Reddit Reddit reviews Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith

We found 18 Reddit comments about Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.

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Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith
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18 Reddit comments about Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith:

u/lemon_meringue · 42 pointsr/SRSWomen

I would be very, very cautious of any religious organization that compels you to formally "join" it (complete with secret ceremonies) and forces you to tithe to be a full-fledged member. It seems to me that true religion is transparent rather than secretive. The LDS organization is anything but transparent. Have you read Jon Krakauer's book Under the Banner of Heaven? If not, I highly recommend it (the Amazon reviews are also a good resource) for a very thorough and unbiased history of the LDS movement. This is another recent article about the LDS that brings up some pretty troubling dealings on the business end of things.

I spent several years out in the American West living very close to a large LDS community and I saw a lot of very upsetting things go on within that community. Most of them had to do with the mistreatment of women and children, but a lot was simply cronyism and manipulation. It is a community that works very hard to keep appearances up to "outsiders", but they weren't able to hide everything.

I'm sure you are considering this conversion very carefully and I don't mean to undermine or disrespect your personal beliefs in any way, but I'd really encourage to you spend a great deal of time reading accounts from people (especially women) who have left the LDS church before you decided to join. Their recruitment can be quite intense, but it does not tell the whole truth behind the organization.

In the context of this community, I will also say that is is next to impossible to be a feminist and a Mormon at the same time. The ideologies conflict that violently.

OK, I will shut the fuck up now. Best to you in whatever choices you make in your life!

u/ewilliam · 18 pointsr/news

I suggest you read Under The Banner of Heaven. Not only is it a fascinating read, but it will also explain how the FLDS's brand of polygamy (which is obviously the most prominent form of polygamy in the country) goes hand in hand with child rape.

u/atheist_teapot · 16 pointsr/todayilearned

Lee was eventually convicted and executed, but the others all escaped punishment for the most part (albeit living as fugitives). Brigham Young played a role (enormous to some, tacitly implying in others) and yet has a university named after him.

It's not to necessarily blame the Mormons, but they did secede from the United States and were not very good at integrating with society under their initial leaders. To claim that Mormons are actively trying to destroy the United States now is as spurious as saying that Obama is a Muslim communist nazi.

Krakauer's excellent Under the Banner of Heaven contains a well-investigated version of the story, as well as a good amount of the Mormon history.

u/melvin_fry · 10 pointsr/books

I wouldn't say it was the best non-fiction book I ever read but Under the Banner of Heaven was the best non-fiction book I read in the past year or two.

u/EatSleepJeep · 5 pointsr/wikipedia

This Book has an excellent read on the whole thing. The Mormons were basically a barbarian horde as they crossed the country.

To further read on the awful foundations of the Mormons, the Mountain Meadows Massacre will make your blood boil.

u/InterPunct · 5 pointsr/todayilearned

I highly recommend Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer. He wrote The Perfect Storm, Into to Thin Air, among others. It's not complimentary of Morman ideology or their political influence over Utah. Despite that, I admire a lot about their culture.

u/girlietrex · 5 pointsr/books

Not about serial killers, but I would say they were somewhat psychopathic..
Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer.

u/Beelzabub · 4 pointsr/AskReddit

President Romney will make it legal. Read Under the Banner of Heaven by John Krakauer.

u/Krushed_RED_pepperR · 4 pointsr/atheism

Plugging a book by one of my favorite authors: Jon Krakauer's Under the Banner of Heaven.

Provides an in-depth look at Mormonism and relates that to religious zealotry in general. IMHO it is up the with Christopher Hitchens for the Atheist reading list.

u/hatekillpuke · 2 pointsr/women

Scott Carrier is absolutely brilliant on the radio, but I found this piece to be a bit unfocused. Reading it in his voice seemed to help a bit.

If you found this story interesting, I highly recommend Jon Krakauer's Under the Banner of Heaven. Krakauer more deeply explores Elizabeth Smart's story, along with many more in an absolutely fascinating book.

On the lighter side, Dave Chappelle asks, How old is fifteen really?

u/Marcus__Aurelius · 2 pointsr/atheism

That was a fantastic book. In fact, I would recommend any of the author's other books, especially Under the Banner of Heaven.

u/trystram1025 · 1 pointr/booksuggestions

I have to recommend Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of a Violent Faith. It's written by John Krakauer, and parallels the story of the foundation of Mormonism with this crazy murder committed by two fundamentalists. Incredible book.

u/Zaydene · 1 pointr/atheism

While currently reading this book, I'm guessing Mormon.

u/SpinningHead · 1 pointr/politics

Thanks. I recently finished reading Under the Banner of Heaven and my head is still spinning....and I was raised Catholic, so that says a lot.

u/goliath_franco · 1 pointr/DebateReligion

Okay, I've seen this argument before:

>As we often have to point out, we're dealing with America in this case ... Yes, there are other religions. But the one we have to deal with day in and day out is Christianity.

First, that's a poor argument, because it implies that other religions do not exist in the US. The US is very diverse, and all these world religions that we're talking about are here as well. I've met plenty of Jewish people, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists (admittedly fewer Buddhists), so I've "dealt" with people from all these religions right here in the US.

Second, there is a /r/debateachristian subreddit. So if everyone agrees that this sub-reddit is really about Christianity, I don't see the point of it.

Third, even if everyone in this sub-reddit agrees that we're really talking about Christianity when we say "religion," that author (as far as I know) did not write that post exclusively for the /r/debatereligion sub-reddit. She posted to the open Internet, where there is no accepted convention that by "religion" we mean "Christianity." She still displays poor understanding of what religion is, and my previous argument stands.

Fourth, it is nonsensical to write "religion" if you really mean "Christianity." That approach harms the debate because you're using a word with a clearly different meaning than the one with the meaning you intend. Just write "Christianity" if that is what your argument refers to.

Then, you wrote "I think the insights still hold" so I'm going to offer a counter-example from a religion that is not Christianity. Buddhism does not involve faith. A Buddhist only adopts teachings that have been directly experienced.

After that paragraph, you seemed to go back to "religion" = "Christianity," so I'll respond in that way. You wrote:

>The point is that when religion inspires bad behavior, it's a uniquely powerful method for rationalizing such behavior. No appeal to the earthly consequences makes a difference.

I think there are cases of what you're referring to, but they are exceedingly rare. You're talking about people who commit violence and continue to commit violence because God told them to (it seems, correct me if I'm wrong). It's true that things like the events described in "Under the Banner of Heaven" do happen in the US. But not often. And not disproportionately for religious people. Again, I would say there must be far more people committing crimes like that because they're mentally ill than because they're religious. For most religious people, an appeal to earthly consequences definitely makes a difference.

u/CEOofEarthMITTROMNEY · 1 pointr/atheism

May I recommend a book for you: Under The Banner Of Heaven

u/solyanik · 1 pointr/atheism

For every example of crazy behavior among muslims I can give you an equally crazy behavior among Christians.

Here, enjoy:
http://www.amazon.com/Under-Banner-Heaven-Story-Violent/dp/0385509510

(qualifies for Prime, and you can start reading it under a minute on your Kindle. THEN you will be qualified to do comparative religion studies :-)).

u/geekboysf · 0 pointsr/atheism

it must be a spin off of the LDS church because it was spurred by a "revelation" to the husband. If you want to check out more fun ways that mormons act out on their "revelations, check out Under the Banner of Heaven by John Krakauer. Mysterious ways, indeed.