The Polygamy Trap of the Mormon Faith and Family

Polygamy is the practice of being married to multiple husbands or wives at the same time, and in our society is tied in many cases to the Mormon faith. This was the area that I focused on for my study, and the results I found were astounding.

This sub-culture is composed of a known 60,000+ individuals in the . This is an alarming number of men, women, and children, especially because Polygamy is illegal under law. In the , the highest concentration of Polygamists exists in Utah, and there are also large numbers of these families in Colorado, Virginia, and a number of other areas. Globally, Polygamy is legal and is practiced in many Middle Eastern and African countries.

Why is it that there are so many Polygamist families in Utah, and why are they tied to the Mormon faith? "Mormon Doctrine states that in order to enter into the highest heaven that those who enter must live in polygamy." (www.absalom.com/mormon/polygamy/faq.htm) It is a part of the old Mormon belief system that men should have up to seven wives in order to please God. Polygamy was openly lived from 1852 to 1890 in Utah by the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS), the official Mormon Church. The illegal practice of Polygamy in Utah at the time was holding the UtahTerritory back from receiving full statehood. By 1890, Mormon Church President Woodruff signed a proclamation called "The Manifesto" pledging that the Mormons had given up Polygamy in order for Utah to be able to claim statehood (www.polygamy.com/Mormons/Mormon-Revelations-Of-Polygamy.htm). However, Polygamy was still practiced in secret and is still practiced today against the laws of the land. Those that practice Polygamy are excommunicated from the official church (LDS), and are often forced to hide their plural marriages.