Category Archives: Polygamy

Andrew Garfield, Daisy Edgar-Jones and an eerie true-crime story reminiscent of True Detectiveneed we say more? Probably not, but we will because we are simply enthralled by upcoming series, Under The Banner Of Heaven.

Based on the book of the same name from author Jon Krakauer, the limited run series follows the bone-chilling events that led to the murder of Brenda Wright Lafferty (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and her baby daughter in Salt Lake Valley, Utah, 1984, as investigated by Det. Jeb Pyre (Andrew Garfield).

Find everything you need to know about the new series, below.

Tragically, the terrifying events that take place in Under The Banner Of Heaven are based on a true story.

Brothers Ron Laffertya self-professed prophetand Dan Lafferty were convicted of murdering their sister-in-law, Brenda Wright Lafferty and her baby daughter, in July 1984.

The heinous act was believed to be the result of Rons religious views, claiming he received a revelation ordering him to kill Brenda and her daughter.

The series investigates not only the crime, but also the "isolated American communities where some 40,000 Mormon Fundamentalists still practice polygamy".

The seven-episode mini-series has been confirmed to debut exclusively on Disney+ in Australia. An exact premiere date is yet to be announced, however it is slated to air this year.

You can sign up to stream the show along with other Disney+ and STAR exclusives like Only Murders In The Building, righthere.

The first official trailer for the series has dropped and its as chilling as we expected. You can watch the full clip, below.

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Where To Watch 'Under The Banner Of Heaven' In Australia - Marie Claire

A private member's bill to regulate the country's population was withdrawn in Rajya Sabha (File)

A private member's bill to regulate the country's population introduced by BJP member Rakesh Sinha in the Rajya Sabha was withdrawn on Friday.

Mr Sinha withdrew The Population Regulation Bill, 2019, expressing confidence that "we will be able to control our population rising above caste, religion, language and district" on account of serious efforts being undertaken by the government in this regard.

Mr Sinha cited the example of Hindu and Muslim population growth rate differences in Kerala and West Bengal. He said that from 2001 to 2011, the decadal growth rate of the Muslim population was 21 per cent whereas that of the Hindu population is 10 per cent. Similarly, in Kerala, the decadal growth rate of Hindus is 10 per cent whereas that of Muslims in the state is 29 per cent, Sinha said, and added that "facts do not change by closing one's eyes".

He said attention needs to be paid to the total marital fertility rate.

"Our (government's) efforts are being undertaken in a constitutional manner. We do not want to repeat the Emergency," Mr Sinha said.

Participating in the discussion, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said population control should happen by creating awareness among people and it should not happen by force and being made compulsory.

"We have gained results as the fertility rate has come down to around 2 per cent... It tells us that the family planning mission is moving towards success," the minister stated.

Mr Mandaviya noted that the country has witnessed a population growth rate dip from the 70s and 80s with the success of various policy measures.

"The government's policy is to pursue its goals without using force and by adopting initiatives around creating awareness and by educating people. We are moving ahead by following this.

"I agree with Rakesh Sinha that the family should be small and that the population should be stabilised. The policies which have been followed to date will help us achieve our goals. So I request the honourable member to withdraw the bill," he stated.

He assured the member that the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was taking a lot of steps to stabilize the population in the country.

Mr Mandaviya also elaborated on the measures taken by the government in enhancing healthcare infrastructure in the country, including an increase in the number of MBBS and PG seats across states.

Earlier, KJ Alphons of the BJP said there was a need to educate people about the matter.

John Brittas of CPI (M) attacked the practice of polygamy and stressed the need for strong measures to check population growth in certain states.

AAP MP Sanjay Singh raised in the House the issue of the alleged "attack" on Delhi Chief Minister and party leader Arvind Kejriwal.

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Private Member's Bill To Regulate Population Withdrawn In Rajya Sabha - NDTV

By various estimates and definitions, there are anywhere from five to more than a dozen different sects within the Fundamentalist Mormon community, each with its own Prophet and living space. At one point, they were all one group of Mormons excommunicated for maintaining a polygamous lifestyle, and many of the break-off sects are still connected financially in one way or another, sometimes via land rights or corporations.

Fundamentalist Mormons are spread out around the American West and in parts of Mexico and Canada. Their numbers are hard to pin down due to the secretive nature of their polygamist lifestyles, but most estimates are between 30,000 and 50,000.

The largest of these sects is the FLDS, or Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (primarily in Arizona and Utah). With about 10,000 members, it comprises perhaps 25 percent of Fundamentalist Mormons. The next largest is the AUB, or Apostolic United Brethren, also known as the Allred Group (primarily in Utah). Its numbers are in the area of 7,500.

Other, smaller sects have anywhere from a hundred to about 1,500 members. They include the Centennial Park Group (Arizona), the Davis County Cooperative Society (Utah), the Church of the Firstborn (Mexico), the Bountiful Groups (Canada), the Confederate Nations of Israel (Utah), the True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days (Utah), and the Missouri Community (Mormons settled in Missouri after Joseph Smith revealed the Second Coming would take place there).

While it's true that some of the wives in polygamous marriages receive government support (only the first wife is legally married -- the others are single mothers), Fundamental Mormons also run farms and have construction companies. They work on construction projects -- legitimate ones -- all over the West and Mexico, and, with a few exceptions, interact with those outside their sects. In most cases, the people they work with outside their communities simply look the other way on the polygamy issue. It's illegal, but in many areas, particularly in Utah, outsiders practice a certain degree of lenience toward the religiously sanctioned plural marriages.

Polygamy, while invariably illegal throughout North America, is still a form of marriage. As such, there are guidelines regarding the way Fundamentalist Mormons form their commitments and carry them out. Perhaps the most basic one is this: Only a specific form of polygamy is sanctioned.

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What are the rules of polygamy? | HowStuffWorks

What are the references to polygamy in the Bible? In biblical times it was common to find the custom of having more than one wife or husband at the same time. The truth is that the story of polygamy in the Old Testament is, well, a problem. Although monogamy was clearly God's intent - Genesis 2:22-24, the picture blurs pretty quickly after Adam and Eve's Genesis 3 and expulsion from the Garden. By Genesis 4, you have Cain's son Lamech taking two wives.

Moses had two wives as well. The Mosaic Law likewise accommodated the practice of marrying more than one wife, including captured prisoners from foreign conquests (Deuteronomy 21:1-17). It also made provisions for continuing the family line by marrying a brother's wife if he died without producing heirs (Deuteronomy 25:5-12). And the stories keep coming: Gideon, one of Israel's champions, had many wives; Elkanah, a presumably godly man and the father of Samuel, had two wives.

The picture gets even dicier when one considers the practice of the kings of Israel. King David, the "man after God's own heart," had eight wives. In 2 Samuel 12 when the prophet Nathan confronts David over his sin with Bathsheba, we read: "This is what the Lord God of Israel says: 'I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I have given you your master's house and your master's wives into your bosom ... and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah, and as if this wasn't enough, I would have given you even more." David's son, Solomon, however, went overboard, flouting a stipulation in Deuteronomy 17:16-17 that kings not accumulate "too many" wives. For the record, Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines.

How does one respond to this situation? The answer begins by seeing that God always points His creation back to the primacy and perfection of the original design. Next, you have to read every book to the end -- especially if it is the biblical context. And if you read the stories about the characters referenced above, you'll quickly find that polygamy was an unmitigated sociological disaster that created heartbreak and sowed familial discord. By the time of the writing of Malachi, God's command to a thoroughly chastised nation was clear: covenantal monogamy was to be the norm.

Further, through the ministry of Jesus, we see God "reset the clock" so to speak to the original goodness of monogamous marital union -- pointing forward to a new society and a new way. He also enacted new provisions to protect women and raise their standing in society. Jesus showed a world that had distorted the meaning of marriage back to the beauty of "the man being joined to his wife, and two will become one flesh." ~ Excerpt from Gods Plan for Marriage: Dealing with Old Testament Polygamy by Gregory Alan Thornbury

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Polygamy in the Bible - What Does God Say?

The multi-millionaire President of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, has joined Russian forces in Kyiv.

The 45-year-old friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin is reported to have taken to Telegram to share a video of himself wearing a military uniform.

In the video, Kadyrov could be seen studying plans alongside a table surrounded by soldiers claiming to be in Hostomel, a village outside Kyiv, at an airfield captured by Russian forces in the first days of the war.

Kadyrov wrote: "The other day, we were about 20km from you Kyiv Nazis, and now we are even closer."

He added: "We will show you that Russian practice teaches warfare better than foreign theory and the recommendations of military advisers."

Kadyrov has been accused of a number of serious human rights violations by many international NGOs.

The father of 12 has six sons, two of whom were adopted, and six daughters. Despite polygamy being illegal in Russia, he has three wives; Medni Musaevna Kadyrova (43), Fatima Khazuyeva (29) and Aminat Akhmadova.

The president has been in office since 2007 and, during his time, has led anti-gay purges and advocated to restrict the public lives of women.

The 'savage' has also been accused of ordering the kidnap, torture, and murder of opponents, journalists and critics.

Kadyrov has even gone as far as to encourage families to murder anyone in their household who is gay as an alternative to law enforcement.

An activist for the Russian LGBT network said: "In Chechnya, being homosexual is considered to be a huge shame."

"Homosexuality is considered shameful not only for the person but for their whole family, and there are honour killings. It is considered that homosexuality brings such a shame on the family that there is only one way to wash the shame away - to kill the person. And we know these things are happening.

"Sometimes people are released from prisons because the authorities know they are going to be killed by the family."

Tanya Lokshina from the Human Rights Wash said that gay men were being forcibly "disappeared."

"Law enforcement and security agency officials under control of the ruthless head of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, have rounded up dozens of men on suspicion of being gay, torturing and humiliating the victims," she said.

"Some of the men have forcibly disappeared. Others were returned to their families, barely alive from beatings. At least three men apparently have died since this brutal campaign began."

Kadyrov has denied these claims saying that there were no gay people in his country.

In an interview with HBO's Real Sports, he said: "We don't have those kind of people here. We don't have any gays. If there are any, take them to Canada.

"Praise be to God. Take them far from us, so we don't have them at home. To purify our blood, if there are any here, take them."

Asked about the accusations of systematic torture, Kadyrov said, "They made it up. They are devils. They are for sale. They are subhuman. God damn them for slandering us."

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The 'barbaric' Chechen leader with three wives and 12 kids joining Putin - Irish Mirror

Burma

The NLD government's religious affairs minister Thura U Aung Ko in 2017. / The Irrawaddy

By The Irrawaddy 15 March 2022

Former Brigadier General Thura U Aung Ko, who served as the minister for religious affairs and culture under the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government, was sentenced to 12 years in prison with labor for alleged corruption on Monday.

The regime filed four counts of corruption against the minister under Section 55 of the Anti-Corruption Law after accusing him of accepting bribes from a businessman and abusing his position of power to confer Buddhist titles on laypersons.

The regime alleged that U Aung Ko accepted 40 million kyats (US$22,522) from individuals in return for Ssannuggaha titlestitles conferred on those who make significant contributions to the promotion of Buddhism. He was also accused of accepting a luxury car and a gold plate weighing 20 ticals (326.6 grams).

The former brigadier general was a long-time member of the Central Executive Committee of the military proxy Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP). He was appointed deputy minister of religious affairs under the former military regime and was a Lower House USDP lawmaker during the Thein Sein administration.

U Aung Ko, who is known to be close to former General Shwe Mann, a close ally of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, was appointed as religious affairs minister in the NLD government following the partys landslide victory in the 2015 general election. He is also said to be close to NLD leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

He was given three years for each of four corruption charges, for a total of 12 years. U Aung Ko, in his capacity as the religious affairs minister, abolished the Association for Protection of Race and Religion, a pro-military nationalist group better known by its Burmese acronym Ma Ba Tha. During the U Thein Sein government the group successfully lobbied for the approval of a controversial set of four laws on race and religion that imposed restrictions on interfaith marriage, birth spacing, polygamy and conversion, believed to be targeted at Muslims. It later clashed with the NLD government, however, and in May 2017 the state-backed cleric organization Ma Ha Na announced that Ma Ba Tha was an unlawful organization and banned it from operating under that name. The group has since rebranded itself as the Buddha Dhamma Charity Foundation.

Since seizing power on Feb. 1 last year, the regime has arrested most of the NLDs leadersincluding State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myintas well as senior party members including government officials and ministers. To keep them behind bars, the regime has charged the detained officials with an array of offenses including breaching COVID-19 rules and the Official Secrets Act, as well as high treason and incitement to corruption.

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Myanmar Junta Jails ex-General Who Served in NLD Govt Over Corruption Allegation - The Irrawaddy

Community Education and Youth Development Activist, Dr. Akosua Abdallah has revealed that she would willingly look for a good woman for her husband to marry as a second wife.

She explained that at her age, having a co-wife wouldnt be a bad thing because she (second wife) will take good care of her husband and the house.

If Im given that opportunity, I will go fish for a woman as a co-wife. There are a lot of single women out there who need husbands as well. Looking at Ghanas population now with women dominating, its obvious men have to take more wives, she noted.

Already Im tired and need somebody who will come and help me in cooking and other domestic works, but it is something else when they come, so I will do the investigation and bring someone who will not come and stress me, she stated.

Speaking with Roselyn Felli on Prime Morning on Wednesday, she explained that if polygamy is structured and executed well, it will help reduce adultery and address side-chick issue.

She added that women dominating Ghanas population is a big issue with respect to marriage that needs redress.

According to her, it will be good for society to accept and allow men with the financial muscles to opt for a second wife instead of cheating with young girls. This, she believes, will bring unity to various households.

Her reason for being the one to choose the woman is to avoid future struggles between them as seen in some polygamous homes. Dr. Abdallah reiterated that cases of second wives wanting to kick out the first wife scares most women, hence the dislike for polygamy.

She concluded by advising young women to desist from forcing married men to shift attention from the home, but rather court a peaceful relationship with the wives for them to be accepted, because that is how the forefathers lived.

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I will personally look for a co-wife for my husband should the need arise Akosua Abdallah - Myjoyonline

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Event in Brigham City to support survivors of polygamy - The Herald Journal

JANELLE Brown savagely cut one of her fellow wives out of a family photo in an old episode of the TLC show.

The Sister Wives star recently opened up about the future of her marriage to husband Kody after Christine abandoned the family.

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Janelle, 52, threw some shade towards her long-time sister-wife Meri, 51, in a re-surfaced scene from the show.

While rewatching a clip from years past, one fan noticed that the TV star covered up Kody's first wife in a family photo.

In the image, all four wives surrounded the patriarch with a big embrace, however, Janelle used another photo to cover up Meri's face.

The fan shared the snub to Reddit where they opened up the discussion with the caption: "Just noticed that Janelle has Meri covered up in this family photo."

"Thats so f**ked up. can you imagine going to someones house and they have your picture covered?

"Forget it being someone youre close with - but thats just such an a**hole thing to do, keeping the picture out in the open and purposely making it cover someone," a second ranted.

"You dont cover people. just take the entire pic down. jeez."

"It is an awful thing to do," another agreed.

"I love the petty cover-up of meri in the picture," a third laughed.

Another remarked: "She's so mean to Meri," while a fifth commented: "Why wouldn't she just take the whole pic down?

"Or put it on the very bottom shelf as a lame a** attempt that 'hey its STILL up!' Bc that's just awful."

"This is the kind of pettiness I live for," a final joked.

The Brown family has become derailed after Christine, 49, decided to leave the life of polygamy behind and move back to Utah.

After the shocking decision was made, fans were curious as to just how secure the other three wives felt in their marriage to Kody.

Janelle finally opened up about the future of her relationship with the father of 18, as the entire family "questions" their loyalty to polygamy.

During the finale episode of the show, an interviewer asked: "Do you still believe in polygamy?" to which the reality star replied: "Yes I do.

"I'm here. I mean there was a point during Covid where I was like 'okay do I still wanna do this?'

Janelle continued: "And there was a period of time where Kody was away for about six weeks, and I thought 'Wow life is really easy.'

"And I really kind of had to do some soul searching and realize that I want to be here still.

"I'm here."

When Kody was asked in the sneak peek if he questions practicing polygamy, he responded: "I question it all the time."

The TV personality's decision to stay with her husband came after his brutally honest conversation regarding their "love" for one another.

In February, Kody was asked during the Sister Wives One on One"tell-all special ifhe was in love with Janelle.

"I love Janelle," he replied.

But that answer didn't satisfy host Sukanya Krishnan, who pressed him again with the question of if he is in love with Janelle.

After a moment to consider, Kody slightly shook his head from side to side and answered the question without answering it.

"Janelle wouldnt tell you she was in that place with me either if shes being honest," he confessed.

Along with Christine and Janelle, the busy father is also married to Meri, and Robyn, 43 who has been labeled as his "favorite wife."

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Sister Wives fans in shock as they notice Janelle Brown cut rival wife out of family photo in resurfaced... - The US Sun

He made headlines in Cameroon in the 1980s when at the age of 35, he married six wives in addition to his already 36 wives. Mongo Faya, who was known as a singer, seer, traditional healer, herbal gynecologist, parapsychologist, and astrologer, married his new six wives at a civil wedding ceremony on July 11, 1987, in the port city of Douala in Cameroon.

At the time, he had about 28 children with his over 30 wives aged between 20 and 24 living under the same roof in a small village north of Yaounde. The Cameroonian musician had also returned from the U.S. where he recorded his latest album, Stop Apartheid.

The well-known polygamists in the country during this time were reportedly envious of Mongo Fayas feat, with some accusing him of using black magic to charm the women. He was unbothered. The traditional healer and seer believed that polygamy was one of the continents ancestral values that ought not to die.

Polygamy is not a battlefield but a business where we live in community with mutual respect and understanding he said, according to reports. I dont do magic, my wives love me how I love them too; it is through this love that tranquility and peace come to me. Love alone can bring peace.

Indeed, polygamy is a centuries-old practice in Africa that has yet to disappear from modern life. It has both cultural and religious origins, and it is generally accepted in about 26 out of 54 African countries, particularly Muslim majority countries. Critics of the practice say that it undermines womens dignity and increases the risks of diseases and poverty. Scores of women have been compelled to live in polygamous marriages, a usual practice among men centuries ago who were in search of large families to cultivate the land. To date, countries such as Algeria, Mali, Niger, Kenya, Uganda, South Africa, and so on, generally accept polygamy.

In Cameroon, polygamy has been continuing among traditional rulers, with many marrying as many wives as they desire. Locals believe that men who have many wives and children have supernatural powers and they help boost the economy, DW reported. In recent years, the rising cost of taking care of families, the spread of Christianity and the countrys penal code that reserves jail sentences for adulterous spouses, have been challenging the practice, the report added.

At the time of his death in 2002, reports said that Mongo Faya had 80 wives, and some locals praised him for that. In May 1988, writer Martin Jumbam narrated in the Cameroon Tribune how Mongo Faya and his many wives once held up traffic in the city of Douala. Jumbam wrote that he was in a taxi on his way to work when Mongo Faya appeared on the street with his bushy hair and a piece of yellow cloth leading his squad of women in tow and disrupting traffic.

I saw, filing out, like mating ants, from between two ramshackle houses, a dozen or so slender-looking, gazelle-like, spindle-legged women with wasp-like waists and generous bosoms, all clad in tight-fitting, black jogging attires that left very little else to the imagination.

Before I could ask who those nymphets were, I heard our taxi driver switch off his car engine and was out of the car in a flash, clapping and shouting at the top of his voice, with the other idlers: Mongo Faya! Mongo Faya! Roi des femmes! (King of women!); Empereur des nanas!! (Emperor of chicks!). From every corner, the excited crowd vociferously expressed its admiration for Cameroons much vaunted macho man and lady-killer, Mongo Faya.

A year after this, 15 of his then 45 wives sued him, demanding an additional vehicle for their transport but the matter was solved. Some of Mongo Fayas wives helped him take care of his 15 hectares of plantations in the village of Endom while others owned small shops and hairdressing salons opened for them by Mongo Faya in Douala.

He sometimes appeared on television with some of his wives describing himself as a medicine man who could cure men with erectile dysfunction. He got a lot of clients in his lifetime, reports said. As a singer, Mongo Faya sometimes performed on stage with his wives. He disliked being compared with Nigerian Afrobeat legend Fela Kuti, who also had many wives. Fela is Fela and Mongo Faya is Mongo Faya, Mongo Faya is reported to have said.

Whats more, he never wanted his children to know their mothers, arguing that each child belonged to all of his wives. Not much has been said about his wives and children since he passed away on July 6, 2002, at the central hospital in Yaounde following an illness.

Excerpt from:

Remembering Mongo Faya, famed Cameroonian traditional healer who had 80 wives - Face2Face Africa