been reading: Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer

This book, recommended to me by SG, is a fascinating look at a religion I knew pretty much nothing about. Although his focus is on Mormon Fundamentalists, Krakauer also provides more than just a glimpse into the beliefs of followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The two are, in fact, intricately linked and it would be impossible to examine the history of one without considering the other.

The book weaves the account of the Lafferty brothers (who in 1984 murdered their sister-in-law and her infant daughter because they believed they had received a revelation from God to do so) with a thorough look at the history of the Mormon faith. Extreme violence and a belief of being above man's law (gathering instead under the "banner of heaven") are, in fact, characteristic of the Mormon history, as Krakauer discusses in the book. The Lafferty brothers are but modern-day examples of many Mormon men before them who took lives in the name of God.

When most people think of Mormon Fundamentalists, they think of polygamy. Krakauer examines this facet of the faith as well, and takes a particularly close look at women who were married off to church leaders - sometimes men related to them - at young, often preadolescent, ages.

Perhaps what makes Mormonism so interesting to study is that it is a relatively recent religion. It was incorporated in 1830, in the age of the printing press, and so the entire history - from the earliest beginnings to present-day - has been documented. There is a record of everything. What is amazing (and, at least to me, mind-boggling) to read is how one day a man claimed that he had received a revelation from God and people started listening to, and believing in, every word he said.

Of course, such blind faith is not unique to Mormonism. And shedding blood and proclaiming it "God's will" is in no way unique to Mormonism, either. And that is perhaps what I found most provocative about this book. It is, specifically, about the faith of Mormon Fundamentalists. But more generally, the questions raised apply to all religions and faiths. "Organized religion is hate masquerading as love," says one of the Lafferty brothers to Krakauer in a recent prison interview. A strong statement, for sure, but one that doesn't feel completely off-base by the end of this book.