- Stephen Fleming on A Standard Polygamy Narrative?: “Yes, indeed messy. Probably one of the reason why Smith’s close followers pushed for a different system, polygyny, around 1843 (thus DC 132 that year). But the point of this post is to note the many tricky issues around this topic including the theological issues that come up with claiming that Smith made that big of a mistake. It seems like we have to deal with that issue, and you don’t address it. And I’m NOT saying we should be practicing shared marriage! Plato says that the practices in his REPUBLIC of goods and wives in common may only be possible in heaven. Just like Smith scaled back shared goods to tithing because we were unable to accomplish goods in common, it’s pretty clear that marriages in common would be MUCH harder. But we have all these issues in our history including a bunch of statements from early leaders, which brings up a lot to talk about and to try to understand. So, yes, I do see that fact that shared marriage is more fair as being important when it comes to attempting to understand all this. I argue in my dissertation and forthcoming book that Smith’s male inner circle didn’t like sharing wives so they put on pressure to switch to polygyny (long story) which was solidified with DC 132. In 1843, Smith switched to marrying mostly single mostly single “women,” and I put that in quotes since a lot were teenagers. The ages of the wives dropped because of the switch away from shared marriage and I think we can rightly view wives being a lot younger as problematic. But again, I’m not saying we should be practicing shared marriage. ” Nov 1, 06:17
- on A Standard Polygamy Narrative?: “Share marriage isn’t polygamy, nor is it preferable to plain old marriage to me. I can’t see how it resolves the “common narrative” about polygamy. I would bet the most common belief about polygamy is that it was a mistake, not that it is some kind of eternal principle that could be reformed by widening the definition of marriage for a communal shared marriage you have advocated for. My ancestors didn’t practice shared marriage, but I don’t see how shared marriage is any better besides maybe that women could have multiple male sexual partners and that would be more equal? Sounds messy and more like polyamory.” Nov 1, 00:21
- on Church Education Expansion Under Ernest Wilkinson: “Ya’ll forgot to mention Wilkinson’s greatest accomplishment by far….he made his successor look like a genius success as a leader simply by comparison… there was no where to go but up! A bit tongue in cheek but likely very true …take it from the perspective of a guy who spent a 20+ year career in corporate America helping leaders increase their effectiveness.” Oct 31, 23:00
- on A Standard Polygamy Narrative?: “Anon, that’s a good point. Unconvinced/Mistake, you’re not really engaging with the OP. Your ancestors practiced polygyny not shared marriage.” Oct 31, 19:45
- on A Standard Polygamy Narrative?: “Why make it so complicated? Polygamy was wrong and continues to be wrong and trying to force the concept into a shared marriage doesn’t reform the past or make it right. It doesn’t really matter if Joseph Smith said it was gods will. You can look the mess it made and judge for yourself. It was terrible for Emma and the near 40 other wives. It was terrible for my ancestors that practiced it. It doesn’t need to be reformed, it should be left in the past.” Oct 31, 17:42
- on A Standard Polygamy Narrative?: “If fairness as currently practiced in the church is any indication of what will happen in eternity, plan kn their not being much of it.” Oct 31, 13:45
- on A Standard Polygamy Narrative?: “Curtis, it does seem that a number of commenters do see the afterlife as a little different, but it still seems as though allowing women to be sealed to other spouses if the first dies is more fair. Neal, yes, I’m thinking about posting about the situation you describe as I have been in a ward with a woman that happened to. And, I’m not sure how the afterlife will work, but your scenario sounds interesting.” Oct 31, 08:37
- on A Review of Seven Crossings: Encounters with Christ in the New Testament: “Thank you for this introduction to what sounds to be a useful and uplifting book. I love the idea of seeing ‘bread’ as encapsulation of God’s golden sunlight, His Gift to the World. That reminded me of the French priest of earliest Upper-North American exploration/colonization times. He traveled to the Maritime Provinces area with the mission of introducing Catholic Christianity to the indigenous peoples along those northern shores. After learning their language, he set himself to translating portions of the New Testament that he could use in his teaching/preaching. Almost immediately he encountered challenges; for instance when he tried to put the Lord’s Prayer into their words, he realized that they had no concept of “bread”, since they were far north of where wheat could be grown. He finally phrased it “Give us this day our daily harbor seal . . ” That made sense to them.” Oct 31, 08:28
- on Cutting Edge Latter-day Saint Research, October 2026: “Unity through sports? Have the authors ever actually played church basketball? :)” Oct 30, 22:36
- on Cutting Edge Latter-day Saint Research, October 2026: “It looks like the latter item is an entire book, not a sole chapter: *Conjugal States: The Queerness of Nonmonogamy in Settler Worlds* by T. J. Tallie is scheduled for publication by the University of Minnesota Press on March 16, 2027.” Oct 30, 21:06
