Silencing Mormon Polygamy

The Untold Story"A valuable book that should be on the shelf of anyone researching Mormon History." Association For Mormon Letters For decades, the U.S. government punished the Mormons for living the principle of plural marriage. Thousand were jailed, uncounted others slipped into hiding to avoid prosecution under laws that unblushingly targeted Mormons. John Taylor, the venerable Mormon prophet also fled into the "Underground." While in hiding, immense pressure was placed on John Taylor to issue a public statement abrogating plural marriages once and for all.In response to solemn prayer one autumn evening, John Taylor received a revelation wherein he was told that the commandment to live plural marriage would never be revoked. The next day, John Taylor held a secret meeting setting apart five men to perpetuate plural marriages even if it cost them their lives. Four years later, after mounting pressure to renounce plural marriages became intolerable, Wilford W. Woodruff issues the 1890 manifesto. While those within the LDS Church abandoned plural marriages and slowly gained worldwide respect, the five men continued with their commission - thus began the formation of Mormon fundamentalism.This story has been casually dismissed as exaggerated and wayward by some critics - cast aside as historically unsupportable. With an impressive culmination of previously uncovered materials, Silencing Mormon Polygamy unveils this mysterious history and provides unequaled documentation of the historical foundation supporting fundamentalist Mormon priesthood claims. In this unprecedented volume, the birth of Mormon fundamentalism and its shared history with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is presented for the first time - conveying an understanding of these events that few people have every fully grasped.__________________________________________Mormon fundamentalists and their unabashed critics have both authored various apologetic books and pamphlets defending their authors respective religious beliefs. Despite multiple volumes of materials ranging from sensationalist to dry and from unapologizing testimonials to carefully selected research, the historical events surrounding John Taylor's September 27, 1886 revelation have never seen a thorough, even-handed treatment.For the first time, a monument of material has been compiled to put Mormon fundamentalists priesthood claims to scrutiny. While some of their claims are well supported, others are lacking a strong, historical foundation. Regardless of how one reads the evidence, the journey of reading this material has the surprising effect of being delightfully interesting. Any student of Mormon history - especially Mormon history as it pertains to the priesthood as restored by Joseph Smith - will find this volume both exciting and tantalizing!