Fundamentalist Christianity
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Clarify--critics of fundamentalism don't see it as "historical christian doctrine"
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'''Fundamentalist Christianity''', also known as '''Christian Fundamentalism''' or '''Fundamentalist Evangelicalism''', is a movement that arose mainly within [[United Kingdom|British]] and [[United States|American]] [[Protestantism]] in the late 19th and early 20th centuries among [[Christian conservative|conservative]] [[Evangelicalism|evangelical Christians]], who, in a reaction to modernism, actively affirmed a [[Fundamentalism|fundamental]] set of [[Christianity|Christian]] beliefs: the [[Biblical inerrancy|inerrancy]] of the [[Bible]], [[Sola Scriptura]], the [[Virgin Birth (Christian doctrine)|virgin birth]] of [[Christ]], the doctrine of [[substitutionary atonement]], the bodily [[resurrection]] of Jesus, and the imminent personal return of [[Jesus Christ]].
Some who hold these beliefs reject the label of "fundamentalism," seeing it as a pejorative term for historic Christian doctrine<ref> Robbins, Dale A., "What is a Fundamentalist Christian?" Grass Valley, CA: Victorious Publications, 1995. Available online: http://www.victorious.org/chur21.htm </ref> while to others it has become a banner of pride.<ref> Horton, Ron, "BJU Statement of Christian Education" Greenville, SC: Bob Jones University. Available online: http://www.bju.edu/academics/edpurpose.html </ref>
== Early history ==
: ''For a more detailed history of fundamentalism's confrontation with modernism within the [[Presbyterian Church in the United States of America]], please see the main article, [[Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy]].''
{{Unreferencedsection|date=August 2007}}
The contemporary fundamentalist, or "[[Evangelicalism|evangelical]]" movement has its origins in the 18th century when the [[First Great Awakening]] was deeply influencing American religious life. In the same time period the [[Methodist]] movement was beginning to renew parts of British Christianity, although this was at first resisted by the majority of the [[Anglican]] [[established church]].
Much of this religious fervor was a reaction to [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]] thinking and the deistic writings of many of the [[Western philosophy|western philosophical]] elites. The chief emphases of the fledgling Methodist movement as well as the Awakening were on individual [[Religious conversion|conversion]], personal piety and [[Bible study]], public morality (often including [[temperance]] and [[family values]]) and [[abolitionism]], a broadened role for [[layman|lay people]] and women in worship, [[evangelism]], and cooperation in evangelism across denominational lines, (that is, [[interdenominational]]ly).
Key figures included John Wesley, Anglican priest and originator of the Methodist movement; [[Jonathan Edwards (theologian)|Jonathan Edwards]], American [[Puritan]] preacher/theologian; [[George Whitefield]], Anglican priest and chaplain to [[Selina Hastings|Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon]], founder of many revivalist chapels and promoter of associated causes; [[Robert Raikes]], who established the first [[Sunday school]] to prevent children in the slums entering a life of crime; popular hymn writer [[Charles Wesley]], and American Methodist bishop, [[Francis Asbury]].
There was no single founder of fundamentalism. Americans [[Dwight L. Moody]] (1837 – 1899), [[Arthur Tappan Pierson]] and [[United Kingdom|British]] preacher and father of dispensationalism [[John Nelson Darby]] (1800 – 1882), among others, propounded ideas and themes carried into fundamentalist Christianity.
The term fundamentalist, in the context of this article, derives from a series of (originally) twelve volumes entitled ''[[The Fundamentals|The Fundamentals: A Testimony To The Truth]]''. Among this publication's 94 essays, 27 of them objected to [[higher criticism]] of the Bible, by far the largest number addressing any one topic. The essays were written by 64 [[United Kingdom|British]] and [[United States|American]] conservative Protestant theologians between 1910 and 1915. Using a $250,000 grant from [[Lyman Stewart]], the head of the [[Union Oil Company]] of California, about three million sets of these books were distributed to English-speaking Protestant church workers throughout the world.
Important early Christian fundamentalists included [[Baptist]] pastor [[William Bell Riley]], the founder and president of the [[World Christian Fundamentals Association]], who was instrumental in calling lawyer and three-time Democratic presidential candidate [[William Jennings Bryan]] to act as that organization's counsel in the famous [[Scopes Trial]]. [[Moody Bible Institute]] had mainstream appeal, through its presidents [[Reuben Archer Torrey|R.A. Torrey]] and [[James M. Gray]]. The views of theologian [[Cyrus I. Scofield]] represented fundamentalism's antagonism to figurative interpretation, especially as it was used by fundamentalism's liberal opponents to deny basic elements of the Christian faith, such as the virgin birth or the bodily resurrection of Christ, and it was through his ''[[Scofield Reference Bible]]'' that [[dispensationalism]] gradually gained strong adherence among fundamentalists.
The rise of dispensationalism is an important development distinct from the roots of fundamentalism. In particular, dispensationalism played no part in the ''Old-time religion,'' typified by the southern{{Specify|date=June 2008}} Methodist revivalism of [[Samuel Porter Jones]], a predecessor of [[Bob Jones, Sr.]], founder of [[Bob Jones University]], who later adopted dispensationalism. [[B. B. Warfield]] and [[J. Gresham Machen]] were key players in the fundamentalism-modernist controversy but wrote against dispensationalism from the standpoint of the [[Princeton theology]], which many regard as the intellectual roots of the movement before it came under the influence of dispensationalism.
As the movement developed, [[premillennialism]], dispensationalism, and separatism began to overwhelmingly characterize the most popular leaders, which also had an effect on the way that evangelicals as a whole were perceived by outside observers. Dispensationalism's literal approach to the Scriptures was increasingly seen as a main protection against the gradual degradation to theological modernism.
== Original Distinctives ==
===Theological===
The first formulation of American fundamentalist beliefs can be traced to the [[Niagara Bible Conference]] (1878–1897) and, in 1910, to the ''General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church'' which distilled these into what became known as the "five fundamentals":<ref>[http://www.pcanet.org/history/documents/deliverance.html Origin] of "five fundamentals" documented at Presbyterian conference of 1910</ref>
* [[Biblical inerrancy|Inerrancy]] of the Scriptures
* The virgin birth and the deity of Jesus (Isaiah 7:14)
* The doctrine of substitutionary atonement by God's grace and through human faith (Hebrews 9)
* The bodily resurrection of Jesus (Matthew 28)
* The authenticity of Christ's miracles (or, alternatively, his pre-millennial second coming)<ref> (Matthew 8 - healing, Matthew 12 - deliverance, Luke 21 - second coming)
[http://www.fpcnyc.org/fundamentalism.html Alternative interpretations] of "five fundamentals" in online history by First Presbyterian Church of New York City</ref>
In particular, fundamentalists reject the [[documentary hypothesis]]—the theory held by [[higher criticism|higher biblical criticism]] that the [[Pentateuch]] was composed and shaped by many people over the centuries.{{Fact|date=May 2008}} Fundamentalists assert that [[Moses]] was the primary author of the first five books of the Old Testament. Some fundamentalists{{ww}}, on the other hand, may be willing to consider alternative authorship only where the Biblical text does not specify an author, though maintaining that books in which the author is identified were written by that person.
The Christian fundamentalist movement evolved during the early-to-mid 1900s to become [[separatism#Religious separatism|separatist]] in nature and more characteristically [[dispensationalism|dispensational]] in its theology.
Fundamentalists also criticize evangelicals for a lack of concern for doctrinal purity and for a lack of discernment in ecumenical endeavors in working cooperatively with other Christians of differing doctrinal views, even though some fundamentalists had been accused by their critics for doing the same (esp. embracing doctrines such as dispensationalism, "King James Only"-ism, the rapture, Christian Reconstructionism, etc. that critics argue have no biblical basis).
===Social===
The fundamentalists emphasised the command to "be ye separate"<ref>John Brock, ''[http://www.mbbc.edu/page.aspx?m=1960 A Pedagogical Discussion Related to Biblical and Durable Behavior in Contemporary Society]'', Maranatha Baptist Bible College. Article discusses these issues.</ref> and adopted a conservative social outlook that avoided many items deemed to be sinful, worldy, or inappropriate or sinful for christians.
Whilst there is some variation in approach, most fundamentalists will share a majority of the following views:
*rejection of [[popular music]] including [[rock and roll]] and [[contemporary Christian music]] - seen as worldly and associated with immorality
*dancing is prohibited - seen as associated with immorality and immodesty
*visiting the cinema or theatre is unacceptable - perception is that content is unchristian and lifestyles of performers are immoral
*modest and traditional dress styles are required - women must not wear trousers, men must not have long hair or wear earrings
*no drinking of [[alcohol]] or smoking [[tobacco]] - seen as worldly and associated with immorality
*traditional gender roles - male headship, woman's role is to raise children - seen as the Biblical model
*no sex outside of heterosexual marriage, opposition to [[homosexuality]] - seen as immoral and prohibited by the [[Bible]]
*[[abortion]] is unacceptable - seen as murder (in some cases, all forms of [[birth control]] are opposed)
== Breakup ==
The original 20th century Fundamentalist Movement broke up along clearly defined lines within conservative Evangelical Protestantism as issues progressed. Many groupings, large and small, were produced by this schism. [[Neo-evangelicalism]], Reformed and Lutheran Confessionalism, the Heritage movement, and [[Paleo-Orthodoxy]] have all developed distinct identities, but none of them acknowledge any more than an historical overlap with the Fundamentalist Movement, and the term is seldom used of them.
For example, American evangelist [[Billy Graham (evangelist)|Billy Graham]] came from a fundamentalist background, but became parted company with the movement because of his choice, early in his ministry (1950s), to cooperate with other Christians.<ref>http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/marchweb-only/53.0.html</ref> He represents a movement that arose within fundamentalism, but has increasingly become distinct from it, known as [[Neo-evangelicalism]] or New Evangelicalism (a term coined by Harold J. Ockenga, the "Father of New Evangelicalism").
== New fundamentalists ==
In recent years, the term fundamentalism has taken on a new meaning as exemplified by this quotation from Caplan:
{{quotation|In Western Christianity, where the expression was first mooted, fundamentalism has come to identify conservative evangelicals inside the mainline Protestant denominations, as well as the charismatic sects which comprise what is now the fastest-moving current within the Christian world. In the American setting, it no longer exemplifies the hill-billy element in rural or small-town Protestantism, as it did half a century ago. Today, it denotes an aggressive and confident religious movement which, in coalition with conservative political forces, seeks to combat what is regarded as the liberal takeover of the state, family and church since the days of Roosevelt's New Deal. (Caplan 1987: 1)}}
The "new" fundamentalists, who rarely self-identify as such, draw their identity from a missionary zeal to convert people to Christianity combined with socio-political activism to prevent influences deemed unchristian from entering society. They have both similarities and differences with the original fundamentalist movement.
They differ from the original fundamentalist movement in various areas, accepting modern bible translations and typically holding [[charismatic movement|charismatic]] or [[pentecostalism|pentecostal]] beliefs. They are less separatist both towards culture and other christians. For example, christian forms of [[popular music]] ([[contemporary christian music]]), dance ([[worship dance]]), drama, and cinema are all widely accepted. Whilst they strongly disagree with doctrines and practices of the [[Roman Catholic Church]] for theological reasons{{Fact|date=May 2008}}, in recent years there has been an increase in political cooperation between individuals in both groups on certain social issues of mutual concern, such as in opposing [[abortion]].{{Fact|date=May 2008}}
However, the relationships between Fundamentalist Christians and others are still often strained due to historical/cultural perceptions and strongly divergent views on a number of theological issues.{{Fact|date=May 2008}}
The term fundamentalism has hence become less well defined. Many evangelical groups may be described as "fundamentalist" in the broad sense, but do not regard themselves as members of either fundamentalist movement. For example, many Evangelicals believe in the doctrine of [[Biblical inerrancy]], a basic issue of difference in the Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy a century ago. The ''[[Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy]]'' typified this and was signed in 1978 by nearly 300 conservative scholars, including [[James Boice]], [[Norman Geisler]], John Gerstner, [[Carl F. H. Henry]] (founder of ''Christianity Today''), [[Kenneth Kantzer]], Harold Lindsell, [[John Warwick Montgomery]], Roger Nicole, [[J. I. Packer]], Robert Preus, Earl Radmacher, [[Francis Schaeffer]], [[R. C. Sproul]], and John Wenham. Very few if any of these men fit the definition of or identify themselves as fundamentalists.
== Christian Right (USA) ==
''Main article: [[Christian right]]''
The past half-century has witnessed a surge of Christian fundamentalists toward politics. Some attribute this interest to the decisions by the United States Supreme Court in 1962 to prohibit state-sanctioned prayer in public schools in the case of [[Engel v. Vitale]] and in 1963 to prohibit mandatory Bible reading in public schools in the case of [[Abington School District v. Schempp]]. By the time [[Ronald Reagan]] ran for the presidency in 1980, self-described fundamentalists had become more likely to participate in politics than other Christians were.<ref>Zimmerman, Jonathan. "Why Our Fundamentalists Are Better Than Their Fundamentalists," ''The New Republic,'' 2001. Available online: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/94/story_9407_2.html Accessed 09-13-2007</ref>
Credited with this phenomenon are [[Robert Grant (Christian leader)]], [[Jerry Falwell]], and other well-known Fundamentalist clergy, who began urging Christians to become involved in politics in the 1970s. Beginning with Grant's American Christian Cause in 1974, [[Christian Voice]] throughout the 1970s and Falwell's [[Moral Majority]] in the 1980s, the [[Christian Right]] began to have major impact on American politics. By the late 1990s, the Christian Right was influencing elections and policy with groups like [[Christian Coalition of America|Christian Coalition]] and [[Family Research Council]] helping the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] to gain control of the [[White House]], both houses of Congress, and a more conservative [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] by the mid-1990s.
==Fundamentalist church groupings==
===Original movement===
* [[Independent Fundamental Churches of America]]
* [[Independent Baptist]] Churches
===Modern movement===
* [[Southern Baptist Convention]]
* [[Assemblies of God]]
===Not categorised===
* [[Bible Presbyterian Church]]
* [[Non-denominational]] Churches
* [[Churches of Christ]]
== See also ==
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* [[Antinomianism]]
* [[Bible believer]]
* [[Biblical literalism|Literalism]] and [[Biblical inerrancy|inerrancy]]
* [[Cafeteria Christianity]]
* [[Christian Reconstructionism]]
* [[Christian Zionism]]
* [[Conservative Christianity]]
* [[Conservative Evangelicalism]]
* [[Dominionism]]
* [[Elohim]]
* [[Evangelicalism]]
* [[Ex nihilo]]
* [[Higher criticism]]
* [[Liberal Christianity]]
* [[Reformed Fundamentalism]]
* [[Restorationism]]
* [[Summary of Christian eschatological differences]]
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== References ==
<references />
== Literature ==
* [[Karen Armstrong|Armstrong, Karen]] (2001). ''The Battle for God.'' New York: Ballantine Books. ISBN 0–345–39169–1.
* Beale, David O. (1986) ''In Pursuit of Purity: American Fundamentalism Since 1850.'' Greenville, SC: Bob Jones University (Unusual Publications). ISBN 0-89084-350-3.
* [[David Bebbington|Bebbington, David W.]] (1990). "Baptists and Fundamentalists in Inter-War Britain." In Keith Robbins, ed. ''Protestant Evangelicalism: Britain, Ireland, Germany and America c.1750-c.1950.'' Studies in Church History subsidia 7, 297–326. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, ISBN 0–631–17818-X.
* Bebbington, David W. (1993). "Martyrs for the Truth: Fundamentalists in Britain." In Diana Wood, ed. ''Martyrs and Martyrologies,'' Studies in Church History Vol. 30, 417–451. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers, ISBN 0–631–18868–1.
* [[James Barr (biblical scholar)|Barr, James]] (1977). ''Fundamentalism.'' London: SCM Press. ISBN 0–334–00503–5.
* Caplan, Lionel (1987). ''Studies in Religious Fundamentalism.'' London: The MacMillan Press, ISBN 0–88706–518-X.
* Carpenter, Joel A. (1999). ''Revive Us Again: The Reawakening of American Fundamentalism.'' Oxford University Press, ISBN 0–19–512907–5.
* Cole, Stewart Grant (1931) ''The History of Fundamentalism'', Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press ISBN 0–83–715683–1.
* Elliott, David R. (1993). "Knowing No Borders: Canadian Contributions to Fundamentalism." In George A. Rawlyk and Mark A. Noll, eds. ''Amazing Grace: Evangelicalism in Australia, Britain, Canada and the United States.'' Grand Rapids: Baker. 349–374, ISBN 0–77–351214–4.
* Dollar, George W. (1973). ''A History of Fundamentalism in America.'' Greenville: Bob Jones University Press.
* Harris, Harriet A. (1998). ''Fundamentalism and Evangelicals.'' Oxford: Oxford University. ISBN 0–19–826960–9.
* [[D.G. Hart|Hart, D. G.]] (1998). "The Tie that Divides: Presbyterian Ecumenism, Fundamentalism and the History of Twentieth-Century American Protestantism." ''Westminster Theological Journal'' 60, 85–107.
* Longfield, Bradley J. (1991). ''The Presbyterian Controversy.'' New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0–19–508674–0.
* [[George Marsden|Marsden, George M.]] (1995). "Fundamentalism as an American Phenomenon." In D. G. Hart, ed. ''Reckoning with the Past,'' 303–321. Grand Rapids: Baker.
* Marsden; George M. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=98828304 (1980)]. ''Fundamentalism and American Culture.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0–19–502758–2.
* Marsden, George M. (1991). ''Understanding Fundamentalism and Evangelicalism.'' Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. ISBN 0–8028–0539–6.
* McCune, Rolland D. (1998). "[http://www.dbts.edu/dbts/journals/1998/McCune.pdf The Formation of New Evangelicalism (Part One): Historical and Theological Antecedents]." ''Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal'', '''3''', 3–34.
* McLachlan, Douglas R. (1993). ''Reclaiming Authentic Fundamentalism''. Independence, Mo.: American Association of Christian Schools. ISBN 0-918407-02-8.
* [[Mark Noll|Noll, Mark]] (1992). ''A History of Christianity in the United States and Canada.''. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 311–389. ISBN 0–8028–0651–1.
* Packer, J.I., "Fundamentalism and the Word of God." Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. ISBN 0-8028-1147-7
* Rennie, Ian S. (1994). "Fundamentalism and the Varieties of North Atlantic Evangelicalism." In Mark A. Noll, David W. Bebbington and George A. Rawlyk eds. ''Evangelicalism: Comparative Studies of Popular Protestantism in North America, the British Isles and Beyond, 1700–1990.'' New York: Oxford University Press. 333–364, ISBN 0–19–508362–8.
* Russell, C. Allyn (1976). ''[http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=34863332 Voices of American Fundamentalism: Seven Biographical Studies]'' (Subscription required). Philadelphia: Westminster Press, ISBN 0–664–20814–2.
* Sandeen, Ernest Robert (1970) ''The Roots of Fundamentalism: British and American Millenarianism, 1800–1930'', Chicago: University of Chicago Press, ISBN 0–22–673467–6
* [[Leroy Seat|Seat, Leroy]] (2007). ''Fed Up with Fundamentalism: A Historical, Theological, and Personal Appraisal of Christian Fundamentalism''. Liberty, MO: 4-L Publications. ISBN 978-1-59526-859-4
* Utzinger, J. Michael (2006) ''Yet Saints Their Watch Are Keeping: Fundamentalists, Modernists, and the Development of Evangelical Ecclesiology, 1887-1937'', Macon: Mercer University Press, ISBN 0865549028
* [[Keith Ward|Ward, Keith]] (2004) ''What the Bible Really Teaches: A Challenge for Fundamentalists''
== External links ==
* [http://kategibbons.wordpress.com/69/ Australian Homeschooling Legal Advisory Service] Christian Fundamentalists and Homeschooling
* [http://www.dbts.edu/journals/1996_1/ACDIXON.PDF ''A. C. Dixon, Chicago Liberals and the Fundamentals'' by Gerald L. Priest]
* [http://www.waccglobal.org/wacc/publications/media_development/2005_2/christian_fundamentalism_and_the_media Christian Fundamentalism and the Media] (negative)
* [http://www.pcahistory.org/documents/deliverance.html Earliest Written Version of The Five Essentials]
* [http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/fund.html Fundamentalism Profile]
* [http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,448350,00.html My Half-Year of Hell With Christian Fundamentalists] Article in Spiegel Online.
* [http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Parthenon/6528/fundcont.htm Online version of "The Fundamentals: A Testimony to the Truth"]
* [http://www.faithalone.org The Grace Evangelical Society] Website promoting the doctrine of Faith Alone.
* [http://www.christsassembly.com The Christ's Assembly Worldwide] A Conservative, Independent and Unitarian Communion of Saints.
[[Category:Christian fundamentalism|Christian fundamentalism]]
[[Category:Christian theological movements]]
[[Category:Protestantism]]
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