Prophet Israel Ford is doubling down after receiving backlash over his polygamous lifestyle. For context, a video of the Ohio prophet and his wife introducing his second wife to his congregation recently went viral. Subsequently, he was dragged through the mud!
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Prophet Israel Ford Responds To Backlash
Ford is the leader of the LifeWorks Church in Wickliffe, Ohio. On Sunday, October 25, Ford and his first wife, Pastor Lydia Ford, announced to their congregation during a sermon that Minister Shakayla Ford is his second wife. He was quickly roasted on social media.
Then, on Tuesday, October 28, he appeared with his sister-wives on Larry Reid Live to defend his lifestyle. When asked about a Bible reference stating that a bishop is to be the husband of one wife, Ford replied that it didn’t apply to him because he isn’t a bishop.
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“My first uh response is one, I’m not a bishop, nor am I a deacon,” he said. “Two, if that’s actually what that meant, then um, that will only pertain to those who are on that level of leadership.”
When asked what it was like to have Shakayla go from his “spiritual daughter” to his “spiritual wife,” Ford said it was “pretty easy.”
“Okay. Well, um, it was uh pretty easy for me actually,” he replied. “It was easy, because I usually try to, who I am, like, uh, at church is who I am at home. I don’t like in a sense like change hats.”
Furthermore, when asked whether his wives could have another husband, the polygamist answered with a defiant “no.”
“No. If they wanted, you know, another husband, then they don’t want me,” he said.
Meanwhile, both wives noted that it was difficult to make the transition, and Shakayla spoke of what her husband “needed.”
Prophet And Wife Introduced Second Wife To Congregation
As reported by The Shade Room, Ford introduced his second wife to their congregation during a sermon Sunday, October 25. The prophet stood by as his first wife, Pastor Lydia, made the introduction.
“I want to share that you know… Prophet and I, you know, we are living, even right now, um, in what we would call a polygamous marriage,” she said. “My husband, our Prophet, he has a second wife. Y’all know her. Y’all love her. Y’all benefit from her ministry every week. And so, I just want to take this time and just, um, as a pleasure of mine to introduce to y’all Prophet’s wife and my sister in marriage, Minister Shakayla.”
Shakayla then took the stage and claimed, “this is the will of God… I have learned so much from pastor. I mean, he has poured so much into me and into our family… is it the image of what God wants to put in the earth.”
Ford Reportedly Beat Up His First Wife’s Daughter In 2018
After his viral second-wife reveal, the internet began digging into Prophet Ford’s past. Ford has a domestic violence conviction for assaulting his 17-year-old stepdaughter in 2018, according to the Ohio Court of Appeals, Eighth District. The girl is the child of his first wife, Lydia Ford. The couple were jointly indicted in a 15-count indictment, including counts for robbery, assault and child endangerment. He was sentenced to 120 days in jail.
SEE COURT DOCUMENT HERE.
Ford allegedly hit Lydia’s daughter with a belt, leaving bruises visible for three days, and slammed her into a wall. In addition, he reportedly choked her with his knee on her neck. Ford reportedly has strict house rules and demanded that his stepdaughter “behave like a Christian.”
“The domestic violence conviction stemmed from an incident where Ford struck his 17-year-old stepdaughter K.C. with a belt, leaving bruises visible three days after the incident,” the documents state.
The 17-year-old testified that her punishment involved, “lying across the bed, taking her pants off” and belt lashings. Lydia was allegedly beating the girl first in January 2018 with a belt following a Snapchat incident. The teen then tried to “get the heat off her” by revealing to her mother that Prophet Ford was allegedly texting his ex-wife. That prompted Ford to demand the girl go upstairs for a whooping.
“Ford claims the record does not support his conviction of domestic violence because he was administering parental discipline to punish his stepdaughter’s misbehavior… pictures were admitted as exhibits, which showed bruises on her shoulder, arm, legs, and thigh… after she told her mother something about her stepfather, he told her to go upstairs to be ‘whooped.’ When she refused, he put her on the ground and choked her with his knee on her neck. She ran to the kitchen to grab a knife to defend herself, but put it down in the sink. Her stepfather then slammed her into the wall of the kitchen and then threw her around in the living room.
When she finally went upstairs, she resisted being ‘whooped.’ He then started beating her all over with a belt and slammed her to the ground. He beat her all over her body and pulled her by her hair to the ground. After that, she laid down and let him ‘whoop’ her. “
