Polygamy in the LDS Church

Joseph Smith’s practice of polygamy is often misrepresented by LDS critics as secretive, predatory, and driven by sexual desire, but the historical evidence does not support those claims. Contemporary documents show that Joseph introduced plural marriage reluctantly, in response to what he and close associates understood as a divine command. Many sealings appear to have been eternity-only relationships, not marriages involving cohabitation or sexual relations, and there is no credible evidence that Joseph fathered children with any plural wife. Claims that polygamy was primarily about sex rely on speculation rather than documentation and ignore sworn testimonies from women involved, several of whom explicitly denied sexual relations. While the practice is unquestionably difficult and Joseph made many mistakes in implementation, the historical record supports the conclusion that Joseph’s plural marriages were religious in purpose and meaningfully different from the caricature promoted by LDS critics.

LDS critics often misrepresent Oliver Cowdery by claiming he exposed Joseph Smith’s adultery or left the Church over polygamy. In reality, Cowdery condemned what he thought was an immoral relationship before plural marriage was taught to him, and his excommunication was for broader political and legal conflicts, not adultery accusations. He never accepted or practiced polygamy, yet later returned to the Church and died affirming Joseph Smith’s prophetic calling and the Book of Mormon. Selectively quoting his 1838 remark while ignoring his later testimony creates a misleading narrative.

LDS critics often refer to a letter written by William E McLellin in 1872 about Joseph Smith being "caught in the act" by Emma in a barn with Fanny Alger, as proof that Joseph was an adulterer.  But by 1872, McLellin was no longer a neutral observer but a long-standing critic of the LDS Church. McLellin had been an original member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, called in 1835, but was excommunicated in 1838 after sustained conflict with church leadership. Following his removal, he became openly antagonistic toward the church, at times aligning himself with Missouri mobs. 

When the letter was written, McLellin had been disassociated from the main church for over 30 years and was firmly positioned as an outsider seeking to expose what he viewed as the corrupt practices of early church leadership, significantly limiting the credibility of his late, second-hand narrative.

Even though McLellin was avidly antagonistic for many years, he retained his life-long belief in the authenticity of the Book of Mormon.  

https://lettertomywife.com/polygamy-the-most-controversial-and-trying-doctrine/