Fundamentalism - Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition
I've had the idea for a while that fundamentalism might provide a promising line of inquiry into understanding domination and the love of power. Events in Russia, Iraq, Israel and Palestine in the last week have been a reminder that fundamentalist religion is now on all of our agendas.
I was prompted into pulling fundamentalism up into the foreground by two pieces I have mentioned here previously, Dominionist Christianity by Katherine Yurica and Cardinal Ratzinger's rant against Feminism. and my critical review response to it. First line of research turned out to be Karen Armstrong's article in the Guardian Monday December 29, 2003, 'When God goes to war', which prompted me to get her book 'The Fight for God'.
I've looked at what fundamentalism is, how it comes into being, and why it is likely to be harmful. And... as befits an inquiry, I found some surprises - examples of fundamentalism in unsuspected places.
I've written up my researches to date in this article, 'Fundamentalism - Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition', which you can read on-line, or download.
Writeback comments, objections, or amplification would be welcome.