Pretty amusing coming from someone who now calls himself a Pagan.

Yes, it has been demonstrated that polygynous women have a higher rate of cervical cancer.
Yes, there are studies in the US and Africa of Christian polygynists.
The data also indicates that these women have higher rates of depression, anxiety and lower rates of marital satisfaction than monogamously married women do.
I suggest you read Medline abstracts rather than inserting your own opinions as scientific fact.

In any event, the only Christian thing to do is to submit to God’s Word, regardless of where that may lead us, for God is true and His Word is faithful.

So yes, I don’t care what the medical research might say. I don’t care what experts in sociology, psychology, or whatever else might say. All I care about is what God’s Word says, and to it I am bound because He died for me.

You call yourself a Christian, and so I must encourage you to repent of your unbelief, placing your trust not in man but in the God whose Word we have in the Scriptures.

Science and medicine are not created by God. Those are fields of study done by man, and such study is not based upon the perfect Scriptures but upon the fallen realm of nature. The results of the fall have led scientists to reject Genesis 1, and the results of the fall have led you to reject what God has said regarding marriage. Trust the Scriptures.

MD: You assumed I am a man because I am a physician.

Me: Yes, I did.

MD: You cited an opinion piece that states that polygyny benefits women.
There is no objective medical or scientific data which supports this claim.
The article you cite is the opinion of a social anthropologist who has no patient contact.
One could just as well cite Carolyn Jessop’s book “Escape” or cite Mary Mackert’s book on her experiences as the wife of a polygynous Mormon patriarch (prior to her conversion to Christianity) regarding the “benefits” of polygyny. These are opinions or feelings of the writers, not scientific or medical facts.

Me: Yes, you are right. I never claimed it was anything else. You made a major assumption about my post!

MD: Women living in polygynous relationships have higher rates of marital dissatisfaction, higher rates of treatment for depression, anxiety, somatization disorder,fibromyalgia, post partum depression, suicidal ideation, and they suffer more domestic violence than women in monogamous relationships do.Women in polygynous relationships have higher rates of cervical cancer than women in monogamous relationships do. (2X higher) Children of polygynous families have higher rates of arrest, substance abuse, depression, truancy and poorer academic performance than children of monogamous relationships do.

Me: 1. I have read the research, which hasn’t been verified independantly, btw.
2. I do not believe that it has been proven that women who are polygynous have a higher rate of cervical cancer.
3. These studies have not included Christian Polygyny, for that matter.
4. There are other benefits to consider other than medical and scientific; companionship; financial (in some cases); stability for children; more freedom for women; as well as the Lord using it to develop Godly character (my second wife helped me with this one).
5. So, what!? I just read some statistics on monogamous marriage. I would have had to inserted an entire PDF booklet file to share what the research (and lots of it) has shown researchers in about 20 categories. Does this mean that people should not get married? No! If Christians are to base their decisions upon scientific research, this would make Science their God! The fact of the matter is this: Where there are people, there are problems, but with Christ, these problems have solutions in the form of His promises. Since God allows marriage, to include polygyny, then it is up to man/woman to appropriate His promises from His Word to live in the abundant life that is possible by doing so. If families learn to walk in the Spirit, they will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh (which do not include polygyny, btw), but will manifest the fruit of the Spirit — this is the abundant life!

MD: Therefore, there is no scientific or medical evidence that polygyny benefits women, nor is there evidence that polygyny benefits children.

Me: There isn’t any conclusive evidence on the other side either!

MD: Both science and medicine were created and revealed by God, just as Scripture was.

Me: This is true to some degree, but you and I both know that there is a great deal of unethical manipulations that go on in the scientific community as well — especially in the social and anthropological arenas! The bottom line is this for all true believers: where science disagrees with the clear Word of God, true believers will always end up on the side of Scripture — or they may be guilty of calling God a liar!

“let God be true, but every man a liar” — Romans 3:4

MD: If I may point out as a physician and published medical researcher (17 peer reviewed publications to date) –

ME: This is noble, but does not relate to the topic at hand. In logic we call this the “simplistic appeal to authority”. Being an expert in one field, does not automatically make one an expert in another field.

MD: The articles you cite are opinion pieces, not scientific research studies. No objective scientific proof is offered or presented in these articles to prove that polygyny benefits women.Scientific studies are based upon a hypothesis, an intervention (could be an anonymous survey), control group, experimental group, presentation of data, and analysis of data from the control group vs. experimental group. These articles which you cite therefore do not qualify as objective medical or scientific data.

ME: I understand that, but thanks for the reminder: I did not cite it as proof of scientific data, but as proof that others do not see polygamy as negative.

MD: When outcomes such as marital satisfaction of polygynously married women are studied vs. marital satisfaction of monogamously married women by means of anonymous standardized surveys, monogamously married women consistently have higher scores in terms of marital satisfaction. This finding has been replicated in multiple studies, in several different cultures. So there is no evidence, contrary to the claim of the article you cite, that “most women benefit from polygynous society.”

ME: I didn’t realize that the Scriptures tell believers that we are to get married in order to be “satisfied”! Hmmmmm… Could you support this idea since this seems to be the main thesis of your last few sentences?

The fact of the matter is that the scientific community has always criticized practices by believers, and then justified them by “studies”. There are Psychiatrists, Psychologists and Physcians who claim that people who are claim to be born again are mentally ill; and God forbid if you tell them that the Holy Spirit spoke to you!

Thanks MD for your secular position statement. From my perspective, let God be true, and every man a liar. Blessings to you, Sir. I am sure you have some clincial responsibilities that need your attention.

I wonder… Do those “higher scores in marital satisfaction” explain the gross amount of divorces among the monogamous? I guess they’re so happy in the monogamy, they just can’t wait to try it again. And again. And probably again too.