Sophie Dianne explores the dangerous consequences of distorted spiritual authority through the lens of the Netflix documentary Trust Me: The False Prophet. She challenges readers to consider what healthy, Christ-centred leadership and relationships should truly look like.
Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey arrived on Netflix in 2022, examining Warren Jeffs, the former President of the FDLS Church. The second documentary in the series has recently dropped on the streaming platform and has been in the UK top 10. Trust Me: The False Prophet follows the rise of Samuel Bateman, who claims to be Jeff’s ‘religious heir.’
The film sees cult survivor-come psychology professor, Dr Christine Marie, and her Music Producer husband, Tolga Katas move to a small community in 2016, and spend a decade uncovering the crimes of Bateman. Living with him, were 20 spiritual wives, with half thought to be children, none of the marriages were legally or ceremonially recognised.
Dr Marie befriended the women and along with her husband, captured never-before-seen footage, that exposed a system of human trafficking, psychological control and a pedophile ring.
Dr Marie befriended the women and along with her husband, captured never-before-seen footage, that exposed a system of human trafficking, psychological control and a pedophile ring. This lead to an FBI raid of the families 3 properties and the conviction of Bateman, to 50 years in prison and the sentencing of his accomplices; LaDell Jay Bistline Jr, Torrance Bistline and Moroni Johnson - the father of six of Batemans wives.
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The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints is a polygamist offshoot that stemmed from the mainstream church in the early 20th century. The FDLS felt that the LDS had strayed from God’s path, having abandoned polygamy in the 1890. But both group’s follow a living prophet, who, is considered God’s earthly spokesman.
Unlike the Latter-Day-Saints, the Fundamentalists are taught that their leader’s word is law. The Prophet has total control over the lives of the group, including an individual’s assets and property. In the past, there has also been controversy, due to the groups’ racial prejudice, as they believe in the so-called curse of Cain. According to FDLS teachings, black ethnic groups are descendants of Cain, and are therefore seen as spiritually inferior.
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Within the FDLS church marriages are assigned by the Prophet, through placement, where women are taught to obey the commands of their husband, without question.
The churches most important doctrine is about marriage. For a man to reach the Celestial Kingdom, he must be married to at least three wives. To ensure this, the FDLS follow a ‘one-man’ rule, living under a strict authoritarian structure, where women are required to maintain their purity and follow strict dress codes. These women are taught as children, that their entrance into heaven is entirely dependent on being sealed, to a priesthood-worthy husband, who can call her into the afterlife. Within the FDLS church marriages are assigned by the Prophet, through placement, where women are taught to obey the commands of their husband, without question.
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In 2006, theology and ethics professor, Steven Tracy, wrote an article entitled ‘What does ’submit in everything’ really mean? The nature and scope of marital submission.” In this paper, Tracy directly challenged the biblical perspective of marriage and concluded that there are a multitude of considerations, when it comes to submission in emotionally destructive marriages. In short, Tracy recognised that women should not submit to anything that would violate biblical principles, compromise her physical or emotional wellbeing, or subject her to abuse.
Having watched Trust Me: The False Prophet, I could see these parallels and also recognised that the new leader, Samuel Bateman, falsely interpreted scripture to cause harm. His leadership involved a strict regime of atonement ceremonies, forced group sex, brainwashing and physical punishment, which saw women forced into week long isolation in a storage cupboard. Bateman manipulated several of his adult wives into assisting him with his crimes, coercing them into securing more child brides, or forcing them to witness the abuse or ordering kidnappings.
It says in Ephesians 5:23-25: For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of His body, the church. As the church submits to Christ, so you wives should submit to your husbands in everything. For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her. I’m currently unmarried and still grappling with my understanding of submission. But I would like to think, that when the time comes, I would marry into a partnership where I could speak up for myself and be able to ask questions.
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