On July 24, 1984, Dan and Ron Lafferty murdered their sister-in-law and her baby girl. Why? Because god told them to do so.
Jon Krakauer provides a fascinating look at the religious environment that created the brothers. The author begins with a history lesson. Her follows the creation of the Mormon Church by Joseph Smith two centuries ago and traces how the religion has become what we know today. The family were members of a fundamental branch of the LDS Church - a branch that broke away from the mainstream church and was horrified at the direction the church was taking - away from the comfort of patriarchal monotheism, away from the subjugation of women, away from the tenets of polygamy. The brothers blamed Brenda Lafferty for speaking up for herself and other women. The book is a terrifically interesting blend of history and true crime.
"Under the Banner of Heaven" isn't so much an indictment of Mormonism (mainstream OR fundamentalist) as it is an illustration of how excessive faith, or extremism in ANY religion can lead to corruption, immorality, and unreason. Towards the end of the book, the author provides a quote from a former member of a fundamentalist branch of the LDS, "If you want to know the truth, I think people within the religion are probably happier, on the whole, than people on the outside But some things in life are more important than being happy, like being free to think for yourself".
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