Joseph Smith, Mormon Church founder, had as many as 40 wives

[cbayer]

http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-mormon-church-polygamy-20141111-story.html


A statue of Joseph and Emma Smith in Salt Lake City. Mormon church founder Joseph Smith had an underage bride and was married to other men's wives during the early days of the faith when polygamy was practiced, a new church essay reveals. (Scott Sommerdorf / Associated Press)

By MICHAEL MUSKAL

Mormon Church acknowledges that founder Joseph Smith practiced polygamy

Joseph Smith, Mormon church founder and prophet, took as many as 40 wives, at least one as young as 14, leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have acknowledged in a series of essays posted as guideposts for the faithful.

The church had previously acknowledged that Smith engaged in plural marriages, though the practice was one of the public attributes of its early days. The church formally abandoned polygamy in 1890, but the practice continues to be a cultural identifier in film, television and theater.

"The fact that Joseph Smith had plural marriage relationships is not new, of course," Eric Hawkins, a church spokesman, said. The church said it acted based on new research and to provide a personal resource for its members.

"We live in a world where there is so much information available on every topic. And particularly in the age of the Internet, there are both good and bad sources of information. As a church, it's important for us to research and provide official, reputable, historically accurate information about our history and doctrine," Hawkins said.

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