Customer Reviews

More Than One: Plural Marriage, A Sacred Heritage - A Promise For Tomorrow

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I am surprised at the preachiness of some of the rather negative reviews, which seem to be more interested in arguing about whether or not polygamy is right or wrong, rather than actually reviewing this book. The author certainly takes a position in the book, and presents it well. Whether or not you or I disagree with his position doesn't matter.

It is an interesting book, and is well researched. I've read several books on this subject, and there were journal entries included in this book that I hadn't seen before. Always a pleasant discovery.

The book offers an opportunity to examine the belief system of people who chose to live this lifestyle. The first portion of the book allows these people to speak for themselves, and it is evident that these were truly sincere and committed individuals, notwithstanding the many struggles to which they were subjected.

Whether or not a person accepts the premise that polygamy is a legitimate religious doctrine, it cannot be disputed that there are people all over the world who still espouse it as part of their own personal belief system, and even practice it.

The book succeeds in linking past to present and encourages the reader to take a fresh look at those who embrace polygamy in modern times.

There are many cultures who practice traditions that may not be embraced or immediately understood by outsiders. As an educated society, part of our responsibility is to refrain from judgments based on ignorance and stereotypes. If we are open-minded, we are less likely to oppress other cultures simply because we discover them to be diverse from our own.

Shane Whelan's book opens the door for further study into this fascinating aspect of former and present Americana.

Polygamy has split Mormons into many groups, but there is one clear winner in the numbers game - the church with temples everywhere, and armies of clean-cut young men who come knocking at your door bearing a badge that marks them, curiously, as an "Elder". This is the church that taught polygamy was the ideal form of marriage, before running into so much oppression from the US Government that a series of revelations were needed in order to turn it into an organisation that practices monogamy and tries to be classed with the Christian mainstream.

As with most religions, many Mormons may know little about their forefathers, and the detailed teachings of their church, and may be content to bask in such ignorance. But for a few, like Whelan, ignorance is not bliss, and this leads to the discovery of reams of testimony in favour of polygamy from members of a church that places great emphasis on personal testimony as evidence of truth.

This digging uncovers a sense of a number of important points:-
1. First wives who considered polygamy was a great hardship they were enduring for their faith, yet ended up seeing good results.
2. The wider Mormon community who doubted polygamy and who were surprised to see it turning out OK.
3. How polygamy was especially common for leading men within the church and how it continued after the Manifesto that was supposed to stop it.
4. How early Mormons lived through times of deprivation and high mortality rates for children and adults.
5. How the entire Mormon experience is so America-centric, and truly deserves the name of "the American religion".

In the process, Whelan provides a useful antidote to much slanted bad publicity against modern polygamists. Some people liked it - many women enjoyed it and found it better than anything else that was on offer - trying to paint it as all bad just because it doesn't fit with feminist ideology ignores the experience of the majority interest group that voluntarily signed up to plural marriage - the women.

But this digging leads to a rather difficult discovery for modern Mormons. Summing up on Mormon Church teaching, we learn that the words of past Mormon President Joseph F Smith, make it "clear that participation in plural marriage will be a requirement for those seeking exaltation in the celestial kingdom. This may require a change in thinking for millions of members of the LDS church who feel that living a righteous life in monogamy is sufficient." Set against this is the requirement for a modern Mormon president to declare polygamy to be OK again, after a change in the law, a change in social responsibility, and a change in religious principles to make such a prophecy acceptable.

Whelan views the practice of polygamy as essentially required by Mormon doctrine, and involving the rights of single or divorced Mormon women, and of pre-mortal spirits who are waiting to be born into good Mormon homes. When all this is set against the background of a church that is not moving towards polygamy, the only way of breaking the tension is to say that that the current Mormon church must "one day" change its position back to one in favour of the practice of polygamy.

But this review is written from an evangelical Protestant view of the Mormon faith, that opposes Mormon theology while remaining tolerant of their one-time practice of polygamy. That means I don't have to go with the idea that everyone will wake up one day and think that polygamy is OK. One thing I noticed was the way the history didn't include black Mormons, because the church denied black men the priesthood until the 1970's. The church doctrine changed to suit what was politically acceptable in the 1970's, as it had in the 1890's. Why would it suddenly go against the flow to return to a principle it safely buried a hundred years ago? Whelan tries to find supportive quotes from current Mormon President Gordon Hinckley, but these merely add up to saying nice things about the pioneers and family values, and Hinckley's backing for polygamy is only noticeable by its absence. This is reflected when Hinckley appears on TV downplaying the central role of polygamy in Mormon history and doctrine.

Another mainstream Mormon, Elizabeth Harmer-Dionne, has studied the impact of the law on Mormon belief, and found that it promoted cognitive dissonance - that the law changed the practice, and believing one thing while doing another was so stressful that something had to give. This effectively means that the law won, and changed the Mormons' belief. But if you really believe in a religion, you can't have ultimate truth dictated to you by a bunch of non-believers, even if it is the US Supreme Court, and you end up in Whelan's position, waiting for times to change back. I don't want to stop Whelan from marrying another wife if that's what he and his family think their faith requires, but I can't help but think he's waiting for the train that never comes.

"More than One" presents an interesting challenge to modern-day Mormons about the future of their faith. It does it in a way that will be meaningful to Mormons, emphasising the teaching of their church and the experiences of their ancestors, but it is in the end a book by, for and about Mormons. Other readers may find it interesting to peek into this world, and to consult the resources Whelan has gathered together, but may notice that it doesn't cover the more "difficult" pieces of history when Mormons were telling the authorities or each other one thing, whilst doing another. It covers enough to show that this tension still exists in the Mormon church, and to put modern Mormons in the difficult position of seeing whether they can find a way to reconcile their past with their present, without deferring the conflict to the future.

This book presents original, unedited, journal entries from many of the righteous, God-fearing, dedicated Saints of old, bearing their personal testimonies about plural marriage. It is heartening to read the stories, and you can sometimes even visualize yourself being drawn back in time as if you were speaking with these saints in person, that is how rich and moving some of the stories are. And all are first person accounts. Very faith-promoting.

Whatever your feelings are on polygamy, this is a good read. It is not in the least bit "controversial". Even so, and even though the BYU student bookstore sells this book, this book got the author ex-communicated, with church leaders saying that his compilation of journal entries from Mormon pioneers was "an embarrassment to the Church."

I guess the present-day leadership is more interested in fluff and "looking good" than in really looking back at what our pioneer forefathers did and believed. And it leads me to ask, if one can get excommunicated simply for reprinting, with minimal commentary, journal entries (many from former chuch leaders!), why do they tell us today to keep journals? Why do they encourage our young men and young women to keep journals if, say 50 years from now, all that is written in them will be "embarrassing" to future church doctrine? Makes one think.

What an enjoyable book! I felt that I was able to take a close look at what this period of time was really like in Utah and wihtin the Mormon religious culture. My curiosity was satisfied as to the challenges and personal feelings of participants. I enjoyed reading excerpts from actual diaries and felt that the book did an excellent job of standing aside and letting the participants speak for themselves instead of presenting someone from today's point of view of the experience. Who would better represent this type of spiritual life style than those who successfully surrendered self for a higher demand of values and sacrifice? I do not embrace this practice, but found the book filled with valuable information to understand its place and function in that time period. It provided a context for appreciating the value they placed upon it within their eternal spiritual philosophy and the practical, daily application of it in their lives and families. I can highly recommend it.

We enjoyed the first person accounts of the people who lived in polygamy. The accounts showed a good range of experiences. It portrayed polygamy in a more favorable light than any other book we have read on the same subject.

The seller sent it out quickly and the book was in the condition specified. The book itself is a treasure other than a few chapters toward the end that seem a little unrealistic, when the author surmises improbable ways to re-introduce the subject into society. The history was beautifully portrayed.

The previous reviews of this book are all together lacking in any sense of the historiography of plural marriage in recent years. This book gathers together a wealth of interesting documents, but then uses them to make broad generalizations. Historians know that documents need contextual frameworks for proper analysis. Having already made up his mind about the practice, the author then proceeds to lay before the reader documents that support his view. There are many contrary voices contemporary with the ones quoted herein. As far as the reviewers go, their theology (or lack thereof) is the more important indicator of how they view the book. Like the author, if they agree with the underlying theology, the work is "inspiring," if not, it isn't worth reading--or acts as further proof the great perfidity of the MORMON HIERARCHY !!! Like all historical phenomenon, Mormon Plural Marriage--as officially sanctioned from 1852 to 1890, must be explored within the contemporary society and environment in which it existed. Although this book has some useful elements, there are simply much better studies less colored by the authors anxious anticipation for his own "more than one."

(see also my comments on some of the more noxious reviews of this book below)

This review would best describe "More Than One" as MORE THAN ONE reason why not to waste your time and your money.

Unless you want confusing information and you want to read about the authors oppinions and fantasys.....

The promise for tomorrow is based on Shane Whelans desires to have more than one wife....there is no truth in this wives tale!

Polygamy has split Mormons into many groups, but there is one clear winner in the numbers game - the church with temples everywhere, and armies of clean-cut young men who come knocking at your door bearing a badge that marks them, curiously, as an "Elder". This is the church that taught polygamy was the ideal form of marriage, before running into so much oppression from the US Government that a series of revelations were needed in order to turn it into an organisation that practices monogamy and tries to be classed with the Christian mainstream.

As with most religions, many Mormons may know little about their forefathers, and the detailed teachings of their church, and may be content to bask in such ignorance. But for a few, like Whelan, ignorance is not bliss, and this leads to the discovery of reams of testimony in favour of polygamy from members of a church that places great emphasis on personal testimony as evidence of truth.

This digging uncovers a sense of a number of important points:-
1. First wives who considered polygamy was a great hardship they were enduring for their faith, yet ended up seeing good results.
2. The wider Mormon community who doubted polygamy and who were surprised to see it turning out OK.
3. How polygamy was especially common for leading men within the church and how it continued after the Manifesto that was supposed to stop it.
4. How early Mormons lived through times of deprivation and high mortality rates for children and adults.
5. How the entire Mormon experience is so America-centric, and truly deserves the name of "the American religion".

In the process, Whelan provides a useful antidote to much slanted bad publicity against modern polygamists. Some people liked it - many women enjoyed it and found it better than anything else that was on offer - trying to paint it as all bad just because it doesn't fit with feminist ideology ignores the experience of the majority interest group that voluntarily signed up to plural marriage - the women.

But this digging leads to a rather difficult discovery for modern Mormons. Summing up on Mormon Church teaching, we learn that the words of past Mormon President Joseph F Smith, make it "clear that participation in plural marriage will be a requirement for those seeking exaltation in the celestial kingdom. This may require a change in thinking for millions of members of the LDS church who feel that living a righteous life in monogamy is sufficient." Set against this is the requirement for a modern Mormon president to declare polygamy to be OK again, after a change in the law, a change in social responsibility, and a change in religious principles to make such a prophecy acceptable.

Whelan views the practice of polygamy as essentially required by Mormon doctrine, and involving the rights of single or divorced Mormon women, and of pre-mortal spirits who are waiting to be born into good Mormon homes. When all this is set against the background of a church that is not moving towards polygamy, the only way of breaking the tension is to say that that the current Mormon church must "one day" change its position back to one in favour of the practice of polygamy.

But this review is written from an evangelical Protestant view of the Mormon faith, that opposes Mormon theology while remaining tolerant of their one-time practice of polygamy. That means I don't have to go with the idea that everyone will wake up one day and think that polygamy is OK. One thing I noticed was the way the history didn't include black Mormons, because the church denied black men the priesthood until the 1970's. The church doctrine changed to suit what was politically acceptable in the 1970's, as it had in the 1890's. Why would it suddenly go against the flow to return to a principle it safely buried a hundred years ago? Whelan tries to find supportive quotes from current Mormon President Gordon Hinckley, but these merely add up to saying nice things about the pioneers and family values, and Hinckley's backing for polygamy is only noticeable by its absence. This is reflected when Hinckley appears on TV downplaying the central role of polygamy in Mormon history and doctrine.

Another mainstream Mormon, Elizabeth Harmer-Dionne, has studied the impact of the law on Mormon belief, and found that it promoted cognitive dissonance - that the law changed the practice, and believing one thing while doing another was so stressful that something had to give. This effectively means that the law won, and changed the Mormons' belief. But if you really believe in a religion, you can't have ultimate truth dictated to you by a bunch of non-believers, even if it is the US Supreme Court, and you end up in Whelan's position, waiting for times to change back. I don't want to stop Whelan from marrying another wife if that's what he and his family think their faith requires, but I can't help but think he's waiting for the train that never comes.

"More than One" presents an interesting challenge to modern-day Mormons about the future of their faith. It does it in a way that will be meaningful to Mormons, emphasising the teaching of their church and the experiences of their ancestors, but it is in the end a book by, for and about Mormons. Other readers may find it interesting to peek into this world, and to consult the resources Whelan has gathered together, but may notice that it doesn't cover the more "difficult" pieces of history when Mormons were telling the authorities or each other one thing, whilst doing another. It covers enough to show that this tension still exists in the Mormon church, and to put modern Mormons in the difficult position of seeing whether they can find a way to reconcile their past with their present, without deferring the conflict to the future.

My thanks to the author, Shane Whelan, for having the courage to write this book on the positive aspects of plural marriage. It was inspirational to read about the many wonderful and faith-promoting accounts of the early Saints who lived this princple because of their strong religious convictions. Especially for those of us with polygamous ancestors, we should be glad to finally read a publication by a living author that attributes to these heroes the honor and respect they so deserve. This book fills an important void in contemporary LDS literature on the subject of plural marriage.