> Polygamy is a Christian institution. It was pointedly prescribed in the old testament.
Correction: "Christian" refers to Jesus Christ, which does not appear in the old testament. Catholics, Ortodoxes and many protestant churches are against polygamy.
I'm not sure how to respond to this. Have you noticed that every complete Bible contains the Old Testament, including the Pentateuch in its entirety? Old Testament law and prophesy is woven deeply in the fabric of the gospels and of Paul's letters.
And while most modern churches have chosen to interpret Paul's prescription for monogomy strictly, some Christian churches and cultures continue to embrace polygamy.
> Have you noticed that every complete Bible contains the Old Testament, including the Pentateuch in its entirety?
Yes, I already had noticed this.
> Old Testament law and prophesy is woven deeply in the fabric of the gospels and of Paul's letters.
Just for curiosity, have you ever happened to actually read the Bible? There are plenty of prescriptions in the Old Testament that are not followed by Jesus. Jesus presented himself as "The Truth", and he often said he was giving "a new commandment". To rest on Saturday, to stone an adulteress, to be forced to marry your brother's widow have never been Christian commandments. And polygamy enters in this list.
The fact that for a small amount of time a small minority of Mormons (a small minority in the Christian world, less than 1% of the total) have accepted polygamy does not make this practice "Christian". Otherwise, if one follows the same line of reasoning, encyclopaedias should classify deers as "omnivorous", because in extreme conditions there have been reports of deers eating frogs and small mammals...
So then, if I understand you correctly, polygamy is in the same category as resting on the Sabbath? It's good to know that it's not forbidden, even though we're no longer obliged to do it :)
Correction: "Christian" refers to Jesus Christ, which does not appear in the old testament. Catholics, Ortodoxes and many protestant churches are against polygamy.