Review: Under the Banner of Heaven

Under the Banner of Heaven

A Story of Violent Faith

by Jon Krakauer

Publisher: Pan Books

Publication Date: 2003

Page Count: 399

CW: graphic descriptions of murder, religious fanaticism, pedophilia, domestic violence, child abuse, sexual assault, racism, religious persecution, drug use.

Under the Banner of Heaven is both a history and a true crime novel. It centers around Ron and Dan Lafferty and their murder of their sister-in-law and niece, Brenda and Erica Lafferty. But Krakauer covers much more than that, delving into the founding of Mormonism and the Fundamentalist split that helped fuel the Laffertys’ twisted philosophy.

Under the Banner of Heaven goes back to the beginning, covering Mormonism from Joseph Smith’s first vision, up to the time of the Lafferty brothers. Having this much groundwork laid to understand the Laffertys better was more useful than I thought. I never realized how big of a part Mormonism played in American history – there were several shocking events that occurred early in Mormon history that I had no previous knowledge of.

One point of Mormon history that is primarily focused on is how the Fundamentalist sect split from the main Mormon church. Essentially, it had to do with polygamy, or “plural marriage”. Joseph Smith encouraged polygamy, and claimed he was told by God it was inherent to their religion, and they had to practice it to get into Heaven.

However, the Mormon church reached such a level of persecution from the US Government, that they felt they had to ban plural marriage in order to stay afloat. This angered a lot of Mormons, who believed in the truth of Smith’s revelations, causing them to split from the main church and form the fundamentalist sect.

The plural marriage covered in Under the Banner of Heaven, and the fundamentalist communities where it thrives, was perhaps the most disturbing part of the novel for me. Major problems among plural marriage families is domestic abuse, sexual assault and pedophilia. Because these communities are almost wholly run by fundamentalist Mormons, it is extremely difficult for women & girls to escape this situation – especially when they are minors and it’s the only life they’ve known.

The zeal of the fundamentalists Krakauer describes to us ties directly with Ron and Dan Lafferty. The history of Mormonism lays the groundwork for the seemingly blind path of violence Ron and Dan chose to take. Like many, they broke from the mainstream Mormon church to practice a more intense, fundamental form of the religion.

Believing they were “the one mighty and strong” – a prophesied individual believed by Mormons to arrive and “set the church right”. Ron and Dan thought that murdering their sister-in-law Brenda – a vocal opponent to their crazed beliefs – and her daughter, would ensure their place as God’s chosen ones.

The story of Mormonism and of the Lafferty brothers parallels in many ways. As the Mormons only did what they thought was best for themselves and “God’s plan”, so did the Lafferty brothers. What Ron and Dan did to Brenda and Erica was undeniably brutal, but neither brother made any admission of guilt – they did what they believed was what God wanted, and won’t show remorse. Reading about such unflinching, brutal faith was disturbing indeed.

While I found Krakauer’s writing to be somewhat dry and wandering at times, I appreciated how he tried to tell the story from a more “neutral” perspective. He interviews both those who have broken from the church, and those who are active believers. At no point did he write about the believers in a mocking tone.

Krakauer presents the events as they happened, and rather than telling us what to believe, he lets the reader decide for themselves. Though the decision of who is right and wrong is pretty clear…

Yes, the Mormons were harshly persecuted by other Americans and the government itself. However, they committed their own acts of extreme violence in the name of God… Just like Ron and Dan.

In the end, Under the Banner of Heaven left me a little unsatisfied and with a million more questions than I came in with. For one thing, this book was published almost 20 years ago now… So much as happened since then, I wonder if it warrants a new edition.

While I know some of the polygamist (pedophile) Fundamentalist leaders have been arrested since publication, I can only wonder at how many less-visible members are still partaking in such practices. What is the government doing to prevent this?

Under the Banner of Heaven was long and at times dry, but I understand why Krakauer included what he did – the history was necessary to understanding why the Lafferty brothers felt what they did was “right”. Overall, I thought it was a thorough look at the crimes of the Lafferty brothers, seamlessly combined with an in-depth, secular look at Mormon history.

Final Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️½

Further Reading & Watching…

If you’re interested in this subject like I am, here are some other resources I’ve found informative.

“Inside ‘The Order,’ One Mormon Cult’s Secret Empire”, Jesse Hyde, Rolling Stone, June 2011 – In-depth article looking the Kingston family, leaders of one many Mormon fundamentalist offshoots.

“A Polygamist Cult’s Last Stand: The Rise and Fall of Warren Jeffs”, Jesse Hyde, Rolling Stone, February 2016 – About the conviction of Warren Jeffs, the former leader of the fundamentalist cult in Colorado City/Short Creek. Supposedly he still “leads” the community from prison.

“Canadian polygamous leader found guilty of having 25 wives”, AP News, July 2017 – Describes the investigation, trial and conviction of Winston Blackmore, former leader of a fundamentalist commune in Canada.

Murder Among the Mormons – a brand new documentary on Netflix! Covers the story of document forger Mark Hofmann, who, coincidentally once shared a prison cell with Dan Lafferty.