Fundamentalism

Differing Definitions

• The word means different things to different persons.

• Any strict adherence to or interpretation of a doctrine, set of principles, etc.
• Fundamentalism is defined as strict adherence to some belief or ideology, especially in
a religious context, or a form of Christianity where the Bible is taken literally and
obeyed in full,
• This is the tendency to reduce a religion to its most fundamental tenets, based on strict
interpretation of core texts.
• A usually religious movement or point of view characterized by a return to
fundamental principles and rigid adherence to those principles, often by intolerance of
other views and opposition .
Fundamentalism 

• Fundamentalism refers to a global religious impulse, particularly evident in the

twentieth century, that seeks to recover and publicly institutionalize aspects of the past
that modern life has obscured.
• It typically sees the secular state as the primary enemy, for the latter is more interested
in education, democratic reforms, and economic progress than in preserving the
spiritual dimension of life.
• It takes its cues from a sacred text that stands above criticism. It also see clear-cut and
stratified roles for men and women, parents and children, clergy and laity.
• Fundamentalism seeks to minimize the distinction between the state and the church.
Fundamentalism 

• Fundamentalism usually has a religious connotation that indicates unwavering

attachment to a set of irreducible beliefs.
• leading to an emphasis on purity and the desire to return to a previous ideal.
• markedly strict literalism.
• Rejection and intolerance of diversity of opinion
Fundamentalism 

• A major trend in contemporary religion is the growth in

fundamentalism. On the face of it, this would seem to be an almost
directly contradictory trend to secularisation, but there are also some
connections between the two.

• Almond (2003) defined fundamentalism as “a pattern of religious

militancy” who have identified their cause as being directly opposed
to secularisation.
Fundamentalism 

• Anthony Giddens, the late modernist, argues that globalisation has caused significant
levels of insecurity for people and that fundamentalist religion offers very simple
answers. In a world of confusion and uncertainty, faiths with very clear rules and
absolute truths have proved very attractive.

• Fundamentalist religion is where religious texts are taken entirely literally, and provide
a strict set of rules which people should live by. Because such a view clashes with the
norm in contemporary society (pluralistic, liberal, etc.) fundamentalist religion is also
often highly political.
Fundamentalism 
• Fundamentalism is a conservative social process. They want to change contemporary liberal, pluralistic society into a traditional
one.
• Fundamentalism, is the major cause of social conflict ,both with other religions and with other followers of the same religion who
do not support the fundamentalist interpretation.
• Some sociologists point out that fundamentalist religion is nothing new, it is just that it is more noticeable as a result of
globalisation and in contrast to the largely secular liberal beliefs in western Europe today.
• While undoubtedly certain countries have witnessed “desecularisation” where fundamentalist movements have replaced more
secular norms there are many other places which have seen largely fundamentalist religion in place for many years.
Contemporary Nature

• Karen Armstrong (2000) points out that fundamentalist movements are not throwbacks to
medieval religion but thoroughly contemporary. Whereas medieval religion was mysterious
and often elitist, most contemporary fundamentalist movements are populist make use of
technology and the methods of modern social movements to achieve their goals.
• If a growth in fundamentalism is a reaction to globalisation, it is also a reaction to
secularisation. The two go hand in hand. There is an almost inevitable local, parochial and
traditional reaction to globalisation as local and particular cultures are eroded and replaced
with global and universal ones.
• Alongside political developments, such as the growth of nationalism, this development in
religious beliefs is quite a predictable response.
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