In response to the letter earlier this week criticizing the fact that John Krakauer's book 'Under the Banner of Heaven' can be located in the law library, I reply, you obviously have not read the book. And if you have, you have most certainly misunderstood the entire point.
Krakauer is looking at faith in a way that I think many of us would agree with. Let me begin by clarifying what Krakauer is not trying to do. The book is not anti-Mormon. Here is why.
First, he is not trying to attack the church. He has repeatedly said he has the utmost respect for the LDS people and tried very hard to make the distinction between mainstream Mormonism and Fundamentalist Mormonism. Second, he is not trying to break down our faith. Although I disagree with his depiction of LDS church history, I also know that history is not just straight facts and dates. The power in history comes from its interpretation. The church understands this and presents our history in a way that will promote our faith. Yet many view LDS history in a different light and Krakauer is free to choose whatever bias he sees fit to use in order to portray his message. In his case he chose to use a viewpoint and references that question the churches past with polygamy and allegations made towards the Prophet Joseph Smith.
Though I disagree especially with the way he depicts the Prophet Joseph and Brother Brigham, I understand why Krakauer takes this position. By going to the origin of LDS faith and theology he is able to establish a way in which the Laferty brothers could be led to murder. His point is that even in LDS culture we are not immune from extremism, scandal or crime. Many of us prefer that these things be swept under the rug as nuances in history that are unimportant. Krakauer's depiction of the heinous crime of the Laferty brothers almost 20 years ago is an example of how we can get caught up in the extremes. We can all take a good lesson from that message.
How often do we read or see examples of people who go too far. I'm not talking about murder or adultery. I'm talking about extremes in the smaller more simple matters of life. For example, one extreme that got me this week was to read someone quoted in The Daily Universe saying, 'I don't have an opinion until the church does.' No matter what it was in reference to things like that make me cringe. That we would blindly accept the words of our leaders is one of the greatest fears that Brigham Young had. But to refuse to think because we are afraid of thinking different than the leaders of the church goes against everything we are taught in this gospel. It was the Laferty brother's inability to think for themselves that got them to the point of murder. Think people think. Don't get caught up in the extremes.
Christopher Strout
Kenduskeag, ME