Someone please define "Fundie" for me

[theboss]

I saw this quote on another thread and my head nearly exploded:

"Fundie kids don't associate with kids that have disabilities or are Catholic."

Having lived in 5 states and gone to churches in all of them, I don't know what group of people this quote refers to. I'm friends with dozens of very conservative Christians who wouldn't vote for a Democrat if the Party promised to bring Jesus back, yet none of them are prejudiced against the Disabled nor do they refuse to associate with Catholics. (Considering my mother and Catholic father used to stay with a Fundy minister when they visited me in college).

So, what is a Fundy? Because I really don't know anymore.

[DaveSZ]

1. LOL

That's simply overblown rhetoric on that person's part.

I've met some really nice Fundies as well, and other than the fact that they think we'll all burn in a lake of fire, and wish to destroy our Contitution, many are nice people.

[displacedtexan]

2. You just used the term. How do you define it?

(Considering my mother and Catholic father used to stay with a Fundy minister when they visited me in college).

Bob Jones University (Maybe it's Oral Roberts U) doesn't accept federal funding; hence, they don't have to accept disabled students.

When I taught school, several of my Apostolic Christian and Mennonite students were appalled at the blatant discrimination when they were college shopping.

[theboss]

6. I don't use the term; I'm quoting someone

I don't necessarily think Fundamentalist should be used in a negative sense. I mean, if you don't believe a church's "fundamental" teachings, what are you?

I think the danger in the modern world is the radicaliaztion of Relgions, be they Islam, Christianity, or - I don't know - Wiccan. Radicals are the ones who don't believe in a separation of church and state and believe that radical steps are acceptable to gain converts.

[Kelvin Mace]

30. In my neck of the woods...

a "fundamentalist" is considered anyone who believes the Bible is the unerring, absolute word of God. I call these people insane and keep a close eye on them. A "fundamentalist" is always assumed a Christian since this is the only "true" religion. Eveything else is a cult.

David Allen
www.thoughtcrimes.org
Distrusting the Government Since 1984

[AntiCoup2K4]

3. "Fundamentalism" is a misnomer

A literal definition of fundamentalism would be to believe in the fundamental teachings of a religious faith. So a fundamentalist Christian would base his or her faith on the fundamental teachings of Jesus Christ, for example. Unfortunately, that segment of society that has become known as "fundies" usually does exactly the opposite. And the same could probably be said of the Wahabi Muslims. I'm no expert on the Quran, but I'm guessing that terrorism wasn't one of Mohammed's teachings.

[truthspeaker]

4. tough to answer but I'll give it a shot

There is so much disagreement on what the "fundamentals" of Christianity are that it's hard to define. But in my experience a fundy has most or all of the following characteristics:

Hates gay people, and feels the law should reflect that
Thinks men should have authority over women
Thinks Catholics are not Christians
Thinks "liberal" Christians are not real Christians
Think abortion is murder in all circumstances
Thinks Christianity (especially their form) should receive special legal status in the US
Thinks the Protestant Bible is the literal and innerant word of God, and their interpretation is the only possible correct one
Thinks most of the Old Testament was written by Moses (at God's direction)
Thinks the Gospels were written by eyewitnesses to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus (at God's direction)
Thinks Revelation is an actual prophecy of the Second Coming
Thinks the Rapture belief is Biblical (and therefore true)

[Don_G]

5. A Fundamentalist Christian

A fanatic who is willing to sacrifice the long-term good of the country and scrap the Constitution to insure that Jesus has saved us all in the next life.

[niceypoo]

7. My Next door neighbor is a perfect example....

Her Kids arent allowed to leave the yard til they are 18. She told me how they played in the woods by our house day in day out when she was a kid but her children arent allowed to because the woods are infested with demons. If anybody acts in a way that she or her fellow church goers deem even slightly odd they are "posessed". Her middle daughter read a Harry Potter book for a report at school and she had her "Exercised". One day her there was a huge uproar at their house and my dughter (Who can only play with her kids through the fence) found out that the oldest daughter (age 18)had brought home a Harry potter memo pad and the Mom was going bezerk ans "Speeking in tongues" over it. They are only allowed to watch TBN religious channel. She told my daughter that I am "Posessed" because I mentioned to her that Bush wont get much of the black vote. Her husband goes out into his shed and drinks a few times a week...Tells me wierd stuff about her (Their sex life is ruined because "God is watching"). The Church she goes to is a televangelist church, of course. In her view the world is a big, demonic haunted house. It just goes on and on and on............VERY Twisted...

[theboss]

9. Your neighbor is mentally ill

There is no church that preaches that your kids can't leave the yard.

[niceypoo]

13. She is paranoid that posessed people will corrupt them

She is a paranoid wreck

[theboss]

14. She would be that way if she weren't a "Christian"

[truthspeaker]

16. you sure about that? There are some WACKY churches out there

I know someone who got a note from her parents excusing her from swim class at school - because they were opposed to boys and girls swimming in the same pool at the same time.

[theboss]

17. I have heard of that sort of thing

But that's reasonable compared to "the woods are full of demons."

[AntiCoup2K4]

32. The woods are infested with demons??

Couldn't demons live just about anywhere? Why the woods? Is it because she belongs to the First Church of Corporatism which teaches that nature is evil and must be destroyed by command of the profits (NOT a typo)

[Roaming]

36. Very sad, confused, and mentally imbalanced behavior!

Christians are told in Scripture to be "in the world, but not of the world" This poor woman has completely jumped out of the world.

[On the Road]

8. The Comment About Kids with Disabilities

was completely off the wall. It does not describe any Christians in the least, fundamentalists or otherwise.

However, there's a very wide range of attitudes towards Catholics. Many conservative protestant churches regard Catholicism as heresy, Catholic worship as idolatry, and Catholic believers as hellbound. My childhood Presbyterian church, for example, had a joint service with the Jewish synagogue (!), but would not hold a joint service with the Catholics. Attitudes have softened a bit over the last hundred years, but it's still possible that there are some fundies who will not associate with Catholics. It's more common nowadays for fundies to look past the "dangerous theological errors" of Catholicism and look at Catholics as misguided believers.

BTW, to me fundie = fundamentalist = someone who believes that the Bible was inspired and therefore accurate. There are different schools on exactly what the Bible says (Calvinist, Pentecostal, Baptist, etc), but there's a big gulf between fundies and more liberal denominations who look at the Bible as imperfect and Jesus as an inspirational teacher rather than as God.

Some people on DU just use "fundie" as a whipping boy for all manner of accusations.

[niceypoo]

10. Which is odd given their beliefs are basically medieval catholocism.

The "Taking the bible literally", Witches and demons......anti-abortion, etc.....all medieval catholicism

[Baltimoreboy]

21. Not hardly, nor is it odd

Their beliefs are based on having a schism with the Catholic Church. It comes as no major theological surprise that they still have issues with Catholicism.

[On the Road]

27. The Catholic Church Always Had Two Guidelines ---

the Bible on one hand and the Roman Church as guided by God on the other. Protestant fundies starting with Martin Luther ("sola scriptora") rejected the Church as part of the equation.

Witches and demons are right out of the Bible -- they're not. Conservative Catholics are also opposed to abortion, but the fundies didn't get this from the Catholics. At least I don't think so.

[theboss]

34. It's not medeival Catholocism

Where do you get that?

[theboss]

11. That's my point

You can't be a Christian if you don't believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that Bible is (at a minimum) the inspired words of God. So if anyone who believes this is Fundy, then Martin Luther King, Jr was a Fundy.

[truthspeaker]

18. the definition above is wrong

Fundies don't just believe the Bible is the inspired word of God, they believe every word in their - and every translation into another language - was intended by God to be there. There are no errors, no contradictions, no antiquated cultural beliefs.

[Exultant Democracy]

20. The bible also says that the slave must obey the master

MLK Jr probably can't qualify as a fundi, because there is no way he could have believed that the bible as a whole was inspired by the word of god.

[Roaming]

38. Slaves were the culture at that time. Bible never says slavery was

good, just addresses the issue of slavery as being a fact of the time. Today, this scripture is applied to anyone who has a boss; you should do your best to serve the company you work for.

[stanwyck]

28. fundamentalists believe in the Bible literally

the Red Sea parted. The Devil exists as an entity. The teachings are not allegory or metaphor; they're literally the truth. Eve was made from Adam's rib. Fundamentalists do not believe in Darwin's theory of evolution as it contradicts Genesis. However, in practice, fundamentalists often do not follow the Bible literally. Women in their menstral cycles do not isolate themselves from men. Women appear in public without their heads covered. They wear makeup. Fundamenlists obtain divorces. So, what they preach is not always what they practice. However, they are quick to condemn others who they feel are in violation of God's laws. Most notably, homosexuals. Some fundamentalists use the Bible to assert the supremacy of the white race. If you grew up attending a Protestant church, such as the Methodist or Presbyterian churches, you might be more familiar with the Bible's teachings through metaphor, symbol, and allegory.

[Roaming]

37. Based on these criteria, I'm a fundie too and glad for it.

[charlie]

12. People with the delusional certitude

that their interpretation of scripture is a pure transmission of God's intent. They think they're literalists, untainted by the ambiguities of language.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

15. I think it's something you make with melted cheese. n/t

[truthspeaker]

19. read what they have to say themselves

http://www.raptureready.org

[Bill McBlueState]

22. Technically Speaking

The Fundamentalist movement began in the early 20th century, when some group of Christians (I forget which ones) met and decided that the following five "fundamentals" were essential for true Christians to believe:

1) inerrancy of the Bible
2) the virgin birth of Christ
3) Christ's substitutionary atonement
4) Bodily resurrection of Christ
5) authenticity of Christ's miracles

(the list is from this web page.)

This was a reaction to the emergence of modern Biblical interpretation, which challenged these five ideas and had upset a lot of traditional believers.

[Bill McBlueState]

23. more...

The funny thing is, this happened about 100 years ago, and many mainstream Christians are still surprised to learn that most theologians question these fundamentals. Even in the mainline churches, nobody ever talks about modern Biblical scholarship.

I think the pastors are afraid revenue would drop if they took a more honest approach toward Biblical interpretation. So they keep things to themselves. (For example, the typical churchgoer has no idea that the gospels were written decades after Jesus's death.)

[theboss]

31. You are talking about the Restoration

Which is where my home church grew from.

The idea behind the Restoration of the 19th Century was to "Speak where the Bible speaks" and be "Silent where the Bible is silent."

[drumwolf]

24. I think you're splitting hairs here

Fundies adhere to a general set of beliefs, like people of any ideology. But they do not necessarily have to conform to every single last belief of their own ideology any more than liberals, conservatives, radical leftists or neo-Nazis do.

Fundies have become far more tolerant of Catholics today than they were a century ago, and indeed many of them are quite willing to work with conservative Catholics (Rick Santorum and Bill Bennett being examples). But there are still many fundies that do not consider Catholics to be Christians (an extreme example being Jack Chick). You can be a "fundie" and have complete tolerance of Catholics or no tolerance at all.

[No Mandate Here.]

25. Anyone who consults with the 700 club before...

making their mind up on any issue. Also, almost all of the residents of my town.

The general level of tolerance in our society seems to be dropping rapidly, as * has set the "my way or the highway" mindset as the new standard.

I am confident that we are at an extreme- the far swing of the pendulum, and it will begin to swing back real soon.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

26. bill bennet, benny hinn, jerry farwell, pat robertson, jan & paul crouch &

TBNers and 700 clubers and Bob Jones Univ. and all the "left behinders"....people who say that "if God asked them to kill for Him they would" :scared: bunch of religous assholes/whackos!

and i am a Christian myself but NOT one of those kind


visit America's best Christian Betty Bowers.com a "fundie" parody site and Betty gave her love to jesus now he never calls

www.bettybowers.com :7


Balsamic Fundamentalists are plotting to spring Martha from jail!

[theboss]

29. Bennet is Catholic

[ElsewheresDaughter]

33. yes Bennett is a Catholic "fundie"!!! Opes Die catholic as is O'Rielly and

Hannity and Alan Keyes :scared:

[ElsewheresDaughter]

35. ask America's Best Christian Betty Bowers www.bettybowers.com

www.bettybowers.com

[Roaming]

39. I've been wondering this ever since I joined DU

It seems "fundie" here means any Christian who is deemed hypocritical... Any Christian who acts like the characters in the movie "Saved" is probably a good definition of "fundie" here.

[Delano]

40. I don't care for fundies and I pity their kids, but you're right...

I've never noticed fundies to scoff at handicapped folks or Catholics.

There may be a few, but it's not the norm. Many fundies actually consider themselves to be tolerant, actually.

I still find them insufferable to be around, though.

[Trajan]

41. Revelation ...

21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

Depending on who is speaking: that could define anyone ...