Authorities allege the polygamous sect marries off underage girls. They searched the sect's temple, and court documents say they found evidence the girls were required to immediately consummate their marriages.
The FLDS trace their polygamist beliefs to Joseph Smith, founder of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
In 1831, Smith declared that God had revealed to him the doctrine of plural marriage. According to the LDS Web site, the church abandoned the practice "in 1889 in the face of increasing hardships and the threat of government confiscation of church property." In 1998, President Gordon B. Hinckley said, "[The] church has nothing whatever to do with practicing polygamy. . . . If any of our members are found to be practicing plural marriage, they are excommunicated, the most serious penalty the church can impose."
Despite polygamy being a violation of civil law and mainstream Latter-day Saint policy, the FLDS continue to defend Smith's revelation, believing that it will bring glorification in heaven.
Other theistic proponents of polygamy point out that biblical figures such as Abraham and Jacob had multiple wives. While this is indeed accurate, no scripture condones the practice. In fact, there is stronger evidence that the Bible supports monogamy. Jesus said in Matthew 19:5: "A man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." The Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 7:2 stated: "Each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband."
It is also worth noting that Abraham's and Jacob's plural marriages were the cause of much family strife, the effects of which are believed to be the origin of today's Middle East conflict.
Some argue polygamy has practical benefits; I have yet to hear a compelling argument.
The FLDS brand of polygamy is especially disturbing. Underage marriage seems to be characteristic of such communities; eternal damnation is the prescribed consequence for anyone who disobeys. Of those who manage to escape such sects, many report years of psychological trauma.
In recent days, some of the Eldorado mothers have been featured on national television. Perhaps because they themselves are victims of underage marriage and fear for their eternal fate, they vigorously defend their lifestyles. But there can be no defense for a child being forced into marriage, plural or otherwise; children are not prepared for the emotional and physical commitments of marriage and parenthood. It is particularly despicable when executed in the name of God.
The raid tore the Eldorado children from their families and was undoubtedly traumatic. But maybe for some, this drastic measure will help preserve their childhood innocence and allow them to live as children -- without the pressures of adultlike commitments.
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COREY J. HODGES, the senior pastor of the New Pilgrim Baptist Church in Taylorsville, welcomes comments at coreyjhodges@ comcast.net. You also may send comments to religioneditor@sltrib.com.
