Mormon Fair-Cast 187: Polygamy Roundtable

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The Church recently released a new Gospel Topics article addressing plural marriage and families in early Utah. As a supplement to this material, FairMormon is reposting this Special Roundtable Discussion on Polygamy that was hosted by the Interpreter Foundation and posted August 15, 2013. The discussion is moderated by Andrew C. Smith and involves three experts on the history and practice of plural marriage within Church History.  Craig L. Foster, Brian C. Hales, and Gregory L. Smith have all published and presented widely on this topic.  The topics include:

• A historical overview of how and why Joseph and others began its implementation
• The historical context for marriage in the 19th century (issues of age and timing, as well as economic and historic influences)
• The development of the institution theologically
• A discussion of polyandry and sexuality in general within plural marriage relationships and potential offspring
• A discussion of Mormon historians treatment of such; and
• The accusations and rhetoric used against Joseph Smith and other leaders for their practice of polygamy.

The discussion ends with some practical suggestions for us in the Church today: why should we know the details of the early Church history of polygamy more than a century after the fact and how can we talk about this polygamous history better in the Church.

Additional resources and links on polygamy and plural marriage can be found below:

• Books by the participants:
  • Newell G. Bringhurst and Craig L. Foster, (eds.), The Persistence of Polygamy: Joseph Smith and the Origins of Mormon Polygamy, (Independence, Missouri: John Whitmer Books, 2010).
  • Newell G. Bringhurst and Craig L. Foster, (eds.), The Persistence of Polygamy: From the Martyrdom of Joseph Smith to the First Manifesto,(Independence, Missouri: John Whitmer Books, 2013). Not yet published.
  • Brian C. Hales and Don Bradley, Joseph Smith’s Polygamy, (Salt Lake City, Utah: Greg Kofford Books, 2013). Volumes 1, 2, 3.
• Presentations:
  • Another Interview with Brian Hales and Greg Smith on polygamy on the Mormon Fair-Cast.
  • Greg Smith, “Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Plural Marriage* (*but were afraid to ask),” 11th annual FairMormon Conference, 7 Aug 2009.
• Articles:
  • Joseph Smith’s Polygamy
    http://en.fairmormon.org/Joseph_Smith/Polygamy
    http://en.fairmormon.org/Joseph_Smith/Polygamy/Marriages_to_young_women
    http://en.fairmormon.org/Joseph_Smith/Polygamy/Polyandry
    http://en.fairmormon.org/Joseph_Smith/Polygamy/Emma_Smith
    http://en.fairmormon.org/Mormonism_and_polygamy
  • Encyclopedia of Mormonism:
    http://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Plural_Marriage
    http://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Smith,_Joseph (some mentions in the biographical entry).
• Websites:
  • Brian Hales’ Website on Polygamy and Joseph Smith:
    www.josephsmithspolygamy.com