"Is the Bible against polygamy? Absolutely not."

[Disturbed]

Is polygamy Biblical? Yes and we intend to compare Scripture with Scripture and pray our fellow believers will carefully examine this subject in the same fashion without the coloring of the imbalanced majority position. Please read all on the Polygamy Scriptures link to the right with Bibles and minds open.

Are there Scriptures against polygamy? No, there are not. 1Tim.3:2 and Titus 1:6, two passages which clearly show polygyny was a part of the NT assemblies, are often twisted to argue that the New Testament has cancelled or condemned polygynous marriages. This is a nonsense because Isaiah foretells a day, future to the NT, when men will be in such short supply (Isa.13:12) that seven women will ask one man to marry them. These yet future polygynous marriages will be in the sight of Jehovah, so how can He have abolished it in the NT?:

Isa 4:1-2 And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, we will eat our own bread and wear our own clothing; only let us be called by your name, to take away our shame. In that day shall the Branch of Jehovah be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth excellent and comely for those who have escaped from Israel.

http://www.biblepolygamy.com/directory.htm

[zanne]

1. Um....Are you advocating for polygamy?

Tell me you aren't. Please.

[Disturbed]

4. No. I am not advocating the practice.

I am merely pointing out that there was no Law in the Bible condeming it.

[zanne]

20. There's no law in the bible condemning stoning, either. nt

[John Gauger]

22. Right, and that's why the bible is not a proper moral guide.

[ixion]

9. what business is it of yours if someone wants to be polygamous?

I mean, if they're consenting adults, I don't see the trouble with it.

[zanne]

11. It's as much my business as it is yours, asswipe. nt

[ixion]

16. name calling aside, thanks for making my point

[zanne]

17. Okay. Say you have ten or twenty wives...

Pretty good deal for you, right? Except for when it comes to supporting all your kids. And when one or more of your wives divorces you, you still have to pay child support. Who can affort to do that. You see, it really isn't about what the adults want. It's all about the kids who have to suffer and go without because somebody had a fanatical vision about marriage.

[mike_c]

2. Um....Are you advocating for christianity?

Tell me that you aren't. Please.

:evilgrin:

[Manifestor_of_Light]

3. Why should we use the standards of ignorant goatherders for values?

Huh?

Mark Twain points out in "Letters from the Earth" that polygamy is exactly backwards, because women have a much greater capacity for intercourse than men do.

[nichomachus]

5. Polygamy is almost

always related to notions of private property. Where there is no notion of private property, polygamy has generally been the norm. This is why it's found in nomadic societies. Whenever people finally settle and people own property individually, monogamy comes into play because that limits the dilution of the land, which doesn't have to be divided among scores of offspring.

The Mormons are an exception. Their ideas about polygamy sprang from Joseph Smith's inability to satisfy Little Joseph. Smith wanted to screw as many women as possible and so had a "revelation" about the issue. Later, once he had married as many women as he could, and started lusting after women who were already married, he had another convenient "revelation" about secret temple ceremonies, which allowed him to boink other men's wives under the guise of "celestial marriage" with the prophet.

So, the bible's notions of polygamy vs. monogamy were not religiously bound, mainly because in those days -- and up until very recently -- women were considered chattel. How many wives you had and what you did with them were merely property-law issues.

[cornermouse]

6. Um. Do you WANT to live in a war zone?

[Bobbieo]

7. Isa.4: 1-2 - I'm dyslexic and this makes no sense at all to me.

Guess that is why I am an agnostic.

[Disturbed]

10. Polygamy was the norm with most tribal societies on this

planet.

[Hidey]

8. Polygamy

Short answer: No, the Bible does not specifically prohibit Polygamy.

Longer answer: In the New Testament, Paul's writings would indicate the practice is less than ideal.

So much so that Church leaders are prohibited from having more than one wife.

Just as divorce is less than ideal, but is permitted in some cases regardless, so it would seem that polygamy is one of those "Kinda, sorta allowed, but kinda still frowned upon" exceptions.

[uberllama42]

12. I don't see what the state's interest is in preventing polygamy

There is an interest in preventing spousal abuse, but I don't think a ban on polygamy is narrowly tailored to serve that interest.

Then again, it might be considered a "moral" issue, as in "health, morals and welfare," which would mean each state gets to decide what to do about it.

[zanne]

19. It's....about....the....kids. nt

[uberllama42]

21. I believe there are already laws protecting children

If someone is abusing or neglecting their children, the state can (and should) step in to prevent that. Not all polygamous marriages are necessarily abusive or negligent.

[zanne]

24. But who provides the money for the kids?

There are plenty of divorced fathers out there who really resent the idea of having to pay child support. Can you imagine the amount of child support if one or more wives in a polygamous marriage divorces the man? Even if only the first marriage is official, the child support laws apply.

[uberllama42]

25. Precisely- there's nothing stopping a man from having children by ten different women

Banning polygamy doesn't prevent that. I'm not saying it's a good idea to have ten wives, I'm just saying I don't see why that should be illegal if all involved parties consent. There are plenty of deadbeats out there who have a kid and don't pay their child support, and marriage never enters into it. This leads to plenty of neglect. Should we force men to prove they have means before they can have children?

[moggie]

27. What about childless polygamous marriages?

Say the husband is infertile: you'd have no problem with him having as many wives as he wants? What about that monogamous couple with 18 kids: where do you stand on that?

[charlie]

26. From a social engineering point of view

I can see one reason the state would be interested. If the practice became widespread, it would throw the male/female ratio out of whack. You could wind up with enormous numbers of marrying age men with severely diminished prospects of finding a mate. China's cultural preference for male heirs and one-child restrictions has led them to that situation today, with 10s of millions who desire marriage but will die single. Since China is authoritarian, they can keep their frustrated men in check, but over here the social unrest could get ugly.

[uberllama42]

29. We have a monogamous culture, though

The number of men who would marry ten women is relatively small. I'm sure if there was a large population of unmarried males in this country, that would lead to unrest, but I'm not sure legalizing polygamy would necessarily lead to that.

[charlie]

31. We do have a monogamous culture

One that birthed (and suppressed through state power) Mormon polygamy, though. Apparently, it can be argued that the Arbiter of All Things Good doesn't forbid it. It's also chock-a-block with examples of admirable men with many wives. Combine no Biblical proscription with legal sanction and who knows how far it'll go?

If 5% of men became polygamists and managed to convince an average of 3 women to become their brides, the remaining men will have to live with the fear that up to 11% of them will be permanent bachelors. That's a big turnaround from a situation where men enjoyed a marginal surplus in the pool of available women.

I don't get exercised by polygamy, I'm of a libertarian bent when it comes to social freedoms. But I can imagine why the state would turn a hairy eyeball to the practice.

[msongs]

13. so when are the bible believers gonna start stoning adulterers?

[USA_1]

14. Polygyny

The New Testament does not address the issue nor does it address the matter of concubinage. Since Messianic law did not overrule Mosaic law in these matters, they remain biblically permissable.

As for what should it matter to anybody here? Well, the answer is: it shouldn't. Judge not lest ye be judged. If people choose to live that type of lifestyle, it is their business, not anyone else's.

No one on this forum objects to same sex marriage and should show the same tolerance for other lifestyles.

[Disturbed]

15. "it is their business, not anyone else's."

Don't all States have a Bigamy Law, a Law forbidding more than one legal marriage?

Most Polygamists get around that law by legally marrying only one person. The rest of their "partners" are "Spiritural" marriages.

[zanne]

18. Yeah. But the kids are real.

That's what we should be concerned about. Who takes care of the kids financially?

[ZombieHorde]

42. A man can still have many many kids just by picking up woman at a bar.

A sexually attractive and confident man who traveled allot could have kids all over the country, or world, and not even know it.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

33. Davis v. Beason, 1890, U.S. Supreme Court, and other cases.

[John Gauger]

23. Jesus used polygamy in one of his parables.

While commenting on it, he does not condemn it. But so what? Fuck the bible.

[zanne]

28. Not all of us believe in the parables.

I don't. So yeah; fuck the bible.

[uberllama42]

30. I agree! Fuck the bible

Why are we even worried about what the bible says about polygamy?

[asteroid2003QQ47]

34. Amen Brother! n/t

[struggle4progress]

39. Perhaps your attitude ("fuck the bible") limit your insights into whatever the texts actually say?

It's fine with me if you aren't interested in the texts or wish to disregard or dismiss them: but then why invent silly interpretations?

[Sanctified]

32. Luke 16:18

"Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from husband committeth adultery."

[Igel]

35. I wonder how the polygamists feel about polyandry?

I mean, there's no place where it's forbidden, is there?

Surely they'd not be so hypocritical as to object to it. :-)

[Disturbed]

36. Polygamy among the Jews.

Syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer recently called attention to how polygamy had made its way back into the news: "Under the headline 'Polygamists, Unite!' Newsweek informs us of 'polygamy activists emerging in the wake of the gay-marriage movement.' Says one evangelical Christian big lover: 'Polygamy rights is the next civil-rights battle.'"

Well, among the civilizations in which polygamy was not only accepted but even encouraged was Jewish society. There are numerous examples in the Bible of a man having more than one wife.
Granted that in our patriarch Abraham's case it may have been a mistake because of Sarah's antipathy toward Hagar and her son, Ishmael. Had Sarah had prevailed on Abraham to send them away, we might have fewer troubles with our cousins the Arabs.

But let's be honest. Man is not really a monogamous creature. If he were, you wouldn't have so many men betraying their wives. Of course there are exceptions to the rule, but in general, man requires variety and woman requires security. And security for many women means knowing that you are not alone, that you're part of the tribe.

When families were larger, loneliness was less problematic than it is today. These days, many people aged 20 to 40 have only one or two siblings, and lots of folks have no one at all. A lot of people are - by ancient standards, at least - leading an "abnormal existence" in one-person households.
IN ISRAEL women of marriageable age far outnumber men, partly as a result of the many wars that have plagued us. That automatically means not all women are going to get married - unless there is a remarkable spurt of divorce or widowerhood. And while technology now affords women the chance to be mothers through artificial insemination, I'd venture to say that most (non-gay) women would probably prefer to have a man in the picture.

Article cont.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1143498786957&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[struggle4progress]

38. No reason to credit Krauthammer's view of anything: he regularly misrepresents matters

[struggle4progress]

37. Apparently the owner of that site doesn't want to be identified with it

which isn't surprising because the argumentation is entirely dishonest

[Bad Thoughts]

40. Wrong reading of Isaiah

In the previous chapter, it discusses these women, whose husbands have fallen in unjust wars, and how in their vulnerability have given up everything to be protected by the few men left. It is an apocalyptic image, not an idealization of polygamy. Indeed, most of the prophecies are what PUNISHMENT will befall people, not what benefit they will receive. It is the sign of a grave judgment against the nation.

[Disturbed]

41. I wonder why the US Govt. demanded that the Mormons

outlaw Polygamy in order for Utah to become a State.