What is a "fundamentalist Christian?"

dadburnett · Dec 24, 2007

I have had occasion to speak of “fundamentalists” as in fundamentalist Christians. I suppose I could be called a “liberal” Christian. I’ve generally referred to fundamentalists as being more radical, hard-core un-bending religious extremists … I believe I may been in error …I’d like to know how you define fundamentalist, as in “Christian fundamentalist.” Thanks

Plot Device · Dec 24, 2007

There are some Christians who are Fundamentalists, and there are also some Muslims who are Fundamentalists.

My own general preception of a "fundamentalist" is someone who fiercely believes in a precise and literal interpretaion of their written code with no bending or deviation or allowances made for allegory or poetry or even for mere difference of opinion. To me a "fundamentalist" is someone with an unyeilding and exacting stance on things. They're not open to debate.

An "Evangelical" is a Christian-specific word (not shared by other faiths like Islam) describing those Christains who hold the written word of God as central to their faith.

What's the difference?

To me the difference is that an Evangelical is not necessarilly going to be so strict and insistent about their interpretations. As soon as an Evangelical starts getting strict and didactic, he crosses the line into being a Fundamentalist.

I personally self-identify as an Evangelical and do my best to avoid any association with Fundamentalists. And it annoys me to no end when the press mistakenly inetrchanges the two words as if they were identical when they're soooooooooooo not.

Unique · Dec 24, 2007

I guess I'd agree with both dad and plot.

My own general perception of a "fundamentalist" is someone who fiercely believes in a precise and literal interpretation of their written code with no bending or deviation or allowances made for allegory or poetry or even for mere difference of opinion. To me a "fundamentalist" is someone with an unyeilding and exacting stance on things. They're not open to debate.

That describes some of my family members to a 'T'. It's a wonder sometimes.

As far as comparing fundamentalists with evangelicals - in my experience, the evangelicals are all about 'missions'; sharing the good news and reaching out to the lost. Fundamentalists - not so much. YMMV.

Simple Living · Dec 24, 2007

Fundamentalism is hard to describe because of its past history. There's even some discrepancy over what it really means to be a Fundamentalist. Fundamentalism basically means a group of people that hold to the basic tenets, authoritatively, without distinguishing between church and state. Fundamentalism is, basically, rooted to five basics of Christianity:

1) Virgin birth/deity of Christ.
2) Physical resurrection of Jesus.
3) Occurance of authentic miracles.
4) That the inerrant Bible is to be taken literally, as truth.
5) Perfect atonement was made for all men, by grace through faith, through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

That's the basis of their belief system. There are other things, too, like believing that Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible, dispensationalism and the belief of pre-tribulation (the church being raptured out of the earth before the tribulation period).

Fundamentalists are usually very rooted in their belief of the truth and that's led to many strong arguments with other faiths or doctrines.

benbradley · Dec 24, 2007

dadburnett said:
I have had occasion to speak of “fundamentalists” as in fundamentalist Christians. I suppose I could be called a “liberal” Christian. I’ve generally referred to fundamentalists as being more radical, hard-core un-bending religious extremists … I believe I may been in error …I’d like to know how you define fundamentalist, as in “Christian fundamentalist.” Thanks

I understand that the word Fundamentalist comes from the early 20th Century when some Christian writers listed the "fundamentals" they believed in, such as the inerrancy of the Bible, in reaction to the popularity of more liberal Christian movements. Those who adhered to those fundamentals were of course labeled fundamentalists.

As much as I hesitate to give a link to Wikipedia, I'm giving ~~TWO~~ THREE links below. The first is more general and discusses the word fundamentalist as it currently applies to both Christian and non-Christian beliefs, but both it and the second article discuss the word's orgins in the early 20th Century. The second article says that Christian Fundamentalism rose from conservative evangelicalism. While Fundamentalists and Evangelicals are distinct groups, there appears to be substantial commonality between them, especially Biblical authority, mentioned in the second and third articles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamentalist
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamentalist_Christianity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evangelicalism

What I'm doing with all this is avoiding your question, what I think a Fundamentalist Christian is...

Robin Bayne · Dec 24, 2007

I always think of fundamentalists as being the same as legalists. I met an online group once who refused to celebrate Christmas, since Jesus didn't say to, who would only attend church on Saturdays (the actual Sabbath), and so on. They seem to not believe the things Paul said were okay in the N.T.

So do you think these are two different things?

And Merry Christmas!

jamiehall · Dec 24, 2007

Simple Living said:
Fundamentalism is, basically, rooted to five basics of Christianity:

1) Virgin birth/deity of Christ.
2) Physical resurrection of Jesus.
3) Occurance of authentic miracles.
4) That the inerrant Bible is to be taken literally, as truth.
5) Perfect atonement was made for all men, by grace through faith, through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

That's the basis of their belief system. There are other things, too, like believing that Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible, dispensationalism and the belief of pre-tribulation (the church being raptured out of the earth before the tribulation period).

The problem is that there are a number of Christians who believe those things, who aren't fundamentalists. Furthermore, if you want to get technical, nobody actually believes the entire bible literally, because it contradicts itself and because parts of it are so vague that no single literal interpretation really seems obvious. All Christians have some method of picking and choosing what to believe, or they follow teachings created by people who used some method.

I would define fundamentalists as those who claim to literally interpret the bible (even though different sects of fundamentalists have different interpretations of the same things) but actually interpret it according to a very rigid social and ethical code rooted in the more restrictive practices of the past, a code which dominates their worldview.

The most obvious difference between Evangelical Christians and the fundamentalists is the attitude. Evangelicals believe in missions: bringing joy, helping the poor, improving people's lives. Fundamentalists are more concerned with keeping their doctrines "pure" and using any means they can to get other people to adhere to every last detail of that doctrine.

For example, Fred Phelps is a fundamentalist Christian. Yet, there are some Christians out there who share some of his core beliefs, but are not fundamentalists. What is the difference? Mainly the way the message is delivered, the importance assigned to such ideas, and the inflexibility of the doctrine.

A fundamentalist Christian who believes that homosexuality is a sin is likely to make a nuisance of himself or herself, elevating that personal belief to a very high level of importance so that it overwhelms other concerns. A non-fundamentalist Christian who believes the same thing is far less likely to cause scenes or hurt people's feelings, and probably considers other concerns, such as feeding the homeless or marital infidelity, to be far more important. Furthermore, a non-fundamentalist Christian with such a belief is more likely to change it.

Fundamentalist Christians have a strong tendency to resist debate, reason, logic and evidence if it goes against what they've been taught. In short, they don't really believe in opinions or allowing any wiggle room.

flutecrafter · Dec 24, 2007

Inspiewriter said:
I always think of fundamentalists as being the same as legalists. I met an online group once who refused to celebrate Christmas, since Jesus didn't say to, who would only attend church on Saturdays (the actual Sabbath), and so on. They seem to not believe the things Paul said were okay in the N.T.

So do you think these are two different things?

And Merry Christmas!

They are absolutely two different things. Some fundies can be legalists but so can those who are not fundies.
The legalism thing usually is a by product of going off on a tangent to scripture rather than holding to the fundamentals.
As in, starting out a fundy and moving into legalism..

mark

flutecrafter · Dec 24, 2007

jamiehall said:
The problem is that there are a number of Christians who believe those things, who aren't fundamentalists. Furthermore, if you want to get technical, nobody actually believes the entire bible literally, because it contradicts itself and because parts of it are so vague that no single literal interpretation really seems obvious. All Christians have some method of picking and choosing what to believe, or they follow teachings created by people who used some method.

I would define fundamentalists as those who claim to literally interpret the bible (even though different sects of fundamentalists have different interpretations of the same things) but actually interpret it according to a very rigid social and ethical code rooted in the more restrictive practices of the past, a code which dominates their worldview.

The most obvious difference between Evangelical Christians and the "fundies" is the attitude. Evangelicals believe in missions: bringing joy, helping the poor, improving people's lives. Fundies are more concerned with keeping their doctrines "pure" and using any means they can to get other people to adhere to every last detail of that doctrine.

batting zero thus far...

For example, Fred Phelps is a fundamentalist Christian. Yet, there are some Christians out there who share some of his core beliefs, but are not fundamentalists. What is the difference? Mainly the way the message is delivered, the importance assigned to such ideas, and the inflexibility of the doctrine.

and here you just went into the negatives, since that person is by no means a fundamentalist christian.

A fundamentalist Christian who believes that homosexuality is a sin is likely to make a nuisance of himself or herself, elevating that personal belief to a very high level of importance so that it overwhelms other concerns. A non-fundamentalist Christian who believes the same thing is far less likely to cause scenes or hurt people's feelings, and probably considers other concerns, such as feeding the homeless or marital infidelity, to be far more important. Furthermore, a non-fundamentalist Christian with such a belief is more likely to change it.

Fundamentalist Christians have a strong tendency to resist debate, reason, logic and evidence if it goes against what they've been taught. In short, they don't really believe in opinions or allowing any wiggle room.

ROFL

Somehow I don't think so, mate.

Mark

flutecrafter · Dec 24, 2007

Simple Living said:
*snip*
Fundamentalism is, basically, rooted to five basics of Christianity:

1) Virgin birth/deity of Christ.
2) Physical resurrection of Jesus.
3) Occurence of authentic miracles.
4) That the inerrant Bible is to be taken literally, as truth.
5) Perfect atonement was made for all men, by grace through faith, through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

That's the basis of their belief system.
*snip*

Fundamentalists are usually very rooted in their belief of the truth and that's led to many strong arguments with other faiths or doctrines.

there, I made a couple of adjustments to make it fit with what most of
the Fundies I know would agree with.

mark

flutecrafter · Dec 24, 2007

dadburnett said:
I have had occasion to speak of “fundamentalists” as in fundamentalist Christians. I suppose I could be called a “liberal” Christian. I’ve generally referred to fundamentalists as being more radical, hard-core un-bending religious extremists … I believe I may been in error …I’d like to know how you define fundamentalist, as in “Christian fundamentalist.” Thanks

*finishes the pie crust and stuffing..*

Basically it comes down to this, DadB:
A fundamentalist christian is one who adheres to the fundamentals of the christian faith.
Admittedly there have been many people who have tried to make the term mean
different things than that over the years, but that's it in a nutshell.

mark

Plot Device · Dec 25, 2007

I think jamiehall's Post #7 is the most awesome one in this whole thread. It is TOTALLY on the mark.

Pat~ · Dec 25, 2007

I guess I'm with flutecrafter and Ben on this. While 'fundamentalist' seems to have come to mean a lot of things to a lot of different people, basically it just means a person who holds to the fundamentals of the faith (listed above). Given that definition, I would consider myself both a fundamentalist and an evangelical Christian.

Roger J Carlson · Dec 25, 2007

Just a note: Although no one has actually used it as such here, the term "fundie" is an epithet or slur, if you will. We (the mods) ask that you don't use the term. Take the time to spell out "fundamentalist".

Thanks.

jamiehall · Dec 25, 2007

Maybe some people consider my above post off the mark because I chose a very negative individual as my only example. Well, he is the most famous fundamentalist and thus the only easily linkable example.

I'm not saying that fundamental Christians are evil - I've known a number who are nice people. I am merely saying that, in the places I've lived (Kansas and Wisconsin) fundamentalists are generally defined separately from other Christians according the rigidness of their belief systems and the level of panic that fills them at the idea that other people don't adhere to all the details of those beliefs.

There are also different types of fundamentalist Christians. They don't all believe in the same things, and while some are only noticeably rigid, others are extremely rigid. I grew up around a number of different types of fundamentalist Christians. Fundamentalists can be found in many different denominations. Wesleyan fundamentalists I knew often argued with Baptist fundamentalists I knew. Fundamentalists do not automatically agree with each other. Furthermore, a number of the less rigid fundamentalists I knew shunned the most rigid fundamentalists. There are extreme ones and there are moderate ones.

As to the 5 points of faith mentioned by Simple Living, those apply to a quite large number of Christians, many of whom would never be described as fundamentalists by their neighbors, or themselves. Also, think about the definition of "fundamentalist" as used by the media and popular culture. It nearly always is applied to someone with a particularly detailed and rigid belief system, not just to any person who happens to believe the 5 points of faith mentioned by Simple Living. Even if, within certain Christian groups, "fundamentalist" means something other than "person having a rigid belief system" such a meaning is not commonly assigned by the media and popular culture.

In short, I'm saying that the 5 points are but a starting point for the definition of "fundamentalist" because more people define it according to attitude and priorities than by that limited set of beliefs.

I'm listing below some of the beliefs I've seen among fundamentalist Christians, you should keep in mind that any particular fundamentalist will not have all of these beliefs, and may in fact have none of them:

1) The world was created 10,000 or so years ago.
2) Sex before marriage is a sin.
3) Satanic conspiracies are hidden everywhere.
4) Jews have been given a special favoritism and/or punishment that continues today.
5) Ancient people rode dinosaurs.
6) Women should wear head coverings.
7) Women who disobey their husbands in any detail are in danger of going to hell.
8) All fossils were created during Noah's flood.
9) C.S. Lewis is a great author and everyone should read his books because of the positive Christian messages.
10) C.S. Lewis is a Satanist because he wrote fantasy novels and all fantasy novels are of the devil.
11) Nothing resembling evolution ever happened.
12) Something like evolution happened, but it was very fast and God guided every development.
13) Geology is wrong about the age of the earth.
14) The big bang never happened, but geology is right about the age of the earth.
15) Ghosts are not real, they are merely delusions.
16) Ghosts are real, but they are demons masquerading as loved ones.
17) Ghosts are real, and they are souls of the dead.
18) Prophecy continues to happen even today.
19) Prophecy ceased many years ago, we can only learn by examining the teachings of the past because nobody has a direct connection to God anymore.
20) The pope is the Antichrist, and most Catholic saints are fakes, along with their miracles.
21) There is nothing wrong with the pope, and many Catholic saints were divinely inspired.
22) Any symbol other than a Christian one, such as the flag, is a mark of idolatry.
23) Flags are fine, but yin-yang symbols are used by Satanists to keep track of each other.
24) Music and dancing are wrong.
25) Music is a required part of any worship service.
26) Environmentalism is a cause Christians should fight against as an unholy distraction to the real mission, because the earth doesn't matter and we'll all be raptured soon anyway.
27) We should not be polluting God's earth with chemicals, and we should show we are good stewards by caring for the landscape properly.
28) All women should marry as young as possible.
29) People who marry at a very young age are merely indulging their carnal desires, and this should be discouraged.

And I could keep going, but I think you get the idea. Fundamentalists can have a wide variety of beliefs. The above list merely contains a sampling from many different people, and I tried to stay away from beliefs of the type that would also be found among a large number of Christians other than fundamentalists.

Gravity · Dec 25, 2007

Okay, I go with points 2, 8, 9, 13, 16, 18, 21, and 27 (along with some other points not listed). So what does that make me (and what does that make a lot of the people my wife and I hang with?) See how silly labels are?

At the end of the day, I simply know two things: thirty-seven years ago Jesus Christ delivered me from athiesm, and today he gives me more joy than I would have thought possible. In the bright times he laughs with me, and in the dark he holds my hand. I live to serve him and my fellow man, and someday when the curtain falls across my life, I know where I'll be. All the rest is just details.

BruceJ · Dec 25, 2007

Pat~ said:
I guess I'm with flutecrafter and Ben on this. While 'fundamentalist' seems to have come to mean a lot of things to a lot of different people, basically it just means a person who holds to the fundamentals of the faith (listed above). Given that definition, I would consider myself both a fundamentalist and an evangelical Christian.

This topic has been around the horn before, with pretty much the same outcome. We can either adopt the 'pop definition 'of the name (which is negative and ambiguous) or take on its own terms (which is pretty straight foward). Pat, flute and Ben have it down, in my mind. Fundamentalist simply comes from fundamental, which means 'basic' (among other synonyms). Fundamentalists simply accept the fundamentals of the Christian faith, or orthodoxy. The term is only applied to unbending, dogmatic, don't-confuse-me-with-facts-I've-already-made-up-my-mind people (not just Christians) as an easy tag by CNN, NPR and other social conditioners.

Jamie's 29-point list is interesting, but of little value in defining a fundamentalist per the qualifier "any particular fundamentalist will not have all of these beliefs, and may in fact have none of them." To be fair, the post was not offered as a definition, just a possible list of attributes, but even so, I'm not sure what good it is, then. These types of qualifiers necessarily apply to the pop culture "definition" because, frankly, it's not a definition, only a gut-feeling reaction.

Pat's, flute's and Ben's position requires no qualifier and considerably fewer words to express. It's just what it is...fundamentally.

jamiehall · Dec 25, 2007

BruceJ said:
This topic has been around the horn before, with pretty much the same outcome. We can either adopt the 'pop definition 'of the name (which is negative and ambiguous) or take on its own terms (which is pretty straight foward).

One of the problems is that the media doesn't have any interest in positive fundamentalists. It is only interested in those who stir up trouble. Thus, the media's definition causes a lot of upset feelings in those who would like to call themselves fundamentalists.

Plus, there is nothing inherently wrong with having rigid beliefs. Having a clearly defined sense of right and wrong, that others can't talk you out of, is an asset in many circumstances.

In addition, there is nothing wrong with holding faith above reason. Most things in the world can't be proved (can I prove that my husband truly loves me? Can I prove that I had oatmeal for breakfast on the morning of July 3, 1995?) but we need to live our lives as if they are true, or we'll go crazy testing and questioning everything. Faith has many advantages over reason.

I, personally do believe in Simple Living's 5-point list (except for #4, which as I showed before, nobody actually believes even though many claim to) and I'm a born-again Christian, but nobody I know would describe me as a fundamentalist. They would laugh if it was even suggested!

Plot Device · Dec 25, 2007

Gravity said:
Okay, I go with points 2, 8, 9, 13, 16, 18, 21, and 27 (along with some other points not listed). So what does that make me?

Silly! Just scroll down to the bottom of this page and then turn the computer monitor upside down to read the answer key found in small-print!

Gravity · Dec 25, 2007

jamiehall said:
I, personally do believe in Simple Living's 5-point list (except for #4, which as I showed before, nobody actually believes even though many claim to)

Umm...nobody? Better watch those sweeping statements, Jamie. Maybe none of your acquaintances do, but I can assure you I do, and a lot of people I know do too. And contrary to the media, we're not all a clutch of beetle-browed knuckle-draggers. Matter of fact, one of my friends is a physicist whose specialty is particle theory. She possesses two doctorates in her field--one of them from Yale--and she also believes in the inerranacy of Scripture. She'd take issue--very sweetly--with anyone who'd assume that because she holds that belief, she's a dullard. Perhaps you should widen your circle more. Just a thought.

Plot Device · Dec 25, 2007

jamiehall said:
One of the problems is that the media doesn't have any interest in positive fundamentalists.

Exactly. The word itself has been contaminated beyond retrieval, mostly due to the news medie. Regardless of the origins of if the back in the 20th century, the word "fundamentalist" has morphed into a term of contempt today. Trying to insist that the rest of the world get with the program is laughable. We're the ones who have to get with it and realize the word needs to be abandoned, especially when its negative connotation is reinforced via its association with radical Islam.

flutecrafter · Dec 25, 2007

jamiehall said:
Maybe some people consider my above post off the mark because I chose a very negative individual as my only example. Well, he is the most famous fundamentalist and thus the only easily linkable example.

I'm not saying that fundamental Christians are evil - I've known a number who are nice people. I am merely saying that, in the places I've lived (Kansas and Wisconsin) fundamentalists are generally defined separately from other Christians according the rigidness of their belief systems and the level of panic that fills them at the idea that other people don't adhere to all the details of those beliefs.

There are also different types of fundamentalist Christians. They don't all believe in the same things, and while some are only noticeably rigid, others are extremely rigid. I grew up around a number of different types of fundamentalist Christians. Fundamentalists can be found in many different denominations. Wesleyan fundamentalists I knew often argued with Baptist fundamentalists I knew. Fundamentalists do not automatically agree with each other. Furthermore, a number of the less rigid fundamentalists I knew shunned the most rigid fundamentalists. There are extreme ones and there are moderate ones.

As to the 5 points of faith mentioned by Simple Living, those apply to a quite large number of Christians, many of whom would never be described as fundamentalists by their neighbors, or themselves. Also, think about the definition of "fundamentalist" as used by the media and popular culture. It nearly always is applied to someone with a particularly detailed and rigid belief system, not just to any person who happens to believe the 5 points of faith mentioned by Simple Living. Even if, within certain Christian groups, "fundamentalist" means something other than "person having a rigid belief system" such a meaning is not commonly assigned by the media and popular culture.

In short, I'm saying that the 5 points are but a starting point for the definition of "fundamentalist" because more people define it according to attitude and priorities than by that limited set of beliefs.

I'm listing below some of the beliefs I've seen among fundamentalist Christians, you should keep in mind that any particular fundamentalist will not have all of these beliefs, and may in fact have none of them:

1) The world was created 10,000 or so years ago.
2) Sex before marriage is a sin.
3) Satanic conspiracies are hidden everywhere.
4) Jews have been given a special favoritism and/or punishment that continues today.
5) Ancient people rode dinosaurs.
6) Women should wear head coverings.
7) Women who disobey their husbands in any detail are in danger of going to hell.
8) All fossils were created during Noah's flood.
9) C.S. Lewis is a great author and everyone should read his books because of the positive Christian messages.
10) C.S. Lewis is a Satanist because he wrote fantasy novels and all fantasy novels are of the devil.
11) Nothing resembling evolution ever happened.
12) Something like evolution happened, but it was very fast and God guided every development.
13) Geology is wrong about the age of the earth.
14) The big bang never happened, but geology is right about the age of the earth.
15) Ghosts are not real, they are merely delusions.
16) Ghosts are real, but they are demons masquerading as loved ones.
17) Ghosts are real, and they are souls of the dead.
18) Prophecy continues to happen even today.
19) Prophecy ceased many years ago, we can only learn by examining the teachings of the past because nobody has a direct connection to God anymore.
20) The pope is the Antichrist, and most Catholic saints are fakes, along with their miracles.
21) There is nothing wrong with the pope, and many Catholic saints were divinely inspired.
22) Any symbol other than a Christian one, such as the flag, is a mark of idolatry.
23) Flags are fine, but yin-yang symbols are used by Satanists to keep track of each other.
24) Music and dancing are wrong.
25) Music is a required part of any worship service.
26) Environmentalism is a cause Christians should fight against as an unholy distraction to the real mission, because the earth doesn't matter and we'll all be raptured soon anyway.
27) We should not be polluting God's earth with chemicals, and we should show we are good stewards by caring for the landscape properly.
28) All women should marry as young as possible.
29) People who marry at a very young age are merely indulging their carnal desires, and this should be discouraged.

And I could keep going, but I think you get the idea. Fundamentalists can have a wide variety of beliefs. The above list merely contains a sampling from many different people, and I tried to stay away from beliefs of the type that would also be found among a large number of Christians other than fundamentalists.

and yet you have missed the point again.
A fundamentalist Christian is merely one who adheres to the fundamental beliefs of Christianity.
I did enjoy your list though,

flutecrafter · Dec 25, 2007

Plot Device said:
Silly! Just scroll down to the bottom of this page and then turn the computer monitor upside down to read the answer key found in small-print!

LOL
thanks... I needed that..

flutecrafter · Dec 25, 2007

I understand your point Plot Device, but I'm afraid I can't do the abandoning the term thing just yet.
It may well come to that, but I am still of the opinion that words have meanings to be fought for.

So, silly as labels are, here are a few of mine.

I'm a Blood-bought, Born-again, Fundy, Bapticostal ExWitch :snoopy:

ttyl,
mark

BruceJ · Dec 25, 2007

jamiehall said:
One of the problems is that the media doesn't have any interest in positive fundamentalists. It is only interested in those who stir up trouble. Thus, the media's definition causes a lot of upset feelings in those who would like to call themselves fundamentalists.

Agreed, jamie. I just don't intend to allow the media to define my Christianity (hence my CNN, NPR comment at the end). And I still contend that the media has no "definition" of a fundamentalist. Anyone who holds strictly to a belief--especially as a matter of faith--will be branded a "fundamentalist" by pundits who happen to disagree with them.

jamiehall said:
Plus, there is nothing inherently wrong with having rigid beliefs. Having a clearly defined sense of right and wrong, that others can't talk you out of, is an asset in many circumstances.

Amen and agreed 100% with you again. I certainly hope none of my post implied I have a different view than this.

jamiehall said:
In addition, there is nothing wrong with holding faith above reason. Most things in the world can't be proved (can I prove that my husband truly loves me? Can I prove that I had oatmeal for breakfast on the morning of July 3, 1995?) but we need to live our lives as if they are true, or we'll go crazy testing and questioning everything. Faith has many advantages over reason.

Ibid.

jamiehall said:
I, personally do believe in Simple Living's 5-point list (except for #4, which as I showed before, nobody actually believes even though many claim to) and I'm a born-again Christian, but nobody I know would describe me as a fundamentalist. They would laugh if it was even suggested!

Simple has a good list, agreed. And, in my take on the term fundamentalist (per Pat, flute and Ben's articulation), you are indeed one, as am I. What I think you recoil from is the popular connotation of the term, not the denotation of the term. Perhaps the term "extremist" could be played against this discussion on "fundamentalist" to clarify. I don't consider myself an extremest, but I do adhere to the fundamentals of the faith--and in that sense I am fundamentalist. It's semantics, but it's important semantics.

Sounds like you and I could happily attend the same church.

What is a "fundamentalist Christian?"

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