Celestial Marriage Quotes
The 100,000 Mormons in the Utah Territory rebelled at the hostile Federal officials coming into Utah to run things without the consent of the citizens of the territory. It was a cry for the territorial version of States’ Rights.
This quotation produces much angst among some fundamentalist Christians, Jews and Muslims for whom any concept of multiple deities is distressing as is the notion that man might aspire to become God. This and polygamy are two of the central reasons that some Christians deny that Mormonism is a Christian religion.
While Pratt thought that his publication would explain Mormonism to the officials of the nation and reduce misunderstandings, the result was the opposite. Many Washington Government officials had heard “rumors” of Mormon polygamy. However, given their own perspective, most did not believe that any civilized people would so engage. But when they saw Pratt’s written documents like this, there was an official admission in writing of what was seen as a monstrous evil. Pratt himself had 7 wives and 45 children—shocking for most non Mormons of the time.
Congress had passed the Edmunds Act prohibiting plural marriage. Taylor, who himself had 7 wives and 35 children, went “underground” and secretly operated the church from exile.
Von Wackerbarth was one of the many Mormon haters of his day. His quotations have value not for the accuracy of the facts which are scant, but to indicate what much of public opinion regarding Mormons was in that day.
“Celestial Marriage” is the term then used be Mormons to describe plural marriage.
The major issue was whether Congress and the Federal Government could make laws and regulate the communities of people who had settled in the new territories. The argument that Young made was that unless a power was specifically enumerated in the Constitution as being granted to the Federal Government it was not. Most Constitutional scholars believe that there were powers implied by the enumerated powers such as the right for the Federal Government to regulate child labor or the safety of nuclear power plants which of course were never mentioned in the Constitution. At the same time anti Mormon sentiment led many to extend Federal Regulation to Mormons that had not been extended to other people/ Plural marriage was one of those major value issues. The Mormons were very innovative in setting up institutions like buying cooperatives and systems for medical care and welfare, and many of these threatened the then established economic principles of many men of power and wealth. See {614870} for John Taylor’s similar view.
The major issue was whether Congress and the Federal Government could make laws and regulate the communities of people who had settled in the new territories. The argument that Young made was that unless a power was specifically enumerated in the Constitution as being granted to the Federal Government it was not. Most Constitutional scholars believe that there were powers implied by the enumerated powers such as the right for the Federal Government to regulate child labor or the safety of nuclear power plants which of course were never mentioned in the Constitution. At the same time anti Mormon sentiment led many to extend Federal Regulation to Mormons that had not been extended to other people. Plural marriage was one of those major value issues. The Mormons were very innovative in setting up institutions like buying cooperatives and systems for medical care and welfare, and many of these threatened the then established economic principles of many men of power and wealth. See {614881} for Brigham Young’s similar view.
