Can a man excuse his practices to the contrary because of his religious belief? To permit this would be to make the professed doctrines of religious belief superior to the law of the land, and in effect to permit every citizen to become a law unto himself. In Reynolds the Court ruled that polygamy was not protected under the free exercise clause. In another 19th century case involving polygamy, Davis v. The question raised in these cases was, should society tell a religious sect that it may not voluntarily engage in polygamy if the members honestly and sincerely believe that polygamy is ordained by the Bible or other religious texts?
The Court responded to a similar question in Sherbert v. Verner , where it overturned a denial of unemployment benefits to a Seventh-day Adventist who was fired because she refused to work on Saturday, her Sabbath. Here, the Court seemed to close the belief-practice distinction made in Reynolds and Davis. Smith the Court appeared to open that distinction up once more. In this case, members of a Native American religion had been dismissed from work and denied unemployment compensation because they too wished to practice their faith — in this instance, to engage in the ceremonial use of peyote in a religious practice.
The Court upheld the dismissal and the denial of compensation because the law against using peyote applied generally, not to religious practice specifically.
Congress sought to close the distinction again in the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of , but that legislation was declared unconstitutional in City of Boerne v. Flores The exact status of the distinction is now not clear. While the 19th century cases on polygamy were originally directed toward the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , the arrival of many new cultures engaging in this marital practice may yet again force the Court to confront not only whether banning it violates the free exercise of religion but also if proscribing monogamy is an endorsement of specific religious belief.
Macedo, S. Princeton University Press. Rubel, A. Sex Res. The Men with Many Wives, Channel 4. What Do Polys Want? Hi there, this weekend is pleasant for me, as this time i am reading this impressive informative paragraph here at my home. Click here to cancel reply. Email Address. Twitter Twitter. Essay competition third place: What are the effects of the rise of China on the present world order? Peter Wilson In July this year, three Colombians were hailed as having the first legal union between three men in the world Taylor-Coleman, Polygamy as currently practised When most people think of polygamy they do not think of the case of the three Colombian men.
In particular, the key problems with such marriages that I would highlight are: Concern about the harm correlated with polygyny as currently practised Uncertainty that the person consented to the marriage due to their own preference for polygamy Uncertainty that the person consents freely to the decision to become polygamous, and not under duress stemming from social or economic pressure But what does this analysis suggest should be done in the case of the Colombian men?
Conclusion At the moment, there may be good reasons to keep hub-and-spokes polygamy illegal. References Bala, N. Polygamy in Canada: Justifiably not Tolerated. Strauss, G. Is Polygamy Inherently Unequal? Ethics , — Taylor-Coleman, J. Is there a future for three-way weddings? BBC News. October 20th, Articles 1 Comment.
Previous post Next post. Polygamy is also legal in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and other neighboring countries, but these were not included in the study due to data limitations. Muslim supporters of polygamy often cite Quran verse , which instructs men to take as many wives as they can take care of, up to four, and they also point out that the Prophet Muhammad had multiple wives.
Historians have noted that Islamic guidance on polygamy was issued amid wars in Arabia in the seventh century, when there were many widows and orphans requiring financial support, and that polygamy created a system for them to be cared for. To this day, polygamy is most common in places where people, and particularly men, tend to die young.
However, the practice was disavowed by these groups in the Middle Ages, and polygamy generally has not been condoned by Jews or Christians in recent centuries. Still, polygamy sometimes was practiced by certain Christian sects, including by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sometimes called Mormons in the U. Some Mormon splinter groups still practice polygamy. Religion often plays a role in how polygamy is governed and practiced within a single country.
In Nigeria, for example, polygamous marriage is not allowed at the federal level, but the prohibition only applies to civil marriages. Twelve northern, Muslim-majority states do recognize these unions as Islamic or customary marriages. In India, Muslim men are allowed to marry multiple women, while men of other groups are not. However, in countries where polygamy is common, it often is practiced by people of all faiths.
Polygamy usually takes the form of polygyny — when a man marries multiple women. Polyandry, which refers to wives having more than one husband, is even rarer than polygamy and mostly documented among small and relatively isolated communities around the world.
In Burkina Faso, for example, where polygamy is common, spouses must agree that a marriage will be polygamous at its outset for the husband to be allowed to take another wife in the future. One-in-five U. A Pew Research Center survey published in found that Muslims around the world are divided about polygamy: While majorities in several sub-Saharan African countries and pluralities in parts of the Middle East describe polygamy as morally acceptable, Muslims living in Central Asia as well as Southern and Eastern Europe tend to say that polygamy is immoral.
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