Posted on 07/29/2008 10:06:01 PM PDT by goldstategop
"Texas authorities on Tuesday indicted the leader of a polygamous sect ... on charges of felony sexual assault on a minor, the first criminal charges to stem from a massive raid on the group's West Texas compound," The Los Angeles Times reported last week (http://tinyurl.com/6oenlz).
The Associated Press and other media used similar words: "indicted polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs ... charges of felony sexual assault of a child."
Straightforward reporting? In my "20/20" special "Sex in America", polygamy activist Mark Henkel said no, it's an ignorant distortion.
"The media kept saying, 'Polygamist leader, polygamist leader,'" Henkel told me. "But the case actually involved incest and arranged marriage of a girl with her 19-year-old cousin. There wasn't anything [that] had to do with polygamy. [Jeffs] wasn't called an incest leader. He wasn't called an underage-marriage leader. He was called a polygamist leader."
Henkel and his website, TruthBearer, (www.truthbearer.org), campaign against the media and others who lump criminals like Jeffs with all polygamy.
Henkel won't reveal his own family situation. In Maine, where he lives, even purporting to have more than one wife is against the law. Henkel complains that American laws are hypocritical.
"Someone like a Hugh Hefner will have a successful television show with three live-in girlfriends! And that's all OK, and he's making great money, and that's all fine and great entertainment. But suddenly, if that man was to marry them, then suddenly he's a criminal. That's insane!"
Many people, when they hear the word "polygamy," think of fundamentalist Mormons living in cults, but the truth is that there's lots of polygamy in America that has nothing to do with that. First of all, polygamy was banned by the mainstream Mormon Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in 1890 and is grounds for excommunication. For my "20/20" special, we interviewed Jewish and evangelical Christian polygamists. Henkel's website is subtitled "Organization for Christian Polygamy." He estimates that there are 100,000 polygamists in America.
Ten years ago, University of Georgia Professor Patricia Dixon thought polygamy exploited women. Then she embarked on a study of it.
"I was transformed by the experience."
She spent years living with different polygamous communities. She was surprised to find that polygamy was not about men exploiting women.
"It's female-centered. The women are the ones who are benefiting. ..."
Wouldn't most people say it's about the men getting more sex with more women?
"It's not about another notch on your belt or anything like that. It really is the women who really promote this idea."
Plural marriage is common around the world. In the United States most get married in religious ceremonies but keep quiet about it because what they do is illegal.
The families we met wonder why what they do is illegal. Clearly it's wrong if an older man arranges marriages of young kids, but when adults choose to live this kind of life, why is that evil?
"Because we need marriage for the good of society. I think if we were to see this across the range of society the effect would be negative," Peter Sprigg of the Family Research Council (www.frc.org) told me. He added, "Slavery and polygamy were the twin relics of barbarism. Those are barbaric societies that we've tried to move beyond."
Plenty of religious leaders agree with Sprigg, but Mark Henkel isn't buying it. "If they're saying that's immoral, they're calling the greatest heroes in the Bible ... immoral! ... Saying that Abraham, with his three wives, was immoral. Jacob had four wives. David had seven known named wives before Bathsheba."
Prince Ben-Israel, who has four wives, calls plural marriage a civil-rights issue. "Who is this government that's in somebody's bedroom? ... It was illegal for me to marry a white woman at one time. ... It was illegal for me to vote at one time. And if I had accepted somebody else's definition of what was right and wrong, I would still be riding in the back of the bus.
"We're not saying this is for everybody. Everybody don't like football and basketball or tennis. But those who do oughta be free to do this."
I have no doubt Alicein can post a link.
I don’t think she’s awake at the moment.
IIRC, that is from an article. They weren’t her words, but were text from a source.
Finally a common sense article on Free Republic about polygamy! Of course don’t bother the people on here who’ve already made their mind up with facts or anything.. very much like liberals.
Real conservatives research issues and make sure they know all the facts before they jump to conclusions..
I could be wrong about the being asleep part.
“Finally a common sense article on Free Republic about polygamy! “
If we’re gonna discuss polygamy, can the focus be on Hugh Hefner?
I’m not asking for pictures, necessarily, because you know I only read Playboy for the articles.
A careful study of the Bible will reveal the following:
1. That Abraham's concubinage, not marriage, with Hagar was evil in God's sight which is a factor in Ishmael's being cast out. Abraham's marriage to Keturah was after Sarah's death when he was a widower.
2) That Jacob's marriage to two sisters is condemned by the law as later revealed, and his concubinage with two maid servants was not approved. The point of the misery of Jacob in his marriage relations, the jealousy of his wives and sons was to show that God's displeasure with it.
3) David's multiplying wives was forbidden as king by the law. This sin in Solomon lead in part to the division of the kingdom.
4) The original polygamist was wicked Lamech, a descendant of Cain, who with his house was destroyed (drowned) in the flood when the chronology is put together.
In Malachi 2;15 it is stated that God gave Adam one wife. The point of the text is that God had the Spirit, could have given him multiple wives, not just Eve, if He had wanted to do so.
Jesus repeatedly condemns divorce as adultery, remarriage after divorce as adultery and He emphasizes one man + one woman for life. This is the consistent teaching of the Bible.
That God forgave and endured the sins of the Old Testament does not constitute a sanction of them. Their corruption of marriage was immoral. "from the beginning it was not so," Jesus said so.
I'll regret it in the morning since my 3 grandkids are here and expect me to take them somewhere tomorrow morning.
I’d be curious to see the credibility of that source.
I should get to sleep soon, too. I took a nap today, so I'm wide awake and my daughter decided it would be a great idea for me to go to a John Mellencamp concert with her for MY birthday tomorrow. Next year I'm going to request a shovel to the head instead.
“I’d be curious to see the credibility of that source.”
I’m flattered. But I don’t know you that well.
(just kidding)
I think Alicein posted some links.
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Humm, sorry about that. Try this: http://www.ueptrust.com/
Sorry. Even when I paste it into my browser I get nothing. Who is ueptrust.com?
According to my grandfather, one is too many.
I thought you were questioning the information because you wrote: it is presented by the corp that bought Rolling Stone magazine, so it becomes suspect IMHO.
The UEP Trust is what the story, Satan's Account, is about.
First, they are only interested in protecting and/or proviiding for a group that are the intended beneficiaries of the trust. Second, I can't find anything even remotely associated with the topic. So, what I have is a trust website who's only interest is the members of the trust and a website of a corp that just bought Rolling Stone magazine, a known liberal publication of, frankly, democrats.
I'm not questioning your statements, I just asked for the link wherein this accusation of public hair pulling, etc. is presented. I'm not even doubting that it might have happened, but where is it presented?
One person was indicted for bigamy
I suppose you are not against slavery either since it is also “Biblical”?
How about stoning people to death? Think that is OK too?
Polygamy is about one thing and one thing only.
Men having sex with multiple partners.
Oh and by the way, Abraham was not a polygamist. Hagar was never considered to be a wife. She was Sarah's maid and was her property.
Typical BS from FLDS defenders.
I provided three sources in post #40.
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