1871 – October 6, 1961) was an American attorney and an apostle for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Clark was born and raised in Grantsville, Utah, and received his education around the Utah Valley. Despite financial difficulties, Clark was intelligent and excelled in his schoolwork, graduating as valedictorian form his University of Utah class in 1898.Later, Clark attended Columbia University Law School, graduating in 1906. Clark worked as an attorney in the Department of State, and as Undersecretary of State for the U.S. President Calvin Coolidge. Clark also served as the United States Ambassador to Mexico in 1930. Following his ambassadorship, Clark was ordained an apostle in 1934.
BIOGordon B. Hinckley
Gordon B. Hinckley (1910-2008) was born in Salt Lake City, Utah. He served as the fifteenth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Hinckley graduated from the University of Utah in English literature. After serving a mission to Great Britain, he became a secretary under the Church's Radio, Publicity, and Missionary Literature division. He became an apostle in 1961 and then a member of the First Presidency in 1981. In 1995, he became Church president. He oversaw the expansion of temple construction, increased standards for missionary worthiness, the expansion of the Church into West Africa and East Asia (particularly South Korea).
BIOLarry King
Larry King (1933-2021) was a well-known radio and TV host. He was raised in New York City and began a career as a radio host in Miami. He gained popularity on radio show The Larry King Show which began in 1978. He hosted the nightly TV interview show Larry King Live from 1985 to 2010. From 2012 to 2020 he hosted Larry King Now and Politicking with Larry King from 2013 to 2020. He died in 2021.
BIOQuentin L. Cook
Quentin L Cook (September 8, 1940 – present) was born in Logan, Utah and is a current member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He is a former lawyer and business executive and received his Juris Doctorate from Stanford University in 1966. He and his wife, Mary, have three children.
BIOBrigham Young
Brigham Young (1801–1877) was an early Latter-day Saint leader. He was born in Whitingham, Vermont. and joined the faith in his twenties after two years of deliberation. He became the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles following the fractionalization of the Church in Kirtland, Ohio. After Joseph Smith's martyrdom in 1844, Young assumed the presidency and led the Latter-day Saints to settle in the Great Basin region. He was married to fifty-five women and fathered fifty-nine children from sixteen of his wives. He also served as the Territorial Governor for Utah Territory until 1857 and as the prophet until his death.
BIOLorenzo Snow
Lorenzo Snow (1814–1901) was born in Mantua, Portage County, Ohio. He attended Oberlin College. Snow served multiple missions throughout the U.S. and abroad in locations including England, Italy, the Hawaiian Islands, and Palestine. He also served a mission to campaign for Joseph Smith's candidacy for U.S. president in 1844. Snow was ordained as an apostle in 1849. He served as President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1898 until his death in 1901.
BIOParley P. Pratt
Parley Parker Pratt (1807–1857) was born in Burlington, Otsego County, New York. He joined Sidney Rigdon's congregation (Campbellites) in 1829 and was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1830. Pratt served as an early apostle in the Church. He served missions in the United States and abroad. He was a writer, editor, poet, publisher, teacher, and legislator. He also explored and surveyed what is now known as Parley's Canyon. In 1857, Hector McLean, the former husband of Pratt's plural wife, Eleanor McLean, killed him while Pratt was serving a mission in Arkansas.
BIOLyman O. Littlefield
Lyman O. Littlefield (1819-1893) was born in Verona, New York. He was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1834 and participated in the Zions Camp march from Ohio to Missouri. He worked in the print offices of multiple newspapers, including the Latter-day Saint paper Times and Seasons. He was ordained a seventy and served a mission to Great Britain from 1847-1848. He moved to Council Bluffs, Iowa in 1848 and to Utah in 1859. He initially settled in Battle Creek (now Pleasant Grove) but later moved to Smithfield, Utah where he died in 1893.
BIOBelinda Pratt
Belinda Pratt (1820-1894) was born Melinda Marden in 1820 in New Hampshire. She joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in 1843 and was sealed to Parley Pratt in 1844. In 1854 she wrote Defence of Polygamy. She died in 1894 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
BIOGeorge Q. Cannon
George Q. Cannon (1827–1901) was born in Liverpool, England, to George Cannon and Ann Quayle. His family was baptized into the Church in 1840. In 1842, he and his family immigrated to Nauvoo and later moved west with the Saints in 1847. In 1849, he served as a mining missionary to California. During this time, he was asked to travel to the Kingdom of Hawaii, where he served for four years. During this time, with the assistance of Jonatana Napela, Cannon translated the Book of Mormon into Hawaiian. After the Utah War, he served as the president of the Eastern States Mission. He was ordained as an apostle in August 1860 and served as a counselor in the First Presidency (under four presidents) from 1873-1887 and 1889-1901.
BIORomania Pratt
Romania Pratt (1839-1932) was born to Luther B. Bunnell and wife Esther Mendenhall in Washington Township, Indiana. Her family moved to Nauvoo in 1845 and Winter Quarters in 1846. She moved to Utah in 1855 and married Parley P. Pratt, Jr. in 1859. They divorced in 1881 and Romania later married Charles Penrose in 1886. She attended medical school at Women's Medical College in New York City, Bellevue College, and the Women's Medical College of Pennsylvania. She received an MD in 1877 becoming the first Latter-day Saint woman to become a doctor. She returned back to Utah and taught other women medical skills, worked at the Deseret Hospital (as an eye and ear surgeon), and wrote articles for the Young Woman's Journal. She was also involved in the women's suffrage movement. She died in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1932.
BIOBenjamin F. Johnson
Benjamin Franklin Johnson (1818–1905) was an early Latter-day Saint convert, member of the Council of Fifty, and close personal friend of Joseph Smith. Johnson was also an early practitioner of plural marriage, and his sister Almera Woodward Johnson married Joseph Smith as a plural wife in August 1843. In Utah, Johnson served in the territorial legislature.
BIOFanny Stenhouse
Fanny Stenhouse (1829-1904) was born in Jersey in 1829. Her family joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while she was in France and after some initial initial hesitation she joined as well. She was married in 1850 and went on a mission to Switzerland with her husband. She moved to Utah in 1859. She is most well-known for her book Exposé of Polygamy in Utah: A Lady’s Life among the Mormons which was critical of polygamy and Brigham Young. Later in life, she left Utah and lectured against Mormonism. She died in California in 1904.
BIOEliza R. Snow
Eliza Roxcy Snow (1804–1887) was born in Becket, Massachusetts to Oliver and Rosetta Snow. Her younger brother, Lorenzo, became the fifth President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Snow joined the Church in 1835. She became a plural wife of both Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. Snow served as the second General Relief Society President from 1866 to 1887. During her life, she composed around 500 poems, including "O My Father," which references Heavenly Mother.
BIOAnn Eliza Young
Ann Eliza Young (September 13, 1844 – December 7, 1917) was a polygamous wife of Brigham Young. After a high-profile divorce from Brigham Young, she became a critic of polygamy and authored the book Wife No. 19. She later married Moses R. Denning and converted to the Methodist Episcopalian faith.
BIOAnnie C. Tanner
Annie Clark Tanner (1864-1942) was born in Farmington, Utah in 1864. She attended Brigham Young Academy and Karl G. Maeser called her the most intelligent student in her class. She was married to Joseph M. Tanner as his second wife in 1883 (a year after the passage of the Edmunds Act making polygamy illegal in the United States). Despite being married she spent most of her life alone and eventually, Joseph Tanner divorced her in 1913. She wrote an autobiography, A Mormon Mother, which detailed her experience with polygamy.
BIOZina D. Young
Zina Diantha Huntington Jacobs Smith Young (1821–1901) was a Latter-day Saint leader. Born in upstate New York, Zina joined the Latter-day Saint faith after meeting Hyrum Smith (Joseph Smith's brother) and David Whitmer. Zina became an early plural wife of Joseph Smith in 1841, while still temporally married to another member, Henry Jacobs. After Joseph Smith's death, she married Brigham Young. Zina Young was an active leader in the Utah women's suffrage movement and a leader of the Relief Society from 1888 until her death.
BIOThomas S. Monson
Thomas Spencer Monson (August 21, 1927 – January 2, 2018) was the 16th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Monson was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah and attended the University of Utah where he received a degree in business management. Monson served in the U.S. Navy during World War Two, and married his wife, Frances, following his service and schooling in 1948. Monson worked professionally in the publishing industry, and held many prominent positions in the church, including bishop, stake presidency member, and mission president over the Canadian Mission (1959-1962). Monson was called as an apostle in 1963, and received his MBA from BYU in 1974 while serving as an apostle. Monson was called as President of the Church in 2008, and served until his death in 2018.
BIOJames E. Faust
James E. Faust (July 31, 1920–August 10, 2007) was ordained an apostle in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on September 30, 1978 and Second Counselor in the First Presidency on March 12, 1995. He served as a counselor to President Gordon B. Hinckley from 1995 until his death on August 10, 2007. Before his ordination as an apostle, Faust worked as a lawyer.
BIOM. Russell Ballard
M. Russell Ballard (1928–present) was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, and attended the University of Utah. He became a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1985. Before his apostolic service, Ballard had a successful career in business, particularly in the automotive, real estate, and investment sectors. He also served as a mission president in Canada.
[1]↩︎
The Cambridge Dictionary defines polygamy at its most basic as "the fact or custom of being married to more than one person at the same time." Another definition given is "the custom or condition of being married to more than one person at the same time."
The Encyclopedia Britannica similarly defines polygamy simply as "marriage to more than one spouse at a time."
- The Cambridge Dictionary defines "polygamy."
- Encyclopedia Britannica defines "polygamy."
[2]↩︎
Historian Sarah Pearsall has documented the practice of polygamy among cultures as diverse as the ancient Israelites, the Inca, the Siamese and Chinese, indigenous Americans and Maori, and even medieval Europeans such as the Irish.
Modern polygamy is found in about 2% of the global population. A Pew Research Center study published in 2020 found polygamous arrangements in sub-Saharan Africa and Muslim-majority countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iran, and Egypt.
- Sarah M. S. Pearsall reviews various historical cultures that practiced polygamy.
- Stephanie Kramer reports Pew research on contemporary polygamy.
[3]↩︎
Miriam Koktvedgaard Zeitzen describes various type of polygamous marriages into these categories in her 2008 book Polygamy: A Cross-cultural Analysis.
- Miriam Koktvedgaard Zeitzen reviews the different types of polygamous arrangements.
[4]↩︎
The earliest reported teaching of plural marriage from Joseph Smith was in 1831, but Orson Pratt made the first official announcement of polygamy as a practice in 1852. Plural marriage was officially discontinued in 1890.
[5]↩︎
Although plural marriage was practiced by some Latter-day Saints both before and after these dates, these two years are usually considered the "official" range of the practice since that is when it was officially announced and discontinued.
The earliest reported teaching of plural marriage from Joseph Smith was in 1831. On the origins of plural marriage, see "Polygamy (Joseph Smith Era)."
The likely earliest incident of plural marriage was in or around 1835 when Joseph was sealed to Fanny Alger in Kirtland, Ohio. For more information, see "Joseph Smith and Fanny Alger."
Orson Pratt officially announced polygamy as a Church practice in 1852.
Plural marriage was officially discontinued in 1890, although it was still practiced until about 1904. Mormon Fundamentalists still practice polygamy today.
[6]↩︎
Orson Pratt, Helen Mar Kimball, and others left second or thirdhand accounts to the effect that Joseph learned about plural marriage early in the 1830s while living in Ohio and working on his translation or revision of the Bible.
[7]↩︎
For example, scholars Richard Bushman, Brian Hales, and Todd Compton identified Fanny as Joseph's first plural wife, whereas historian Benjamin Park identified Louisa as Joseph's first plural wife because he believes the "reliable evidence is very thin" for Fanny Alger being Joseph's first plural marriage.
For more information, see "Joseph Smith and Fanny Alger" and "Polygamy (Joseph Smith Era)".
[8]↩︎
Joseph B. Noble recalled being taught about "celestial marriage" or plural marriage by Joseph Smith during this time, which coincides with when he personally began practicing plural marriage in Nauvoo.
Marinda Nancy Johnson also recalled being privately taught "the doctrine of Celestial Marriage" in late 1841, indicating Joseph was teaching multiple people plural marriage throughout that entire year.
For more information, see "Polygamy (Joseph Smith Era)"
[9]↩︎
The revelation discusses at length "the principle and doctrin[e] of their having many wives, and concubines," referring to the biblical patriarchs, and outlines the theology of eternal marriage.
- Joseph C. Kingsbury manuscript copy of D&C 132.
[10]↩︎
A mob of approximately 150 – 200 men forced there way into Carthage Jail to where Joseph and Hyrum were awaiting trial. The brothers were killed by gunfire from the mob.
For more information, see "Joseph & Hyrum Smith's Martyrdom"
[11]↩︎
Pratt announced the practice in a special conference of the Church. His speech was transcribed and published shortly after its delivery.
[12]↩︎
In a series titled "Celestial Marriage," Pratt touched on the doctrinal and scriptural reasons for plural marriage and discussed how it was envisioned to be ideally practiced by the Saints.
Pratt also published the text of what would later become D&C 132 in The Seer during its print run.
[13]↩︎
This bill was enacted on July 1, 1862 and was specific to Utah:
CHAP. CXXVI.—An Act to punish and prevent the Practice of Polygamy in the Territories of the United States and other Places, and disapproving and annulling certain Acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah.
- Text of the 1862 Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act.
[14]↩︎
This edition of the Doctrine and Covenants, prepared by Orson Pratt, titled the revelation "Section CXXXII" (132) and described it as a "Revelation on the Eternity of the Marriage Covenant, including Plurality of Wives. Given through Joseph, the Seer, in Nauvoo, Hancock County, Illinois, July 12th, 1843."
- First canonical edition of D&C 132 in the 1876 edition of the Doctrine and Covenants.
[15]↩︎
This edition of the Pearl of Great Price was edited by Orson Pratt.
- The 1878 Pearl of Great Price contains the text of D&C 132.
[16]↩︎
The Court held that religious belief was protected by the First Amendment, but not all forms of religious expression or practice.
The decision stated:
Polygamy has always been odious among the northern and western nations of Europe, and, until the establishment of the Mormon Church, was almost exclusively a feature of the life of Asiatic and of African people . . . and from the earliest history of England polygamy has been treated as an offence against society.
- Full text of decision in Reynolds v. United States declaring that polygamy is not protected by the First Amendment.
[17]↩︎
The act punished polygamists with a penalty "not more than five hundred dollars" and "imprisonment for a term of not more than five years."
- Text of the 1882 Edmunds Act.
[18]↩︎
In his 1892 biography, B. H. Roberts narrated how, after giving one final public sermon on February 1, 1885, Taylor went into hiding. Roberts described how President Taylor moved from place to place to evade capture:
In this crusade every effort was made to find President Taylor. His own houses, the Church offices, and the Gardo House, were well-nigh always under the surveillance of spies or deputy marshals, and the latter places were several times searched, but always in vain. That the place of his concealment was not discovered is little short of the miraculous, since the business to which he continued to give his personal attention was considerable, and required frequent communication with agents who were at liberty to act. He owed his safety, however, more to the promptings of the Holy Spirit than to the cunning of man. More than once, in obedience to its whisperings, and when to all outward appearances there was no danger to be feared, he would leave his place of temporary abode. By frequently changing his place of concealment, while running considerable risk of discovery in moving, he kept his enemies mystified as to his whereabouts.
- B. H. Roberts describes John Taylor going into hiding in 1885 after passage of the Edmunds Act.
[19]↩︎
The Edmunds-Tucker Act enacted more stringent measures against the Church and its practices. It removed the Church's legal status and confiscated its property in excess of $50,000. It disenfranchised women in Utah, who had been granted territorial suffrage as early as 1870. The act also placed voting restrictions on polygamists, annulled laws regulating the territorial militia, and legally disinherited the children of polygamous unions.
It defined "adultery" and "fornication" in ways that punished polygamous marriage arrangements with up to three years in prison for adultery and six months in prison for fornication.
- Full text of the 1887 Edmunds-Tucker Act.
[20]↩︎
The ruling in The Late Corporation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. United States was handed down on May 19, 1890, with a six-justice majority affirming and a three-justice minority dissenting.
The "Late Corporation" of the Church language in the decision comes from the early Edmunds-Tucker Act, which legally disincorporated the Church.
- Full text of decision of The Late Corporation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. United States.
[21]↩︎
Woodruff's Manifesto was later canonized as Official Declaration 1 in the Doctrine and Covenants.
- WW releases OD1, officially declaring intentions to submit to anti-polygamy laws.
- Official text of Wilford Woodruff's 1890 manifesto ending plural marriage.
[22]↩︎
The "Proclamation 346" from Harrison, issued in 1893, granted "a full amnesty and pardon to all persons liable to the penalties of said act by reason of unlawful cohabitation under the color of polygamous or plural marriage who have since November 1, 1890, abstained from such unlawful cohabitation, but upon the express condition that they shall in the future faithfully obey the laws of the United States hereinbefore named, and not otherwise."
- Text of Benjamin Harrison's amnesty decree for polygamists (1893).
[23]↩︎
Article III of the Utah state constitution reads:
First: -- Perfect toleration of religious sentiment is guaranteed. No inhabitant of this State shall ever be molested in person or property on account of his or her mode of religious worship; but polygamous or plural marriages are forever prohibited.
- Article III of the Utah State Constitution.
- 1895 draft of the Utah State Constitution includes outlawing polygamy.
[24]↩︎
Historians estimate that around 220–250 plural marriages were transacted after the Manifesto, many of them by apostles and other Church leaders. As historian B. Carmon Hardy wrote:
As one of more than a dozen polygamous or polygamous-like relationships undertaken by apostles and members of the First Presidency after 1890, it raises serious question about the church's claim to have done away with the practice. When we add to these cases those individuals who, if innocent of taking new wives, spoke in behalf of the principle or were instrumental in joining others in such unions, we have powerful testimony to the continued practice of the doctrine.
[25]↩︎
The United States Senate website outlines the lengthy and contentious Smoot Hearings. It noted, "Arguments against Smoot centered on three points: he was a member of a church that encouraged polygamy; he had taken a religious oath that disqualified him from the Senate; and he was a member of a religion that united church and state."
After four years of hearings, investigation, testimony, and debate, the hearing finally concluded:
On February 20, 1907, the ordeal of Reed Smoot—during which he conducted himself with grace and dignity—finally reached a conclusion. After deciding to require a two-thirds vote to declare Smoot not entitled to his seat, the Senate first voted down a move to expel him, 27 yeas to 43 nays, and then refused by a vote of 28 yeas to 42 nays to deny the Utah senator his right to remain in the Senate.
- US Senate website summarizes the Smoot Case of 1907.
- LDS Church History Topics essay summarizes the Reed Smoot Hearings.
[26]↩︎
In an "official statement" given at the April 1904 General Conference, Joseph F. Smith declared, "All such [plural] marriages are prohibited, and if any officer or member of the Church shall assume to solemnize or enter into any such marriage, he will be deemed in transgression against the Church and will be liable to be dealt with according to the rules and regulations thereof, and excommunicated therefrom."
- Text of the "Second Manifesto" by Joseph F. Smith.
[27]↩︎
In an official statement, the First Presidency affirmed:
Rumors of surreptitious unions contrary to these official announcements being circulated, the present president of the Church, on April 6, 1904, reiterated the universality of the inhibition, and proclaimed that any person entering into or performing a plural marriage would be liable to be dealt with according to the rules of the Church and excommunicated therefrom. Such violation of these positive declarations as have been reported, wherever proven by sufficient evidence, have been dealt with by Church tribunals, and the offenders have been disciplined or excommunicated. This course will be maintained, with due regard to the rights of individuals and the laws of the Church, common rumor or gossip without evidence being insufficient in a trial either civil or ecclesiastical. We protest against the charge that the Churcn or its leading officers encourage the resumption of plural marriages, and hereby declare the same to be absolutely false.
- First Presidency in 1911 reaffirms the prohibition on plural marriage in the Church.
[28]↩︎
In a statement issued at the April 1921 general conference, Grant declared:
But I want to say to the Latter-day Saints that no man upon the face of the earth has any right or any authority to perform a plural marriage, and there are no plural marriages today in the Church of Christ, because no human being has the right to perform them. Therefore, any person pretending to have that right is attempting to exercise an authority that he does not have, and therefore he does not perform a marriage and there is no marriage covenant when such ceremonies are performed. . . . We have excommunicated several patriarchs because they arrogated unto themselves, the right, or pretended right, to perform these ceremonies, and after our having excommunicated several patriarchs, another one, so I am informed, has committed the same offense. I announce to all Israel that no living man has the right to perform plural marriages. I announce that no patriarch has the right to perform any marriages at all in the Church.
- Heber J. Grant disavows the practice of plural marriage in the Church; warns that excommunication will befall those who perform or practice it.
[29]↩︎
The concluding lines of this official declaration read:
We confirm and renew the instructions given to the Church officers by President Joseph F. Smith in 1904, in 1910, and in 1914, and direct the officers who administer the affairs of the Church diligently to investigate reported violations of the adopted rule, and if persons are found who have violated President Smith’s ruling (adopted by the Church) or who are entering into or teaching, encouraging, or conspiring with others to enter into so-called polygamous or plural marriages, we instruct such officers to take action against such persons, and, finding them guilty, to excommunicate them from the Church in accord with the directions given by President Smith. We shall hold Church officers responsible for the proper performance of this duty.
- First Presidency (Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, J. Reuben Clark) publish official statement denouncing the practice of plural marriage in the Church.
[30]↩︎
In a TV interview with Larry King that aired on September 8, 1998, President Hinckley was asked about fundamentalist groups that practice polygamy. Hinckley said he condemned polygamy "as a practice" because he did not consider it "doctrinal." He further stated, "It is not legal. And this church takes the position that we will abide by the law. We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, magistrates in honoring, obeying and sustaining the law."
Hinckley reaffirmed this a month later in general conference. He stated:
I wish to state categorically that this Church has nothing whatever to do with those practicing polygamy. They are not members of this Church. Most of them have never been members. They are in violation of the civil law. They know they are in violation of the law. They are subject to its penalties. The Church, of course, has no jurisdiction whatever in this matter. . .More than a century ago God clearly revealed unto His prophet Wilford Woodruff that the practice of plural marriage should be discontinued, which means that it is now against the law of God. Even in countries where civil or religious law allows polygamy, the Church teaches that marriage must be monogamous and does not accept into its membership those practicing plural marriage.
- Gordon B. Hinckley replies to questions about fundamentalists practicing polygamy in modern times and states "I condemn it, yes, as a practice, because I think it is not doctrinal."
- Gordon B. Hinckley reaffirms that polygamy is not permitted in the Church.
[31]↩︎
Cook stated, "In the senior councils of the Church, there’s a feeling that plural marriage, as it was practiced, served its purpose. We should honor those Saints, but that purpose has been accomplished."
- Quentin L. Cook says current Church leaders feel polygamy has accomplished its purpose.
- Quentin L. Cook says polygamy accomplished its purpose.
[32]↩︎
Sources close to Joseph Smith left second and thirdhand accounts stating that Joseph first learned about plural marriage in the early 1830s.
[33]↩︎
Joseph B. Noble recalled being taught about "celestial marriage" or plural marriage by Joseph Smith during this time, which coincides with when he personally began practicing plural marriage in Nauvoo.
Marinda Nancy Johnson also recalled being privately taught "the doctrine of Celestial Marriage" in late 1841, indicating Joseph was teaching multiple people plural marriage at the time.
See Polygamy (Joseph Smith Era) for more details.
- Noble states that JS taught him about plural marriage in the fall of 1840; says JS was commanded to practice it by an angel.
- Marinda Nancy Johnson recalls Joseph Smith introducing her to plural marriage.
[34]↩︎
Orson Pratt, an apostle, made the announcement on the second day of a two day special conference of the Church held on August 28–29, 1852.
[35]↩︎
This dataset compiled 504 men and 1571 women in plural marriages.
- University of Virginia dataset collects 504 men and 1571 women in plural marriages before September 1, 1852.
[36]↩︎
One review study published in 1996 by Irwin Altman and Joseph Ginat concludes, "By and large, it appears that relatively few Mormon men engaged in polygyny, and of those who did, most had only two wives."
Historian Lowell C. Bennion likewise notes how "even under optimal circumstances, only a minority could have practiced the Principle."
- Irwin Altman and Joseph Ginat write on the demographics of Mormon polygamy and contemporary Mormon fundamentalism.
- Lowell C. Bennion discusses the demographics of plural marriage in the 19th century.
[37]↩︎
Logue published his findings in the Journal of Mormon History.
- Larry Logue reviews plural marriage data from St. George between 1860–1880.
[38]↩︎
Altman and Ginat published their findings through Cambridge University Press.
- Irwin Altman and Joseph Ginat write on the demographics of Mormon polygamy and contemporary Mormon fundamentalism.
[39]↩︎
Volf writes that "the number of partIcIpants in Mormon polygamy during the nineteenth century was quite low considering it was the church's 'ideal' marriage form."
- Volf reviews demographics of 19th century Mormon polygamy.
[40]↩︎
Bitton and Lambson published their findings in BYU Studies Quarterly.
- Davis Bitton and Val Lambson review demographics of 19th century Mormon polygamy; conclude between 15–20% of Mormon men and 25–30% of Mormon women practiced it.
[41]↩︎
Bennion published his findings through BYU Studies Press.
- Lowell C. Bennion discusses the demographics of plural marriage in the 19th century.
[42]↩︎
According to Utah Territorial Law, divorce was allowed by both men and women for various reasons, including impotence, drunkenness, neglect, and abandonment.
- The 1852 Utah territorial divorce law allows both men and women to initiate divorce proceedings for several reasons including impotence, drunkenness, neglect, and abandonment.
[43]↩︎
A 1978 study published in Utah Historical Quarterly found, "1,645 divorces were granted by Brigham Young during the period of his presidency and that many of these were obtained by prominent pioneer leaders involved in the practice of plural marriage," indicating that "many Mormon marriages during this period were rather unstable, and official attitudes toward divorce were quite lenient."
This study concluded, "It is likely that there were well in excess of 2,000 divorces granted prior to the 1890 Manifesto. Since there were only an estimated 2,400 men practicing polygamy in 1885, 2,000 or more divorces would be considerably higher than the national divorce rate in 1890 which was about one divorce per 1,000 existing marriages per year."
- Eugene E. Campbell and Bruce L. Campbell discuss divorce practices among LDS polygamists.
[44]↩︎
Section 132 of the Doctrine and Covenants (v. 19) is clear that sealings, both monogamous and polygamous, are only valid when authorized by the one "whom I have appointed this power and the keys of this priesthood," meaning the president of the Church.
In 1846 Wilford Woodruff recorded a meeting of the Quorum of the Twelve where it was resolved that "no man has a right to Attend to the ordinance of sealing except the President of the Church or those who are directed by him so to do."
Orson Pratt wrote in 1853 that "no man in Utah, who already has a wife, and who may desire to obtain another, has any right to make any propositions of marriage to a lady, until he has consulted the President over the whole church, and through him, obtains a revelation from God, as to whether it would be pleasing in His sight."
An example of a Latter-day Saint writing to Brigham Young for permission to take a plural wife is Elijah Allen, who through his bishop Joseph Harker wrote to Young in 1857 with such a request. Young's reply was simply "go ahead." However, Brigham did not grant all such requests.
[45]↩︎
In a speech given in 1855, Brigham said of those who would practice plural marriage, "This law was never given of the Lord for any but his faithful children; it is not for the ungodly at all; no man has a right to a wife, or wives, unless he honors his Priesthood and magnifies his calling before God."
- Brigham says that only those faithful to their priesthood can enter plural marriage.
[46]↩︎
For example, Brigham once denied frontiersman Peter Shirts permission to take another plural wife because he was "naturally inclined to be a little wild, and <to> grow away from settlements to places unpleasant and unsafe.
He added, "I know of no woman worth a groat who would be willing to agree with your <wild unsocial> ways for any length of time."
- Brigham rejects a request from Peter Shirts to take another plural wife.
[47]↩︎
One example is Jane McCleve, who married Priddy Meeks when she was 16 and he was 61. She recalled:
I was married Nov. 12 [1856] to Dr. Priddy Meeks who was 61 and I 16. It was love at first sight, even though he had three grown girls older than myself. President Joseph Smith the prophet had told Mr. Meeks he should go to Zion and marry a young girl and raise a large family. Ten children blessed our union.
- Mary Jane McCleve Meeks recalls marrying her 61 year old husband when she was 16.
[48]↩︎
Historian Brittany Chapman Nash, reviewing the age distribution of plural wives in Utah, wrote,
A common misconception is that many polygamists were elderly men who married young women. Plural wives were often younger than their husbands, as was broadly the case in monogamous marriages, but the age differences were generally not as radical as stereotypes depicted. A man usually married his first wife in his early twenties while his wife was in her late teens. If he married a second wife, 75 percent would have done so by age forty. The majority of men who married a fourth wife did so between the ages of thirty-six and forty-five. The average age at which a man stopped marrying was forty. The ages of women at their time of marriage did not mirror the age variabilities of men, and the overwhelming majority of plural wives married for the first time before age twenty-five.
Nash bases this off the statistical breakdown of the ages of plural spouses done by Jessie L. Embry, who based her study on a sample of 387 men and 376 women.
- Brittany Chapman Nash reviews the age of polygamous spouses in 19th century Utah.
- Jessie Embry reviews the age distribution of plural wives in Utah.
[49]↩︎
Another historian, Kathryn M. Daynes, using a sample of marriages in Manti, Utah, observed:
Just how many women married young during the frontier period can be seen in the percentage of women married at various ages. At age sixteen, 27 percent were already married; at age twenty, 83 percent had taken marriage vows. By age twenty-four, a mere 3 percent were still single, and that dropped to less than 1 percent by age twenty-eight. By these standards, those in the second cohort stayed single much longer. Only 6 percent of them were married by age sixteen, although 57 percent had wed at age twenty, 88 percent by age twenty-four, and 95 percent by age twenty-eight. Even so, women in the second cohort married when they were young, and most married. . .From one cohort to the next, the mean marriage age increased approximately one year. In the frontier period, it was 20.25 years of age, in the middle period 21.07, and in the last period 22.30. The median age at marriage for each period was lower; during the frontier period, it was 18.67 years, while it was 20.25 and 21.58 for the middle and last periods, respectively.
Reviewing data from monogamous and plural marriages in St. George between 1860–1880, Larry Logue shows how first marriages for both groups usually occurred around age 20 men and and the late teens for women.
- Kathryn M. Daynes reviews the age distribution of plural wives in Utah.
- Larry Logue reviews plural marriage data from St. George between 1860–1880.
[50]↩︎
One study published in the journal Nebraska Anthropologist reported that "in general, females, regardless of wife number, married during their late teens or early twenties," and further that "the majority of first marriages for males, both monogamous and future polygamists, occurred during their early 20s (28% between ages 15 to 20, 59% between ages 20 and 25)." The age disparity between men and women typically only appeared after a man took more than three wives:
Males who entered plural marriages typically waited between five and 10 years before gaining another wife (57% between ages 26 and 35). The addition of third and additional wives results in a greater age disparity (22% between ages 31 and 35, 28% between ages 36 and 40, 16% between ages 41 and 45, and 12% between ages 46 and 50).
- Volf reviews demographics of 19th century Mormon polygamy.
[51]↩︎
The reasons for the age disparity in some plural marriages are complex, and may reflect the frontier setting of Utah and other demographic factors rather than just an intrinsic component of how Mormon polygamy was practiced.
Parley P. Pratt, in 1856, urged that "every good citizen of both sexes [should] marry at a proper age."
[52]↩︎
At age 42, Brigham married 15-year-old Clarissa Caroline Decker on May 8, 1844.
And at age 66, on June 8, 1868, Brigham married 24-year-old Mary Van Cott.
- Genealogical entry for Clarissa Caroline Decker on FamilySearch includes her 1844 marriage to Brigham Young.
- Genealogical entry for Mary Van Cott on FamilySearch includes her 1868 marriage to Brigham Young.
[53]↩︎
On December 19, 1886, Taylor, age 78, married Josephine Elizabeth Roueche, age 26.
- Genealogical entry for Josephine Elizabeth Roueche on FamilySearch includes her 1886 marriage to John Taylor.
[54]↩︎
Woodruff married Sarah Delight Stocking on July 31, 1857. At the time, he was 50 years old and she was 19.
And on March 10, 1877, Woodruff married Eudora Lovina Young, who was 25 at the time, while he was 70.
- Biographical entry for Sarah Delight Stocking on the Wilford Woodruff Papers website.
- Biographical entry for Eudora Lovina Young Dunford Woodruff Hagen on the Wilford Woodruff papers website.
[55]↩︎
Lorenzo Snow married 17-year-old Phoebe Woodruff on April 4, 1859, when he was 44.
And on June 12, 1871, 57-year-old Snow married 15-year-old Sarah Ephramina Jensen.
- Biographical entry for Phoebe Amelia Woodruff Snow on the Wilford Woodruff papers website.
- Genealogical entry for Sarah Ephramina Jensen on FamilySearch mentions her 1871 marriage to Lorenzo Snow.
[56]↩︎
Latter-day Saint independent historian Kimball Young, writing in 1954, discussed the general reluctance to write about sex and sexuality in nineteenth century sources and how this may obscure a full picture of sexual behavior among Utah polygamists:
The fact that polygamy was so divergent from the long Christian tradition is probably one reason why it was difficult to get much intimate data on the topic of love, sexual attitudes, and sexual habits. There was a strong resistance, in common with their monogamous neighbors, to giving any information about these matters. As a result our data are scanty and often of indirect sort.
- Kimball Young provides examples of younger women waiting after marriage before cohabitating with an older husband.
[57]↩︎
For example, John D. Lee and Wilford Woodruff both took plural wives who were in their mid-teens at the time of marriage (Mary Ann Williams and Emma Smith, respectively). In Lee's case, however, the marriage was apparently never consummated, and Mary Ann fell in love with Lee's oldest son John Alma Lee whom she married in 1859 when she was 17 and he was 20.
In Woodruff's case, he married Emma when she was 15, but she did not bear her first child with him until she was 19.
Besides these examples, Historian Eugene E. Campbell cites letters from Brigham Young instructing a number of men throughout Utah to put off marrying young women until they were mature enough to bear children:
To one man at Fort Supply, Young explained, "I don't object to your taking sisters named in your letter to wife if they are not too young and their parents and your president and all connected are satisfied, but I do not want children to be married to men before an age which their mothers can generally best determine." Writing to another man in Spanish Fork, he said, "Go ahead and marry them, but leave the children to grow." A third man in Alpine City was instructed, "It is your privilege to take more wives, but set a good example to the people, and leave the children long enough with their parents to get their growth, strength and maturity." To Louis Robinson, head of the church at Fort Bridger, Young advised, "Take good women, but let the children grow, then they will be able to bear children after a few years without injury." Another man in Santa Clara was told that it would be wise to marry an Indian girl but only if she were mature. Still another man wanted Young to counsel him concerning a sister who proposed to give him her twelve-year-old daughter.
[58]↩︎
A pair of Latter-day Saint scholars, Joshua Sears and Avram Shannon, have reviewed how polygamy is depicted in the standard works, and compare and contrast how plural marriage was practiced anciently and how it was practiced in the Restoration. They wrote:
In sum, while polygamy was primarily a religious principle for nineteenth-century Latter-day Saints, for most ancient Israelites and Jews the practice was not explicitly religious but cultural. Even in cases where scripture records that God commanded a man to take additional wives or accepted a man's decision to do so, these are presented in the Bible as cases of God using an existing practice for his own ends... There are certainly connections between biblical and Restoration polygamy, and it is not inappropriate to compare them. However, given the differences between how polygamy was practiced, as well as the different frameworks and rationales invoked for it, we should be careful not to simplistically equate these experiences as one and the same.
- Joshua M. Sears and Avram R. Shannon discuss the similarities and differences of ancient polygamy and plural marriage in the modern Church.
[59]↩︎
Passages in Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy touch on regulating polygamy among the Israelites under the law of Moses.
[60]↩︎
Biblical scholars have noted that polygamy (specifically polygyny) was sanctioned and practiced in ancient Israel. As biblical scholar Russell Fuller put it:
Although monogamy may have been the ideal, polygamy was accepted and practiced throughout Israel's history, although to what extent we cannot be sure, since the sources for the most part are derived from and describe the elite ruling and upper classes. The patriarchs took more than one wife, and the kings of Israel and Judah maintained harems, of which Solomon's was the most notorious. By the Roman period, monogamy seems to have been the common practice.
[61]↩︎
Passages such as Titus 1:6–7 and 1 Timothy 3:2, 12 say that early Christian church leaders needed to be the husband of "one wife," but scholars disagree whether this meant at least one wife or only one wife, or whether this was speaking of sequential monogamy or divorce and remarriage. As one scholar writing in 2004 observed:
[The church leader] is to be 'married only once', literally, 'the husband of one wife'. Polygamy is not being forbidden here; remarriage after divorce may be in question, or it may be that the remarriage of widowers is also excluded for episkopoi. If so, the rules are different for different groups in the community, for young widows are encouraged to remarry (5:14). Perhaps, though, this is rather an extreme translation of the Greek; what is meant is that the episkopos should be a faithful husband to his wife, but that sequential monogamy is not out of the question.
A different perspective was offered by Joshua Sears and Avram Shannon in a 2022 article. They wrote:
In the New Testament itself, there are places where Jewish cultural conversations about polygamy may have informed the topics that the New Testament discusses. For example, 1 Timothy 3:2 instructs that a bishop should be "the husband of one wife." The exact intent of this phrase is debated, and it is often thought to refer to divorce or remarriage, especially given the Roman virtue of the univira, or wife of one husband in her lifetime. Whatever the phrase meant, it probably would have precluded polygamy as well. To Christians coming from a Greco-Roman background, this would have seemed obvious. Jewish followers of Jesus, by contrast, would have inherited the complex perspectives of polygamy that existed at that time, and may have seen such a restriction as novel.
[62]↩︎
Historian Walter Scheidel observed how "Greeks were expected to marry monogamously," noting that "marriage contracts from Ptolemaic Egypt prohibit concubinage for Greek husbands, not to mention polygamy. Prescriptive monogamy remained a defining feature of 'being Greek.'"
Furthermore, he wrote, "Roman rules envisioned monogamy in comparable terms. From a legal perspective, formal polygamy was impossible given that a new marriage would have voided an existing one. Modern scholars are divided over the question whether concubinage was feasible within (rather than as an alternative to) Roman marriage."
- Walter Scheidel reviews Greco-Roman attitudes towards monogamy and polygamy.
[63]↩︎
For example, Joshua Sears has written how influential Jewish writers such as Josephus and Philo downplayed the biblical depictions of the patriarchs practicing plural marriage. Sears and co-author Avram Shannon relate in a separate publication how "polygamy continued to be practiced among Jews down into the New Testament era."
He added:
Although archaeological evidence for practiced polygamy during this period is rare, the subject is frequently addressed in nonbiblical Jewish literature dating to the centuries surrounding the New Testament era. These texts show a remarkable diversity of opinions regarding polygamy, from outright hostility to embarrassment to positive portrayal.
Russell Fuller has likewise observed how "by the Roman period, monogamy seems to have been the common practice" among most Jews.
[64]↩︎
Jacob 2:28–32 teaches that the Lord expects his people to remain monogamous unless he otherwise commands them to practice plural marriage, saying: "For if I will, saith the Lord of Hosts, raise up seed unto me, I will command my people; otherwise they shall hearken unto these things."
- Jacob 2:28–32 says the Lord will command people to practice polygamy at specific times.
[65]↩︎
For instance, wicked kings such as Noah and Riplakish are depicted as polygamists in the Book of Mormon.
- Wicked king Noah in the Book of Mormon is depicted as a polygamist.
- Ether 10:5 depicts the wicked Riplakish as a polygamist.
[66]↩︎
The 1835 first edition of the Doctrine and Covenants contained the section titled "Marriage" which said: "[W]e 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."
This was indeed the Church's position in 1835, as plural marriage did not become an official Church practice until 1852.
- 1835 D&C declares that the Church believes in monogamy.
[67]↩︎
Section 132 of the Doctrine and Covenants was received by Joseph Smith on July 12, 1843, and contains instructions related to both eternal marriage and plural marriage.
- Current canonical (2013) edition of D&C 132.
[68]↩︎
The header to the current edition of Official Declaration 1 explains:
The Bible and the Book of Mormon teach that monogamy is God’s standard for marriage unless He declares otherwise (see 2 Samuel 12:7–8 and Jacob 2:27, 30). Following a revelation to Joseph Smith, the practice of plural marriage was instituted among Church members in the early 1840s (see section 132). From the 1860s to the 1880s, the United States government passed laws to make this religious practice illegal. These laws were eventually upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. After receiving revelation, President Wilford Woodruff issued the following Manifesto, which was accepted by the Church as authoritative and binding on October 6, 1890. This led to the end of the practice of plural marriage in the Church.
- Official Declaration 1 of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
[69]↩︎
Moses 5:43–55, which parallels material found in Genesis 4, depicts Lamech as being married to Adah and Zillah.
- KJV Genesis 4:19 depicts Lamech as the first polygamist.
- Moses 5:43–55 in the current (2013) edition of the standard works.
[70]↩︎
Lamech is the first recorded polygamist in the Old Testament.
- KJV Genesis 4:19 depicts Lamech as the first polygamist.
[71]↩︎
Moses 5:44–54 depicts Lamech and "his house" as being cursed by God because they entered into a covenant with Satan. This also presumably includes Lamech's two wives, Adah and Zillah, who are named in verse 47.
- Moses 5:43–55 in the current (2013) edition of the standard works.
[72]↩︎
The two children born from these marriages were Ishmael and Isaac. The relationship between Sarai and Hagar is depicted as having a negative side because of intra-family jealousies.
- The Old Testament depicts Abraham as having a wife and a concubine.
[73]↩︎
This polygamous depiction is more negative, since some of Esau's wives are said to be non-Israelite women (i.e., outside the Abrahamic covenant).
- Esau in the Old Testament is portrayed as having multiple wives.
- Esau in the Old Testament is depicted as marrying multiple wives.
[74]↩︎
From these four women were born the twelve sons from whom sprang the tribes of Israel.
- Jacob/Israel in the Old Testament is depicted as having four wives.
[75]↩︎
Genesis 36:12 mentions by name Eliphaz's concubine Timna.
- KJV Genesis 36:9–13 mentions Esau's son Eliphaz and his concubine Timna.
[76]↩︎
Caleb is depicted in 1 Chronicles 2:18–19, 46–48 as having two wives concurrently, Azubah and Jerioth, and taking a third wife, Ephrath, when Azubah died. It also names two concubines, Ephah and Maachah.
- 1 Chronicles 2:18–20, 46–48 depicts Caleb as a polygamist.
[77]↩︎
The two wives are named as Helah and Naarah in 1 Chronicles 4:5.
- 1 Chronicles 4:1–8 mentions Ashur, a descendant of Judah, who had two wives.
[78]↩︎
Judges 8 notes Gideon's polygamy without any additional description.
- Judges 8:29–31 depicts Gideon as a polygamist.
[79]↩︎
The text does not negatively depict polygamy per se, but rather notes tensions in the family because of Elkanah's polygamous household.
- Elkanah the father of Samuel in the Old Testament is depicted as having two wives.
[80]↩︎
2 Samuel 12:7–8 contains the prophet Nathan's declaration that these women were given to David by God.
[81]↩︎
Similar to Esau, the text seems to portray Solomon's polygamy more negatively because some of the wives were non-Israelites who introduced idolatry into the Solomonic court.
- Solomon is depicted in the Old Testament as having hundreds of wives and concubines.
[82]↩︎
1 Kings 20:5, 7 mentions Ahab having an unspecified number of wives.
- 1 Kings 20:1–12 KJV contains detail of Ahab having multiple wives.
[83]↩︎
This detail is mentioned at 2 Chronicles 11:21, "And Rehoboam loved Maachah the daughter of Absalom above all his wives and his concubines: (for he took eighteen wives, and threescore concubines; and begat twenty and eight sons, and threescore daughters.)"
- 2 Chronicles 11:18–23 KJV depicts king Rehoboam as a polygamist.
[84]↩︎
This detail is mentioned at 2 Chronicles 13:21.
- 2 Chronicles 13:21–22 depicts king Abijah as a polygamist.
[85]↩︎
2 Chronicles 24:1-3 mentions two wives given to Joash by Jehoiada the priest.
- 2 Chronicles 24:1–3 KJV depicts king Joash as having two wives.
[86]↩︎
Esther 1:10–12 mentions by name Ahasuerus's first queen, Vashti, while Esther 2:13–14 mentions a harem of women that included concubines. Esther 2:15–20 depicts Ahasuerus's marriage to the titular heroine and does not describe a dissolution of marriage with Vashti.
- Esther 1–2 KJV mentions the royal household of the Persian king Ahasuerus; mentions Vashti and Esther as his wives, and a harem with concubines.
[87]↩︎
Herod is depicted in Matthew 2 as the murderous king who orders the slaughter of infant children in Bethlehem.
- KJV Matthew 2 in the LDS standard works.
[88]↩︎
The first century Jewish writer Josephus mentions Herod's polygamy in Antiquities 17.1.3.
- Josephus mentions Herod's polygamous marriages.
[89]↩︎
Jacob 1:15 is explicit that under the reign of the second king among the Nephites the people began to "indulge themselves somewhat in wicked practices, such as like unto David of old desiring many wives and concubines, and also Solomon, his son." This, in turn, prompted Jacob's prophetic condemnation of the practice in the next chapter.
- Opening chapter of book of Jacob in the Book of Mormon says the Nephites practiced polygamy.
- Jacob 2:28–32 says the Lord will command people to practice polygamy at specific times.
[90]↩︎
Mosiah 11 depicts Noah, the son of Zeniff, as taking "many wives and concubines" with whom he engaged in "riotous living." As with Noah, his priests are said to have taken "wives" and "concubines" and to have spent their time with "harlots."
- Wicked king Noah in the Book of Mormon is depicted as a polygamist.
[91]↩︎
Alma 10 quotes Amulek as thanking God for "my women, and my children." The language is suggestive of plural wives, but is not explicit. Scholar John A. Tvedtnes argues on the basis of the Hebrew language that the "women" of Alma 10:11 is referring to wives.
In the 19th century, George Reynolds similarly argued that Amulek was probably a polygamist.
[92]↩︎
Ether 1:40–41 and 6:20 in the 1830 and 1837 editions of the Book of Mormon, as well as the 1879 edition prepared by Orson Pratt, read:
40. And it came to pass that the Lord did hear the brother of Jared, and had compassion upon him, and said unto him, 41. Go to and gather together thy flocks, both male and female, of every kind; and also of the seed of the earth of every kind, and mthy families ; and also Jared thy brother and his family; and also thy friends, and their families, and the friends of Jared and their families. . . . 20. And accordingly the people were gathered together. Now the number of the sons and the daughters of the brother of Jared jwere twenty and two souls; and the number of sons and daughters of Jared were twelve, he having four sons.
The current 2013 edition retains these readings for these passages.
In his marginal notes (m and j) prepared for the 1879 edition, Orson Pratt took these two verses to be referring to a plurality of families from different wives.
Modern scholars such as Daniel Ludlow and Brant Gardner have argued that the Jaredites seem to have practiced polygamy.
[93]↩︎
Royal Skousen has pointed out that the printer's manuscript of the Book of Mormon has the singular "family" in this passage, and attributes the error in printed editions of the Book of Mormon to the typesetter of the 1830 edition. He calls Orson Pratt's reading of Ether 1:40–41 a "mistake" based on this typographical error.
The 1908 authorized version of the RLDS Book of Mormon changed "families" in this verse to the singular to bring it in conformity to the printer's manuscript.
[94]↩︎
Ether 7:2 says that Orihah begat thirty-one children, including twenty-three sons.
- Ether 7:1–2 in the 2013 edition of the Book of Mormon.
[95]↩︎
In the footnotes to the 1879 edition of the Book of Mormon, Orson Pratt made this observation on the text of Ether 7:2.
Brant Gardner agrees, writing, "Thirty-one children strongly suggests that Orihah had more than one wife."
[96]↩︎
The text of Ether 10 portrays Riplakish in a similarly negative light as the wicked king Noah, and, like Noah, links the his polygamy with burdensome taxes and other exploitative practices.
- Ether 10:5 depicts the wicked Riplakish as a polygamist.
[97]↩︎
For example, reasons were given by apostles such as Orson Pratt and George Q. Cannon, as well as women who practiced polygamy such as Helen Mar Kimball Whitney and Belinda Pratt.
These reasons were varied and ranged from "God commanded it" to "it benefits society."
[98]↩︎
Orson Pratt argued for this in the inaugural issue of his 1853–54 periodical The Seer:
From the foregoing Revelation [D&C 132], given through Joseph, the Seer, it will be seen that God has actually commanded some of His servants to take more wives, and has pointed out certain duties in regard to the marriage ceremony, showing that they must be married for time and for all eternity, and showing the advantages to be derived in a future state by this eternal union, and showing, still further, that, if they refused to obey this command, after having the law revealed to them, they should be damned. This revelation, then, makes it a matter of conscience among all the Latter-Day Saints; and they embrace it as a part and portion of their religion, and verily believe that they cannot be saved and reject it.
[99]↩︎
Parley P. Pratt argued that although plural marriage is evidenced in the scriptures, it wasn't practiced until "this command was given." He wrote:
But though we cite the testimony of the Scriptures to convince, mankind that this principle was correct, and this institution was the one which the Lord revealed and even commanded his people in former, generations to observe, yet it is not upon this evidence that we presume to practice it at the present time. These scriptural evidences show what, the mind of the Lord was in former times relative to this principle; they show that the Latter-Day Saints in putting this doctrine in practice, merely do what the people of God did in previous ages. . . . Until this command was given, though they had all the evidences of Scripture that this doctrine was believed and practiced by the people of God in ancient days, the Latter-Day Saints never dared to adopt it. The Lord in his wisdom, however, saw fit to give it, accompanying it by so strong a testimony of His Holy Spirit that there was no room to doubt; the only alternative that was left us, therefore, was to believe and obey it.
- Parley P. Pratt provides scriptural arguments for polygamy.
[100]↩︎
Helen Mar Kimball Whitney simply said that plural marriage was "commanded" in her 1882 book Plural Marriage, as Taught by the Prophet Joseph. She wrote:
It seems that the revelation received by him in 1843, was given in answer to an inquiry to know wherein the Lord justified certain ones anciently in having so many wives and concubines. This is his testimony, and he further affirms that he was commanded to teach and enter upon the practice of it. . . . I know, as well as I know that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, that [God] commanded my father and other men to enter into this order of matrimony...
- Helen Mar Kimball testifies that God commanded plural marriage.
[101]↩︎
Orson Pratt taught the following in a sermon delivered in 1869:
Let me say, then, that God's people, under every dispensation since the creation of the world, have, generally, been polygamists. I say this for the benefit of strangers. According to the good old book, called the Bible, when God saw proper to call out Abraham from all the heathen nations, and made him a great man in the world, He saw proper, also, to make him a polygamist, and approbated him in taking unto himself more wives than one. Was it wrong in Abraham to do this thing? If it were, when did God reprove him for so doing? When did He ever reproach Jacob for doing the same thing? Who can find the record in the lids of the Bible of God reproving Abraham, as being a sinner, and having committed a crime, in taking to himself two living wives? No such thing is recorded. He was just as much blessed after doing this thing as before, and more so, for God promised blessings upon the issue of Abraham by his second wife the same as that of the first wife, providing he was equally faithful. This was a proviso in every case.
- Orson Pratt cites scriptural justification for plural marriage.
[102]↩︎
Kimball wrote, "There are sufficient proofs in the holy scriptures of the purity of polygamy." He further reasoned:
God apparently did not look upon it as a debasing, disgusting practice, and demoralizing in its influences. It was practiced at the time of Christ's advent, and through all the New Testament there is nothing written against it. . . . If polygamy were so great a sin these holy men certainly would not have remained silent upon this subject; but we do not find a single passage within the Holy Bible which condemns it.
- Helen Mar Kimball appeals to the Bible to justify plural marriage.
[103]↩︎
In an article published in the Church's Millennial Star, Littlefield wrote:
I might go on piling up example to example of holy men of God, His chosen servants who practiced this law, but it is unnecessary, as you must be acquainted with these instances as well as I am; but I venture the assertion that I can produce a dozen instances where it can be directly proven that the Lord's favored servants had more than one wife, to every one whom you can positively demonstrate to have been a monogamist. Polygamy was the rule, not the exception, in ancient Israel.
- Littlefield defends plural marriage in LDS periodical, gives reasons for its practice among the LDS.
[104]↩︎
In an article published in his periodical The Seer, Pratt wrote:
How many hundreds of thousands of women there are, who, in consequence of having no opportunities of marriage, yield themselves up to a life of profligacy, and become notoriously immoral and unvirtuous. If these same females had not been deprived of the rights which all should enjoy under our glorious Constitution, they might have united themselves to some virtuous good men, and been happy as their second or third wives, and thus been saved from the temptations and evils into which they have fallen.
- Orson Pratt argues that polygamy would eliminate sexual vices.
[105]↩︎
In her 1882 book on plural marriage, Kimball wrote:
Could this system of plurality of wives be adopted and practiced as it should be, it would give opportunity for every good woman to marry, and there are thousands who would gladly embrace it. Even a small share in the affection, care and attention of a good husband would be far better than no husband or family at all. It is a woman's right to become an honorable wife and mother, but only through the adoption of plural marriage can this right be extended to all.
- Helen Mar Kimball argues that polygamy would solve societal ills and give all women a chance to be married.
[106]↩︎
In an 1855 speech, Brigham said that according to D&C 132 plural marriage "was for the express purpose of providing a channel for the organization of tabernacles, for those spirits to occupy who have been reserved to come forth in the kingdom of God, and that they might not be obliged to take tabernacles out of the kingdom of God."
- Brigham says that only those faithful to their priesthood can enter plural marriage.
[107]↩︎
Belinda Pratt, a plural wife of apostle Parley P. Pratt, made this argument in an 1854 publication defending plural marriage, writing, "Polygamy, then, as practiced under the Patriarchal law of God, tends directly to the chastity of women, and to sound health and morals in the constitutions of their offspring."
- Belinda Pratt defends polygamy; cites scriptural support for its practice.
[108]↩︎
George Q. Cannon, an apostle and later member of the First Presidency, said in an 1869 speech:
I am speaking now of what are called the spiritual benefits arising from the righteous practice of this principle. I am sure that through the practice of this principle, we shall have a purer community, a community more experienced, less selfish and with a higher knowledge of human nature than any other on the face of the earth. It has already had this effect to a great extent, and its effects in these directions will increase as the practice of the principle becomes more general.
- George Q. Cannon speaks on plural marriage, gives reasons for why it is practiced.
[109]↩︎
George Q. Cannon mused on this idea in an unpublished and undated manuscript found among his papers.
- George Q. Cannon says plural marriage is a divinely-ordained way for men to have their sexual urges fulfilled.
[110]↩︎
Orson Pratt argued this in an 1853 in his periodical The Seer, stating:
Plurality, therefore, not only would be a preventative against female prostitution, but would diminish the causes or means of prostitution on the part of the males. Young men abandon themselves to vice and immorality in proportion to the amount of temptation and evil influences with which they are surrounded. Diminish the causes and the effects are diminished also: and if the cause be destroyed the effect ceases. Let our State laws permit plurality, and it will seldom be the case that a female will yield to prostitution, prefering lawful marriage to a life of degradation and suffering. The army of degraded females, receiving little or no accession to their numbers, would soon be diminished and eventually destroyed by their own folly and wickedness, and thus, the causes of temptation having, in a great degree, ceased, young men would walk in a more healthy atmosphere, and not Inconstantly allured, as they are now, from the paths of virtue. Plurality would also diminish greatly the temptations which beset the paths of married men, as well as those who are young; they would no longer be under the temptation to keep a mistress secretly, and to break the marriage covenant, and thus sin against their wives and against God.
- Orson Pratt argues that polygamy would eliminate sexual vices.
[111]↩︎
Romania Pratt Penrose, a plural wife of apostle Charles W. Penrose, said this in an 1881 address:
The duties and requirements of a woman, fulfilling her sphere of motherhood, absolutely demand certain periods of continence, which if not granted her through thoughtful solicitude for her welfare by her husband, or herself assumed, by virtue of the dignity of womanhood, or by the divine right of free agency, the principle of her life and health is encroached upon, and she is forced to perform her ever increasing labors and duties with a decreasing store of vitality. There is nothing [i]n the economy or requirements of a man's life which requires this [sexual] abstinence beyond the temperate limit of his powers of vitality, and this to me is a proof unanswerable and prima facie on the spheres of manhood and womanhood, of the divinity and I believe is a necessity for the salvation of the human race, of the truth and divine origin of the principle of plural marriage.
- Romania Pratt argues that plural marriage allows men more opportunities for sex, which they need but which women don't.
[112]↩︎
Orson Pratt argued this point in 1853 in his periodical The Seer:
Look at the misery and wretchedness of thousands of females in almost every city in America and Europe — inquire into the causes of their shameful and criminal course of life, and it will be found that in nine cases out of ten, they were driven to that state of degradation for the want of a protector — a husband in whom they could centre their affections, and on whom they could rely for a support. Would it not have been far better for these females to have been honorably connected in marriage, according to the plurality system, than to have plunged themselves into the vortext of irretreivable ruin? What an immense amount of immorality, and consequent suffering would have been prevented, had the State governments not been influenced by the corrupt traditions of Apostate Christianity in prohibiting plurality and denouncing it criminal!
- Orson Pratt argues that polygamy would eliminate sexual vices.
[113]↩︎
Belinda Pratt argued this in her 1854 defense of plural marriage, stating:
While the man who has abundance of means is tempted to spend it on a mistress in secret, and in a lawless way, while the law of God would have given her to him as an honorable wife. These circumstances give rise to murder, infanticide, suicide, disease, remorse, despair, wretchedness, poverty, untimely death, with all the attendant train of jealousies, heartrending miseries, want of confidence in families, contaminating disease, etc. And, finally, to the horrible license system, in which governments, called christian, license, their fair daughters, I will not say to play the beast, but to a degradation far beneath them; for every species of the animal creation, except man refrain from such abominable excesses, and observe, in a great measure, the laws of nature in procreation.
- Belinda Pratt defends polygamy; cites scriptural support for its practice.
[114]↩︎
Benjamin F. Johnson, a friend of Joseph Smith, gave this as one positive benefit to plural marriage in a pamphlet he published in the 1850s. He wrote:
How unhappy then must be the prospects of the many thousands who perhaps may never for once receive the offer of marriage from a virtuous man, and who were designed by nature to honor the sacred name of wife and mother, and cheer the pathway of man by those happy smiles and joyous words which eminate alone from woman's heart while filling that high and holy sphere 'for which by Nature's God she was designed.' . . . Look at the factories throughout Europe and America, thronged with multitudes of the softer sex toiling to amass wealth for the sordid capitalists, and to the thousands of close and sultry sewing establishments throughout the largest cities, crowded with pale and sickly women— doomed, through want of man's protection, in poverty to draw with feeble hand the careful stitch to gratify the fastidious fashions of folly, cruelty and wealth, until death, their almost only friend, closes for them the sad and toilsome scene.
- Johnson gives reasons for why the Saints practice polygamy; cites scripture and argues it solves social ills like prostitution.
[115]↩︎
Helen Mar Kimball articulated this in her 1884 book defending plural marriage. She wrote:
The plural marriage system practiced in this Church, and the motive which prompted the few who have accepted it, stand high compared with the loathsome vices practiced among the refined and intellectual ladies and gentlemen in the East-tern States, or any other States in the Union. Divorces and foeticide are already more common than marriages among them. . . . They might search in every village and hamlet throughout. Utah and the adjoining Territories and they could not find a parallel to this. Not even in the hardest days of our experience in pioneering a mountain wilderness, were there any scenes that could compare with this.
She made similar arguments in another book two years previously.
- Helen Mar Kimball writes the social evils such as abortion aren't practiced in polygamous Utah.
- Helen Mar Kimball argues that polygamy would solve societal ills and give all women a chance to be married.
[116]↩︎
Studies have shown that societies where a man can have more than one wife tend to have many more children than other societies. The census data indicates that this was the case in Utah as well.
For more information, see Polygamy and Population Growth.
[117]↩︎
Latter-day Saints John C. Kimball and Jedediah Grant explained that polygamy was to keep women from marrying outside of the covenant due to women outnumbering men. In his 1852 book, non-Latter-day Saint John W. Gunnison shared this view as well.
[118]↩︎
In a December 2021 Times and Seasons article, sociologist Stephen Cranney reviewed the Overland Pioneer Trail Database. He found that during the later years, there were slightly more adult women (over 17 years of age) than men; however, more men had an unknown age. Overall, the number of women and men was roughly equal.
- Stephen Cranney in Times and Seasons presents data on how many women emigrated to pioneer Utah.
[119]↩︎
Historian Kathryn Daynes showed that the number of women who were temple-endowed was much higher than the number of men. She indicates that for every 100 endowed women, there were 82 men.
- Kathryn Daynes reports that temple-endowed women outnumbered men in 1850-1880 Utah.
[120]↩︎
Latter-day Saint independent historian Kimball Young, writing in 1954, discussed the general reluctance to write about sex and sexuality in nineteenth century sources and how this may obscure a full picture of sexual behavior among Utah polygamists:
The fact that polygamy was so divergent from the long Christian tradition is probably one reason why it was difficult to get much intimate data on the topic of love, sexual attitudes, and sexual habits. There was a strong resistance, in common with their monogamous neighbors, to giving any information about these matters. As a result our data are scanty and often of indirect sort.
- Kimball Young provides examples of younger women waiting after marriage before cohabitating with an older husband.
[121]↩︎
For example, in a study conducted by the Institute of Applied Psychology at the University of Punjab in Pakistan, women in Pakistan gave reasons for practicing polygamy that included "infertility or having only female children" and "in-laws family pressure because they wanted to secure their marriage instead of divorce."
And Sarah Pearsall has noted how various factors have historically influenced the way polygamy has been practiced in many cultures.
[122]↩︎
For example, David P. Barash from the University of Washington has researched the biological advantages of polygamy. Thom Brooks from Durham University has written about the problem of sexism in polygamous relationships. Sarah M. S. Pearsall from John Hopkins University has written about kinship networks between polygamous families as well as dynamics of inequality.
[123]↩︎
In 2016, David P. Barash published research from evolutionary biology and anthropology "clearly demonstrating the underlying prevalence of polygamy as the default setting for human intimacy." He observed how humans seem to be "biologically predisposed" to polygamy because, among other reasons, it allows for more opportunities for the creation of offspring and thus a propogation of genes.
- David P. Barash writes about the evolutionary biological evidence for human disposition towards polygamy.
[124]↩︎
The inherent sexism of most practiced forms of polygamy (specifically polygyny) has been readily observed by anthropologists and historians.
[125]↩︎
A 2021 study found a "majority of females [in Pakistan] allowed their husbands for co-wives due to infertility or having only female children." Another study found something similar: "Childless wives are willing to have legal and valid polygamous marriages than the other wives to obtain ofspring and descendants for the husband."
This was, according to the book of Genesis, a major factor in the reason for Abraham entering polygamy.
[126]↩︎
Studies from 2013 and 2021 have found polygamous women tend to be more likely to report negative mental health outcomes than monogamous women.
- Bahari et al. find positive and negative mental health outcomes in women and children with polygamy compared to monogamy.
- 2013 study finds lower self-esteem reported in Syrian women practicing polygamy.
[127]↩︎
A 2021 study found polygamy offers the advantage of "sharing in-house responsibilities and child-rearing" among spouses.
- Sabila Naseer et al. sample polygamous marriages in Pakistan, describe positives and negatives associated with the practice.
[128]↩︎
A 2006 study of women in Kuwait found "competition between co-wives for the husband's social and economic support and jealousy are all common."
- Al-Krenawi et al. report their findings on attitudes towards polygamy in traditional Arab communities in the Negev.
[129]↩︎
Sarah Pearsall observes how there are "distinct iterations of polygamy in diverse political and social contexts," but that overall "polygamy allowed for resource-building, diplomatic links, and the creation of significant networks" among practitioners.
- Sarah M. S. Pearsall reviews various historical cultures that practiced polygamy.
[130]↩︎
This is commonly reported in polygamous households according to a 2006 study. Neel Burton, writing in Psychology Today, explained:
Women in polygynous unions tend to marry at a younger age, into a setup that, by its very nature, fosters jealousy, competition, and conflict, with instances of co-wives poisoning one another’s offspring in a bid to further their own. Although the husband ought in principle to treat his co-wives equally, in practice he will almost inevitably favour one over the others—most likely the youngest, most recent one.
- Al-Krenawi et al. report their findings on attitudes towards polygamy in traditional Arab communities in the Negev.
- Neel Burton discusses the pros and cons of polygamy.
[131]↩︎
Historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich has observed that many polygamous Mormon women felt strong familial and social ties with each other, especially as they also shared a common religious identity.
- Laurel Thatcher Ulrich writes on plural marriage in Utah; notes how it made strong kinship bonds among the women.
[132]↩︎
Polygamy may result, depending on the demographics and social practices of the community, in a surplus of young men who are unable to find wives as the women go to older, more established men in the community.
The "lost boys" of the FLDS Church community is one manifestation of this problem.
- Miller and Karkazis note the problem of "lost boys" in one polygamist community.
- Wright and Richardson discuss the "lost boys" of the FLDS.
[133]↩︎
For example, two former-Latter-day Saint women of the nineteenth century who voiced criticism of polygamy were Fanny Stenhouse and Ann Eliza Webb. They published accounts of their experience with polygamy in their books A Lady's Life among the Mormons and Wife No. 19.
- Fanny Stenhouse records her hatred for polygamy and disillusionment of her faith.
- Ann Eliza Webb voices her loathing of plural marriage and expresses her unhappiness as a former plural wife.
[134]↩︎
Latter-day Saint women such as Eliza R. Snow and Helen Mar Kimball vocally defended polygamy and extolled what they perceived as its positive virtues.
[135]↩︎
Stenhouse reported this in her 1872 anti-polygamy book A Lady's Life among the Mormons.
- Fanny Stenhouse records her hatred for polygamy and disillusionment of her faith.
[136]↩︎
Eliza R. Snow, a plural wife of Joseph Smith and then Brigham Young, expressed this in an unpublished life sketch and autobiography.
- ERS expresses her love for the doctrine of polygamy.
[137]↩︎
Recorded in the Payson Relief Society Minutes, September 26, 1872.
- Eliza R. Snow bears testimony of plural marriage in Relief Society meeting.
[138]↩︎
Helen recorded this perspective in an 1884 publication defending polygamy.
- Helen Mar Kimball defends plural marriage as a trial but a blessing to her life.
[139]↩︎
Helen said this in her 1882 book Plural Marriage, as Taught by the Prophet Joseph.
- Helen Mar Kimball argues that polygamy would solve societal ills and give all women a chance to be married.
[140]↩︎
Belinda Pratt recorded this in her 1854 pamphlet Defence of Polygamy, By a Lady in Utah.
- Belinda Pratt defends polygamy; cites scriptural support for its practice.
[141]↩︎
Ann Eliza Webb, a former plural wife of Brigham Young, recorded this in her anti-polygamy exposé Wife No. 19, or the Story of Life in Bondage.
- Ann Eliza Webb voices her loathing of plural marriage and expresses her unhappiness as a former plural wife.
[142]↩︎
Annie Clark Tanner, plural wife of Joseph Tanner, recorded these feelings in an autobiography written late in her life after plural marriage ended in the Church:
As a mother, I had great hopes for my children because of what I considered their noble parentage. From a social standpoint, polygamy made some contributions . . . . I argued too, that the principle of polygamy was worthwhile because of the noble character traits that it helped to develop. . . . At one time, I had been a good follower. Now I began to have opinions of my own. No doubt this change came as a result of experience.
- Annie Clark Tanner records ambivalent attitudes toward polygamy in her autobiography.
[143]↩︎
Zina Huntington, a plural wife of Joseph Smith, left this testimony in 1895.
- Zina D. Young recalls hearing from Joseph how an angel with a drawn sword commanded him to practice plural marriage.
[144]↩︎
This comes from an undated, unpublished autobiography written by Zina. Spelling and punctuation standardized.
- Zina D. Young recalls her conversion to the doctrine of "celestial marriag."
[145]↩︎
In an 1854 speech about the martyrdom of Joseph Smith, John Taylor shared how we was first introduced to plural marraige:
It was a thing new to the whole of us. Yet it was a thing that was substantiated by scripture and made manifest also by revelation, and it only needed men to have the spirit of God or women to know and to understand the principles that Joseph communicated unto them. . . . It tried our minds and feelings. We saw it was something going to be heavy upon us. . . Did we believe it? Yes, we did. I did. The whole rest of the brethren did. But still we should have been glad to push it off a little further.
- John Taylor recalls being introduced to plural marriage along with Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball in the summer of 1841.
[146]↩︎
George Q. Cannon said this in a speech given in 1869.
The practice of this principle is by no means without its trials for the males. The difficulties and perplexities connected with the care of a numerous family, to a man who has any ambition, are so great that nothing short of the revelations of God or the command of Jesus Christ, would tempt men to enter this order; the mere increase of facilities to gratify the lower passions of our natures would be no inducement to assume such an increase of grave responsibilities.
- George Q. Cannon speaks on plural marriage, gives reasons for why it is practiced.
[147]↩︎
Woodruff's manifesto proclaiming an end to plural marriage made clear that it was in response to continued legislative and legal pressure put on the Church by Congress and the courts:
Inasmuch as laws have been enacted by Congress forbidding plural marriages, which laws have been pronounced constitutional by the court of last resort, I hereby declare my intention to submit to those laws and to use my influence with the members of the Church over which I preside to have them do likewise.
- Official text of Wilford Woodruff's 1890 manifesto ending plural marriage.
[148]↩︎
In a speech delivered in 1891, Woodruff stated that he had received revelation showing him the consequences if the Church continued to practice plural marriage in the face of mounting federal opposition:
The Lord showed me by revelation and revelation exactly what would take place if we did not stop this practice. If we had not stopped it, we would have no use for use of the brethren in the Logan temple and all the temples would be stopped in Zion. Confusion would reign throughout Israel. Trouble would have come throughout the whole Church, and we would be compelled to stop the practice. . . . I saw exactly what would come to pass if there was not something done. I have had this spirit upon me for a long time. But I want to say this: I should have let all the temples go out of our hands; I would have gone to prison myself, and let every other man go there, had not the God of heaven commanded me to do what I did do.
- Wilford Woodruff describes in his speech how government threats catalyzed revelation for the Manifesto.
[149]↩︎
For instance, Peter received a revelation to take the gospel to the Gentiles and, subsequently, the apostles in Jerusalem together had to confront the question of whether these gentile converts would need to be circumcised, which was a requirement under the Law of Moses. The council determined that gentile converts would not need to undergo circumcision, overturning centuries of Mosaic/Jewish practice.
- Acts 10 KJV in LDS 2013 New Testament.
- In Acts 15, Paul discusses the question of circumcision (KJV LDS 2013 New Testament).
[150]↩︎
In a September 25, 1890 journal entry, Woodruff said he felt he was of "necessity of acting for the Temporal Salvation of the Church" because "the United State Government has taken a stand & passed Laws to destroy the Latter day Saints upon the subject of poligamy or Patriarchal order of Maraiage."
- Wilford Woodruff says he issued the manifesto after revelation for the temporal salvation of the Church.
[151]↩︎
In 1882, Congress passed the Edmunds Act, which made polygamy a felony. In 1887, it passed the Edmunds-Tucker Act, which disincorporated the Church and imposed additional penalties on polygamists. Two Supreme Court cases, Reynolds v. United States (1878) and Late Corp. of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. United States (1890) upheld the constitutionality of anti-polygamy laws that targeted the Church.
In an 1891 speech, Woodruff was adamant that he would have "let all the temples go out of our hands" and "would have gone to prison myself, and let every other man go there, had not the God of heaven commanded me to do what I did do."
[152]↩︎
The complicated history of post-manifesto polygamy has been documented by historians such as D. Michael Quinn and G. Carmon Hardy, as well as in a Gospel Topics essay by the Church.
Clark LeRay Herlin estimates approximately 250 cases of plural marriage being transacted in the Church between 1890 and 1904, while Hardy estimates around 220.
[153]↩︎
This manifesto from Joseph F. Smith officially prohibited any plural marriage in the Church and warned that "if any officer or member of the Church shall assume to solemnize or enter into any such marriage, he will be deemed in transgression against the Church and will be liable to be dealt with according to the rules and regulations thereof, and excommunicated therefrom."
- Text of the "Second Manifesto" by Joseph F. Smith.
[154]↩︎
Some of the more notable groups of Mormon fundamentalists who practice polygamy include the Apostolic United Brethren (AUB) and the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS).
- Brian C. Hales gives an overview of the Apostolic United Brethren or Allred Group.
- Brian C. Hales reviews the FLDS Church.
[155]↩︎
A statement on the Church Newsroom website makes it clear that "today, the practice of polygamy is strictly prohibited in the Church." It also adds:
Polygamous groups and individuals in and around Utah often cause confusion for casual observers and for visiting news media. The polygamists and polygamist organizations in parts of the western United States and Canada have no affiliation whatsoever with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, despite the fact that the term "Mormon" — widely understood to be a nickname for Latter-day Saints — is sometimes incorrectly applied to them.
According to the Church handbook, the performance of polygamous marriages is not permitted in meetinghouses. According to the handbook:
A membership council is required if a person knowingly enters into a plural marriage. Some plural marriages may occur in secret, with a spouse not knowing about one or more other spouses. Withdrawing a person’s Church membership is required if a person knowingly enters into plural marriage.
[156]↩︎
Church presidents including Heber J. Grant and Gordon B. Hinckley have emphasized that excommunication is the penalty for any members of the Church who practice plural marriage.
In 2011, Elder M. Russell Ballard said, "Let me state clearly that no polygamist group, including those calling themselves fundamentalist Mormons or other derivatives of our name, has any affiliation whatsoever with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."
[157]↩︎
In a speech given in 2018 and published in 2020, Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve said that "we should honor those Saints [who practiced plural marriage], but that purpose has been accomplished."
- Quentin L. Cook says current Church leaders feel polygamy has accomplished its purpose.
- Quentin L. Cook says polygamy accomplished its purpose.
[158]↩︎
Lorenzo Snow made this statement in the Deseret Evening News in 1900:
[T]he Church has positively abandoned the practice of polygamy, or the solemnization of plural marriages, in this and every other State, and that no member or officer thereof has any authority whatever to perform a plural marriage or enter into such a relation. Nor does the Church advise or encourage unlawful cohabitation on the part of any of its members. If, therefore, any member disobeys the law, either as to polygamy or unlawful cohabitation, he must bear his own burden; or in other words, be answerable to the tribunals of the land for his own action pertaining thereto.
- Lorenzo Snow reaffirms the Church's prohibition on polygamy.
[159]↩︎
This statement comes from the "Second Manifesto" issued by Joseph F. Smith in 1904.
- Text of the "Second Manifesto" by Joseph F. Smith.
[160]↩︎
The letter continued:
Such violation of these positive declarations as have been reported, wherever proven by sufficient evidence, have been dealt with by Church tribunals, and the offenders have been disciplined or excommunicated. This course will be maintained, with due regard to the rights of individuals and the laws of the Church, common rumor or gossip without evidence being insufficient in a trial either civil or ecclesiastical.
This letter was directed to the "officers and members" of the Church and read by Heber J. Grant at the Church's April 1911 general conference.
- First Presidency in 1911 reaffirms the prohibition on plural marriage in the Church.
[161]↩︎
Heber J. Grant continued:
Therefore, any person pretending to have that right is attempting to exercise an authority that he does not have, and therefore he does not perform a marriage and there is no marriage covenant when such ceremonies are performed.
This statement was made in the April 1921 general conference of the Church.
- Heber J. Grant disavows the practice of plural marriage in the Church; warns that excommunication will befall those who perform or practice it.
[162]↩︎
In this official statement, the First Presidency in June 1933 reaffirmed the earlier declarations of Wilford Woodruff and Joseph F. Smith. The full statement is as follows:
We confirm and renew the instructions given to the Church officers by President Joseph F. Smith in 1904, in 1910, and in 1914, and direct the officers who administer the affairs of the Church diligently to investigate reported violations of the adopted rule, and if persons are found who have violated President Smith’s ruling (adopted by the Church) or who are entering into or teaching, encouraging, or conspiring with others to enter into so-called polygamous or plural marriages, we instruct such officers to take action against such persons, and, finding them guilty, to excommunicate them from the Church in accord with the directions given by President Smith. We shall hold Church officers responsible for the proper performance of this duty.
- First Presidency (Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, J. Reuben Clark) publish official statement denouncing the practice of plural marriage in the Church.
[163]↩︎
In two separate meetings in February 1956, President McKay voiced this view of plural marriage.
- David O. McKay teaches that plural marriage is a "practice" and the blessings and covenants contained in D&C 132 are available in monogamous unions.
- David O. McKay says polygamy "is not a principle but a practice" and that the blessings of "the eternity of the marriage covenant" are available to "a man with one wife."
[164]↩︎
These remarks were given during the October 1998 general conference of the Church:
I wish to state categorically that this Church has nothing whatever to do with those practicing polygamy. They are not members of this Church. Most of them have never been members. They are in violation of the civil law. They know they are in violation of the law. They are subject to its penalties. The Church, of course, has no jurisdiction whatever in this matter. . . . If any of our members are found to be practicing plural marriage, they are excommunicated, the most serious penalty the Church can impose. . . . More than a century ago God clearly revealed unto His prophet Wilford Woodruff that the practice of plural marriage should be discontinued, which means that it is now against the law of God. Even in countries where civil or religious law allows polygamy, the Church teaches that marriage must be monogamous and does not accept into its membership those practicing plural marriage.
- Gordon B. Hinckley reaffirms that polygamy is not permitted in the Church.
[165]↩︎
The First Presidency made this statement in a circular letter for Church leaders in North America.
- First Presidency in 2006 states those practicing polygamy will be excommunicated.
[166]↩︎
Ballard gave this remark during the October 2011 general conference.
- M. Russell Ballard disavows Mormon fundamentalist groups.
[167]↩︎
These remarks were published in the July 2020 issue of the Liahona magazine:
I want to make three points about plural marriage. First, it’s clear that there was a lot of sacrifice in plural marriages. There was a lot of love and unity, but there was also sacrifice, and parents in those marriages taught their children to sacrifice. Many of the children of those plural marriages took the gospel of Jesus Christ across the world and blessed many lives. Second, there were some, such as Vilate Kimball, who received their own personal revelation—before they even knew fully about what was coming—that this doctrine came from God. And third, in the senior councils of the Church, there’s a feeling that plural marriage, as it was practiced, served its purpose. We should honor those Saints, but that purpose has been accomplished. Now, there are unanswered questions. But I want you to know that we have a loving Heavenly Father who has a perfect plan, that His plan is one of happiness, and that we have a Savior who did everything for us. We can trust in Them.
- Quentin L. Cook says polygamy accomplished its purpose.
[168]↩︎
For example, Bruce R. McConkie in Mormon Doctrine believed that "the holy practice [of plural marriage] will commence again after the Second Coming of the Son of Man and the ushering in of the millennium."
Quentin L. Cook, on the other hand, expressed in 2018 (and republished in 2020) that "in the senior councils of the Church, there’s a feeling that plural marriage, as it was practiced, served its purpose. We should honor those Saints, but that purpose has been accomplished."
[169]↩︎
For example, Orson Pratt taught in 1853 that "God the Father had a plurality of wives, one or more being in eternity, by whom He begat our spirits as well as the spirit of Jesus His First Born, and another being upon the earth by whom He begat the tabernacle of Jesus, as His Only Begotten in this world." He went on to maintain that "both God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ inherit their wives in eternity as well as in time."
In 1857 John Taylor spoke of Heavenly Mother as one of the "queens of heaven," implying but not outright stating that God had a plurality of wives.
As part of his Adam-God teaching, Brigham Young also maintained that Adam (God) took one of his wives (Eve) to populate the earth.
When our father Adam came into the garden of Eden, he came into it with a celestial body, and brought Eve, one of his wives, with him. He helped to make and organize this world.
[170]↩︎
The 1995 proclamation on the family states that "all human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny," but does not specify the number of heavenly parents.
The Church's gospel topics essay on Heavenly Mother likewise affirms, "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches that all human beings, male and female, are beloved spirit children of heavenly parents, a Heavenly Father and a Heavenly Mother."
In the April 2022 general conference of the Church, Elder Dale G. Renlund taught, "The second truth is that we have heavenly parents, a father and a mother. The doctrine of a Heavenly Mother comes by revelation and is a distinctive belief among Latter-day Saints. . . . Very little has been revealed about Mother in Heaven."
[171]↩︎
Orson Hyde, for example, taught in 1855 that "Jesus Christ was married at Cana of Galilee, [and] that Mary, Martha, and others were his wives, and that he begat children."
Orson Pratt likewise taught that both God the Father and Jesus had plural wives.
In 1883, Wilford Woodruff recorded Joseph F. Smith's view that Jesus was married to Mary and Martha, and may have also indicated that Joseph Smith thought Jesus was married, although the meeting minutes are unclear.
[172]↩︎
In response to the popularity of the novel The Da Vinci Code, a Church spokesman in 2006 said:
The belief that Christ was married has never been official church doctrine. It is neither sanctioned nor taught by the church. While it is true that a few church leaders in the mid-1800s expressed their opinions on the matter, it was not then, and is not now, church doctrine.
In 1912, Charles W. Penrose wrote on behalf of the Church:
We do not know anything about Jesus Christ being married. The Church has no authoritative declaration on the subject.
Some Church leaders today have privately supported the idea that Jesus was married. In 1963, in response to the question of whether Jesus was married, Joseph Fielding Smith answered, "Yes! But do not preach it! The Lord advised us not to cast pearls before swine!"
[173]↩︎
The Church currently allows for the sealing of "a husband and wife" and "children to parents," and for a man to be sealed to multiple women, whether living or dead.
According to the handbook, "If a man and woman were sealed and later divorced, the man must receive a sealing clearance before being sealed to another woman," but he does not need to cancel the previous sealing. In the case of death, "If a husband and wife have been sealed and the wife dies, the man may be sealed to another woman if she is not already sealed to another man. In this circumstance, the man does not need a sealing clearance from the First Presidency unless he was divorced from his previous wife before she died."
For women, the handbook specifies that "a living woman may be sealed to only one husband at a time. If she and a husband were sealed and later divorced, she must receive a cancellation of that sealing before being sealed to another man during her lifetime." Furthermore, it states that "if a husband and wife have been sealed and the husband dies, the woman may not be sealed to another man unless she receives a cancellation of the first sealing.
- Church handbook explains sealing policies of the Church.
[174]↩︎
According to the handbook, cohabitation outside of a legal heterosexual monogamous marriage is defined as breaking the law of chastity and may require a membership council. Plural marriage requires a membership council and the withdrawal of Church membership.
- Church handbook defines the law of chastity.
- Church handbook policy on plural marriage.
[175]↩︎
The Church handbook defines the law of chastity as "abstinence from sexual relations outside of a legal marriage between a man and a woman" and "fidelity within marriage." It specifies that "only a man and a woman who are legally and lawfully wedded as husband and wife should have sexual relations."
- Church handbook defines the law of chastity.
[176]↩︎
The heading to Official Declaration 1 in the current edition of the Doctrine and Covenants says that "the Bible and the Book of Mormon teach that monogamy is God’s standard for marriage unless He declares otherwise."
Jacob 2:30 teaches that if God wishes for his people to "raise up seed" he will "command [his] people" to practice plural marriage; otherwise, they are to practice monogamy.
- Official Declaration 1 of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
- Jacob 2:28–32 says the Lord will command people to practice polygamy at specific times.
[177]↩︎
The current Church handbook explains clearly that only heterosexual monogamy is permitted under the Law of Chastity. Same-sex relationships may require a disciplinary council, and plural marriages mandate a disciplinary council.

Rate	Study	Comments
~30%	Larry Logue, "A Time of Marriage" (1984)	Logue determined about 3 in 10 men in the St. George area from 1870-1890 ever practiced plural marriage.[37]
~20%	Irwin Altman and Joseph Ginat, Polygamous Families in Contemporary Society (1996)	Altman and Ginat estimate the rate of nineteenth-century plural marriages to be about 20%.[38]
~15–25%	William Volf, "Mormon Polygamy in the Nineteenth Century" (1999)	Volf reviews the literature on the demographics of polygamy and concludes that about 15–25% of Latter-day Saints throughout the territory practiced polygamy.[39]
~15–20% (men) and ~25–30% (women)	Davis Bitton and Val Lambson, "Demographic Limits of Nineteenth-Century Mormon Polygyny" (2012)	Bitton and Lambson break down the numbers between men and women practicing plural marriage in the nineteenth century.[40]
~25–30%	Lowell C. Bennion, "Plural Marriage" (2014)	Bennion deduced a 25–30% territory-wide average for rates of plural marriage by breaking down regional percentages throughout Utah.[41]

Scripture	Reference to Polygamy
Old Testament	The law of Moses allowed for and regulated polygamy.[59]
Old Testament	Polygamy is depicted in the Old Testament as an accepted part of ancient Israelite society that shares common features with other ancient Near Eastern cultures, although the extent of its practice among the Israelites is unknown.[60]
New Testament	The New Testament neither overtly sanctions nor condemns polygamy, although some New Testament passages might be interpreted as promoting monogamy.[61]
New Testament	Greco-Roman culture generally frowned on polygamy,[62] and this attitude appears to have been adopted by some Jewish groups during the New Testament era.[63]
The Book of Mormon	The Book of Mormon condemns polygamy except in cases where God commands it among his people to raise up seed.[64]
The Book of Mormon	The text overtly and in some cases perhaps implicitly depicts polygamy among the Jaredites and the descendants of Lehi; most of these depictions are negative.[65]
Doctrine and Covenants	The earliest editions of the Doctrine and Covenants contained a section that disavowed polygamy.[66]
	A revelation (Section 132) allows for plural marriage when it is commanded by God and regulated by the president of the Church with priesthood keys.[67]
	Official Declaration 1 explains that monogamy is "God's standard for marriage" unless God commands otherwise and explains why plural marriage was stopped as a practice among the Latter-day Saints.[68]
Pearl of Great Price	The Pearl of Great Price only mentions that Lamech had two wives, and contains no additional information on the subject.[69]

Reference	Commentary
Genesis 4:19, Moses 5:44–54	Lamech, a descendant of Cain, had two named wives: Adah and Zillah.[70][71]
Genesis 16:1–6	Abraham is depicted as concurrently having a wife, Sarai, and a concubine, Hagar.[72]
Genesis 26:34–35, 28:6–9	Esau is depicted as having taken a number of non-Israelite wives.[73]
Genesis 29:15–35	Jacob is depicted as concurrently having two wives, Leah and Rachel, and two concubines, Bilhah and Zilpah.[74]
Genesis 36:9–13	Eliphaz, one of the sons of Esau, had a concubine.[75]
1 Chronicles 2:18–20, 46–48	Caleb, the great-grandfather of Bezalel, the chief architect of the Mosaic tabernacle, had three wives and two concubines.[76]
1 Chronicles 4:1–8	Ashur, a descendant of Judah, had two wives.[77]
Judges 8:29–31	Gideon, one of the judges of Israel, had seventy sons from multiple wives and a concubine.[78]
1 Samuel 1:1–8	Elkanah, the father of the prophet Samuel, is depicted as having two wives—Hannah and Peninnah.[79]
1 Samuel 25:39–43, 2 Samuel 5:13–16, 12:7–8	David is depicted as taking multiple wives and concubines.[80]
1 Kings 11:1–8	Solomon is depicted as having a royal harem of 700 wives and concubines.[81]
1 Kings 20:1–12	Ahab, a wicked king of Israel who persecuted Elijah the prophet, is said to have an unspecified number of wives.[82]
2 Chronicles 11:18–23	Rehoboam, a king of Judah, had eighteen wives and sixty concubines.[83]
2 Chronicles 13:21–22	Abijah, a king of Judah, is depicted as having fourteen wives.[84]
2 Chronicles 24:1–3	Joash, the eighth king of Judah, had two wives.[85]
Esther 1–2	Ahaseurus was a Persian king and husband of both Vashti and Esther who also had a royal harem.[86]
Matthew 2	Herod, a Jewish king of Judea, is mentioned in the gospel of Matthew.[87] Although not reported in the New Testament, other sources refer to his polygamy.[88]
Jacob 1:15	During the time of the prophet Jacob, the text reports that the people of Nephi began to practice polygamy.[89]
Mosiah 11:1–4, 14	The wicked king Noah and his priests are negatively depicted as polygamists.[90]
Alma 10:11	Amulek, Alma's convert and eventual missionary companion, is depicted having "women," which some have speculated may be a reference to a plurality of wives.[91]
Ether 1:40–41, 6:20	The Book of Ether speaks of the brother of Jared having "families" and more children than seems feasible with just one wife, which some have interpreted to mean a plurality of families from different wives.[92] However, based on textual criticism of the Book of Mormon manuscripts and editions, some have disputed this reading.[93]
Ether 7:1–2	The first righteous Jaredite king Orihah begat over thirty children according to the Book of Ether.[94] This large number of children led Orson Pratt to conclude Orihah was "probably a polygamist."[95]
Ether 10:5	A wicked Jaredite king Riplakish is depicted as taking "many wives and concubines" into his royal harem.[96]

Reason	Examples
God commanded it.	Orson Pratt, The Seer (1853).[98]
	Parley P. Pratt,[BIO] Scriptural Evidences in Support of Polygamy (1856).[99]
	Helen Mar Kimball Whitney, Plural Marriage, as Taught by the Prophet Joseph (1882).[100]
The Bible sanctioned it.	Orson Pratt, Speech (1869).[101]
	Helen Mar Kimball Whitney, Plural Marriage, as Taught by the Prophet Joseph (1882).[102]
	Lyman O. Littlefield,[BIO] Millennial Star (1883).[103]
	Orson Pratt, The Seer (1853).[104]
It allowed more women an opportunity to be married.	Orson Pratt, The Seer (1853).[104]
It allowed more women an opportunity to be married.	Helen Mar Kimball Whitney, Plural Marriage, as Taught by the Prophet Joseph (1882).[105]
It allowed more spirit children of God to come to earth to receive a body.	Brigham Young, Speech (1855).[106]
It would produce healthier offspring.	Belinda Pratt,[BIO] Defence of Polygamy, By a Lady in Utah (1854).[107]
It would positively refine the behavior and attitudes of practitioners.	George Q. Cannon,[BIO] Speech (1869).[108]
It would give men a morally acceptable way to satisfy their natural sexual desires.	George Q. Cannon, undated manuscript.[109]
	Orson Pratt, The Seer (1853).[110]
	Romania Pratt Penrose,[BIO] Speech (1881).[111]
It would rid society of evils such as prostitution, divorce, poverty, and abortion.	Orson Pratt, The Seer (1853).[112]
	Belinda Pratt, Defence of Polygamy, By a Lady in Utah (1854).[113]
	Benjamin F. Johnson,[BIO] Why the "Latter-day Saints" Marry a Plurality of Wives (1854).[114]
	Helen Mar Kimball Whitney, Why We Practice Plural Marriage (1884).[115]

Possible Advantages	Possible Disadvantages
Evolutionary or biological advantages to human propagation. (Barash 2016)[123]	Gender inequality and disparity. (Brooks 2009)[124]
Birth of children from another wife to offset infertility. (Naseer 2021)[125]	Poor mental health of polygamous wives. (Bahari 2021) [126]
Distribution of child-rearing burdens. (Naseer 2021)[127]	Competition among wives for access to a husband and his resources. (Al-Krenawi 2006)[128]
Creation of durable kinship networks between families. (Pearsall 2022) [129]	Feelings of jealousy among spouses and children of different wives. (Burton 2023)[130]
Feelings of cooperation among spouses that strengthen family ties. (Ulrich 2017)[131]	Excluding younger men from the sexual and marriage marketplace. (Miller and Karkazis 2023)[132]

Person	Statement
Fanny Stenhouse[BIO]	"The thought of doing this was even worse than death. It would have been fearful to have followed my husband to his grave; but to live and see him the husband of another woman seemed to me like exacting more than human nature was capable of enduring. . . . There was a darkness before my eyes, and, struggle as I might, I could see no ray of light, no glimmering of hope. I was utterly cast down and broken-hearted, and felt almost as if the Lord had forsaken me. I could not go to my husband for sympathy; for I felt that his thoughts were with his young bride, and that my sorrows would only worry him at a time when he must desire to be at peace."[135]
Eliza R. Snow[BIO]	"In Nauvoo I first understood that the practice of plurality of wives was to be introduced into the church. The subject was very repugnant to my feelings — so directly was it in opposition to my educated prepossessions, that it seemed as though all the prejudices of my ancestors for generations past congregated around me. But when I reflected that I was living in the Dispensation of the fulness of times, embracing all other Dispensations, surely Plural Marriage must necessarily be included, and I consoled myself with the idea that it was far in the distance, and beyond the period of my mortal existence. . . . As I increased in knowledge concerning the principle and design of Plural Marriage, I grew in love with it."[136]
Eliza R. Snow[BIO]	"Plurality of Wives is a great trial if you want to sit in the courts of Heaven honor Polygamy dont suffer your lips to say ought even if you do not believe in it. When I entered it I had no anticipation of ever being acknowledged as a lawful wife. I believed in it because I felt the work was true and I longed to see a Prophet. I feel proud that I ever embraced it. Polygamy did not hurt me, but to be looked upon as a Woman of light character that did hurt me, the very idea of not being a virtuous woman."[137]
Helen Mar Kimball	"I did not try to conceal the fact of its having been a trial, but confessed that it had been one of the severest of my life; but that it had also proven one of the greatest of blessings. I could truly say it had done the most towards making me a Saint and a free woman, in every sense of the word; and I knew many others who could say the same, and to whom it had proven one of the greatest boons—a "blessing in disguise." As for its being degrading it had proven to be the very opposite. It was exalting in its tendency and calculated to raise mankind from the degraded condition into which they had fallen under the practice of a corrupt and hypocritical system of enforced monogamy."[138]
Helen Mar Kimball	"The Latter-day Saints would not enter into this holy order of matrimony unless they had received some stronger and more convincing proofs of its correctness than the testimony of a man, for in obeying this law it has cost them a sacrifice nearly equal to that of Abraham. The promise attached thereto is the object for which they are struggling; without sacrifice no person can gain a glory in the celestial kingdom. For my part there is nothing that would induce me to go back to the pit from which I was dug or to lose my hold upon that crown which awaits all those who have laid their willing but bleeding hearts upon the altar."[139]
Belinda Pratt[BIO]	"I have a good and virtuous husband, whom I love. We have four little children, which are mutually and inexpressibly dear to us. And, besides this, my husband has seven other living wives, and one who has departed to a better world. He has, in all, upwards of twenty live children. All these mothers and children are endeared to me by kindred ties — by mutual affection — by acquaintance and association; and the mothers, in particular, by mutual and long continued exercises of toil, patience, long-suffering and sisterly kindness. We have all our imperfections in this life; but I know that these are good and worthy women, and that my husband is a good and worthy man: one who keeps the commandments of Jesus Christ, and presides in his family like an Abraham."[140]
Ann Eliza Webb[BIO]	"I had felt its misery; I had known the abject wretchedness of the condition to which it reduced women, but I did not fully realize the extent of its depravity, the depths of the woes in which it plunged women, until I saw the contrasted lives of monogamic wives. . . . Rich or poor alike suffer. Polygamy bears no more lightly on the one than the other. If they are poor, they have to work for themselves and their children, suffer every deprivation, submit to every indignity. If they are in more affluent circumstances, they have more time for brooding over their sorrows, more leisure for the exercise of the natural jealousy which they cannot help feeling for the other wives. Happiness and contentment are utterly unknown to Mormon women; they are impossible conditions, either to dwellers in poverty or plenty."[141]
Annie Clark Tanner[BIO]	"I can remember so well the relief that I felt when I first realized that the Church had decided to abandon its position [on plural marriage]. For all of my earlier convictions, a great relief came over me. . . . Our religion had made polygamous marriages honorable, hence bearable, and sometimes profitable. Many times I had expressed my gratitude for my noble parents."[142]
Zina D. Huntington[BIO]	"I wish to bear my testimony to the principle of celestial marriage, that it is true. . . . But thanks to our Heavenly Father, there are many left upon the earth who were born under the celestial covenant, although they do not at present appreciate their position. The day will come when they will feel the Spirit of God resting upon them, and they will feel that it is an honor to be born in that covenant. I feel to bear my testimony to the truth of this work."[143]
Zina D. Huntington[BIO]	"When I heard that God had revealed the law of celestial marriage—that we would have the privilige of associating in family relationship in the worlds to come—I searched the scriptures, and by humble prayer to my Heavenly Father I obtained a testimony for [my]self that God had required that order to be established in his church."[144]

Church Leader	Date	Statement
Lorenzo Snow	1900	"[T]he Church has positively abandoned the practice of polygamy, or the solemnization of plural marriages, in this and every other State, and that no member or officer thereof has any authority whatever to perform a plural marriage or enter into such a relation."[158]
Joseph F. Smith	1904	"I hereby announce that all such [plural] marriages are prohibited, and if any officer or member of the Church shall assume to solemnize or enter into any such marriage, he will be deemed in transgression against the Church and will be liable to be dealt with according to the rules and regulations thereof, and excommunicated therefrom."[159]
First Presidency (Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund, John Henry Smith)	1911	"Rumors of surreptitious unions contrary to these official announcements being circulated, the present president of the Church, on April 6, 1904, reiterated the universality of the inhibition, and proclaimed that any person entering into or performing a plural marriage would be liable to be dealt with according to the rules of the Church and excommunicated therefrom."[160]
Heber J. Grant	1921	"But I want to say to the Latter-day Saints that no man upon the face of the earth has any right or any authority to perform a plural marriage, and there are no plural marriages today in the Church of Christ, because no human being has the right to perform them."[161]
First Presidency (Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, J. Reuben Clark)	1933	"We confirm and renew the instructions given to the Church officers by President Joseph F. Smith in 1904, in 1910, and in 1914 . . . if persons are found . . . who are entering into or teaching, encouraging, or conspiring with others to enter into so-called polygamous or plural marriages, we instruct such officers to take action against such persons, and, finding them guilty, to excommunicate them from the Church."[162]
David O. McKay	1956	"I explained that it was my understanding regarding plural marriage that the having of more than one wife is not a principle but a practice. The principle of the eternity of the marriage covenant revealed to the Prophet [Joseph Smith] and all the blessings pertaining to that may be obtained by a man with one wife." [163]
Gordon B. Hinckley	1998	"If any of our members are found to be practicing plural marriage, they are excommunicated, the most serious penalty the Church can impose."[164]
First Presidency (Gordon B. Hinckley, Thomas S. Monson,[BIO] James E. Faust[BIO])	2006	"Polygamy was officially discontinued by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1890. Any Church member adopting the practice today is excommunicated. Those groups which continue the practice in Utah and elsewhere have no association whatever with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and most of their practitioners have never been among our members."[165]
M. Russell Ballard[BIO]	2011	"Let me state clearly that no polygamist group, including those calling themselves fundamentalist Mormons or other derivatives of our name, has any affiliation whatsoever with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."[166]
Quentin L. Cook	2020	"In the senior councils of the Church, there’s a feeling that plural marriage, as it was practiced, served its purpose. We should honor those Saints, but that purpose has been accomplished. Now, there are unanswered questions. But I want you to know that we have a loving Heavenly Father who has a perfect plan, that His plan is one of happiness, and that we have a Savior who did everything for us. We can trust in Them."[167]