The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1878-11-24
Polygamy.
The following telegram appeared several
DAYS ago In our city papere:

uhJb ago III CITY papers.
| SALT LAKE CITY, Nov. l6-The Norma
women held o meeting in the theatre to.ds
and passed resolutions avowiug q belief in tn
patriarcha order of marriage as revealed {
Gods people in past ages. which, if lived n
| to, were conducive TO long life, strep 9Th an
. glory. They indorsed 1t one Of the mos
important principles Of our holy religion, an,
claim the right of it's practice.
1t will be remembered that the que stiol
of Norman polygamy is now before tn
Supreme Court Of the United States al
that its status is to be examined in con
nection with the plea Of religion. Tb,
Gentle authorities say that Morman
shall not practice polygamy the Mormans
answer that the supposed offense is AT
article of their religious creed, that the
Consultation guarantees their religious
freedom, and that any law which brands
one of their doctrines rs criminal is an
| iufraction Of their religious liberty.
AS the National Supreme Court is not in :
clined to bubble out of dificultiee, We feel
| great interest in watching to see how it
will solve this one. 1t would be prepos-
ferrous to pretend that polygamy is against
| the natural lew. The Salt Lake ladies
ch eek mate such move as that by
their affection ate reference to the Pa
triarcbs and their customs. If polygsmy
is natural crime now, so it was in those
ages, and no one will make go serious q
charge against the holy men of the O.d
Testament.
But if polygamy is not a natural crime,
why may it ret be adopted by some parties
as an element of their religious faith. If
men claim to believe-if perbaps they
do believe-that polygamy is divine
Injunction, that it is the will of God
they should practise it, is it not an outrage
ia iateEPase- the -st4aag aim CT the laM to
prevent them from doing sof Sincere be-
iievers in this or any other doctrine would
suffer marty rdom rather than abandon it
at the command of the civil power. Who
shall pronounce their belief fanaticism 7
Who has given the Supreme Court, or any
other tribunal, the power to pass on the
correctness OF religious doctrines 7 Ger
tainly no such authority exists in this
country, and forth nstely, for if the Mormon
religion could be examined into, so could |
the creed of the Methodist sect or the Ca
tho!ic Church.
The S1preme Court will, therefore, find |
Itself in qgaLdAry. Ii it admits poly
gaWy 10 be part Of the Mormon faith, how
can it enforce any law pauiShins il as an |
offense ard thereby derogating from the |
II volatility of that faith I Ii it main- I
tains the law which prohibits the practise |
OF this doctrine, it might, next, enforce a
law prohibiting tbs reception of baptism.
6a oh 70 A f,r 81,
consistency and to base is judgmen on !
principles which will not necessarily lead |
on to sbsurdities hereafter.
II Any sect should adopt, as OF it's faith, |
some practise which is against natural law,
40 which is therefore crime in itself, I
such WAS theft or murder, the courts |
would. of cour=e, pay no attention to the |
plea of religion. They take notice of the
law aud of the fact that no religion |
can be genuine wherein it conflicts with |
that law. But apart from this, American !
courts have no principles which they can !
apply to religions as test of their doc
trines.
But if the Supreme Court acts logically |
on this issue and maintains the religious |
pretentions Of the Mormaus, it will put
this country in the attitude of j1dicially
sOlerAtirg polygamy. The statutory crime
of bgamy will a .for,.ori disappear, because
every bigAmist Will have q suitable re
ligion.
The United States would then be oblig-
ed ts abandon the false preterse, hereto.
fore go recklessly advanced, of being
Christian nation. Oar Constitution does
not reco gniEe Christ nor even the e1i steLce
of God, and it grows Interesting as We hcd
the Supreme Court being brosgh: face 20
face with the fac.