As some may have noticed, my biggest problem with my church is that it has not been forthcoming in certain areas and this has led me and others to very difficult times upon learning various facts. Of course, I have been blamed for not doing my research and not knowing what I was supposed to know when I was 12, etc. blah blah blah. Indeed, upon being blamed (mostly by those at MAD before I was banned), I would give examples of the church's misleading statements and then watch as these were explained away in an often strikingly transparent way by the "defenders" of the faith.
So, "defenders", explain this away:
The church states this on its website as pointed out in another thread:
"Just as the practice of plural marriage among the Latter-day Saints began gradually, the ending of the practice after the Manifesto was also gradual. Some plural marriages were performed after the Manifesto, particularly in Mexico and Canada. In 1904, President Joseph F. Smith called for a vote from the Church membership that all post-Manifesto plural marriages be prohibited worldwide."
If this is the case then why the following statements?
On April 24, 2008, the church newsroom stated this:
"The Church discontinued polygamy officially in 1890, but more than a century later some news and Internet reports fail to draw clear distinctions between the Church and practicing polygamous sects."
In its "Background Information" section, the Newsroom at LDS.org states this:
"Subsequently, in 1890, President Wilford Woodruff, fourth president of the Church, received what Latter-day Saints believe to be a revelation in which God withdrew the command to practice plural marriage. He issued what has come to be known as the "Manifesto," a written declaration to Church members and the public at large that stopped the practice of plural marriage."
In a May 10, 2006 press release that was, ironically, intended to get the news media to be more ACCURATE re the church and polygamy, the church stated:
"The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints discontinued the practice of polygamy in 1890."
Again, in a September 7, 2007 press release intended to keep the news media accurate, the church stated:
"For the record, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints discontinued its practice of polygamy in 1890, and for 117 years Mormons have followed a monogamous lifestyle."
(They wanted it to be "for the record.")
So, when attempting to get positive media attention, the message has been clear and consistent--polygamy stopped in 1890 (going so far as to even state that "for 117 years Mormons have followed a monogomous lifestyle")! However, the web content team assigned to the subject of polygamy for the website in general, was honest and stated, for the most part, the actual facts. It is amazing that in admonishing the media to be more accurate, the church, in a PR effort, was blatantly inaccurate. This is what boggles my mind as a member of the church--it is so obvious and right in front of our faces and even two weeks ago, the church could not get itself to be accurate with the media about when polygamy stopped.
Okay "defenders", spin away.
mms
(P.S. Sorry for not providing the links, but just go to the "Newsroom" at LDS.org and read the polygamy press releases, background information and commentary and you will see all of the quotes.)