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Saturday, July 30, 2011

HOW TO POST Reminder

I will get to working on something, I know! I know! I'm slow right now!
Go back and look through old comments, lots of new ones~!

I've had several email on how to post if your not a member.
EASY!
Under Comments, click Name/Url, and you may use a name of your choice, you don't need an url.
or Annonymous, although, so many use it, we won't get to know you!   PEACE!

Friday, July 29, 2011

Why Polygamists Won’t Benefit from Gay Marriage’s Success (I Hope)



I have to think that there are some gay-marriage advocates who are not pleased with Kody Brown’s decision to appeal Utah’s anti-polygamy statute. As Jonathan Turley, who is representing Brown, writes in a recent New York Times op-ed,

In his dissent in Lawrence [v. Texas], Justice Antonin Scalia said the case would mean the legalization of “bigamy, same-sex marriage, adult incest, prostitution, masturbation, adultery, fornication, bestiality and obscenity.” Justice Scalia is right in one respect, though not intentionally. Homosexuals and polygamists do have a common interest: the right to be left alone as consenting adults.

I am one of those who has written about the deeply harmful effects of polygamy, particularly when it is rampant in a community, as it is in many places in Utah and New Mexico, among other states. I have written (in The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times and The Dallas Morning News) about the girls who are prevented from getting an education, the boys who are forced to leave their communities (lest they provide competition for the older men), the physical abuse, the sexual abuse, and all of the other criminal problems that come in polygamous communities. I also commend a recent piece by Brown University’s Rose McDermott in The Wall Street Journal about all of the problems that come with polygamy (she has done an international study of the problem). I’ve also talked about why it’s not feasible to simply prosecute the crimes as they occur, rather than prosecuting polygamy. (Hint: No one in these communities wants to report crimes because of the consequences they would face.)

But I’ll put that all aside for a minute and just add that I have watched Sister Wives a few times and each time I turn it off, cringing. It’s not because I find polygamy morally reprehensible, though I do. It’s because I feel sorry for these women. These episodes where Mr. Brown and his four wives are sitting on a couch seems like an attempt to show everything is fine and their family is perfectly normal. But then one of the wives starts complaining and then crying about how he is spending too much time with the other, that he finds the other more attractive, that he is spending more nights with the newer wife or whatever. It’s so degrading—even by the standards of reality TV. What are these women doing, sharing their beds with each other? I feel like playing some feminist anthem for them. And Kody Brown? A slick guy who just can’t wipe the smirk off his face. And why should he? He’s got everyone fooled.

Gay marriage has won the day with so much of the American public, I think, because gay couples look like the rest of America. I don’t think polygamists have the same advantage in their fight. And I have a hard time imagining they ever will.                           
                                                                                                                                                     

MS Note - I have to agree it's a totally different arena. An example, here's my favorite couple from the Modern Family,Mitchell and Cameron.
They are the loving, kind, and treat each other better than many married couples.
And, what a HOOT! Fisbo, you rock!! 
They don't believe in the Book of Mormon, and who's to say, their sins are any worse than ours? Only God is to judge that. Don't think they are worrying about any planets!hee hee 

Sister Wives - Jive Turkey - Shyster Vibe - The Concubines of the Cult of Kody Brown

This is an oral radio show w/pics of the Browns - and the way Paul READS his commentary we have on this blog is hysterical! He also left the last part of I didn't care for.
It's funny! Watch - Think he has Kody's number?


TWEET THIS!!

Thursday, July 28, 2011

TLC goes inside the world of POLYGAMY - Part 1 - Part 3

ARTICLE BELOW - Journalist Dawn Porter talking about these interviews. 

Sadly, these are just excepts from what looked like a great show. I can't find the entire program online for us to see. But we will look at the excerpts, and Cynical Jinx and any others that have seen them, can help us fill in the blanks.


Part 1 - a peek at Boyd Knudson's family.  
A birdie told me that Boyd is an extremely wealthy man who can actually afford three wives - no welfare use. you will not see him on camera for fear of losing clients, although, his name is pretty public.
PART 1
 
PART 2 - A discussion with a large group of women.  Journalist Dawn Porter brings up the raid, which upsets the women.



Part 3 - Only 2 wives, I'm guessing they are looking for a third.

Please note 1 2 3 on which clip your talking about. Thoughts?
BE SURE AND READ POST BELOW

Polygamy uncovered: What's it really like for the women who have to share a husband?

For decades, the domestic lives of American polygamists have remained secretive and closely guarded. But for a new TV documentary, presenter Dawn  Porter was given access to two polygamous families, who both sought to present rose-tinted images of harmonious, contented communities. But when she scratched beneath the surface, what she found was a very different picture - of resentment, jealousy 

and bitterness...Dawn PorterDocumentary-maker Dawn Porter discovered jealousy and seething resentments when she stayed with two polygamous families

At first glance, it is a scene of utterly normal domestic chaos. There's washing to be done, the children are running around outside, and Dad has come home from work in a terrible mood.

Martha has her arm around her husband Moroni and is clucking like an indulgent hen as she tries to coax him into a better temper. Buxom, amiable and in her mid-30s, she is every inch the average housewife and mother. 


At least she is until I glance to Moroni's right, and see the second woman who is trying to placate him. Temple - in her late 20s - is Moroni's 'other' wife.
These two women share their lives, their home and their beds with the same husband, bound together by their polygamist marriages. 


And, incredibly, the reason for Moroni's mood - he is sitting slumped, head in hands - is that he has been dumped by the woman he hoped would become wife number three. 


He moans 'I've been heartbroken more times than I care to admit', which sparks a fresh wave of sympathetic noises from both his wives. 


Not only are they happy to share this paunchy man, but they are also happy to help him pick a third wife. Finally, their coaxing seems to ease Moroni's mood. 


'We'll find someone who will fit in perfectly,' Martha purrs soothingly, as if her husband were about to select a new set of curtains. 'This one obviously just wasn’t right…'


So why do I find myself here - deep in rural Arizona, meeting two wives who bizarrely claim that it is they who do the exploiting, rather than the husband who moves between their beds virtually every other night of the week? 


I was asked by a TV production company to fly around the world investigating the extraordinary relationships that women choose in the name of love. 


So what should we make of polygamy, which is still practised by thousands of members of the Mormon sect? Can it really bring the kind of mutual support and sense of community that its protagonists claim? 


Or is it simply a throwback to a time when a man dragged a woman back to his cave if he liked the look of her? 


To find out, I travelled to Arizona, where 15 years ago Moroni Jessop married Martha. It was love for both of them - and a traditional wedding. 


Except that when this blushing virgin bride was making her vows, she already knew that within a few short years her husband would be looking elsewhere for another fresh-faced 'bride'. 


So keen to accept this arrangement was Martha, now 35, that when Moroni announced it was time for another partner, she helped him to search.

The result was 'bride' number two, Temple, 27 - a Martha lookalike with straight dark hair, eager smile and thick glasses. 


Polygamy is outlawed in America, but many polygamists live in rural backwaters. They flout the law by marrying their first wives in a traditional service and then exchanging vows with further 'wives' in spiritual ceremonies. 


Until now, their lives have been shrouded in mystery. I am one of the first journalists ever to be invited into the homes, and lives, of polygamist families.

As I approach the humble three bedroom home where the husband, two wives and assorted offspring live, I expect to meet a dominant male who plays off the insecurities of his wives to brutal effect - demanding sex with whichever wife is in favour, and impregnating them like some kind of stud bull (the women have nine children between them, and Temple is pregnant again). 


Instead, I am greeted by a man who is articulate, intelligent and softly spoken. True, physically speaking Moroni - named after a Mormon god - is hardly a catch.
Overweight, buck-toothed and with a wispy goatee, I can't imagine him inciting passion or jealousy. 


But this construction worker is softly spoken and considerate, and it becomes clear that both wives adore him, as do the ever-present crowd of children. 


Both wives listen to him with rapt attention as he explains that the purpose of polygamy is for one man to produce as large a clan as possible. 


When Moroni complains that life for a polygamist husband is hard, incredibly his wives sympathise. 


He says: 'It takes a lot of work and patience to deal with the emotions of more than one wife. When I became a polygamist with my second marriage, I did not have a good time at all. 


'There were so many demands on me and it seemed that both of my wives were always angry with me. 


'I would get home from work and park on the driveway, and then just sit in the car thinking: "OK, which one is going to be mad at me now?"
'I don't know exactly how it changed, or when, but a year later I was in the living room lying on the couch and Martha and Temple were in the kitchen playing Scrabble together and laughing. I realised then that I was happy. 


'My children and my wives are the purpose of my existence. Other men might go out and have affairs and then leave wife number one to go and marry wife number two. But I have made a real commitment to both of my wives.' 


I can't help asking the question: if Moroni had been in a normal, monogamous marriage to Martha, would he have been unfaithful? 


He pauses and then gulps. 'Er, yes, I probably would have been unfaithful.' 


So there we are - perhaps this lifestyle is simply an adulterer's refuge, for while the wives are busy making the home, Moroni is out there making whoopee in his search for a third spouse.


He says sadly: 'I can't seem to find The One. I've made a few mistakes, and when things don't work out and I've had my feelings hurt I mope around. Then finally Temple says "Just get over it" when she's had enough of my moods, and I'm forced to snap out of it.' 


I watched as both wives - make-up free and wearing modest jeans and T-shirts - prepare dinner for their husband and his nine offspring. Each wife has her own bedroom, and the children sleep with their mothers or share a third bedroom.
Martha insists it's the wives who decide who will have their husband that night.
She tells me: 'We don't get jealous. We know that he loves us both equally and there's room for a third wife. Having her in the house won't mean that he loves us less.' 


So how does the household actually work? The first night I sleep on the couch, but before bedtime I watch as the children dutifully kiss their parents goodnight.
Then Moroni gets up to retire, and after whispering with both wives he disappears into Martha's room. 


Temple - pregnant and tired, looks relieved. Meanwhile, I am left to sleep. So many women - myself included - joke that what every woman needs is a wife and while Moroni is out at work, Martha and Temple share the childcare, the cooking and household chores, and enjoy what seems to be a real friendship. 


If one has a row with Moroni, she can turn to the other 'wife' for support. But it makes me feel slightly nauseous to watch one wife lead the husband to a bedroom, while the other sleeps alone. 


The next morning, Moroni once again tries to convince me that this is tough for him. 


He complains: 'There are times when sex becomes a chore, because I'm trying to keep two women satisfied. I always try to be fair, and I tend to just go from Martha's room to Temple's room alternately.' 


But are these women not consumed with jealousy? He shrugs. 'Sometimes there is awkwardness. I try to reassure them that I love them both by kissing them throughout the day.' 


This is starting to sound like a warped version of Little House On The Prairie. I bid my goodbyes and leave - both wives smiling by Moroni's side as they wave farewell. 


My next stop is Centennial Park, deep in the Arizona desert, a community of fundamental Mormons who still practise polygamy. 


Here, they live an affluent lifestyle - and I draw up to the gated mansion where a wealthy businessman in his 60s lives with his three wives and 16 children. 


Boyd is away on business, but I am greeted instead by two of his wives. Nancy became Boyd's second wife 17 years after he married childhood sweetheart Diane.
Shortly afterwards he married again - to third wife Ruth. It is like walking onto the set of The Stepford Wives. 


Ruth and Nancy show me the enormous kitchen, the ornate dining table, the immaculate reception room and the television room. 


Upstairs are ten bedrooms - including one for each wife, and a separate bedroom for Boyd. 


Ruth - a blonde, Meryl Streep lookalike - tells me that she has 'eight beautiful children'.

The remaining eight are between the other wives, but she can't actually remember how many are boys or how many are girls. 


We discuss marriage. I tell her that I dream about my own wedding day - walking down the aisle with the man I love, with our family and friends watching. It will be my day, so how would it feel to have another wife sitting in the front aisle, beaming as I marry her husband? 


Ruth shrugs. 'Everyone has this rose-tinted view of marriage. I accepted Boyd's first two wives as part of the package. If I wanted him in my life, they were both going to be part of it too. 


'In so many marriages, men just tire of their wives after a few years, so they get divorced, move on and marry again, until that first flush of love also disappears and they move on again. 


'So what is wrong with a man being able to have variety and a woman having friendship and learning to share? 


'Surely it is better for a man to stay with several wives and raise his children, and for them to be the main part of his life, rather than couples who simply divorce and leave their children with no family stability. 


'I don't know why the world looks down on polygamy when family and love are the most important things in our life.' 


Ruth certainly seems happy enough and later, as I watch her and Nancy prepare the dinner for 16 children, I'm amazed at the calm. 


Both wives chat happily as they share the cooking, and the children - aged from 14 to two years old - treat both equally as their mothers. 


Nancy - wife number two - explains that she was raised in a polygamous family.
She says: 'I was free to choose if that was what I wanted for myself, and I really thought about it when I was a teenager. 


'I had four mothers and 40 siblings, but I could have chosen to just marry one man who was going to be monogamous.' 


In the end, Nancy's religious convictions won through - she believes the polygamist ethos that somehow sharing her husband will make her a god or goddess in a second life. 


Well, I guess you would need a pretty good reason to share your husband sexually with two other women. She and Ruth claim that there is no jealousy or awkwardness between them. 


But as evening approaches, Boyd's first wife Diane is still nowhere to be seen, and I start to wonder if this woman, who enjoyed her husband to herself for 17 years, until she started to lose her youth and her looks, might have a different story to tell. 


When I meet Diane, she strikes me as kind but a little withdrawn. She is 63 now, and tells me she raised her children with Boyd as man and wife until suddenly he announced that he wanted to take a second wife. 


Thoughthey were both Mormons, after all those years together she had felt that their marriage was strong and happy and that he would feel no need to seek physical satisfaction with another wife. 


His decision - taken just as Diane was losing her youth and her looks - was utterly devastating to her. 


For more than a decade, she has not discussed her feelings with anyone. Now she sits trembling beside me and I realise that at last the shiny facade of polygamy is being stripped away before my eyes. 


She speaks softly. 'I was married for 17 years, and it was really tough when Nancy came along. I don't agree when people claim that there is no jealousy, because that's not what happened to me. 


'I'd walk into my living room and my husband would have his arm around her, and my heart would start to pound. I would think to myself: "Gosh, why did you have to walk in now and see that.''


It was a bitterness she has lived with for 15 years - swallowing her emotions as an even younger third wife was welcomed into the house as Boyd's latest plaything.
I find it hard to imagine the pain of this woman as she watched her husband impregnate his younger wives time and time again. 


Diane tells me softly that she has suffered depression for those 15 years. It was only three years ago - when she faced a near-terminal illness - that the bitterness began to fade. 


She says: 'I became really sick and the other wives nursed me. Somehow, and I don't know how or why, my animosity towards those two girls ebbed away.'
I leave her wringing her hands in miserable silence. Diane's unhappiness is overwhelming. 


She is the only wife of the five I have met who is honest enough to admit that jealousy, despair and depression are the inevitable fallout when a man finds the excuse to take two or three wives and share them all sexually and emotionally.
My journey into the lives - and many loves - of a polygamist is over. The beaming children, the adoring wives and the homespun philosophy of sharing and love are the images they were keen to portray. 


But it's the memory of the lonely, elderly woman forced to sit to one side as her husband cavorts with her younger rivals which haunts me.
  • Dawn Porter: Free Lover starts on Channel 4 on September 30 at 10pm; and Dawn Porter: The Polygamist's Wife is on October 21 at 10pm.
INTERVIEW BY AMANDA CABLE 

(Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1057865/Polygamy-uncovered-Whats-really-like-women-share-husband.html#ixzz1TRRncH79)

MORMON FUNDAMENTALISM AND RACISM "Sister Wives"


I read this, and thought  how can a Religion be based on hatred and  abhorrent thoughts,  not love? - Mister Sister


 Mormon Fundamentalists believe in the teachings of Brigham Young regarding the origins of dark skinned people. 
Brigham Young was a prophet of the early Mormon Church and the direct successor to Joseph Smith following Smith’s martyrdom. As devout adherents to the teachings of Brigham Young, Fundamentalist Mormons believe the following regarding people of African descent : 1) they are not worthy of ordination into the Mormon fundamentalist priesthood, 2) nor may people of African extraction participate in the Endowment Ceremony, 3) nor may they have a marriage (called a “sealing”) celebrated in a fundamentalist Mormon church. Additionally African Americans may not participate in church “ordinances,” so they cannot be baptized, nor may they receive communion in a Mormon fundamentalist church.  All of the preceding rituals are necessary to achieve the highest degree of “exaltation” in the afterlife, called “entering into the fullness of glory in the Celestial Kingdom.” Even one drop of African blood disqualifies someone from ever being a member of a Mormon fundamentalist group. These prohibitions against church membership for dark skinned individuals were imposed because Brigham Young taught that people with black skin were the descendants of Cain:


“You see some classes of the human family that are black, uncouth, uncomely, disagreeable and low in their habits, wild, and seemingly deprived of nearly all the blessings of the intelligence that is generally bestowed upon mankind …. Cain slew his brother. Cain might have been killed, and that would have put a termination to that line of human beings. This was not to be, and the Lord put a mark upon him, which is the flat nose and black skin. Trace mankind down to after the flood, and then another curse is pronounced upon the same race—that they should be the ‘servant of servants’; and they will be, until that curse is removed; and the Abolitionists cannot help it, nor in the least alter that decree.”  Mormon Prophet Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, Volume 7, page 290. (1859)




In 1852, while addressing the Utah Territorial legislature, Mormon Prophet Brigham Young stated, "Any man having one drop of the seed of Cain (African blood) ... in him cannot hold the Priesthood and if no other Prophet ever spoke it before I will say it now in the name of Jesus Christ I know it is true and others know it.”

In 1978, the mainstream LDS church removed the ban which prohibited people of African descent from entering the priesthood, participating in ordinances, or receiving their “endowment.” Mormon fundamentalist groups adamantly refuse to change their position on this issue. The position of the fundamentalists regarding  African Americans is an example of how the fundamentalist practice of the Mormon faith is actually more reflective of the original teachings of the Mormon prophets than the current teachings of the mainstream LDS church. 

One wonders why the press has not questioned the Browns as to why they are members of a group which advocates discrimination. What do you think?

EXCELLENT POST written by: PRETTY IN PINK!!!!

THANK YOU so much for educating us and helping us come to intelligent decisions!!

WE LOOK FORWARD TO MORE from YOU! 
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Big Mess

A lawsuit against a Utah polygamy law is a nightmare for liberals and conservatives alike.


Last year, at the end of the first season of Sister Wives, a reality show about a polygamist family in Utah, Kody Brown took a fourth wife, Robyn. Rain threatened to cancel the religious ceremony. Meri, Brown’s first wife and the only one to whom he is legally married, commented on the gloomy sky, “That’s how my heart felt.” Before then, Brown, a 43-year-old ad salesman, his three wives, and their 13 children had achieved an equilibrium of sorts. Robyn and her three kids threw this off balance, but welcoming Robyn was a nonnegotiable duty for the other women. “At that time, it really establishes itself as a patriarchal relationship,” says Felice Batlan, a professor at the Chicago-Kent College of Law and a fan of the show.
 
Bringing in a new wife did more than disrupt the family’s peace. It made the Browns the target of a criminal investigation under the anti-bigamy law that Utah had to adopt in order to enter the union. As far as the state is concerned, Meri is Brown’s only wife, but the law defines a bigamist as a married individual who “purports to marry another person or cohabitates with another person.” The state doesn’t often prosecute families unless it finds evidence of another crime, like child abuse or statutory rape, but the Browns fled to Nevada after the first season ended. 


Last month, they sued Utah, arguing that the anti-bigamy law is unconstitutional under the First Amendment and Lawrence v. Texas, the 2003 Supreme Court case that struck down anti-sodomy laws used to prosecute gay men. Brown isn’t asking for the state to recognize all his marriages. He’s arguing that being prosecuted for his spiritual marriages violates his freedom of religion and that, under Lawrence, the state can’t prosecute consenting adults for their sex lives. 

Brown’s case is a nightmare for liberals and conservatives alike. Lawrence was a groundbreaking decision that established gay rights and provided momentum for the campaign to legalize gay marriage. Liberals fear that by basing his case on Lawrence, Brown gives fodder to conservatives who argued that gay marriage would open the door to polygamy. Conservatives fear that striking down criminal laws against calling someone a spiritual wife would not only lead to recognition of polygamy but would also endanger anti-gay statutes that limit marriage to a man and a woman. 


Unlike many other industrialized countries, the United States doesn’t clearly separate the civil and religious institutions of marriage. On one hand, the state empowers clergy when they perform ceremonies. On the other, because the state recognizes and promotes marriage, it has to ensure equal access. These two interests can be in conflict, which is why the right has argued that gay marriage is a restriction on religious freedom. Southern conservatives said the same thing about the 1967 Loving v. Virginia decision that struck down laws banning interracial marriage; it would, they argued, force churches to violate their doctrine. The question the Brown case raises is one we wrestle with on a piecemeal basis but never fundamentally address, says Sarah Barringer Gordon, a professor of law and history at the University of Pennsylvania: “Is it the business of government to allow equal marriage or to allow marriage that conforms to an idea of religion?” 

While polygamy proponents may hope that decriminalization will lead to legal recognition, their case is fundamentally different from the case for same-sex marriage. Legalizing gay and lesbian marriages ended discrimination against those who wanted to enter an existing system. Legalizing polygamy would create a new system. 

Some post-feminists claim that polygamy offers cooperative child rearing, giving women the freedom to pursue careers. But according to Barringer Gordon, who has studied polygamist societies, such communities almost always deny women rights. “Women say, ‘Oh look we get to have free baby sitters for our kids,’” Barringer Gordon says. “No one ever says the husband does a lot of work.” 

If the Browns were hippies living in a commune, it’s unlikely the state would object to their arrangement. But the combination of religion, law, and family makes liberals and conservatives uncomfortable, and that’s because those elements define marriage. Many legal scholars believe the Browns’ case is strong, both on the First Amendment and Lawrence grounds. “I find it difficult to see how they will lose,” Batlan says. 

Which doesn’t mean state-recognized polygamy will ever win. “I think there are a lot of people who say, theoretically, there should be no problem,” with the arrangement, Barringer Gordon says. “Then we have reality TV shows, and you find yourself disturbed by the way it’s operating.”

 Monica Potts is associate editor for the Prospect. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, the Connecticut Post and the Stamford Advocate.












 (Source: The American Prospect)

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

The Word of Wisdom (WoW) in Mormon Fundamentalism & the LDS Church Explained. "Sister Wives"

Mormons call non - Mormons "Gentiles"... and in the interest of promoting cultural competency among all  you "Gentiles," here is a post on the Word of Wisdom....

 
The Word of Wisdom (WoW) in Mormon Fundamentalism & the LDS Church –
Doctrines and Covenants, Section 89 – A “Revelation” given through Joseph Smith the Mormon Prophet, at Kirtland, Ohio
February 27, 1833
1 A Word of Wisdom, for the benefit of the council of high priests, assembled in Kirtland, and the church, and also the saints in Zion—
2 To be sent greeting; not by commandment or constraint, but by revelation and the Word of Wisdom -
5 That inasmuch as any man drinketh wine or strong drink among you, behold it is not good.
8 And again, tobacco is not for the body, neither for the belly, and is not good for man.
9 And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly.

Members of the LDS church as well as Mormon Fundamentalists hold the following documents to be inspired scriptures: The New and Old Testaments, the Book of Mormon, The Pearl of Great Price, and the Doctrines and Covenants. 

The “Doctrines and Covenants” contains 1) the commandment to engage in polygamy (Section 132) in order to receive rewards in the afterlife, 2) a threat of destruction if a married woman refuses to permit her husband to take other wives, (again, Section 132), and 3) the Word of Wisdom appears in Section 89 – it is an admonition to refrain from the use of alcohol, tobacco, and hot or strong drinks, such as coffee and tea.

Members of the mainstream LDS church adhere strictly to the Word of Wisdom. They refrain from consuming alcohol, smoking cigarettes or chewing tobacco, and they refrain from drinking coffee and tea as these are “hot or strong drinks.” Consumption of hot chocolate, herbal teas, and cola drinks is considered acceptable by most observant LDS church members. Some LDS church members refrain from drinking colas and caffeinated energy drinks because they think that the caffeine content in these beverages would qualify for designating them as “strong drinks.” 

The LDS church views the Word of Wisdom (WoW) as a commandment which must be adhered to in order to obtain a “temple recommend” from the leader of their local church. A temple recommend is a letter which authorizes a Mormon to enter a temple to participate in the Endowment Ceremony. 

Most (but not all) Mormon Fundamentalists do not view the WoW as a commandment, it is viewed instead as a recommendation, as the text in Section 89, verse 2 states “…not by commandment or constraint, but by revelation and the Word of Wisdom.” Therefore, most fundamentalist Mormons feel free to drink alcohol, smoke, and consume coffee, tea and cola. 

Much is made of Robyn Sullivan Brown’s divorce decree wherein her ex - husband required that she refrain from drinking alcohol in front of their children. This should not be interpreted to mean that Robyn is an alcoholic. In all likelihood Robyn does not view the WoW as a commandment because she is a Mormon fundamentalist, but her ex - husband may very well view the WoW as mandatory or at least highly recommended as a health practice. 

Written by "Pretty in Pink" - Another wonderful written piece, THANK YOU so much for helping with these Posts!!!! 
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Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Holy Mormon Underwear

And here it is... in the interests of cultural competency, an article on holy Mormon underwear!


Fundamentalist Mormons, as well as observant mainstream LDS folks like the Osmonds, wear a special undergarment under their clothing directly against their skin. For most devout Mormons who wear it, the garment takes the place of regular underwear. If conventional underwear is worn, this undergarment is worn beneath their conventional underwear. This undergarment is alternatively known as “temple garments” or the “sacred undergarment” or “holy Mormon underwear” to outsiders. Devout Mormons understand that in only a very few instances might the garment be removed, such as for swimming, showering or bathing, using the toilet, or during sexual intimacy. The garment is worn even during sleep. 

Mormons begin wearing the temple undergarment during their first visit to the Temple or Endowment House, wherein they receive individual instruction on how the garment should be worn and cared for, during the Temple Endowment Ceremony. More about the Temple Endowment Ceremony in a future post. The AUB have their “Endowment House” in Bluffdale, Utah, and no doubt the Browns have undergone the Endowment Ceremony in Utah at the AUB Endowment House. 

According to the LDS Church, the wearing of temple garments serves a number of purposes. First, the garment provides the wearer with a reminder of the covenants made in the Endowment Ceremony. Second, the garment "provides protection against temptation and evil". Finally, wearing the garment is "an outward expression of an inward commitment" to follow Jesus Christ. The garment is thought to "strengthen the wearer to resist temptation, fend off evil influences, and stand firmly for the right."

Devout Mormons believe that wearing the undergarment provides "spiritual protection.They also believe that the undergarment provides physical protection, as many devout Mormons credit their temple garments with helping them survive accidents and injuries.


Holy Mormon underwear consists of a top and bottom piece, usually made from lightweight white cotton fabric. There are two styles of temple garments, one for men, and another for women. The garment is white as white symbolizes physical and spiritual purity. Mormons are encouraged through the modest length and cut of their temple garments to always dress appropriately, because if they do not, the temple garment will be visible. The temple garment is not to be altered in any way to accommodate immodest clothing.

The undergarment has four Masonic symbols embroidered onto the white fabric, in the region of the chest, navel, and knee. One of the embroidered symbols is related to the Squares and Compasses, symbols of the Masonic Order into which Joseph Smith, the Prophet of Mormonism, had been initiated about seven weeks prior to his introduction of the Mormon Endowment ceremony. Thus, the V-shaped symbol on the left breast of the garment was referred to as "The Compass", while the reverse-L-shaped symbol on the right breast was referred to by early Mormon leaders as "The Square". In Mormonism, "mark of the Compass" represents "an undeviating course leading to eternal life; a constant reminder that desires, appetites, and passions are to be kept within the bounds the Lord has set; and that all truth may be circumscribed into one great whole"; the "mark of the Square" represents "exactness and honor" in keeping the commandments and covenants of God; the navel mark represents "the need of constant nourishment to body and spirit"; and the "knee mark" represents "that every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus is the Christ.”



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