Academia, Religion

Marriages Made In Heaven? Stories Claim New Findings On The Marital Status of Jesus Christ and Joseph Smith

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For those who love to follow the marriages of the rich and famous, this week was a real doozy. In a new book, researchers are claiming evidence that Jesus married Mary Magdalene and had two sons. In the meantime, a new publication on the website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints says that Church founder Joseph Smith had as many as 40 wives including one who was only 14 years old.

The findings in the new book “The Lost Gospel,” by Professor Barrie Wilson and writer Simcha Jacobovici seems like something out of “The Da Vinci Code.” It is based on the transcript of an ancient manuscript which tells the story of Jesus’s two sons and his marriage to Mary. The manuscript dates back to 570 AD and written in Syriac — a Middle Eastern literary language used between the 4th and 8th centuries and related to Aramaic, the language spoken by Jesus. It was written on animal skin or vellum and has been siting in the archives of the British Library for about 20 years after being held since 1847 at the British Museum (which bought it from a dealer who said he had obtained it from the ancient St Macarius Monastery in Egypt). Jacobovici, an Israeli-Canadian film-maker, and Wilson, a professor of religious studies in Toronto, decided to reexamine the text and believe that it contains a missing fifth gospel and confirms not just the long debate marriage to Mary but progeny of Jesus.

The news on the plural marriages of Joseph Smith is remarkable not only for its disclosure but its source. The LDS Church has always been highly reluctant to discuss the status of Smith as a polygamous. However, it was the Church that released the detailed account this month. It is a refreshing openness from the LDS leadership on a subject that has always been a matter of discomfort. The research suggests that Smith took his first “plural wife,” Fanny Alger, in the mid-1830s. There was a distinction drawn between bonds for this life, which included full matrimonial relations, and partnerships that would exist only in eternity in such marriages.

The essay, “Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo,” notes that “[m]any details about the early practice of plural marriage are unknown. Plural marriage was introduced among the early Saints incrementally, and participants were asked to keep their actions confidential. They did not discuss their experiences publicly or in writing until after the Latter-day Saints had moved to Utah and church leaders had publicly acknowledged the practice.”

Researchers believe that most of those sealed for eternity to Smith were between ages 20 and 40. The wives included Helen Mar Kimball, daughter of Joseph’s close friends Heber C. and Vilate Murray Kimball, who was [14.]” It was lawful to marry girls at the age during that period.

As was raised in our Sister Wives litigation (which is now on appeal), the LDS changed its position on polygamy when Utah became a state. In 1890, President Wilford Woodruff, the faith’s fourth prophet-leader, issued the “Manifesto,” which led to the end of the practice. That led to a split and the continued division between the LDS and FLDS, a small group that believes that polygamy is an essential part of the religion. The LDS Church remains opposed to plural marriages.

Source: Salt Lake Tribune

211 thoughts on “Marriages Made In Heaven? Stories Claim New Findings On The Marital Status of Jesus Christ and Joseph Smith”

  1. Paul, I read Obama’s first book. He speaks eloquently about being conflicted w/ his blackness. For the most part, he has done close to nothing for black folk. They have suffered horrible unemployment during his watch, and his hometown is like Iraq, w/ double digit murders many nights. He has embraced Al Sharpton as someone who gives him cover w/ poor blacks while he hobnobs w/ the wealthy, both black and white.

  2. @NickS

    I am glad you liked the Irish Poem! Oh, BTW, over on another website, where they have actual EXPERTS on propaganda, can you believe that there is no story whatsoever on Gruber and his lies and deception about a lack of transparency being politically advantageous and stupid Americans??? My goodness, but one would think that honest propaganda EXPERTS would be all over this story! You don’t think that they are politically biased over there, do you???

    Squeeky Fromm
    Girl Reporter

  3. Haz,
    Then why the “No” addressed to me? Also, why go into a ‘evangelicalized’ explanation invoking Jesus as one’s “personal savior”, addressed to me? Why not have said “No Glenn Beck is wrong and he’s a loon”? You still could’ve explained Jesus as the “Bridegrom” and church as the bride theory. I am very familiar with it.

  4. For some, negative attention is all they are capable of, so it is what they seek.

  7. It’s heartening to see good people joking about religion w/ love in their hearts and not an ounce of malice. Throw in a poem from Squeeky, some disgusting fat cheesehead photos, and a nasty thread is now transformed. We should all thank God for imbuing us w/ humor.

  10. Annie:

    No.

    The imagery and symbolism of marriage is applied to Christ and the body of believers known as the church. These are those who have trusted in Jesus Christ as their personal savior and have received eternal life. In the New Testament, Christ, the Bridegroom, has sacrificially and lovingly chosen the church to be His bride.

  11. A joke by Michael Haz.

    The Pope is studying in his Vatican office. An aide runs in and excitedly exclaims “You Holiness! I have wonderful news, but it’s both good and bad!”

    The Pope looks up and says “Please, give me first the good news!”

    “Holiness, on the telephone is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! And he is asking to speak with you!”

    Stunned but overjoyed the Pope asks “What is the bad news? How could there even be bad news??”

    “Holiness, our Savior is calling collect. From Salt Lake City!”

    ~Michael Haz, Off-Season Catskills Comic.

  12. http://mormonheretic.org/2012/03/25/were-jesus-and-mary-married/

    Several early Mormon leaders suggest that the wedding at Cana was Christ’s wedding.  A number of non-Mormon scholars have studied the wedding account in John 2:1-12 and come to the same conclusion.  For example, Baigent, Leigh and Lincoln say “In the Fourth Gospel, there is an episode related to a marriage that may, in fact, have been Jesus’ own.

    There are indeed elements in the wedding account that suggest it was the Savior’s wedding.  For instance, scholars have noted that Mary behaved as if she was the hostess.  Also, the fact that Mary asked Christ to replenish the wine indicated He was responsible for catering, which in turn suggests he was the bridegroom.  Furthermore, after the governor of the feast” tasted the replenished wine, he addressed “The bridegroom” saying, “thou hast kept the good wine until now.” (John 2:9-10)  Since Jesus had just replenished the wine, the obvious and logical implication is that He was the one being spoken to and hence the bridegroom. Baigent, Leigh and Lincoln observe, “These [the governor’s] words clearly seem addressed to Jesus.

    ******************
    And combining Mormonism and the marriage of Jesus to Mary Magdalene, we are truly back on topic. No wonder Glenn Beck buys into this.

    1. Annie – regardless of what Glenn Beck says, I have my doubts. There is no mention in the Gospels and it does seem like something important enough to have been mentioned.

  15. on 1, November 12, 2014 at 4:18 pmNick Spinelli
    ” I could see this thread would be hijacked, and indeed it was.”

    *******************************
    Indeed!

  17. I’d post a photo of Giants fans, but no one wants to see a photo of depressed people.

  19. Do you have any idea how long it takes to get a waxing like that? And it hurts. I’m told….

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