Future of the church

[Gray]

15 hours ago, Bernard Gui said:

Most wars are not started by scandal. Enough to muster armies of hundreds of thosands of men, build massive amounts of arms, blockade ports, burn crops and cities, kill and maim the most soldiers in American history, and assassinate the leader of the anti-polygamy faction? I don't think so. One could even argue that the institution and practice of plural marriage is on a morally higher ground than a system that allows concubinage, mistresses (see Jacob 2), abortion, and illegitimate children. Certainly Americans would never have countenanced a full-fledged hot war against plural marriage. Of course there is the slaughter of Joseph and Hyrum, but that was not solely based on the rumors of plural marriage. Political and legislative persecution certainly, but not killing on a large scale by armies rather than small mobs.... unless I'm underestimating the moral outrage and hypocricy our ancestors.... We cannot conflate plural marriage with slavery. No way.

Why not? Slavery was a moral outrage to some people. I suspect polygamy was a moral outrage to even more people. 

[Gray]

1 hour ago, thesometimesaint said:

That doesn't make him a barbarian. Any number of Roman generals said and did worse.

That was a quote from Conan the Barbarian. 

[Bernard Gui]

10 minutes ago, Gray said:

Why not? Slavery was a moral outrage to some people. I suspect polygamy was a moral outrage to even more people. 

My post explained why not.

[Gray]

16 minutes ago, Bernard Gui said:

My post explained why not.

I doubt most Americans held polygamy as a lesser moral evil than slavery. And of course polygamy DID result in military action against Utah. So I don't have a hard time imagining civil war over the issue, had polygamy been widespread in a large region of the country. 

Of course this is conjecture. 

[thesometimesaint]

35 minutes ago, Gray said:

That was a quote from Conan the Barbarian. 

My point remains the same. Frodo lives.

[Calm]

5 hours ago, Gray said:

I doubt most Americans held polygamy as a lesser moral evil than slavery. And of course polygamy DID result in military action against Utah. So I don't have a hard time imagining civil war over the issue, had polygamy been widespread in a large region of the country. 

Of course this is conjecture. 

Moral outrage over slavery, imo, might have moved some of the masses to join the effort but the power people who made the decisions to go to war did it for other reasons, primarily economic and power issues.  Thus it would likely take a lot more than just moral outrage over plural marriage to result in a civil war and I don't see any obvious economic advantages or power issues that result from plural marriage.