SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) – Netflix released a new limited series in June on the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS) and its leader, Warren Jeffs.
The docuseries, entitled “Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey,” examines the rise of Warren Jeffs, the self-appointed prophet of the Church, and his shocking criminal case.
The FLDS Church is an offshoot of the LDS Church that allows for polygamy, or, the practice marrying multiple spouses.
Warren Jeffs succeeded his father, Rulon Jeffs, as the “prophet” of the church, and was the sole delegator of wives to their husbands.
Jeffs continued to preach polygamy as a principal doctrine of the church, claiming that it is essential in order to attain the “highest level of salvation.”
The documentary looks at survivors of the church, including Rebecca Musser, who was a former wife of Warren’s father, Rulon.
Musser has since left the church and worked as an activist and author, publishing her book entitled, “The Witness Wore Red: The 19th Wife Who Brought Polygamous Cult Leaders to Justice,” in 2013.
Musser was a key witness at Warren Jeffs’ trial in addition to helping law enforcement in the analysis of the FLDS church after the 2008 raid of the church’s ranch in Texas.
In 2011, Warren Jeffs was found guilty of sexual assault of a child and sentenced to life in prison. At the time of his arrest, he had 24 wives that were underage.
