Year of Polygamy Podcast Word of Wisdom History

[Culper Jr.]

Been listening to the WoW history timeline on the Year of Polygamy Podcast. Really interesting stuff; I've been interested in learning the evolution of different Mormon teachings, and the WoW is just a mess. Lindsey Hansen Park goes through a timeline based on research by Clair Barrus that extends from Joseph Smith's early life to the present day. A couple of things I found interesting:

I noticed that the number of visions, revelations, and instances of speaking in tongues is directly proportional to the amount of sacramental wine consumed. These visions and revelations were practically non-existent by the early 1900s when the sacrament wine was finally completely replaced by water.

It seems that Joseph Smith would pontificate about something that he found interesting, and then sort of "drop it" and move on. Whatever he pontificated about would then take on a life of its own, and subsequent church leaders that lived after Joseph was long gone would use what he said to further their own agendas. Joseph never really lived the WoW. He was interested in the theories about health of the day, "prophesied" his bit about it and moved on to other things. Others picked up from there, changed it from 19th century wellness theories that were "not given by way of commandment" to "required for a temple recommend", and morphed it in to the nonsensical bag of crazy we have today.

Anyone else listen to this?

[Thoughtful]

I'm listening, but not done yet.

Lindsay seems to emphasize the idea that the WOW meant temperance rather than abstinence, that drunkenness was the issue rather than drinking.

I sometimes wonder if Joseph enjoyed seeing how he could control people, and perhaps alcohol didn't work out well as an area to control so it wasn't as useful.

I think Brigham was an outright sociopath tho.

[moksha]

A link would help. So to be helpful, here is Part One:

https://www.yearofpolygamy.com/year-of- ... of-wisdom/

[Rob4Hope]

I remember hearing that JS taught a lesson on some of this, and afterward rode his horse down the middle of the street sucking on a big cigar! Also, during the final days at Carthage, I think they had a bottle of wine...and they didn't wear their garments either.

Further...Brigham Young owned and controlled the liquor distilleries in the valley, as well as sending a large group of people, NOT after the Martin & Willey Handcart Companies, but after his shipment of the steam engine as well as the wagons of liquor.

Those guys didn't follow this stuff. And the church has carefully, skillfully, cunningly "correlated" it all right out of history....

How honest and benevolent our leaders are....

OH WAIT. IT WAS A DIFFERENT TIME BACK THEN. I have to remember that....sorry...got a little caught up in universal principles (as taught by Oaks) instead of relativistic principles. But Oaks said things were universal?

I'm confused now. I guess I need a GA from Kirton and McConkie to do my thinking for me and straighten this out!

[moksha]

Further...Brigham Young owned and controlled the liquor distilleries in the valley, ...

Brigham Young's famous Valley Tan Whiskey. Due to the Saints "waste not, want not" philosophy, barrels left over after prohibition were probably used as paint remover or sold to the Alta Club.

[Thoughtful]

Honestly it paints a picture of a dialectic between those who wanted temperance and those who wanted abstinence. JS wanted temperance and BY wanted control over everyone and everything...

However, I believe if the attitudes of the day prevailed in our current debate over medical mj, it would probably look more like:

-Medical use is ok.
-Recreational is ok socially or to unwind or do ordinances/ aid revelation.
-Public intoxication, choosing using over work or family, are excommunication-worthy sins.

I don't think that would be a terrible approach.