Kody Brown was asked if his ex will be in the afterlife with him on the Sister Wives Tell-All. While this may seem a strange question, for those in the FLDS faith, it’s very pertinent and a real concern.

But there’s some background to understand what Sukanya Krishnan was really asking. Soap Dirt consulted current and former LDS and FLDS members to investigate.

Sister Wives Patriarch Kody Brown Destined for God-hood?

If you’re unfamiliar with LDS (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) doctrine, here’s a quick summary. Marriage on Earth is a prerequisite to greater status in the afterlife. Why does that matter?

“Celestial marriage” (marriage after death) is a prerequisite for a man to be “exalted”. What does that mean, though? In their faith, exaltation is the highest form of salvation where a man can become a god.

If you ever wondered about Kody Brown’s ego, consider that this is the fate he sees awaiting him. Men without an after-life marriage can’t grab that brass ring in the LDS faith. So, marriage is very important.

And the path to the best afterlife begins in this world with your choice of spouse. This is a simplification of a vast amount of doctrine. If you’re interested in seeing it for yourself, consult their Doctrines and Covenants Section 132.

It’s also important to note that this section of the doctrine is not observed by mainstream LDS. However, Kody Brown and the Sister Wives are of the FLDS faith. That “F” is for fundamental. They are Fundamental Latter-day Saints followers (i.e. polygamists).

How Do You Get a Wife in the Afterlife?

Kody Brown marrying a woman in this life doesn’t mean she’ll be his bride after they’re both dead. Just saying “I do” doesn’t cut it. Instead, you must go through a process called “sealing”. It’s a special ritual that binds you to your wife eternally.

That’s how a marriage from your temporal life becomes your celestial wife (i.e. wife in the ever-after). Judging by conversations on the Tell-All, Kody sealed his marriage to Christine Brown. And likely to all four of his spouses, in fact.

Traditional LDS couples undergo sealing. And it’s also done in the offshoot FLDS churches. When host Sukaya Krishnan asked about their split, Christine said, “as far as a religious sealing, I think God’s fine”. But TLC subtitled it wrongly as “ceiling”.

And fans unfamiliar with LDS doctrine might have missed what this meant. Christine basically confirmed she was sealed to Kody Brown. So, according to doctrine, she’s his wife in the afterlife too. And her “divorce” from her Sister Wives hubby is problematic.

Why? Of course, both LDS and FDLS permit divorce. But disentangling yourself legally is one thing. And in Christine’s case, she was never a legal wife to Kody in the eyes of any state. They were spiritually wed by an FDLS bishop.

Will Kody Let Ex-Sister Wives Spouse Sever Their Eternal Bond?

Of note is that mainstream LDS followers view FDLS as a whole different religion. But they do share some doctrinal foundations. In both faiths, you can seal with a spouse. And you can break that sealing.

And you can seal for early marriage. Or you can seal for afterlife marriage too. But, it’s not easy to undo. And it’s apparently patriarchal. So, Christine can’t break her seal without Kody’s permission.

On the One on One Tell-All Part 1, Sukanya brought up the subject with him too. She asked, in his faith, “is she [Christine] always married to you?” And she dug deeper asking if his ex “wouldn’t go into the afterlife with you”?

Kody danced around it and said, “God has a way of sorting things out”. But he admits his religion says no to her avoiding their afterlife link. Then, he called it “a dogma of the religion” and said, “it’s in God’s hands”.

Christine Done with Plural Marriage — No More Sister Wives for Her

Christine said she’s stepped away from the church on Tell-All Part 1 & 2. So, that could limit her ability to request anything.

However, her father is a big-wig in the Apostolic United Brethren (AUB). So, she might have an advantage should she seek to break her seal to Kody. She also said on the One on One that she won’t be in a plural marriage again. She thinks God sees she checked that off.

And Kody sounded like he’d let God sort it out. But doctrine is doctrine. If you’re FLDS and sealed, you accept your spouse is yours after death too. Even traditional LDS struggle with this.

If a man’s sealed to a wife, and she dies, he can remarry and reseal. Then, in the afterlife, he’s got two wives and neither have much say. As for Christine, she can ask the bishop to break the seal. If they won’t, Kody Brown will be expecting her on the other side.

Complicating this more is her kids. If she breaks the seal, her children are affected. FDLS doctrine says her children are also sealed to Kody. So, it follows they wouldn’t have their mom in the afterlife if she breaks the seal.

That’s assuming her kids are still of the faith and accept the doctrine. What’s clear as of the One on One Part 3 is that Kody Brown agrees with Christine Brown that their marriage is over. But will she be his wife in the afterlife? That’s not an easy question to answer.