We never thought we’d say this.
It seemed absolutely impossibly.
But it now must be uttered because it really may be the case:
Jen Shah might not be the most despicable member of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City cast.
This seems crazy, we know, based on what Shah has been charged with.
But you’ve gotta hear what people are saying about Mary Cosby, you guys!
The Bravo personality helps run the Faith Temple Pentecostal Church, serving as that organization’s First Lady after being basically ordered to marry her step-grandfather in order to inherit the family business.
Yup. Mary Cosby married herr grandfather.
Over the past several months, Cosby has been accused of using the church to support her lavish lifestyle, while a handful of former members recently spoke to The Daily Beast — and absolutely trashed Cosby as the anti-Christ.
“It’s cultish what they’ve done,” one person told this outlet, saying he was part of the church for 25 years and adding:
It’s the mental manipulation to try to get people to believe that she has the power to either take them to heaven or condemn them to hell.”
A former female member, who still has close family in the church, also hurled some seriously scary shade in the direction of Cosby.
“She’s got these people terrified. That woman is the most evil thing that ever walked this Earth,” said this anonymous individual.
“You have no idea, all those smiles and sh*t — that is not real.”
Then there was a third person who spoke to The Dailt Beast, saying he “unequivocally” believes Cosby has turned the church into a cult, stating her teachings are far different than typical Christian beliefs.
“She preaches that she is God on earth. The church has gone to ruin and most everyone has left because Mary has no anointing whatsoever when she preaches,” he explained.
“She just screams at her members and mentally abuses them into submission.
"[She] brainwashes them on the regular, not to mention the utterly flamboyant and hypocritical life she lives.”
Uhhh, YIKES, huh?
Cosby has never exactly tried to hide her extravagant lifestyle.
According to another ex-member, Mary and her husband/step-grandfather, Bishop Robert Cosby, "would sit and demand money until they got a certain dollar figure, whatever [sum] was in their head before they let people go."
This source labeled it a form of "mental manipulation" and added:
"Mary and [her husband] require all of their members to give them way more money than their monthly tithes. They call them love offerings.”
Cosby is expected to address these allegations on Season 2 of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.
But she also touched on them this past January:
"They’ve been saying that since my grandmother started at the church.
"There’s no cult. My church members, they know those are false allegations. Those are ridiculous. Clearly I’m not gonna get on national television, be a Housewife and be in a cult.
"Like, come on. I believe in my church."
This isn’t really the most convincing argument of all-time.
“All religious institutions, including the Faith Temple Pentecostal, accept donations from their parishioners; however they don’t force parishioners into poverty to make such contributions," said an attorney for Cosby as a (weak) rebuke of The Daily Beast article.
As for the claim that Mary refers to herself as God?
The same lawyer said the allegation is “extremely offensive and has no basis in reality.”