Editing Mormonism and polygamy (section)

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'''Polygamy''' (called '''plural marriage''' by Latter-day Saints in the 19th century or '''the Principle''' by modern [[Mormon fundamentalism|fundamentalist]] practitioners of [[polygamy]]) was practiced by leaders of [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (LDS Church) for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890 by between 20 and 30 percent of Latter-day Saint families.<!--No citations are required in the article lead per [[MOS:LEADCITE]], as long as the content is cited in the article body, as it should be. Do not add missing-citation tags like {{cn}} to the lead. If necessary, {{not verified in body}} can be used, or the content removed.--> Polygamy among Latter-day Saints has been controversial, both in Western society and within the LDS Church itself. Many U.S. politicians were strongly opposed to the practice; the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]  platform even referred to polygamy and slavery as "the twin relics of barbarism."<ref>[http://www.ushistory.org/gop/convention_1856.htm US History.org] website</ref><ref name=":6" />{{rp|438}} [[Joseph Smith]], founder of the Latter-day Saint movement, first introduced polygamy privately in the 1830s. Later, in 1852, [[Orson Pratt]],<ref name="Embry19942">{{Citation |last=Embry |first=Jessie L. |title=Utah History Encyclopedia |year=1994 |editor-last=Powell |editor-first=Allan Kent |access-date=October 30, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170417163937/http://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/p/POLYGAMY.html |archive-date=April 17, 2017 |url-status=dead |contribution=Polygamy |contribution-url=http://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/p/POLYGAMY.html |place=Salt Lake City, Utah |publisher=[[University of Utah Press]] |isbn=0874804256 |oclc=30473917}}</ref> a member of the [[Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (LDS Church)|Quorum of the Twelve Apostles]], publicly announced and defended the practice at the request of then-church president [[Brigham Young]].

Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, the [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and politics in the United States|LDS Church and the United States]] remained at odds over the issue. The church defended polygamy as a matter of religious freedom, while the federal government, in line with prevailing public opinion, sought to eradicate it. Polygamy likely played a role in the [[Utah War]] of 1857–1858, as Republican critics portrayed Democratic President [[James Buchanan]] was weak in opposing both polygamy and slavery. In 1862, the U.S. Congress passed the [[Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act]], prohibiting polygamous marriage in the territories. Despite the law, many Latter-day Saints continued to practice polygamy, believing it was protected by the [[First Amendment]]. However, in 1879, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Morrill Act's constitutionality in ''[[Reynolds v. United States]]'',<ref>''Reynolds v. United States'' [https://web.archive.org/web/20061009192447/http://www.historyofsupremecourt.org/scripts/supremecourt/glossary.cgi?term=r&letter=yes "The History of The Supreme Court"]</ref> asserting that while laws could not interfere with religious belief, they could regulate religious practices.<ref name="Embry19942" />

In 1890, when it became clear that Utah would not be admitted to the Union while polygamy was still practiced, church president [[Wilford Woodruff]] issued the [[1890 Manifesto]],<ref>{{Citation | last = Lyman | first = Edward Leo | title = Utah History Encyclopedia | publisher = University of Utah Press | year = 1994 | chapter = Manifesto (Plural Marriage) | chapter-url = https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/m/MANIFESTO_PLURAL_MARRIAGE.shtml | url = https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240731195201/https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/m/MANIFESTO_PLURAL_MARRIAGE.shtml | archive-date = July 31, 2024 | isbn =9780874804256 | access-date = August 19, 2024}}</ref> officially banning the formation of new polygamous unions within the LDS Church.<ref>{{lds|Official Declaration |od|1}}</ref> Although this manifesto did not dissolve existing polygamous marriages, relations with the United States markedly improved after 1890, such that Utah was admitted as a U.S. state in 1896. After the manifesto, some church members continued to enter into polygamous marriages, but these eventually stopped in 1904 when church president [[Joseph F. Smith]] [[Reed Smoot hearings|disavowed polygamy before Congress]] and issued a "[[Second Manifesto]]", calling for all new polygamous marriages in the church to cease, and established [[excommunication]] as the consequence for those who disobeyed. Existing polygamous LDS couples continued to live together into the 1950s.<ref name=1950s/>

Several small [[Mormon fundamentalist]] groups, seeking to continue the practice, split from the LDS Church, including the [[Apostolic United Brethren]] (AUB) and the [[Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints]] (FLDS Church). Meanwhile, the LDS Church continues its policy of excommunicating members found practicing polygamy, and today actively seeks to distance itself from fundamentalist groups that continue the practice.{{efn|The LDS Church encourages journalists when referring to people or organizations that practice polygamy, to state that the LDS Church is not affiliated with them.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 9, 2010 |title=Style Guide – LDS Newsroom |url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/style-guide |access-date=2014-04-15}}</ref> The LDS Church repudiates polygamist groups and excommunicates their members if discovered.<ref>{{Harvtxt|Bushman|2008|p=91}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna25396937 |title=Mormons seek distance from polygamous sects |year=2008 |publisher=[[NBC News]]}}</ref> On its website, the church states that "the standard doctrine of the church is monogamy" and that polygamy was a temporary exception to the rule.<ref name="LDSofficialstatement">{{Citation |last=LDS Church |title=Polygamy: Latter-day Saints and the Practice of Plural Marriage |url=https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/polygamy-latter-day-saints-and-the-practice-of-plural-marriage |publisher=LDS Newsroom}}</ref>}} Adherents of various churches and groups from the larger [[Latter Day Saint movement]] continue to practice polygamy.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Brady McCombs |agency=[[Associated Press]] |date=12 November 2019 |title=Mexico killing highlights confusion over Mormon groups |url=https://kutv.com/news/local/mexican-killings-spotlight-mormon-history-with-polygamy |website=[[KUTV]]}}</ref>

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