I just finished watching a deeply engaging but disturbing miniseries. “Under the Banner of Heaven” is a somewhat fictionalized account of Jon Krakauer’s non-fiction book about a 1984 gruesome double homicide committed by two Mormon fundamentalists who perceived the victims as sinners requiring blood atonement.
I was taught from a young age to respect other religious faiths and to refrain from critiquing their rites or tenets. Every religion contains traditions or beliefs that to an outsider may appear strange. Faith is deeply personal and cannot be fully understood by a non-believer, hence keeping quiet is the best approach.
With this ethos in mind, the series inevitably causes one to reflect on the dangers of being a true believer, when reason is always subservient to faith. That tendency exists, to varying degrees, in all faith traditions, including Judaism, though Judaism places an extremely high value on reason and free will. “G-d made me do it” is hardly a strong defense in Jewish jurisprudence.
A thread throughout the series is the origins of the LDS church. A TV series is not a definitive nor necessarily accurate account, which is where the post-viewing Wikipedia rabbit hole comes in.
I’ve learned that Mormons were heavily discriminated against, to the point of being killed by federal agents for their religious practices. I also learned that, much later, after settling in the Salt Lake Valley, they organized a massacre of settlers, killing hundreds of innocents, out of baseless fear that this group would threaten their lifestyle.
What really struck me was the inception of Joseph Smith’s demise. It began in 1844 with the publication of the Nauvoo Expositor, a newspaper that published only one issue, containing criticisms of the LDS founder’s doctrines, including plural marriage.
Smith and the city council that he controlled ordered copies of the newspaper destroyed and ultimately fomented a mob that attacked and destroyed the press.
Smith and others were arrested for this violation of the First Amendment and charged with treason.
Never would I condone the mob who killed Smith while he awaited trial, but that the government stood up to defend what I believe is a core American value deeply resonated with me.
In today’s polarized rhetoric, we can lose sight of the essence of the First Amendment, which is the ability to hold those in power accountable without fear of government retribution. A free press is essential to democracy, and it’s important be reminded of that.
Shana Goldberg may be reached at shana@ijn.com.
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