While these small towns are charming, there is a darker side to aspects of fundamentalist sects that have their roots in the Church of Latter-Day Saints.
Mormonism, like many Protestant churches, began as a restorationist movement, which is to say that it was dedicated to restoring everything in the Bible. Joseph Smith, Jr., Mormonisms founding prophet, felt especially close to the Old Testament, so he believed his mission was to restore Old as well as New Testament traditions such as the authority of prophets, temple rituals, and the ancient Semitic custom of plural marriage.
http://www.signaturebookslibrary.org/essays/mormonpolygamy.htm
The states’ capitulation to polygamy marks a monumental victory for fundamentalist Mormons who have steadfastly held to the practice as their central religious tenet since faithful men were first commanded to marry multiple wives in the 1830s by Mormon founder Joseph Smith.
http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/2007-10-04/news/persecution-complex/
The church, which has long sought to be seen as part of America’s mainstream, joins with other religious organizations to back California’s ban on gay marriage. But now it has become a political target.
By Nicholas Riccardi , November 17, 2008
Mormons spend 20+ million on Prop 8 and ignore tens of thousand of polygamous women and children in Utah who are systematically abused and kept in ignorance.
A video entitled Banking on Heaven illustrates the plight of the children in polygamist sects such as Colorado City.
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