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Religious Fundamentalism? Admittedly, an offensive, simplistic and demeaning term . . . Religious fundamentalism becomes an ideology when it becomes inseparable from law and politics and attempts to regenerate and reconstruct society. These movements have arisen in all of the major religions in reaction to crises created by:
Core Themes: The recognition of certain principles as essential and unchallengeable truths, does not in itself suffice to define fundamentalism. Fundamentalism rejects any distinction or barrier between religion and politics. It reacts to the expansion of the public realm into traditionally private areas of social norms and values, which has created a widespread sense of loss of identity, and enhanced perceptions of the personally threatening development of permissiveness, corruption, greed, crime and immorality. Fundamentalists seek to take control of government to use it as an instrument of moral regeneration. The removal of the public/private divide opens the door for fundamentalist states to become totalitarian. Fundamentalism is the opposite of relativism because it emphasizes the original or classical form of the theoretical system as its core. It also opposes revisionism. These fundamentals are usually drawn from the content of sacred texts--in that case of Judaism, Christianity and Islam--but should not be equated with scriptural literalism. All sacred texts contain a complex diversity of ideas, principles and doctrines. The creation of a political ideology requires the extraction of a set of simple principles to provide exact and unambiguous definitions of identity. This requires someone who will claim the moral purity, spiritual insight and experience with struggle to provide leadership-- a charismatic personality--to reduce the complexity of scriptures to a theo-political project. Charismatic leadership tends to support authoritarianism. Fundamentalism offers a secure identity, social order, political renewal and social justice--in other words, direct, practical and absolute solutions, and promises to fulfill the needs of the economically and politically marginalized. It mobilizes the faithful to generate political activism through both psychological and social processes. Fundamentalism quickly adopts modern technology to spread its message of conformity to moral conservatism. Therefore, it is not simply conservatism, nor solely a reaction against modernity.
These three factors lead to vigorous, militant and even violent activism. The three main goals of fundamentalism:
Christianity and Islam rely on a single sacred text and say that believers have direct access to spiritual wisdom. This increases the potential for a fundamentalist political movement. They are transnational religions with ambitions for global activity. The Jewish settler movement in Israel, the militant Buddhists of Sri Lanka, and Hindu and Sikh extremism in India represent ethnic mobilizations.
Islamic Fundamentalism Islam has never been just a religion. Islam permeates and saturates every aspect of life. The Holy Qur’an and the traditional customs observed by Mohammed--the Sunna-- provide complete guidance for all Muslims. All Muslims believe in the literal truth of the Koran. Not all believe in the use of force to impose a theocratic Islamic state. The wide range of doctrines and beliefs in Islam can be used to justify a great variety of political causes. In Heywood's portrayal, the triumph of the Islamic Revolution in Iran in 1979 provided an inspiring example to many other Islamist movements. Pakistan and Sudan adopted Shari'a law to appease their fundamentalist movements. "The Taliban exemplified a radical new fundamentalism that refused to compromise with any ideas, Islamic or other wise, which departed from their world-view" (307). The temper and political aspirations of the 10% of Muslims who call themselves the party of Ali (Shi'a) traditionally diverges from those of the majority Sunni ("orthodox customs"). Shi'a insist that the succeeding imams or religious leaders descended from Ali and Fatima are immaculate, infallible and provided absolute authority. Shi'a believe that history is moving toward the goal of an ideal community that will re-emerge with the return of the Mahdi, or "hidden Imam" who is directly guided by Allah. The Mahdi will overthrow all injustice and oppression, leading to a utopia. This belief generates strong emotions, and when harnessed to a political goal it generates fierce commitment and devotion. The Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, at the leadership of an Islamic Revolutionary Council, took over Iran in 1979 in an Islamic Revolution and he ruled as a virtual dictator. The leadership of this revolution continues to exercise veto power over all attempts at reform in Iran. All aspects of society were subjected to Shari'a law, Although government policy has been more pragmatic in political and economic life under Ayatollah Rafsanjani and Ayatollah Khamenei, state controlled religious activities remain rigid and strict. Christian Fundamentalism After the intense political upheavals created by the Reformation, protestant Christianity retreated from political activism. Most believing Protestants sought their own personal spiritual salvation rather than the political regeneration of society. Fundamentalists worked within the pluralistic and constitutional framework. The rise of "the new Christian right" derives from two factors.
Nevertheless, fundamentalists remain divided between those who only want to avoid corrupt society and those who seek social reform. "The new Christian right" opposed even conservative Republicans such as George Bush Sr. who supported abortion and they promoted Pat Robertson for President in 1992. Because the US is a pluralistic society, neither political party will accept linkage to any single social, ethnic or religious interest. Heywood accuses fundamentalists of providing campaign finance and organizing voter registration drives! (313). Other Fundamentalisms Other fundamentalist movements have sought to clarify or redefine national or ethnic identity. These movements have emerged in reaction to change in national identity or the growth of a rival ethnic or religious groups. Religion provides a more primordial and constant criteria for group membership.
"Not only have they created a chain reaction of threats and resentments, but they have also inspired one another by closely linking ethnic identity to religious fervor" (315).
What does the future hold? A) Religion is just a symptom of adjusting to modernization, and over time people will accept globalization and liberal democracy, resulting in the decline of religion. Militant ethnic nationalisms based on religious distinctions will moderate their demands and conform to civic nationalism. Fundamentalism as an ideology of protest will subside to the status of rhetoric or "founding myth" for a regime. Militant ethnic nationalisms based on religious distinctions will moderate their demands and conform to civic nationalism. Fundamentalism as an ideology of protest will subside to the status of rhetoric, or "founding myth" for a regime. B) People will continue to believe that they are suffering a state of crisis because secularism and liberal culture cannot meet deep human needs or to provide authoritative values and a moral social order. Religious fundamentalists are adaptable and embrace modern technology to respond to challenges facing a postmodern society. Therefore, religion is likely to provide the distinctive political and cultural identity for transnational power blocs. |
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