House of Faith House of Cards
One Man's Journey through the World of Mormonism, Magic, and Murderers
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
Given the choice, would you take the red pill or the blue pill?
My thoughts have frequently reflected upon that pivotal scene from The Matrix, in which Neo is offered an opportunity to learn the truth of his existence. In recent months I have gained a new found appreciation for that moment of decision. For once you make the choice, there is no turning back.
The weekend had begun ordinarily enough. Following our regular trip to the grocery store, my wife and I sat together in the living room catching up on recent episodes of our favorite television series, recorded throughout the week. As I watched scene after scene pass by, though, I found it increasingly difficult to focus on the image before me. Something in the back of my mind kept nagging relentlessly, and I could no longer hold it inside.
For a majority of my life I had been taught to think, believe, and even feel a certain way. Most of that time, I struggled to fully understand those feelings and the message being taught. Now, in mere weeks of study on the subject, I found my world turned completely upside-down.
By that point I had already come to a conclusion how I felt about God, the scriptures, and my church. Now those same pestering feelings told me the time had arrived to share my new found views with my wife. Not sure of exactly what I should say, I proceeded with caution.
“I’m having some troubling thoughts swirling around my head, and want to run something by you,” I began.
Hopefully the ambiguous tone of my request would be enough to soften the blow of what was to come. For the next sentence that escaped my lips would hurl the two of us down that proverbial rabbit hole into a whole new purpose in life.
“What is it, Eric?” she replied in her usual concerned, compassionate tone. “What do you need to talk about?”
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
"Concise. Vivid. Honest." - Dan Barker, critically acclaimed author of 'Godless' and 'Losing Faith in Faith'
"Brutally honest, insightful, and compelling storytelling." - Lyndon Lamborn, author of 'Standing for Something More'
When a young couple searched for clues connecting them to a famous ancestor, their journey led them on a path they never expected – converting to Mormonism.
House of Faith House of Cards tells the turbulent life story of their son, Eric, including all the typical Mormon experiences, and some extraordinary episodes no Mormon will ever encounter. He participated with family members in his first secret temple ritual – normally reserved for adults – at the age of four, only to be excluded from a similar ceremony, involving his family, thirteen years later.
In 1857, a company of 120 immigrants set out from a small Arkansas town, toward California. In a tragic twist of fate, they never reached their destination. While encamped in southern Utah, local Mormons and Paiute Indians launched an ambush, brutally slaughtering the group, in what became known as the Mountain Meadows massacre. 125 years later, Eric would be raised as a Mormon in the same Arkansas community where this wagon train initially departed. There, he learned just how much some people still despised that faith.
While training for and serving a church mission in Canada, in the mid-1990s, Eric shared a room and became acquainted with a fellow missionary named Mark Hacking. Less than a decade later, when the disappearance and murder of Hacking’s wife became highly publicized, several international media outlets approached Eric, searching for any juicy detail of the man’s troubled past.
These stories are just the tip of the iceberg.
About the Author
Eric was just three years old when his parents joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He remained active in the faith most of his life, filling numerous teaching assignments, leadership positions, and serving a full-time mission. Three decades after his parents discovered Mormonism, Eric embarked on his own journey of self-discovery. Only, this quest would challenge a lifetime of faith, yielding shocking results for himself and everyone around him.
Currently, Eric resides in northern Utah with his wife.