Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on December 10, 2021

A famous Jewish rabbi who died in 2019 had 'seven wives and 19 kids' which he thought was all part of 'God's divine plan'.

Philip Sharp, who was 60 when he died, had claimed that God spoke to him directly regarding polygamy.

Before his death Sharp had become famous, starring in several TV documentaries due to his unconventional lifestyle as a polyamorous religious leader.

He was born in north London's Stanmore hospital, and died on October 28, 2019, in Nairobi, Kenya, where he had been living for two years doing missionary work.

His lifestyle meant that his 1993 rabbinic ordination from the International Alliance of Messianic Congregations and Synagogues was actually revoked, although he continued to work as a religious teacher.

Philip and His Seven Wives, a BBC documentary released in 2006, was his first big TV appearance, and saw Louis Theroux dissect the dynamics of the Sharp family.

By 2013, Sharp was legally married to one wife - Hadas - but had been living with at least six others for over a decade, fathering several children.

Some of the rabbi's many kids weren't actually Jewish.

That same year Channel 5 released a documentary called The Girl With Seven Mums, featuring Sharp's then 10-year-old daughter Ellie and revealing what her bizarre upbringing was like.

The rampant rabbi also sat down with 60 Minutes Australia in 2013, where he revealed more details about how God had spoken to him, comparing his life to those of the ancient Kings of Israel.

He said: "I'd heard God speak to me many times, I'm a spiritual man.

"I'm used to that, but I've never been spoken to by God in this way.

"It wasn't so much what he said, it was the way he spoke to me. He spoke to me as if I were a king - that's the only way I can describe it.

"What I discovered is that every single King of Israel, when they became a King of Israel, the scriptures say that 'they took wives'.

"So it seemed to be almost an obligatory thing."

Sharpe was also asked about the impact of his lifestyle on his young children - to which he argued that most western laws are derived by the Bible, which itself was written by polygamists.

"So it can't be too bad," he added.

In 2018 he appeared on This Morning to defend his lifestyle to Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford.

He also revealed on the ITV show that by then he only had five wives, with two of them and some of his children having left the family.

Even after his death in 2019 the rabbi continued to perplex, with an inquest failing to conclude exactly how he died.

A court heard in December last year how Sharp was found by a relative having collapsed in his bathroom.

He was believed to have left a note the day before he died, detailing what he would leave for his family, leading to suggestions that it was a suicide.

The Old Court House in Hertfordshire was told Sharp went to the toilet but did not come out after "some time", leading a relative to check on him.

The cause of death on his death certificate was given as respiratory failure with suspected organophosphate poisoning, although the coroner said the evidence coming out of Kenya was limited.

The inquest eventually recorded an open conclusion.

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Inside life of Brit TV star with 7 wives and 19 kids as part of 'God's plan' - Daily Star

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