Randal Rauser

Home of progressively evangelical, generously orthodox, rigorously analytic, revolutionary Christian thinking (that's what I'm aiming for anyway)

fundamentalism

Explaining the Concept of Atheistic Fundamentalism

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In my recent interview on Canadian Catholic, I explain how atheist apologist John Loftus is a fundamentalist atheist. I’ve been discussing the phenomenon of fundamentalist atheism for years now. But I often get the reply that fundamentalism cannot apply to atheism because fundamentalism is essentially a religious phenomenon. That, of course, assumes that atheism cannot be […]

On Meeting My Past Fundamentalist Self

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When I was a kid, I learned to view Christians who challenged my narrow fundamentalist paradigm as ‘liberals’ who were trying to subvert the Gospel. The view was borne by ignorance and an utter lack of charity. These days, when I make a point that challenges fundamentalism. I regularly get catty insults from Christians on […]

Why Christian Fundamentalism Is Not Your Father’s Orthodoxy

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Today, I was reading the entry on “Fundamentalism” in Alan Richardson, A Dictionary of Christian Theology (SCM Press, 1969) when I came across a passage that provides a trenchant critique of fundamentalism. One of the key attractions of fundamentalism, at least according to its adherents, is the belief that fundamentalism is rooted in the faithful transmission of […]

The Incredibly Dark World of Fundagelical Christianity

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I grew up in a fundagelical church. We were Pentecostal and thus charismatic with a heady dose of dispensationalism and culture war conservatism. As I reflect back, it strikes me that the worldview I was given was incredibly dark and pessimistic. For example, we were raised to believe the following (either through explicit teaching or […]

The Fundamentalist Atheist as Frankenstein’s Monster

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I had a civil discussion with “Pinecreek” recently on my book Jesus Loves Canaanites. At least, I thought it was civil. Alas, now true to form, Pinecreek has posted a severely shortened edit which he has labeled as “bloviation free”. Oh, how delightfully cheeky that is! Because you see, I’m a pompous, long-winded idiot. And […]

Before You Make Fun of the Church Sign, Try Interpreting it Charitably

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A friend of mine just sent me this picture of a church sign. While this seems like an easy target for fundamentalist irrationalism, there is a very plausible charitable interpretation. (By the way, given the number of fake church signs out there, I did a quick google search and confirmed that Paoli Wesleyan is, at […]

Finding the Devil in Rock and Roll … Backwards

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The single most infamous song of the backward masking craze of the 1980s was surely Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.” A message from the devil or a trick of the imagination? I’ll say the latter. But when we were kids, playing “Stairway to Heaven” backward on the record player was still a memorable way to […]