A Major House of Confusion
Behold, mine house is a house of order, saith the Lord God,
and not a house of confusion—D&C 132:8
I beg to differ with this verse. Instead, I believe Section 132 and its polygamy doctrine is built on a house of confusion. Without addressing the scriptural problems, here’s a few examples:
churchofjesuschrist.org. Topics: Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo, “Although the Lord commanded the adoption—and later the cessation—of plural marriage in the latter days, He did not give exact instructions on how to obey the commandment.” That resulted in confusion.
churchofjesuschrist.org. Topics: Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo, “Plural marriage was introduced among the early Saints incrementally, and participants were asked to keep their actions confidential. They did not discuss their experiences publicly or in writing until after the Latter-day Saints had moved to Utah and Church leaders had publicly acknowledged the practice.” Troubling confusion.
churchofjesuschrist.org. Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo, “Nevertheless, rumors spread. A few men unscrupulously used these rumors to seduce women to join them in an unauthorized practice sometimes referred to as “spiritual wifery.” Creepy confusion.
The Joseph Smith Papers, Nauvoo Journals, December 1841–April 1843, “More definitive echoes of plural marriage are apparent in several journal entries that refer to men attempting to seduce women by telling them that Joseph Smith sanctioned extramarital affairs.” More creepy confusion.
Gordon B. Hinckley on Larry King Live on Sept 8, 1998 when asked about polygamy: “I condemn it [polygamy], yes, as a practice, because I think it is not doctrinal. It is not legal. And this church takes the position that we will abide by the law. We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, magistrates in honoring, obeying and sustaining the law.” Very confusing.
We don’t practice it on earth, but LDS sealing practices allow a man to be sealed to more than one woman during his lifetime, like the two top leaders have done. Even more confusion.
As a convert who knew nothing about 132 when I was baptized, and as a missionary who never told the people I baptized about this section, I believe the members who discover Section 132 are justifiably left with confusion.