Reevaluating Polygamy

My book club just read A Mormon Mother, the autobiography of Annie Clark Tanner - a Mormon woman who married into polygamy at the end of the 19th Century.

It was hard to read. She believed so strongly in the divinity of the practice that brought her so much pain and disappointment. She was the daughter of a "second wife" and eagerly became the second wife of a professor who would show up to impregnate her, and then offered little in the way of emotional, spiritual or financial support. She was, for all intents and purposes, a single mother of 9. 

Her positive attitude and her lack of bitterness were inspiring. Throughout her account, she never blamed God nor did she harshly criticize her husband. She accepted her life and threw herself into raising her children. Despite living a life devoid of companionship, support and romantic affection, she wrote:

...It is the little things that bring the joy of living -- work well done; the visit of a friend; leisure to read and to write; a book review; a ride in the country; some little improvement in the surroundings; something new; or a trip occasionally. To be able to accomplish and enjoy the common things are the greatest source of happiness.

During her lifetime, her view of women evolved from a belief that they are inferior and subordinate to men, to a belief that they are just as wise and capable as them. Her perception of God changed from one of a justice-driven-task-master, to that of a kind and merciful Being. Her approach to religion became less dogmatic and more open-minded and flexible. She began to see the fallacies of polygamy, and although she never doubted its initial inspiration, she expressed gratitude and relief for its revocation.

We read her book in conjunction with an article by Mormon scholar Eugene England called On Fidelity, Polygamy, and Celestial Marriage. It brought so much clarity and closure to the difficult story we had just read by arguing that, contrary to the popular belief of many Mormons, polygamy is not an eternal principle and will not be practiced in the afterlife.

I highly recommend reading the article in its entirety, but some of his most compelling arguments are:

• inadequate scriptural evidence (two verses in D&C 132 that could have various interpretations);
• prophetic statements that can be called into question after the Manifesto because they were used as justification for the Manifesto (in the same way that "doctrine" rationalizing why Blacks could not hold the Priesthood became irrelevant after the 1978 revelation on the Priesthood); 
• the idea that there are eternally more righteous women than men is demeaning to both genders and statistically untrue based on worldwide birth and childhood death rates; 
• if polygamous marriage were the highest celestial order than God would want His people to practice it as often as possible, but he tells Jacob that it is an exception rather than a rule in order to "raise up seed unto me" (Jacob 2:30) (Interestingly, half the members of our book club are descendents of polygamists);
• it implies an inherent inequality between men and women that "insults and devalues" women and is inconsistent with the idea of forming a whole, equal, complementary and unified partnership that is necessary for exaltation.  

I felt so relieved after reading this article. I also felt an even greater sense of admiration and gratitude for Annie Clark Tanner and those like her who sacrificed so much in order to be obedient.