Rebecca Musser is a real estate agent in Idaho and Oregon who spends most of her life helping her clients find their dream homes, taking frequent hikes, In her spare time, she also brings her two children to play musical instruments together – such a life makes her feel extremely happy and comfortable.
Mather’s life now is so different from the past, she tries hard to avoid recalling the nightmare she experienced when she was young, and she doesn’t even want to look at old photos of the time. “The days before were like living in a cage, I lost myself and all that was left was absolute obedience,” she said.
▲ Today’s Rebecca Mather Source: “Insider” website (Insider.com)
More than 20 years ago, Mather lived in the denominational base of the “Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints” (Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, referred to as FLDS) in Utah, USA In the south, where it is almost isolated from the world, the believers live a polygamous life.
â–² FLDS children stand on stage Source: East Idaho News
Mather was born into a family of “Mormon Fundamentalists”. Her mother has 65 siblings and is her father’s second wife. Mather herself, like her mother, has many siblings. The sect controls their clothing, food, housing and transportation – euphemistically called “shelter”, but in fact it controls their every move, from what they wear to their words and deeds, where they go, what they learn, and who they associate with, no matter how small or small they are. Report to the denomination.
At the age of 19, Mather was arranged to marry the 85-year-old sect leader, Rulon Jeffs.
Ruren Jeffs, who has been the head of the sect since 1986, has nearly 70 wives and probably more than 60 children, according to NBC. He encouraged male followers to have multiple wives and many children, so that they would have “more rights in the kingdom of heaven.”
Rulen Jeffs claimed that he represented the will of God, and that God will communicate his will through him, including who can go to heaven, and his followers believe in this. Even more jaw-droppingly, if a follower pleases Jeffs and proves his loyalty, he can get one or more wives as a “reward” — women who are considered the husband’s property and belong to him forever. husband.
â–² Rulen Jeffs and two young wives photo Source: National Radio
Mather’s family considered it a great honor to be married to Luren Jeffs, but Mather felt nothing but fear. In order to avoid sex with Rulen Jeffs, Mather suggested to give Ruren Jeffs a massage every time before going to bed, so that he would fall asleep quickly, “I just want to do my best to get him to sleep as quickly as possible. “.
Ruren Jeffs died in 2002 and was succeeded by his son, Warren Jeffs, who even married the vast majority of his father’s widow to cement his position. His successor, Warren Jeffs, began to preach that he was also “Christ incarnation” and married his father’s wife because he was equivalent to his father’s “another reincarnation.”
â–² Rulen Jeffs died in 2002, his coffin surrounded by his numerous wives and other female members of the FLDS Source: Insider website
Warren Jeffs has doubled down on preaching that the end of the world is imminent, and is preparing to take his followers to an unknown location he calls the “Heartland.” In addition, Warren Jeffs controls the sect more tightly, prohibiting most members from using the Internet – he fears that if members see the real world, they will want to leave the sect.
In order to maintain his rule and authority, Warren Jeffs even formed an armed force, called “God Squad”, these people are responsible for monitoring members of the sect and to protect the safety of the sect.
â–²Warren Jeffs is the successor of FLDS
After Ruren Jeffs died, Warren Jeffs also asked Mather to marry her, causing Mather to make up his mind to run away. She secretly moved her belongings every night, and three days later, early in the morning, she climbed the fence and fled the sect.
“I remember the moment I closed the door and I knew I would never go back there again,” Mather said.
Mather left a note to her mother and sisters in her bed, which read: “I know you won’t agree with what I’ve done, but I feel I should be honest about how I feel, not what I’m doing. If things go against my heart, God will have mercy on me.”
“I tell them how much I love them and I want to be understood.”
â–² Rulen Jeffs and young women inside the church photo Source: Source: East Idaho News
After the arrest of Warren Jeffs in 2006, many of Mather’s brothers and sisters left the denomination, but some still practice polygamy in the FLDS, and Mather is still trying to shake off the legacy of the denomination, including The biggest problem is education.
Since Mather grew up in the sect and attended schools within the sect, she had no exposure to evolution, science, history and other related fields at all. Many parents will help their children with homework, but Mather can’t do it. Mather can’t do the seemingly simple fourth-grade homework. His son even asks her, “Mom, how can you not know this kind of problem?”
Mather didn’t say anything at the time, just lamented the luck of the child. She now has a son and a daughter, all of whom are enrolled in ordinary schools and receive modern education. This is one of her proudest achievements: not letting her next generation repeat the same mistakes. . “My daughter has never seen my kind of life and doesn’t know what polygamy is, and this nightmare is finally over.”
Mather is no longer affiliated with a particular sect, but belongs to herself. She has climbed the highest mountain in Idaho, she said: “When I got to the top and looked around and there was no one around, I suddenly realized how happy I am to be here!”
