The ex-wife of the recently sacked White House Staff secretary Rob Porter told CNN that the Mormon Church urged them to reconcile their differences despite informing them of physical abuse.

Colbie Holderness told Anderson Cooper earlier this week that she met Porter at a Mormon student event in Cambridge, Massachusetts while attending college.

At first, things went well for the young couple. But just months after their 2003 marriage, Holderness said the relationship turned abusive, and turned to the church for guidance.

Colbie Holderness (R) and Jennifer Willoughby (L) claimed that the Mormon Church urged them to makeup with Porter despite physical abuse

Rob Porter (Pictured) abruptly resigned Wednesday after DailyMail.com published allegations that he'd abused his two ex-wives.

Porter, one of the president's closest aides and a rising star in the administration, abruptly resigned Wednesday after DailyMail.com published allegations that he'd abused his two ex-wives. A former girlfriend of Porter has also stepped forward with claiming abuse.

The 40-year-old Boston native denies the allegations against him, describing them as a 'smear campaign.'

For life-long Mormons like Porter and Holderness, the first person congregants typically turn to outside the immediate family is a bishop inside the church.

The Mormon faith sees marriage as sacred and eternal, a cornerstone of the theology that some say may lead to couples staying in toxic relationships (Pictured: Mormon Church in Cambridge, Mass)

But unlike the clergy, the Mormon church's canonicate is made up of lay people with little training or counseling credentials, according to CNN, and are all men.

Holderness claims Porter emotionally and physically abused her, choked her repeatedly, and in one instance, punched her in the face, leaving her with a black eye.

Porter's second wife, Jennifer Willoughby - also a member of the Mormon church - has made similar accusations.

Holderness noted that she turned to three bishops while the abuse was going on, with each having being ill-equipped to handle the gravity of her situation.

She could almost see one wondering, 'What does that mean?' Holderness recalls.

It wasn't until sought professional counseling that the gravity of her situation was made clear.

'It was the first time I had someone say to me: This is very serious. You might not feel like your life is in danger now but this is very serious and choking is something that can become life-threatening.'

Holderness pictured with black eye she claims was a result of Porter striking her in the face

The two later got a divorce against the Mormon churche's advice.

For Willoughby, who was married to Porter from 2009 to 2013, she shared a similar experience with CNN on Friday.

Willoughby recalled that one of the bishops, who worked with Porter, warned her not to file any charges with the police saying the move could hurt his career.

'I was just kind of stunned,' Willoughby told Anderson Cooper during his evening broadcast.

Some members of the Mormon church say the Porter scandal raises serious concerns with the culture and the belief that marriage is sacred and eternal -- a cornerstone of Mormon theology -- which may lead to couples staying in toxic relationships.

'I see this as an extension of the #MeToo movement,' Kathleen Flake, a professor of Mormon studies at the University of Virginia, told the CNN. 'It is almost inevitable that this will cause the Mormon church to examine their existing guidance to local church leaders.'

According to faith's manifesto, called the 'Church Handbook of Instructions,' the literature states that 'abuse cannot be tolerated in any form.'

Asked about Holderness and Willoughby's experience, a spokesman for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints said that it is 'difficult to speak to specific circumstances without complete information from all involved, but the position of the church is clear. There is zero tolerance for abuse of any kind.'

'Church leaders are given instruction on how to prevent and report abuse and how to care for those who have been abused,' the spokesperson added.