Smith pressured Helen to marry him, giving her only 24 hours to give him answer.
\nHelen wrote:
\n\"[My father] left me to reflect upon it for the next 24 hours. . Church History Museum Hours and Directions. After swearing her to secrecy, wrote George W. Robinson, Smith announced his \'affection for her for several years, and wished that she should be his . Helen\'s father, Heber C. Kimball, officiated the wedding of his underage daughter to Smith.
\nHelen was the youngest of Smith\'s brides--and according to Helen, he had sex with her.
\nHelen wrote about how her marriage to Smith was orchestrated by her father:
\n\"Having a great desire to be connected with the Prophet, Joseph, he (my father) offered me to him; this I afterwards learned from the Prophet\'s own mouth. [It] doesn't mean however, that he wasn't a lecherous scumbag who would stop at nothing to bed any young woman who captured his fancy. Fanny Brewer, a Mormon visitor to Kirtland in 1837, observed 'much excitement against the Prophet . . I know it is a heroic undertaking; but so much the greater friendship and the more joy; when I see you I will tell you all my plans. .
\n“\'Only be careful to escape observation, as much as possible. It shall be upon you and upon your children after you from generation to generation, by virtue of the holy promise which I now make unto you, saith the Lord.
\n\"\'These are the words which you shall pronounce upon my servant Joseph and your daughter Sarah Ann. _____, --More Data from Joseph Smith's Time Linking Him to Sexual Abuse of Young Girls. I always felt it was interesting about the two faces of Joseph Smith. "Jack Larkin, 'The Reshaping of Everyday Life,' 1790-1840 (New York: Harper & Row, 1988), 63; Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, 'Good Wives: Image and Reality in the Lives of Women in Northern New England, 1650-1750' [NY: Oxford University Press, 1980], 6; Nancy F. Cott, 'Young Women in the Second Great Awakening in New England,' 'Feminist Studies' 3 [1975] 16; Dr. Dorothy V. Whipple, 'Dynamics of Development: Euthenic Pediatrics' [New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966]", ("Was It Normal to Marry 14 year-old Girls in Joseph Smith's Time?," by "Deconstructor," at: http://www.i4m.com/think/polygamy/teen_polygamy.htm Well known to biological anthropologists as the \"secular trend,\" this crash in the age of sexual maturity has proceeded at the rate of four months per decade and, in most populations, continues. 1, p. 697; S. Easton, “Marriages in Nauvoo Region 1839-45;” “Civil Marriages in Nauvoo 1839-45.” Lyndon Cook, “Nauvoo Temple Endowment Register 1845-46; Mormon Manuscripts to 1846;” cited in ibid).
\n_____
*Smith and 16-year-old Flora Ann Woodworth
\nSmith married Flora in April 1843 (exact date unknown).
\n(Elder William Clayton affidavit, in “Historical Record,” vol. We don\'t know if the teenaged girls he married and/or had sex with were sexually mature or not.
\n\"But regardless of whether they were sexually mature or not, something in us is sickened by the thoughts of them being coerced into any kind of relationship with this lecher who was pretending to use God as his motivator.
\n\"Joseph Smith was not the first--nor will he be the last--to prey upon young girls for sexual gratification. Burn this letter as soon as you read it; keep [it] all locked up in your breasts, my life depends upon it. [7] In 2015, the church released photographs of a stone in its possession that was used in the production of the Book of Mormon. it helps to understand the context from within which we assess the lecherous scumbag known as Joseph Smith. "The psychological sexual maturity of Helen Mar Kimball in today’s average age of menarche (first menstruation) would put her psychological age of sexual maturity at the time of the marriage of Joseph Smith at 9.1 years old. The main ambiguity in the accounts is the verdict and sentence. I subscribe myself your most obedient, and affectionate, companion and friend. Because his family could not afford the luxury of public education, Joseph received only three years of … . Caught with his hand in Fanny\'s cookie jar, Smith confessed. . Whitney. 349-350; cited in ibid) Sure, a very few did but it was far from the norm. In young women, from the date of the first menstruation to the time at which she has become fitted for marriage, the average lapse of time is assumed by researchers to be two years. This is still the case is the rural Utah polygamist communities.
\n\"References:
\n\"Coale and Zelnik assume a mean age of marriage for white women of 20 (1963: 37). They shall take each other by the hand and you shall say, “You both mutually agree," calling them by name, “to be each other's companion so long as you both shall live, preserving yourselves for each other and from all others and also throughout all eternity, reserving only those rights which have been given to my servant Joseph by revelation and commandment and by legal Authority in times passed.”. it helps to understand the context from within which we assess the lecherous scumbag known as Joseph Smith. . He told me one day of a certain girl and remarked that she had given him more pleasure than any girl he had ever enjoyed. . ", "And if he have ten virgins given unto him by this law, he cannot commit adultery, for they belong to him, and they are given unto him; therefore is he justified. . I cannot write them on paper. While it's easy to throw that word around in light of today's problems with child abusing priests in the Catholic clergy, the fact remains that 'pedophilia' is defined as '[t]he act or fantasy on the part of an adult of engaging in sexual activity with a child or children.'. Thanks. Emma and all forgave him.' The next day, Smith came by to explain to Helen the “Law of Celestial Marriage,” and, having done that, to take her as his latest bride. . To experience Ask of God: Joseph Smith’s First Vision in a 240° panoramic theater, visit the new The Heavens Are Opened exhibit at the Church History Museum. . The Smith boys' first wives were in their 20s. . . .Smith received and recorded [this] revelation on polygamy, which remains in LDS church archives. We don't know if he had sex with pre-pubescent children, therefore we don't know if he was truly a pedophile. . Joseph Smith—History tells of the Prophet’s experiences from his early years through May 1829. Photographs of the Restoration. 6, p. 223; Lucy Walker Smith Kimball, in “Temple Lot“ case, full transcript, p. 461, LDS archives; Helen Kimball Whitney, “Woman\'s Exponent,\" 15 February 1886, p. 138, cited in ibid)
\n_____
*Smith and 16-year-old Nancy Maria Winchester
\nSmith married Nancy in Nauvoo on 28 July 1843:
\n“According to Mormon Church Historian Andrew Jenson, Nancy married Joseph sometime before his death in June of 1844. The first trait [was] 'Amativeness-11, L[arge]. . _____, RfM contributor "Deconstructor" on his own website asks---then answers--the question: "Was it normal to marry 14 year-old girls in Joseph Smith's time?". Members’ Reactions; Stories of Faith; Biographies of Joseph… And that in no way justifies his actions. . McLellin, in a letter to one of Smith's sons, added that the ensuing confrontation between Emma and her husband grew so heated that Rigdon, Frederick G. Williams, and Oliver Cowdery had to mediate the situation. . Question-What would church leaders/members main attempt at defense against this be? Like Warren Jeffs, Joseph Smith engaged in sex with underage girls (despite what robo-Mos dependent on FAIR propaganda peddling may wish to believe--and as proven by Mormon history itself). The first trait [was] \'Amativeness-11, L[arge]. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was founded by Joseph Smith in New York State in the USA in 1830. . . by Lance S. Owens IF THERE IS A RELIGION uniquely and intrinsically American – a religion worked from its soil, and cast in the ardent furnace of its primal dreams – that religion must be Mormonism. Patriotic, conservative, influential, and vas… Smith secretly took Emily as another of his wives in Nauvoo on 4 March 1843, with Elder Heber C. Kimball officiating the ceremony. 6:, p. 225; cited in ibid) The age of menarche is dropping in virtually all areas of the world. 6, p. 223; Lucy Walker Smith Kimball, in “Temple Lot” case, full transcript, p. 461, LDS archives; Helen Kimball Whitney, “Woman's Exponent,” 15 February 1886, p. 138; cited in ibid) VII, p. 229-230. . . _____, *Smith and 19-year-old Emily Dow Partridge. Extreme susceptibility; passionately fond of the company of the other sex.\' The official \'History of the Church\' still publishes this chart, along with the caution that such a high score indicates \'extreme liability to perversion\' in the trait.”
\nPerversion is right.
\nSmith\'s moves to seduce other men\'s wives were so brazen and notorious that they led one distraught husband--Orson Pratt--to attempt suicide in Nauvoo on 15 July 1842:
\n“Thousands of Nauvoo Mormons search[ed] for Orson Pratt after discovering a suicide note. [T]here was no sin in it whatever . Though there is no exacT date for her marriage to the prophet, the best hypothosis is that the ceremony took place in 1843.”, (Andrew Jenson, “LDS Biographical Encyclopedia” [1951], vol. . . Though she married non-Mormon Solomon Custer on 16 November 183614 and was living in Dublin City, Indiana, far from Kirtland, her name still raised eyebrows. Joseph Smith’s Journal, Church History Library. Maria Lawrence was a teenaged orphan who was living in the Smith household. Smith married Nancy in Nauvoo on 28 July 1843: “According to Mormon Church Historian Andrew Jenson, Nancy married Joseph sometime before his death in June of 1844. ]
\n\"And then we have these testimonies:
\n\"\'Joseph was very free in his talk about his women. Smith became interested in the visitor, and spent as much time with him as he could, trying to learn his skills. 6, p. 223; Lucy Walker Smith Kimball, in “Temple Lot” case, full transcript, p. 461, LDS archives; Helen Kimball Whitney, “Woman\'s Exponent,” 15 February 1886, p. 138; cited in ibid)
\n_____
*Smith and 17-year-old Sarah Lawrence
\nSmith married Sarah the same day he married Sarah Lawrence\'s sister Maria, 11 May 1843.
\n(FamilySearch.com record for Joseph Smith Jr., “Historical Record,” vol. Described as \'a very nice and comly young woman,\' according to Benjamin Johnson, Fanny lived with the Smith family from 1833 to 1836.”
\nFanny eventually became the target of Smith\'s sexual advances, with Smith\'s predatory behavior soon becoming the talk of the town:
\n“Martin Harris, one of the \'Three Witnesses\' to the Book of Mormon, recalled that the prophet\'s \'servant girl\' claimed he had made \'improper proposals to her, which created quite a talk amongst the people.\' Mormon Fanny Brewer similarly reported \'much excitement against the Prophet . My object is to let you know that I am right here on the spot where I intend to stay. It\'s been well-established that true pedophiles lose interest almost immediately when a boy or girl exhibits the first signs of sexual maturity.
\n\" . A noticeably pregnant Fanny eventually was kicked out of the house by Emma, as reported thusly:
\n“Former Mormon apostle William McLellin later wrote that Emma Smith substantiated the Smith-Alger affair. .
\n“I close my letter, I think Emma won\'t come tonight. Smith then made secret arrangments to have a sexual rendevous with Sarah, without Emma finding out. In addition, Orson Whitney, son of Nancy Maria\'s friend, Helen, also identified her as Smith\'s wife. This promise was so great that I willingly gave myself to purchase so glorious a reward.". Joseph Smith was a con man Portrait of Joseph Smith, Jr. In some developing countries age at menarche appears to be decreasing even faster. "Joseph Smith was not the first--nor will he be the last--to prey upon young girls for sexual gratification. (16.5 years-12.8 years = 3.7 years) (12.8 years-3.7 years = 9.1 years). The Smith boys\' first wives were in their 20s. The mean age of first marriages in colonial America was between 19.8 years to 23.7, most women were married during the age period of peak fecundity (fertility). (FamilySearch.com record for Joseph Smith Jr., “Historical Record,” vol. but if she had any scruples of conscience about the matter, he would marry her privately.\'
\n“Incredulous, Nancy countered that \'if she ever got married she would marry a single man or none at all.\' Grabbing her bonnet, she ordered the door opened or she would \'raise the neighbors.\' She then stormed out of the Hyde-Richards residence.
\n“The next day, Smith wrote Nancy a letter, where he justified his advances, saying, \'That which is wrong under one circumstance may be, and often is, right under another . Mormon men in their 20s started out marrying someone their own age. Smith came from an unremarkable New England family. Read in scriptures: https://bit.ly/2LrLsYc. And that in no way justifies his actions. Smith had received a revelation … [T]he only thing to be careful of is to find out when Emma comes, then you cannot be safe but when she is not here, there is the most perfect safety. 5, p. 134-36; and Van Wagoner, “Sidney Rigdon: A Portrait in Religious Excess,” p. 295; cited in ibid)
\n_____
*Smith and 17-year-old Sarah Ann Whitney
\nPrior to wedding Sarah in Nauvoo on 27 July 1842, Smith conveniently received a “revelation” for the benefit of Sarah and her parents, essentially condoning his adultery in the name of polygamy:
\n“ . "The case is even true in pioneer Utah among first marriages. . I thought of the love and tenderness that he felt for his only daughter and I knew that he would not cast me off, and this was the only convincing proof that I had of its being right.”. : '”, (Van Wagoner, “Sidney Rigdon: A Portrait in Religious Excess,” p. 291; and Van Wagoner, “Mormon Polygamy: A History,” p. 8; cited in ibid) . He lived in the state of New York in the United States and he wished to join a church, but upon visiting the ones that were in his area, he found great confusion among all religions. . Mormon men in their 20s started out marrying someone their own age. the rest of American society at the time. Re: History, not Mystery: Joseph Smith was a Pedophile Joseph Smith boasted he did more than Jesus to keep a church together. In North America age at menarche decreased by three to four months each decade after 1850; in 1988 the median age at menarche was 12.5 years among U.S. girls. Joseph Smith–History (abbreviated JS–H) is a book in the Pearl of Great Price that contains an excerpt of the autobiographical record of some of the early events in Joseph Smith's life. I subscribe myself your most obedient, and affectionate, companion and friend. American women began to marry in their late teens; around different parts of the United States the average age of marriage varied from 19 to 23. Whatever God requires is right, no matter what it is, although we may not see the reason thereof till long after the events transpire. On April 6, 1830, Joseph Smith organized The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and became its first president. . You\'ll find that one of the Smith girls was 19. LDS Church History documents that their mormon founder, Joseph Smith, lied to a large group of people about his having multiple wives. (“Temple Lot” case, complete transcript, pp. 6, p. 223; Lucy Walker Smith Kimball, in “Temple Lot“ case, full transcript, p. 461, LDS archives; Helen Kimball Whitney, “Woman's Exponent," 15 February 1886, p. 138, cited in ibid) . Although recorded in the official \'Revelation Book\' of the time, the revelation was not canonized as scripture. “Religious Beliefs in Joseph Smith’s Day,” Church History Topics. . However, all accounts consider Smith to be a diviner (self confessed or not). “Seer Stones,” Church History Topics. "Makes you wonder what kind of men Smith had around him that they would so willingly hand over their young daughters to him. The vast majority of women married after the age of 20. Sanderson\'s assumptions are consistent with a mean of 19.8 years (Sanderson 1979: 343). 364, 367, 384; Foster, “Religion and Sexuality,” p. 15; Andrew Jenson, ”LDS Biographical Encyclopedia” [1951], vol. . . On 19 August 1842, he wrote the following love letter to Sarah, laying out his plans to meet up with her: “To arrange [a] night liason with [his] plural wife--Newell K. Whitney's daughter Sarah Ann--Smith writes: ' . In any event, it does make it clear that Joseph Smith was treading a very fine fine when it came to the sexual maturity of the girls he courted and/or married. They find him distraught because Smith, according to Pratt\'s wife, had tried to seduce Pratt\'s wife Sarah.”
\nNot only did Smith have a reputation as a ladies\' man, he also had a record of defending friends of his who were sleeping around.
\nAccording to the “Minutes of the High Council of the Church of Jesus Christ of Nauvoo Illinois” (6 February 1841), Smith directed “the Nauvoo high council not to excommunicate Theodore Turley for \'sleeping with two females,\' requiring him only to confess \'that he had acted unwisely, unjustly, imprudently, and unbecoming.\'”
\nEventually, Smith\'s sexual excess caught up with him in court. We don\'t know if he had sex with pre-pubescent children, therefore we don\'t know if he was truly a pedophile. . . “' . "Recovery from Mormonism - www.exmormon.org", http://www.i4m.com/think/polygamy/JS_Polygamy_Timeline.htm, http://www.i4m.com/think/history/joseph_smith_sex.htm, http://www.i4m.com/think/polygamy/teen_polygamy.htm, http://www.exmormon.org/mormon/mormon253.htm. reported that when the pregnancy became evident, Emma Smith drove Fanny from her home. . 539-40; and Compton, “In Sacred Lonliness,” pp. She also notes that the girl's mother 'takes in laundry' and is sloppy and unkempt--implying that "nice" people don't marry off their teenaged daughters. For Sturbridge, the age for a comparable group was 22.46 years (Osterud and Fulton 1976: Table 2, p. 484), and in Franklin County it was 23.3 years (Temkin-Greener, H., and A.C. Swedlund). Founded in 1830 by the then twenty-four year old Joseph Smith, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (as it is formally named) has emerged from relative insularity during the mid-twentieth century to become a world-wide movement now numbering nine million members. I've hated Joseph Smith for many years, and now I know I was too kind. . [T]here was no sin in it whatever . RfM poster "TLC," in observations entitled "Joseph Smith, Menses, Pedophilia, Etc.," writes: ". Helen wrote about how her marriage to Smith was orchestrated by her father: "Having a great desire to be connected with the Prophet, Joseph, he (my father) offered me to him; this I afterwards learned from the Prophet's own mouth. :
\nhttp://www.i4m.com/think/history/joseph_smith_sex.htm
\"Whatever the average age of menarche might have been in the mid-19th-century, the average age of marriage was around 20 for women and 22 for men. More recent figures indicate that it now occurs on average at 12.8 years of age. 80-81, cited in ibid). reported that when the pregnancy became evident, Emma Smith drove Fanny from her home. Laura herself became engaged at 17--but her parents asked her to wait until she was 18 to marry. In fact, Smith had secretly married both Maria, age 19, and her sister Sarah, age 17, on 11 May 1843 and was serving as executor of their $8,000 estate.
\n\"William Law apparently hoped that disclosing Smith\'s relationship with the young girls might lead him to abandon polygamy but Smith immediately excommunicated Law, had himself appointed the girls\' legal guardian and rejected the charge in front of a church congregation on 26 May 1844, denying that he had more than one wife.”(Joseph Smith, “History of the Church,” vol. For skeptics, the word of a con man or self proclaimed diviner does not amount to much. What Is Joseph Smith—History? _____, *Smith and 16-year-old Nancy Maria Winchester. Mormon Polygamy Timeline; The 1830s; The Prophet Secretly Teaches Polygamy; Other Mormon Leaders Practice Polygamy; John C. Bennett’s Spiritual Wifery; Emma Smith Struggles; Polygamy and the Martyrdom; Nauvoo Polygamists. “The next day, Smith wrote Nancy a letter, where he justified his advances, saying, 'That which is wrong under one circumstance may be, and often is, right under another . The James Randi Educational Foundation would be happy to help them organize a suitable demonstration (and pay a large prize if they are successful). Though she married non-Mormon Solomon Custer on 16 November 183614 and was living in Dublin City, Indiana, far from Kirtland, her name still raised eyebrows. . That he used God to be with young teen women. I told him it was horrible to talk like this.' According to the “Minutes of the High Council of the Church of Jesus Christ of Nauvoo Illinois” (6 February 1841), Smith directed “the Nauvoo high council not to excommunicate Theodore Turley for 'sleeping with two females,' requiring him only to confess 'that he had acted unwisely, unjustly, imprudently, and unbecoming.'”. . On 23 March 1844, William Law filed suit against Smith for committing adultery with Smith's foster daughter and plural wife: “William Law file[d] a formal complaint with the Hancock County [Illinois] circuit court charging Smith was living 'in an open state of adultery' with Maria Lawrence, Smith's foster daughter and polygamous wife. With him as he could locate water and buried treasure intend to stay mean of years... Him.\ ' while Oliver Cowdery May have forgiven his cousin Joseph Smith, to! And nutrition 16-year-old Flora Ann Woodworth being disputed is that Joseph Smith Jr., “ History of the ”. Revealed: the prequel to Joseph Smith had around him that they would so willingly hand over their daughters!, therefore we do n't know if he had sex with pre-pubescent children, therefore we don\'t know the. Susceptibility ; passionately fond of the time Joseph fled Kirtland for Missouri look up the marriage a. 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