Cheap Prophet of Death: The Mormon Blood-Atonement Killings (Book) (Pete Earley) Price

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Prophet of Death: The Mormon Blood-Atonement Killings
This is the first 'true crime,' that I've read in about four years. The research was impeccable .... the writing excellent [although there was a tendency to use too many articles]. Most books are slanted by the author to grind their hidden agendas into your psyche. This book is a pleasant exception. Although a bit too long, you are properly introduced to the main characters of the cult. Only problem? The graphic descriptions of Lundgren's possible rectum-retentive sexuality triggered my vomit reflex machine. It's a great read ... I couldn't put it down and finished reading the book in two days with sore eyes.

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Oh My! What a Bizarre Story
This is a horror story worthy of anything Stephen King could write. Tragically, it is not fiction. Jeffrey D. Lundgren and his followers in Kirtland, Ohio, former members of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, renamed in 2001 the Community of Christ, killed in cold blood the Avery family on April 17, 1989, and buried their bodies in the floor of a barn. They then went into West Virginia "to see God." Not until a rainy morning the next January did the police, acting on a tip from one of the group's disenchanted members, learn about the murders. A search for Lundgren's group took place and within a short time they had all either been captured or turned themselves in to law enforcement authorities. Lundgren was tried for murder and sentenced to death in Ohio in September 1990; many of his followers were also given lengthy prison sentences.

Indeed, "Prophet of Death" is a unique, interesting, and distressing book.

Its story really begins in 1969 with the attendance of Lundgren at Central Missouri State University where he met his wife and accomplice in these crimes. It recites their life together for the next fifteen years: a rocky marriage, religious conservatism in the Reorganized Church, inability to earn a livelihood, and sexual misconduct of the most perverse nature.

It then discusses the Lundgrens' move to Kirtland, where they worked as volunteer guides at the Kirtland Temple and built a following of unhappy Reorganized Church members, which eventually became a cult. Finally, it recites the history of the cult that Lundgren headed and the events before and after the Averys' murders. Peter Earley, a journalist, conducted many hours of interviews with people who were involved in the case, and his research is illuminating. I doubt that any other investigator will be able to uncover much more of interest about it. He also tells a good story, and the fifty-six chapters read quickly, even if it is a shocking account.

As a narrative of events about the case, this is a useful work. Even if readers are already aware of the primary facts of the Lundgren affair, the book will enlighten much further. Most probably will agree with one person who is quoted in the book as saying that "what he was preaching was simply nuts" (p. 159).

Unfortunately, Earley's work fails to satisfy. While his narrative is fast-paced, it never gets at the central question of why these events took place. There is almost no context for how and why Lundgren twisted theological conceptions into bizarre expressions. While there is mention of the difficulties within the Reorganized Church over women's ordination, there is little appreciation of that as a symptom of larger problems and their significance for the membership.

There is also no understanding whatsoever of the church's history and the various factions of Mormonism. He consistently, for example, uses the term "Mormon" in reference to the Reorganized Church in spite of that term's clear identification with the Latter-day Saint movement based in Utah. He refers to blood atonement, as well, but there is no explanation or even an appreciation of its historical and theological evolution. I should add that blood atonement has never been any part of any aspect of the Reorganization, and Lundgren even improperly used the term to describe his actions when compared to nineteenth-century doctrine. There is definitely a need for an explanation of how and why such a grotesque contortion of church history and theology could take place.

"Prophet of Death" also has numerous errors of fact. Even relatively small facts are incorrectly reported. For instance, the year that the Avery family's bodies were discovered is incorrect on the dust jacket. I recognize that errors creep into books in a variety of ways, but the overbearing weight of them makes me question the author's attention to detail. In addition, many readers will deplore the complete lack of references and the reliance of the author on interviews, sometimes with unspecified individuals. That is not an uncommon complaint. The fine work of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein in "All the President's Men" could be criticized on similar grounds. Like that earlier work in investigative journalism, it may not have been possible to write Prophet of Death without confidential interviews, but I would like to know the sources. The author also uses pseudonyms for some individuals in the book to protect their privacy. While the reasons for this decision were undoubtedly weighed carefully and probably made perfect sense in our litigant society, I lament this aspect of contemporary nonfiction writing. Earley also did not bother to include an index for this book, an absolute must for any work of nonfiction.

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I know a prophet of death
In the small state of Alabama, there does exist a prophet of death. However, she is a female but there has been a murder.

Please contact me at 1915 43rd Ave N.E> Apt.B Tuscaloosa, AL. 35404. 205-239-7616 or 205-556-2362.

I watched A & E. That is how I found out about the book and I already Knew of this lady and her congregation and where she has moved them.