Monthly Archives: February 2020

Recently, child welfare officials allege in court documents that the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints outside of Eldorado, Texas, was "rife with sexual abuse, with girls spiritually married to much older men as soon as they reached puberty and boys were groomed to perpetuate the cycle [source: AP]. " In 1997, Warren Jeffs, the former church leader, was prosecuted and found guilty on two charges of rape by accomplice.

On the popular HBO drama "Big Love," Bill Paxton plays a man with three wives who live next door to each other and share a backyard. So polygamy isn't just on fictional TV, but are any of these portrayals accurate?

Today, most Americans think of monogamy as the "normal" form of marriage. But as it turns out, strictly monogamous practices are in the minority. In fact, cultures that practice some form of polygamy outnumber monogamous cultures by the hundreds [ref]. Some critics suggest that the Western practice of frequent divorce and remarrying represents a form of serial polygamy, though most anthropologists consider it serial monogamy -- no one gets married to more than one person at one time.

The Nyinba people of Nepal practice fraternal polyandry. Polyandry is a form of polygamy in which one woman has multiple husbands. In Nyinbian culture, when a woman marries a man, she marries all of his brothers, too. All of the brothers have equal sexual access to the wife, and the entire family cares for the children, although the family may recognize individual brothers as the specific father of a given child [ref]. This kind of marriage structure concentrates the wealth and resources of all the brothers into one family, and also concentrates their parents' land and wealth.

Polygyny, on the other hand, rewards males who have access to greater wealth and resources than others. It takes a lot of work and money to support a large number of wives and the children they produce. In biological terms, such a man is an excellent choice for reproducing and passing his genes on to the next generation, which could be expected to be similarly successful. A man can father many children in a short period, while a woman is limited to one pregnancy every nine months. If a successful man has many wives, he can pass on his genes more often. This is also an advantage in societies where rapid and frequent reproduction is vital for survival. Early Jewish doctrine encouraged polygyny because Jews were a minority and needed to increase their numbers rapidly. Some orthodox Jewish sects advocate polygyny today, and some scholars believe that the Talmud contains passages suggesting tolerance or even encouragement of polygyny.

Islamic tradition addresses polygamy directly. The Koran states that a man is allowed up to four wives, but only if he can support them and treat them all equally. Many Islamic societies continue to allow polygamy, but usually only the most affluent men can afford multiple wives. Westernization has led many younger Muslims to view polygamy as old-fashioned.

In Vietnam, polygamy is not legal, but there's a practical reason for its practice -- decades of war has left the male population severely depleted. Polygamy was also common in China before Confucianism, which supported the practice, fell out of favor. Many African tribes, Native American tribes and pre-Christian Celts practiced polygamy, often without the conservative restraints on the sexual aspects of it that characterize Mormon polygamy [ref].

Next, we'll look at the Mormons, polygamy and the United States legal system.

Continued here:

How Polygamy Works | HowStuffWorks

February 19, 2020, 9:01 PM

2 min read

The Utah Senate unanimously passed a bill that effectively decriminalizes polygamy between consenting adults.

The bill would make polygamy an infraction, amending the current penalty punishable by up to five years in prison. Republican Sen. Deidre Henderson sponsored the bill.

It passed Tuesday and now will make its way to the House of Representatives.

Republican Sen. Deidre Henderson looks on during a hearing, Feb. 10, 2020, in Salt Lake City.

Polygamy is most often considered to be a relationship between one man and multiple women, whom he claims are his wives.

Cases where an arrangement stems from threat or coercion, or occurs under fraudulent pretenses, would remain a third-degree felony.

The bill did draw criticism, with some arguing that it wouldn't do enough to protect victims in underage marriages, according to The Associated Press.

Some 30,000 people are believed to be living in polygamous communities in Utah, the AP reported. The state's Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints practiced polygamy in its early days, but abandoned and disavowed the practice in 1890.

Representatives from Utah's State or House didn't immediately respond to requests for comment from ABC News.

Go here to see the original:

Utah senators unanimously pass bill to decriminalize polygamy

At a hearing before the House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee, lawmakers voted to clarify that sexual battery committed in a plural household is a felony. The amendment, if approved by the full House, would mean SB102 will have to return to the Senate, where it passed earlier this month.

Under the measure, polygamy would be an infraction an offense less than some traffic tickets if the polygamists were otherwise law abiding. That created a debate Monday among former members of polygamous groups about whether the bill will protect consenting adults or abusers.

Hildale Mayor Donia Jessop, a former member of the polygamous Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, testified in favor of the bill. She told legislators that criminal penalties for polygamists taught people in plural families to fear law enforcement and not to report crimes.

I am not in any way advocating for polygamy, Jessop said. I am making a stand against abuse, and I am standing for my people.

The FLDS is led by Warren Jeffs, who is serving a prison sentence of life plus 20 years in Texas for sexually abusing two girls he married as plural wives. There was discussion in the hearing of how FLDS members have secluded themselves in remote locations.

A Jeffs nephew, Ian Jeffs, testified against SB102. He said the FLDS has not secluded itself because its afraid of law enforcement but so that people can practice polygamy without scrutiny.

Decriminalizing polygamy will only embolden the practice, Ian Jeffs said.

Melissa Ellis left the polygamous Davis County Cooperative Society, also known as the Kingston Group or The Order. She testified against the bill and said her 5- and 6-year-old daughters came to her saying they would marry the same man when they turn 14 and 15 like their grandma and her sister did.

Ellis encouraged the Utah Legislature not to pass a new bill and to give anti-polygamy laws passed in 2017 and 2019 more time to work.

Those bills," she said, have helped the victims.

More:

Polygamy bill passes House panel after hearing that asks whether bill will help victims or perpetrators - Salt Lake Tribune

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may think they know all about Nauvoo, the Illinois city on the banks of the Mississippi River that blossomed into their faiths headquarters from 1839 to 1846.

There, Mormons built a fast-growing city-state that rivaled Chicago. There, they established a militia. There, they built their second temple. And there, they buried their beloved prophet.

But few know that during those Nauvoo years, church leaders worked to rewrite the U.S. Constitution even as Mormon founder Joseph Smith ran for U.S. president. Few know how polygamy emerged even as Smith worked to conceal and control it and how he struggled even mightier to win converts to these unorthodox unions, especially in his own household. His brother Hyrum, who was slain with him at Carthage, for instance, went from a vehement opponent of plural marriage to a zealous proponent almost overnight, while Josephs first wife, Emma, only occasionally veered from her disdain for the practice.

Read more:

'Mormon Land': Theocracy, secret polygamy, female dissent, and Nauvoo's place in the nation's past and a religion's present - Salt Lake Tribune

The Brown family of TLCs Sister Wiveshas never shied away from talking about the difficulties of practicingpolygamy, or plural marriage. But over the years, KodyBrowns marital issues with hisfour wives (Meri, Janelle, Christine, and Robyn Brown) and the wivesproblems with one another have seemed to make the family dynamic all the more challengingto navigate.

On the Feb. 23 episode of Sister Wives, DoubtingPolygamy, Kody dropped two bombshell revelations about his experience withplural marriage.

The fundamentalist Mormon said he didnt see polygamy in the same light as he once did, to the point that he didnt even enjoy seeing his wives have fun together. He also shared that only one of his wives had a personality that truly fit (in his opinion) with plural marriage, leading fans to speculate about which one he was referring to.

While Kody and his wives, especially first wifeMeri Brown and third wife Christine Brown, ave struggled with theirrelationships for years, the newseason of Sister Wives has revealed an even more jaded and cynicalKody than ever before.

The Sister Wives star admitted he tookit personally that his wives (except secondwife Janelle) turned down his idea for them to move back in together in alarge shared home in Flagstaff, Arizona. Christine was particularly against theidea.

While watching his wives joke around, make snowangels, and have a snowball fight on CoyotePass, their new Arizona land, Kody confessed that he didnt even find itenjoyable to see them get along anymore.

I just dont see plural marriage in the samelight that I used to, Kody said.

He added that his wives unhappiness and his maritalstrife were leaving him somewhat at a loss about how to move forward.

Im struggling with plural marriage, and Im struggling with my wives, and Im struggling with their conflict, the Sister Wives star told producers. Im sitting here, and Im happy with my life, and Im happy where Im at. But every time I hear their side of the struggle in plural marriage, it contradicts everything in me. And thats not something you can just blow off with optimism.

On DoubtingPolygamy, Kody also revealed that he thinks only one of his four wives wasmeant to practice plural marriage. He even shared that he thought his manychildren were worth the challenges of polygamy, but building his family had brokenfour womens hearts along the way.

I think plural marriage fits well with thepersonality of one of my wives, Kody told Sister Wives producers.

But Kody wasnt about to reveal which one he was talking about or engage in any kind of comparison. Im not gonna tell you which wives do better and which wives dont do well with plural marriage, he said, because I dont want the world judging them.

Naturally,though, Kodys remarks sparked a lot of controversy and debate among SisterWives fans.

Mostviewers seemed to think he was referring to Janelle in his comments, while afew thought he might have meant his fourth wife, Robyn.

Janellewas the only one of Kodys wives to fully support his idea to moveinto one home together, and she has always seemed more independent and lessprone to jealousy than Kodys other wives. Meanwhile, Robyn has long beenspeculated to be Kodysfavorite wife, and many viewers think he dotes on her.

Bycontrast, Kody and Meri have struggled with their marriage for years and reportedlyno longer spend the night together. Christine was adamantly opposed to movingback in with her sister wives and has admitted to struggling with jealousyin polygamy.

DidKody just say I have one wife that does well with plural marriage like wewouldnt figure out who he meant?!?! one fan wrote onTwitter, with most commenters replying that they thought he was referringto Janelle.

AnotherTwitteruser agreed, writing, He has to have meant Janelle. Meri isnt evenconsidered and Robyn & Christine are too jealous. Yetanother Sister Wives viewer argued that Kody obviously meant Janelle: Janelleis the wife who deals best with plural marriage. Just say it, Kody! We alreadyknow, theywrote.

Buta few fans thought Kody might have been praising his fourthand youngest wife with his remark. Robyn is the one & only wife, oneviewer wroteon Twitter. Kody is at a minimum simply friends with the other 2 and Meriis part of the show they are portraying. I dont think Kody even likes Merianymore. Anotheragreed, arguing, Well Robyn is his favorite, even though she acts like shehates him now. She still gets what she wants.

Read more:

'Sister Wives': Kody Brown Says Polygamy Fits With Only One of His Wives' Personalities; Fans Guess Which One - Showbiz Cheat Sheet

MeriBrown of TLCs Sister Wives has been estranged from the rest of the polygamistBrown family in recent years. Troubles with her husband KodyBrown left Meri at a standstill with her sister wives as well, as Meri and Kodyconsidered divorce and stopped spending the night together.

On the Feb. 23 episode of Sister Wives, Doubting Polygamy, the division between Meri and the rest of the Brown family became all the more apparent. Meris sister wives, Janelle, Christine, and Robyn Brown, seemed to subtly reject her offer to host family gatherings at her house. Fans spoke out about the awkward moment on Twitter as the episode aired.

On the latest episode, Kodysfourth wife Robyn broke the bad news that she would have to move yet againto a new rental home in the Browns new hometown of Flagstaff, Arizona. Theowners of her rental decided to sell the house. Since their move from Las Vegasto Flagstaff, Kodys wives had had to move several times, leaving themphysically and emotionally exhausted.

This is super, super bad news, Robyn lamented.I am beside myself, and I dont really know what to do here.

One of the most frustrating aspects of the news,Kodys third wife Christine pointed out, was that the Browns often used Robynsrental for family gatherings (including their many children), like holidays andspecial occasions.

Wait a minute, can we just sit here for aminute? Christine said, distraught. Thats a serious family place for usright now.

I know, Robyn agreed. I just need prayers,and I need space for all the kids. Of course Im gonna be looking for placeswhere the family can gather, just cause thats a big deal.

Meri offered to have the family gather at herown very large rental. I need you to know, you are welcome to gather at myhouse, the SisterWives star told her family.

Your place is great, Robyn replied noncommittally.In an interview with producers, Kodys second wife Janelle said carefully, Maybewell use Meris. I dont know.

Ive got a lot of space that goes unused,Meri continued. So if anybody is ever interested, Im just saying.

Kody and his other three wives were silent inresponse, until Robyn cleared her throat and seemed to move on with an awkward anyway.

TLC producers picked up on the family dynamic and questioned Meri about her offer. Do you want to comment any more on that? a Sister Wives producer asked Meri in a one-on-one interview. She looked sad as she answered simply, No.

This wasnt the first time that Meri has seemedto feel left out of the Brown family.

While Meri and Kody have said their maritalissues began long ago, their struggles were exacerbated when Meri became anempty nester. Due to infertility issues, Meri only had one child, her daughter MariahBrown, with Kody. When Mariah went off to college at Westminster College inUtah, Kodys first wife began to feel isolated from her sister wives, who allhave at least five biological children.

Whats more, Merilegally divorced Kody around the same time in order to allow him to adoptRobyns three children from a previous marriage. While the Browns religiondoesnt recognize legal divorce as legitimate, Meri still struggled with losingthe states recognition of her marriage to Kody.

Meri was also tempted by an emotional affair with a catfish in 2015. Jackie Overton, a well-known alleged internet scammer, reportedly posed as a man in order to flirt with Meri. When the online fling was exposed, Meri and Kodys marriage seemed to fall apart. Meri has also spoken about feeling rejected by her sister wives in the wake of her problems with Kody.

As the episode aired, some SisterWives fans took to Twitter toexpress their frustration with Meris familys lackluster response to her offerof hosting family gatherings at her rental home.

Many viewers were confused about why no one seemed to respondpositively, or at all, to Meris offer. I cant understand why everyone was sorude when @MeriBrown1 offered herhouse, oneTwitter user wrote. I felt really bad for her.

Another Sister Wives viewer agreed, writing inresponse, Me either and it honestly irked me. That was terribly rude ofall of them IMO. She was offering at the least a temporary solution so theydhave a roof over their heads in the event they didnt have a home by the timeRobyn had to vacate. Not very plural family at all.

One Twitter user wrote to Kodydirectly to ask why Meri appeared to have been so soundly rejected by thefamily. Meri made a VERY generous offer and not one of you acknowledged it!Why? they asked.

What is really going on with them treating Meri like this,anotherbaffled fan wondered.

Continue reading here:

'Sister Wives': Fans Wonder Why the Brown Wives Seemed To Reject Meri Brown's Offer - Showbiz Cheat Sheet

Owner of McDan Group of Companies, Daniel McKorley has admitted that it is very expensive to be polygamous.

The business mogul is himself currently practicing polygamy, having traditionally wedded two women.

Speaking on Metro TV's Good Evening Ghana, Mr. McKorley opened up on his marriage life.

READ ALSO: I'm a card bearing member of NPP and Nana Addo gave me my first contract McDan CEO

He said he sees nothing wrong with having two wives, insisting there is nowhere in the Bible that God forbids polygamy.

I have two beautiful wives, he said, further stating: Show me the Bible where [it is written that] you have to marry one.

Mr. McKorley was, however, quick to point out that it is very expensive to practice polygamy.

According to him, men who wish to marry two wives must ensure that they are well-prepared and have made a lot of money.

Its expensive, its very expensive to have two wives. Dont try it if you dont have money. You must be prepared. At times you have to do triple payment because you have to make sure both of them [are okay. Keep them sweet, the McDan CEO admitted.

Touching on how to keep a polygamous home together, he said: Make sure they (wives) are happy, make sure you are a responsible man. Dont touch what you can manage.

He added: Women are not to be understood, they are supposed to be cared for. Women are the sweetest thing that ever happened to us [men].

McKorley is currently the Board Chairman of the Ghana Trade Fair Company Limited (GTFC).

Continue reading here:

'I have two wives; you need to be rich to be polygamous' McDan CEO - Pulse Ghana