Sister WivesstarMeri Brown finally got formal acknowledgement that her ex-husband Kody Brown abandoned their marriageby their church leaders, and she’s taking the information as a sign to move on. ThoughSister Wivesseason 19is different than any other season of the series by far, the relationship dynamics between Kody and Meri haven’t changed much since the end ofSister Wivesseason 18. Kody, the patriarch of the Brown family who once had a quartet of wives in his plural family, has been dealing with the shift of going from four wives down to one, Robyn Brown.

Meri, Christine Brown, and Janelle Brown have all left the patriarch in the last two years, causing chaos for the extended Brown family as they navigate the changes in their relationships.Meri and Kody’s marriage, which was the first of the plural Brown family, spanned over 30 years, but things became difficult whenKody fell for Robyn and emotionally distanced himself from his other wives. While Meri continued to attempt to make things work, she had a few missteps of her own as she moved through the 2010s. Meri’s decision to leave Kody and their marriage behind wasn’t taken lightly.

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Meri Requested A Release From Her Marriage To Kody From Their Church

Their Religion Doesn’t Acknowledge Formal Divorce

AlthoughMeri and Kody’s relationship wasn’t always bad, things began to get worse after Robyn joined the family, which pushed Kody and Meri to get a legal divorce. Though she was still his wife spiritually, the pair were legally separated so that Kody could legally marry Robyn and adopt the children she had from a previous marriage. Despite knowing that Meri wouldn’t be happy about having to split from Kody,she graciously took a step back in hopes that it would keep her marriage safe.

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After years of difficulty,Kody and Meri decided to step awayfrom their relationship in the finale ofSister Wivesseason 18. Though Meri revealed that it was a mutual decision, Kody tried to push the narrative that Meri had made it on her own and pushed him into splitting up. While he was hopeful that they wouldn’t actually have to go through the church to end their relationship, Meri decided to do things as formally as possible.She requested a release from her marriage to Kody from church leaders, and they quickly granted the release to Meri.

a montage of Meri and Kody brown from sister wives looking worried with a church background

The Church Granted Meri Her Release On Grounds Of Abandonment

Kody Has Denied He Left Meri Behind Emotionally

Meri’s release came with a formal statement from the church that sharedthey felt the release was appropriate due to Kody’s abandonment of the relationship. While Kody has been adamant for years that he didn’t leave Meri behind when he brought Robyn into the fold, the release begs to differ. Explaining that Kody and Meri’s marriage didn’t have the spousal support that the church deemed sufficient, the release allows Meri to move about her life as an unmarried woman.Sister WivesMeri’s release will allow her to be more independent in the eyes of the divine, which she holds highly.

He Didn’t Consider Her Feelings

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Although Meri’s release was something Kody knew she was seeking out,seeing that the church has officially deemed that he abandoned her in the eyes of their leaders was likely a surprise. Kody seemed to be of the mind thathis relationship with Meri was mutually abandoned, but it was clear that Meri still felt that there was something she could do to win her husband back. TheSister Wivespatriarch may be upset that Meri’s chosen to take a different path and find herself released from their marriage, but his behavior is what helped push her to that decision.

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Sister Wives

Cast

Sister Wives is a TV series created for TLC that follows Kody Brown and his four wives as they raise their eighteen children and tackle the challenges associated with their massive family dynamic and the stigma that comes with their way of life.