Brigham Young married 56 women in his lifetime. Polygamy was one of his most ardently commanded commandments. He preached it at the pulpit ad-nauseam.

How old were you when you found this out? Did they teach it in primary? Did they hang pictures of Joseph and his thirty-or-so wives in your classroom, or was it just Emma? How about Brigham?

In the manual, Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young, published in 1997, there is no mention of any plural wife. Brigham’s first wife, Miriam Works, is mentioned. The wife he married after she died, Mary Ann Angel, is mentioned. The other 54 wives are never mentioned. That Brigham Young was a polygamist is not a fact that is even alluded to in the book. The word “polygamy” makes no appearance in the entire manual.