With a site named Fundamental Churches, it is necessary for me to make some comments about Fundamentalism.
Fundamentalism is a term that often gets tossed about, but of which there is much confusion. Some misuse the term out of ignorance. Others misuse the term with a desire to denigrate those who hold to the Fundamentals of the Christian faith. Still others have, for various reasons, chosen to use the term in an attempt to co-opt the term for their own agenda.
When we use the term "Fundamentalism" on this site, we are using this term in the manner it has been consistently understood until recent years. In the words of Curtis Lee Laws, a Fundamentalist is one who believes the Fundamentals of the faith and is willing "to do battle royal for the Fundamentals."
At its core, Fundamentalism is simply historic, Biblical Christianity. Even liberals such as Kirsopp Lake, have acknowledged such, saying, “It is a mistake, often made by educated persons who happen to have but little knowledge of historical theology, to suppose that Fundamentalism is a new and strange form of thought. It is nothing of the kind: it is the…survival of a theology which was once universally held by all Christians…."
When seeking to clarify what beliefs made up "The Fundamentals," the Northern Presbyterian church established a list that has often served as a basic structure. This list (compiled in 1910) affirmed five essential doctrines regarded as under attack in the church: the inerrancy of Scripture, the virgin birth of Christ, the substitutionary atonement of Christ, Christ's bodily resurrection, and the historicity of the miracles. Similar lists were also produced by the Niagara Bible Conference, other denominational groups, and Christian schools and Bible Colleges.
One example of this type of list is found in the Bob Jones University Creed, which states:
I believe in the inspiration of the Bible (both the Old and the New Testaments); the creation of man by the direct act of God; the incarnation and virgin birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ; His identification as the Son of God; His vicarious atonement for the sins of mankind by the shedding of His blood on the cross; the resurrection of His body from the tomb; His power to save men from sin; the new birth through the regeneration by the Holy Spirit; and the gift of eternal life by the grace of God.
One of the important aspects of Fundamentalism has been the contention that the Bible requires that obedient Christians practice separation from the world, false teachers, and disobedient brethren. In many ways, it is this insistence on Biblical separation that, in effect, distinguishes Fundamentalism from the more numerous and popular "Evangelicalism" or "New Evangelicalism." Whereas the New Evangelical movement broke off from Fundamentalism in the 1940s and 1950s with a specific agenda that included a repudiation of Biblical separation, Fundamentalism retained this commitment to Biblical separation and the contrast has at times grown very distinct.
When we speak of Fundamentalism on this site, we are speaking of this type of Fundamenalism. A Fundamentalism that holds firmly to the Word of God and takes the issues of sound doctrine and sound practice seriously.
As such, the churches listed in the Fundamental Church Directory and involved in the church placement service will need to affirm the positions put forth on the "positions" page in order to be listed.
I hope you find this site to be a helpful resources by a Fundamentalist for Fundamentalists.
