Polygamy Books takes the position that although there are wonderful religious people and sociological benefits in religious beliefs there are also hazards in the form of violence and oppression. The acceptance of a religious belief should be predicated upon its value or worthiness to established society and not necessarily the selfishness of individuals.

            In my absence I have shifted my focus from, Mormon polygamy is basically an oppressive lifestyle, to what makes these people tick, in other words, human behavior, primarily those disciplines that deal with nature and nurture. Once religion purported to have the answers to life’s most pressing questions; but since the progression of science in the fields of quantum mechanics, nanotechnology and genetics, especially in the last two decades, science is supplanting supernatural causality as an explanation for natural phenomenon.

            In spite of the rational enlightenment offered by science, irrational religious beliefs are alive and well. Until a Black man named Barack Obama was elected President of the United States, Mormon polygamy was well on its way to being legally respected and protected by the First Amendment. President Obama is now the talk of the town forcing all other causes and reforms to the back burner.

            Nevertheless, nowhere is human behavior more prominent and intriguing than in religious or supernatural beliefs, and when it comes to the power of belief and how it effects behavior, Mormon plural marriage is a quintessential model. According to neurologists religion and politics are conceptualized in the same region of the brain, helping to explain why Mormonism is a theocracy and Mormons, since Nauvoo, have been engaged up to their armpits in politics. 

            From a rational point of view Islamic fundamentalism is probably the most bizarre because of outlandish “compensators” like being rewarded in heaven with a gaggle of virgins if one blows himself up along with many infidels.  Irrational “compensators” makes Mormon fundamentalism a close, bizarre second; that is because of the impact of Joseph Smith, D & C 132, coupled with the observable behavior of Mormon fundamentalists. Arguably, Mormon polygamy is a fertile arena in which to study human behavior. So what should we expect to find?  What I found is that a look at Mormon fundamentalism through the prisms of nature and nurture is far more explanatory, meaningful and logical than supernatural causality. Consider the following:

            The teaching of Section 132 (Joseph’s plural marriage revelation) is based on a “reward, cost and punishment” form of conditioning. The belief that Section 132 is a commandment from Jesus Christ tends to reinforce its fecundity and ability to replicate. The contribution of the Y-chromosome gives the conditioned belief added weight enabling it to overpower the rational part of the brain of those who believe Joseph Smith was a genuine prophet.   

            Section 132 in and of itself, that is standing alone without a prior framework or belief that Joseph Smith was a prophet, lacks the fruitfulness to transcend rational analysis. 

            The use of the word “truth” as a constant when discussing religious beliefs is contingent upon conditioning like Pavlov’s dog. There is no more rational truth in the belief that when men cohabit with two or more women it will propel them all to a celestial exaltation than the belief that a black cat crossing your path will result in bad luck. There is no more logical substance in the cause and effect claim that the more wives a man can accumulate the greater will be his exaltation.

            What I’m trying to say is the rewards promised men and women who comply with Section 132 (to use the analogy of Rodney Stark – A Theory of Religion, 1986) are presumed to be “nonexistent” because there is no supporting evidence. In order to appease true believers or give them hope when a reward (exaltation) is out of reach, they are given what Stark calls “compensators.” A compensator is a magical meme (unit of information like a promise or doctrine) accepted by true believers in lieu of rational evidence. A compensator is produced by the mind, which is a product of the brain, which is a genetically construct organ. Section 132 is a nonexistent compensator that was influenced by the Y- chromosome. Plural wives are real live substantial rewards that are here and now – that is if you can control them. Speaking of control, Verse 7 is the key verse that exposes the revelation as a fraud for it places power in one man and only one man.  In order to be worthy of a stewardship over plural wives you must be obedient to that one man. That means time, talent (groveling) and money – lots of money.  It is the wealthiest grovelors that are rewarded with the most plural wives.   

            In other words there are “real” scientific explanations for the creation of Section 132 and the resulting behavior that is far more rational and meaningful than Joseph’s supernatural subterfuge. I devote a chapter to this phenomenon in my soon to be published, Mormon Polygamy, Virus of the Mind.