Broken Promise
The story of a man growing up in Bountiful and living under 'The One Man Rule.'
by Jon Blackmore

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Born into the Fundamentalist Latter-Day Saint (FLDS) community of Bountiful, British Columbia, Jon Blackmore grew up believing that his church was the sole path to salvation, the only people destined to survive an impending apocalypse. But salvation required more than just faith. It also demanded perfect obedience to God’s chosen representatives on Earth—the church’s prophet and the local bishop. Wielding absolute control over every aspect of their followers’ lives—spiritually, socially, and financially—Bishop Winston Blackmore, backed by God’s so-called prophet in the United States, ruled his followers with an iron fist. The people of Bountiful were driven into a life of near-enslavement, where refusal to comply with their leaders’ demands—which included surrendering children to forced labor or entering “plural marriages”—meant excommunication from the church and eternal damnation. This memoir chronicles Jon’s journey from devout believer to conflicted follower to questioning skeptic as his leaders’ increasingly bold and outrageous antics cause his community and his church to unravel, putting the future of Jon’s own family in peril.

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Jon Blackmore is a nephew of Winston Blackmore, who served as the Canadian bishop of the Fundamentalist Latter-Day Saint Church and de facto leader of the community of Bountiful, BC, for two decades. Jon wrote this book partly to help himself come to terms with his past but also to help others understand the experiences that people suffer when born and raised in a religious cult where leaders use faith to build wealth, power, and privilege for themselves while taking advantage of their followers. In his spare time, Jon enjoys hiking, driving, and looking at historic sites. He lives in Creston, BC, with his family.

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Contributors

Author

Jon Blackmore

Photographer

Joseph H Blackmore