Fundamentalism In The 1920s

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“But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; avoid such men as these” (2 Timothy 3:1-5).
Perhaps it was words such as these that stirred the modern fundamentalist movement. Certainly this movement was strong in America, as Christians sought to hold to Biblical standards against the ever-changing, modernizing culture. The book Fundamentalism in American Culture, …show more content…
Certainly the societal condition influenced the trend of fundamentalist criticism and development. The decadent 1920s provided ample measure for reform, and social crisis associated with World War I nourished the strong convictions. Furthermore, although many fundamentalist leaders avoided politics and refused to associate fundamentalism with any form of politics, political concerns were still a part of the shaping of the fundamentalist movement. The political topics, such as Bolshevism, anti-Semitism, and the Prohibition, found their way into fundamentalist literature. There was most definitely an intellectual struggle, as fundamentalists strongly opposed the popularizing evolutionary teaching. Perhaps this struggle is best exemplified in the Scopes’ Monkey Trial and the debate between Darrow and the fundamentalist Bryan. The ongoing debate was how much science, philosophy, and religion were compatible. And while fundamentalism was a worldwide movement, Marsden points out that there were certain factors in America that accentuate American fundamentalism. First of all, the diversity in America, as opposed to the set nature of England, provided more room for development. In addition, the foundation of America was evangelical Protestantism and was very familiar with revivalism and Biblicism. America was later in accepting modernism that …show more content…
It emerged most distinctly after the Civil War to its climax in the 1920s. Despite that all fundamentalists had the opposition to liberalism in common, the movement was still greatly divided in its theology and definition. Some fundamentalists supported complete separation from mainstream Christianity, while others were not willing nor saw a reason to completely branch off. Fundamentalists were also divided on how much to be involved with society, especially in the area of politics, in order to influence it. Some went as far as embracing some of the liberalism of the day. Marsden clearly states his thesis in the introduction of the book, as well as his purpose and outline for such a long, detailed book. He supports his thesis with evidence from the lives of the fundamentalists themselves, as well as the occurrences and aspects of fundamentalism. Though it only focuses on this one part of Christianity, the book is very thorough in its examination of the history of American fundamentalism. Marsden presents the work as history, simply stating the facts as they occurred. Despite its length and wordiness, this is a valuable book for two reasons. First of all, this book is very useful for those who would like to study the history of fundamentalism, or even the history of Christianity in general in America. This book gives good background for fundamentalism and contains
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