An Ohio pastor has drawn attention after his first wife introduced a church minister as his second wife during a Sunday service, prompting applause from the congregation and debate over his interpretation of the Bible.
Israel Ford, who leads LifeWorks Church in the Cleveland area, shared the announcement on Facebook on Sunday, October 25, 2026. His wife, Lydia Ford, described their relationship as a polygynous marriage before welcoming Minister Shakayla to the congregation as her husband’s second wife.
“Our prophet, my husband, he has a second wife,” Lydia said, according to the transcript of the announcement. Applause followed. She then described Shakayla as someone the congregation already knew through her ministry, introducing her as “my sister in marriage.”
The church’s website identifies Israel Ford as its founder and says he has led the ministry since 2009. It also describes Lydia as his co-pastor. Both therefore hold leadership roles within the congregation where the announcement was made.
The disclosure concerned an existing relationship rather than a wedding held that day. According to The Christian Post’s reporting, Ford said he had been living with two wives for approximately three years.
Shakayla also addressed the congregation, presenting the relationship as consistent with her religious beliefs. She said she had benefited from the family arrangement and rejected the suggestion that the household was defined by rivalry. The Christian Post reported that she described their relationship as “the will of God” and said some church members had already known about it.
Ford defended the arrangement in the Facebook post accompanying the announcement. According to The Christian Post, he called the teaching that a man should have only one wife “unbiblical” and said he intended to explain his position in a sermon. He also acknowledged that some people might reject his interpretation and distance themselves from him.
YEN.com.gh reported that Ford cited Exodus 21:10 in his post. That Old Testament passage addresses a man taking another wife and requires that the existing wife’s provision and marital rights not be reduced. Ford’s use of the verse forms part of his religious justification for the relationship.
Criticism has focused on New Testament qualifications for church leadership. In its commentary on the announcement, Not the Bee cited 1 Timothy 3:2–4 and Titus 1:6. In the Christian Standard Bible, both passages use the phrase “the husband of one wife” when describing an overseer or elder. Those texts provide the basis for the objection raised against Ford’s position.
Polygyny refers specifically to a man having more than one wife at the same time. However, the family’s description of its relationship does not establish the civil legal status of either union. The reports reviewed do not provide marriage records confirming two legally recognized marriages.
Ohio Revised Code Section 2919.01 prohibits a married person from marrying another person or continuing to cohabit with that person in the state, and classifies a violation as first-degree misdemeanor bigamy. Whether the statute applies to a particular situation depends on the facts; the public announcement alone does not establish a criminal violation.
The Christian Post said Ford had not responded to its request for further comment by the time of its October 26 report.
https://x.com/AsakyGRN/status/2114623764495233420?s=20
