‘Real Housewives of SLC’ recap: Mary makes an accusation that the LDS Church is ‘racist’

Not for the first time, Mary Cosby flat-out lies on Part 2 of the Season 4 reunion of “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.”

Also lying: The Bravo marketing department, who put together a deceptive teaser in last week’s episode, when discussing Lisa Barlow’s son, Jack, and his mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

In the Jan. 16 episode, Mary says she “didn’t tweet anything about” Whitney Rose, but she actually tweeted: “This tells me Whitney is racist, too.”

Mary says she bases that on “their religion.” (Whitney and Heather Gay were raised members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.) Mary adds that Latter-day Saints believe “that our color is cursed by the color of Cain. And that [Black people] will be in a different heaven … and we’ll be the help.” (The church does not teach that, although some racist members of the church have said things like that.)

The irony is that Mary has been seen acting racist on the show multiple times.

Heather says, “Mormon doctrine is rooted in racism.” Whitney agrees. Lisa Barlow strongly disagrees.

Paradoxically, Mary says, “I don’t have anything against the Mormon Church.” Reunion host/executive producer Andy Cohen interjects, “You just said it’s a racist church.”

Whitney wants to know what she’s done to make Mary accuse her of being racist. Mary replies, “It’s not anything you do or say; it’s your actions. And it’s a feeling and you have to be my color to know it.” (She does not specify any “actions.”)

Jack is still on an LDS mission

Turns out that the preview clips at the end of last week’s episode were deliberately deceptive. Yes, Lisa does say that her son, Jack, “bounced on his mission,” but she was kidding. Jack was in California when the reunion was taped in November, but that was because his visa to Colombia had not come through.

And that, according to Lisa, is because the photo Jack sent to Colombian officials was of himself on a boat at Lake Powell showing his “great six pack.” He “sent it to the [Colombian] government as his visa picture, like, thinking it’s funny, and they denied it. So he had to reapply.”

• Heather says she was triggered by Jack Barlow’s mission call because “It just reminds me of what I grew up with. And what I no longer have.”

She says that as an ex-Latter-day Saint — Andy calls her “kind of a hater towards the church” — she understands why she wasn’t invited to Jack’s mission announcement and other gatherings, but it still hurt. And because Whitney, who also quit the church and has expressed great resentment toward it, was invited. Lisa says she “didn’t want to rub it in [Heather’s] face.”

Whitney says she was trying to “support my friend who has a completely different belief system than I do” and she was trying to “compartmentalize it.” Heather apologizes to Whitney for calling her a hypocrite over this issue.

Mary just being Mary

Mary (who was not a full-time cast member but a “friend” in Season 4) explains her boycott of the Season 2 reunion (a move that got her fired from the show) was because of “how I was treated the entire season” and things that were said about her that were “completely not true.” As is her wont, she ignores the fact that she treated several of the other women horribly.

• Angie Katsanevas says she was glad to have Mary back on the show and that she provided “some comedic relief that was good. You’re hilarious.” Mary instantly goes on the attack, thinking Angie has insulted her. Only when Andy tells Mary that Angie was speaking “nicely” about her does she Mary grasp what has been said.

• Switching gears, Mary says she liked Angie, Monica Garcia (because she’s “pretty”) and Meredith Marks. She says she liked Heather until she saw her making rude comments about her house. (Heather’s comments about Mary’s gauche, tacky house were diplomatic.) And, don’t forget, Mary told Heather she looks “inbred.” Always self-centered Mary thinks the house comments were “worse.” (Really.)

• Mary tries to throw shade at Heather: “I was in my house before this show. … You got your house after the show.” Heather also has a successful business and wrote a bestselling book, “Bad Mormon.” Mary inherited her money.

• Andy points out that Mary says “horrible” things to people’s faces. Mary says that’s a “good thing.”

• Mary still isn’t sure if her 21-year-old son, Robert Jr., is married to his girlfriend because she hasn’t seen a marriage license. (She clearly doesn’t know that’s not hard to check.) They both live with her.

• Mary says that after she heard, um, romantic noises coming from her son and daughter-in-law’s (?) bedroom, and told the young woman, “Don’t make my son think he’s better than he is. … Tell him the truth.” She also says that, because of the loud noise, she opened to door to their bedroom at an inopportune moment. “I was scarred,” she says.

Monica vs. her mother

Although Monica alleged on the show that her mother was behind her Bermuda relatives refusing to meet with her, she now says that is “an unsolved mystery, because my mother and I are not speaking.” Monica says her mother was “very, very pissed” because the show’s producers did not agree to fly her to Bermuda.

• Monica expands on the story she told about her mother leaving her, when she was 12, with friends to “pursue her dream” in New York City. Her dream was to be on TV.

• Monica says that, thinking she had blown a “Real Housewives” audition, she went to her mother’s and cried. “And my mom said, ‘Let’s say a prayer.’ … She literally said, ‘Lord, if it’s not Monica, let it be me.”

And the fighting continues ...

• Part 2 of the reunion picks up right where Part 1 left off — with the women arguing bitterly. “No one wants you here,” Angie tells Monica. Monica replies, “I’m very well aware.”

• Monica says that when she was at Angie’s house for the Greek Easter brunch, she went to grab a railing that didn’t exist and fell down some stairs. (Half a flight.) And then she threatened to sue Angie — which she lies and denies. (She tweeted, “I should sue your a--.”)

• Monica says Meredith advised her to sue Angie. “She said, ‘Do you want her house? You could take her house.’” Meredith denies that’s what she said, but admits she said “it’s a potential liability.”

• Angie accuses Monica of making “a living off of suing people.” In the big argument that follows, Monica falsely asserts, “I have never sued one person in my life.” Heather is shocked by this, because Monica is suing her and her business over a beauty treatment Monica claims went wrong. Because it’s a countersuit — Heather’s business sued Monica for an unpaid bill — Monica wants us to believe it doesn’t count.

• Monica begrudgingly explains why she’s gone under four last names — Darnell because her full maiden name is Darnell Garcia; Fowler was her married name; Del Gado is her father’s name; and Garcia is the name she’s used since her divorce. All but Del Gado were, at some point, her legal name.

• Mary says that Whitney is “terrified of me.” Whitney disagrees, saying that she “was grateful to try to have the opportunity to repair” her relationship with Mary — although that didn’t happen.

• Whitney accurately points out that the various things she and others said about Mary and her husband — that they were financially exploiting members of their church — were being reported in the media. (Mary says, falsely, “That’s not true.”) Whitney apologizes for any misunderstanding when she referred to Mary and Robert Sr. as “predators,” saying she meant that strictly as a monetary thing.

• Mary says that the way that Heather, Whitney, Lisa, Meredith and Angie reacted when they learned Monica was behind the vicious Instagram troll account Reality Von Tease was “over the top,” and she says she doesn’t care that Monica called her “a dumb b----.” There’s audio of Monica saying that, although she tries to obfuscate.

• Monica also continues to insist that she was just one of six people behind Reality Von Tease, as if that somehow renders her blameless.

The Season 4 reunion concludes on Tuesday, Jan. 23, on Bravo.

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