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Jon Krakauer’s literary reputation rests on insightful chronicles of lives conducted at the outer limits. In UNDER THE BANNER OF HEAVEN, he shifts his focus from extremes of physical adventure to extremes of religious belief within our own borders. At the core of his book is an appalling double murder committed by two Mormon Fundamentalist brothers, Ron and Dan Lafferty, who insist they received a revelation from God commanding them to kill their blameless victims. Beginning with a meticulously researched account of this “divinely inspired” crime, Krakauer constructs a multilayered, bone-chilling narrative of messianic delusion, savage violence, polygamy, and unyielding faith. Along the way, he uncovers a shadowy offshoot of America’s fastest-growing religion, and raises provocative questions about the nature of religious belief.
Krakauer takes readers inside isolated communities in the American West, Canada, and Mexico, where some forty-thousand Mormon Fundamentalists believe the mainstream Mormon Church went unforgivably astray when it renounced polygamy. Defying both civil authorities and the Mormon establishment in Salt Lake City, the leaders of these outlaw sects are zealots who answer only to God. Marrying prodigiously and with virtual impunity (the leader of the largest fundamentalist church took seventy-five “plural wives,” several of whom were wed to him when they were fourteen or fifteen and he was in his eighties), fundamentalist prophets exercise absolute control over the lives of their followers, and preach that any day now the world will be swept clean in a hurricane of fire, sparing only their most obedient adherents.
Weaving the story of the Lafferty brothers and their fanatical brethren with a clear-eyed look at Mormonism’s violent past, Krakauer examines the underbelly of the most successful homegrown faith in the United States, and finds a distinctly American brand of religious extremism. The result is vintage Krakauer, an utterly compelling work of nonfiction that illuminates an otherwise confounding realm of human behavior.
fascinating story, which raises lots of questions
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i've read a couple of krakauer's books (into thin air, into the wild), and have mostly loved them. i say "mostly", because, while i think he's a great writer and storyteller, and meticulous in his research, there's occasionally a hint of arrogance or smugness that i don't find appealing. that said, i found under the banner of heaven to be exceptionally fascinating.
if you're not familiar with krakauer's work, his books all have the same general approach: he tells a particular story, but places it within the context of its larger setting. in this case, the particular story is of a double murder, carried out by two fundamentalist mormon brothers (of their sister-in-law and her daughter) based on an alleged prophetic message from god. but the larger context is a thorough history of mainstream mormonism, and a much more detailed history and current-day description of the various fundamentalist mormon sects that have split off from the main lds faith.
of course, this book was published before the news-swirl earlier this year of the raid on a polygamous fundie compound in texas, and all the fall-out from that; but those characters play into this book (specifically, warren jeffs, the de facto leader of the particular splinter group that raided compound rolled up to). i learned a lot about mormonism, and even more about fundamentalist mormons (who, i have to add, krakauer treats with as much empathy and fairness as is possible).
all that said: what was really intriguing to me were the broader questions the book occasionally asks, but were regularly percolating in my mind, about religion. questions about civil disobedience, and how to respond when one's faith and government are at odds with each other. questions about hearing the voice of god. questions about authoritarian structures and communal discernment. even questions about marriage, fidelity, and intimacy. at one point, i jokingly said to my wife, "hey, maybe we should consider polygamy." she was at a particularly weary moment, and quickly responded, "could the other wife do all the cooking and cleaning?"
at the bottom line, under the banner of heaven bubbles up the danger of any one person saying he or she is speaking for god. |
Into the Mormons.
| Customer Rating: | This book regardless of how people feel certain leaders were portrayed, was very informational. I didn't know much about that religion besides what the media wanted me to know. Now I know more about who Joseph Smith was and what he accomplished, the difference between the LDS and FLDS, and even a little geography. Krakauer made the history of the LDS easy to follow, and I could trace their steps from the east coast all the way west. There's also (which I don't believe but was interesting to know) is how they thought the world was created.
This is all just a background to the major piece of the book, which is a gruesome murder of a mother and a baby. Thanks to the information on the history and practices of the LDS/FLDS, I'm more able to make an educated opinion on what the media puts out and can now tell the difference between the extremists and the Mormons who just want to make the world a little nicer. |
Religious Extremism Examined
| Customer Rating:  | As a fan of Krakauer (read the excellent "Into the Wild" and "Into Thin Air"), I was interested in his bringing his reporter's style and thorough analysis to this topic. Those that criticise the book as "anti-Mormon" do not get the point - it is an analysis of religious extremism in any form. He uses Mormonism as the protagonist to tell the story. The book could easily be about Islam, Catholicism, or another major religion. Mr. Krakauer goes into detail about aspects of mainstream Mormon history that the LDS church would rather he not get into such as the Mountain Meadows Massacre, for example. As a non-Mormon, I was not put off by his book, and found his thourough and thoughtful forays into the history of the LDS church to be fascinating. I had never read an account of Joseph Smith, the founding of the church, the persecutions they suffered and the migration to the Salt Lake Valley from any other source, including from any member of the LDS church.
Mr. Krakauer's point is that you cannot tie fundamentalism any more to mainline Mormonism than you can to mainline Islam. But, they are related in their origins, and he describes portions of LDS history which demonstrate that the religion was born out of violence, both directed towards the church and in some cases, perpetrated by it.
The examples of a small minority of those involved in the strict fundamentalism of the Mormon faith are not representative of the LDS church as a whole. The official reaction from the LDS church I felt was unfortunate. Instead of attacking and discrediting Mr. Krakauer, I rather think they missed a great opportuntiy to communicate the stark differences between the LDS church's substansive role in modern American life vs those fundamentalists that have twisted the teachings of the church to serve their own cause.
At times, Mr. Krakauer examines the Mountain Meadows Massacre as well as the deaths of three of explorer Powell's men a bit too closely, which gave me the impression he was "piling on" a bit in making his point. In the case of Powell's men, he goes into great detail of the circumstance of their deaths, but merely repeats scholarship that has already been written. Perhaps the detail of these accounts cannot be found in many other places.
As he points out, however, these are parts of Mormon history that the church should address rather than trying to shove, along with Mr. Krakauer, under the rug. |
Interesting topic, too many details
| Customer Rating: | I wanted to love this book, but I wound up just liking it. Krakauer is a great writer, the topic was impeccably researched, and the subject is fascinating. But, I feel like for the non-historian reader, many of the details could have been left out. There are hundreds of names, places, and small events that don't add much to the story other than increased difficulty.
Another small complaint is about the footnotes. This is just a personal preference, but I find frequent large footnotes to be distracting. I feel obligated to read them, but that breaks up the continuity of the main text. I much prefer when writers incorporate the info into the main text or just put the notes at the end of the book.
That said, anyone interested in a more detailed view of the history of Mormonism will be satisfied by this exposition. There are some shocking tidbits about the origins of Mormonism as well as some profound tie-ins with religion in general. |
Childish examination
| Customer Rating: | The first half of the book discusses the personal lives of a couple psychotic men who happened to be Fundamentalist Mormons, to prove that the LDS religion breeds molesters.
If that is true, then we can easily conclude that the Catholic religion breeds pedophiles.
The author grossly misrepresents the theology of Mormonism, claiming that Lehi, the ancient Hebrew, discovered that we must "EARN GOD'S LOVE" through obedience. Mormons do not believe such drivel.
Through obedience, one pleases God and "earns" His approval, but not His acceptance and love.
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