When plural marriage was publicly announced by the Saints in 1852, a storm of protest descended upon their heads, largely by Protestant ministers. Little if anything, was said about the founder of Protestantism, Martin Luther, who gave Prince Philip of Hesse a dispensation to take a second wife, arguing that polygamy was sanctioned by Mosaic Law and was not banned by the New Testament. In 1531 he had advised Henry VIII of England to “take another queen in accordance with the examples of the patriarchs of old who had two wives at the same time.” One must wonder where Luther, the founder of Protestantism, would have stood on the Mormon question in nineteenth century America.
Smith, George D., “Nauvoo Roots of Mormon Polygamy, 1841-46: A Preliminary Demographic Report,” Dialogue. Vol. 27, No. 1, p. 2.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.