A chilling tale of murder and Mormons
 
By Daphne Bramham
Vancouver Sun
 
After writing about the deadliest season ever on Mount Everest in his best-selling book Into Thin Air, there was nothing more Jon Krakauer wanted to say about mountaineering.

Instead, he turned his attention to religion and, more specifically, the Mormon Church and its followers, with whom he had grown up in Colorado. His intention to write a history of the only North American-based world religion was soon overtaken by his storyteller's love of a great story.

The history is there, in Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith, now available in paperback (Random House of Canada, 432 pages, $22.95). But it's woven around the tale of two brothers -- excommunicated Mormons -- who murdered their sister-in-law and her baby daughter.

Through the tale of the murderous Lafferty brothers -- Dan and Ron -- Krakauer weaves the equally fascinating story of Joseph Smith, the angel Moroni, the early trials of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Smith's murder, the Mormons' trek west to Utah and the evolution of the modern church.

At the heart of the book, though, is polygamy -- how polygamy came to be anathema to the church establishment and how today polygamous men, like the Laffertys, believe they are the only true followers of The Book of Mormon.

Of particular interest to British Columbians are the close, convoluted connections between the polygamists in Utah and Arizona with the West Kootenay community of Bountiful.

Although it's a year since the book was released in hardcover, it remains fascinating and current. It's also a primer on how to begin to understand why this province has become a safe haven for polygamists. It's a cautionary tale about what can happen within a religious community where men are encouraged to believe that God can and does speak directly to them.

As the Lafferty brothers made clear in their murder trials and subsequent interviews with Krakauer, God told them to kill, and they did. As a result, they feel no remorse and have no regrets.
 
Vancouver Sun
Originally published Saturday, July 10, 2004
 
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