When did this happen?

Question

When did the fundamentalist Christians begin gaining popularity and power? An example - the 700 club. When did they begin gaining followers? Why do you think fundamentalist churchs are so popular? Do you think that their popularity is fad-like and will fade with time?

Answer 1

In some ways this is a hard question to answer. In recent times, they began to highly influential starting with Reagan's term in office. While they were around and organizing since the early 1970's. I would say that they began to be influential within the government, however, since Reagan.
However, Fundamentalism as a movement began in the early 1900's and gained popularity throughout the early part of the 1900's. It went underground in the late 1920's/early 1930's. There were a number of incidents that happened that made a number of people believe that Fundamentalism was nuts. I believe that the Scopes "Monkey" trial could be seen as the event that showed that Fundamentalism was wrong.
So to answer your question, it became highly popular throughout the 1920's then went underground and re-established itself in the late 1970's.

Answer 2

Your question should be "When didn't this happen?" The United States has a religious fundamentalist revial movement that comes like clockwork every fifty years.

During the 1800s the fundamentalist Christians provided the most popular form mass entertainment during that Century through the Chataqua movement, which brought "modern" entertainment to every town, village and city in the United States. Besides having massive tent gospel meetings, the movement also introduced "modern" plays, Shakespeare's plays, classical music and hundreds of lecture series to the masses. The lecture series are credited as being the reason the United States built more Universities and Colleges than any other country in the world. The lecturers were the foremost experts of the day on their respective specialties. For example, Chemists would speak about Chemistry, Bankers about modern finance, Physics professors would speak about electricty etc. Ordinary people attended these lectures and the lecture series and the lecturers and the revivalists encouraged parents to interest their sons and daughters to continue their education not only through high school, which was considered quite an accomplishment back then, but then to go on to attend Colleges and Universities. It was considered a religious duty to be educated and hard working. The movement also showed students in out of the way places that there was a world of education and possibilities out there.

1700s there was the Methodist movement that started in England and quickly was established in the United States. This also led to the second great Missionary movement, the first one happened in the 1600s. Later that century in the 1700s there was the "Bible" revival that sought to educate everyone to read so they could read the Bible themselves. This lead to the Sunday School movement which lead to the public school movement where State Governments set up education laws that made education available to all American children. The first free schools where for the first time in history parents didn't have to pay to have their children educated went to grade six and students were expected to learn how to read, write and do elementary mathematics by the time they completed grade six.

1600s, the Dissenters that came over from England to escape persecution from the State Church of England, the Anglican church. Late 1600s the first large Missionary movement to bring the gospel to the settlers west of the Cumberland pass as well as the first missionaries to be sent to the Far East and other places around the world.

Answer 3

The Fundamentalist Christian is something that has emerged three distinct times in American Christian, once in the 18th century, once in the 19th, and once in the 20th. During the early 20th century, American Christians frequently viewed themselves not as the the Christian sector of America, but simply, America. American=Christian. This wasn't true, of course, but that was the massive opinion. World War 1 + 2 fueled this implied identity by unifying Americans against the "other", the evil empires elsewhere. At this time, all things American: art, religion, and science, were viewed together, as good. Post 1930's yielded a time when Christianity was so meshed with America, that church attendance was at an all time low, and Church going Christians began to make moves to identify themselves as separate. Evolution became an issue again. Morals in movies became to be brought up. Basically, the 1950's was the beginning of the cultural surge of fundamentalism we see today. It always happens when the constant church-goers sense their identity slipping into the public.

Answer 4

I The 700 club was a long time ago... I think since then, the fundamentalist Christians have lost popularity, not gained... In fact, I think fundamentalist Christians are discriminated against. If you want to see, search up fundie or fundamentalist on yahoo and see how many horrible comments there are about them. But this is because people like Pat Robertson, Oral Roberts... all those guys, are the reps and they made big fools of themselves and Christians. I think that their popularity has already faded. I think that hopefully, people pay a litttle more respect to the big guys, like Billy Graham... and not those televangelist types...

Answer 5

I am a fundamentalists, and theoritically 700 club is not a fundamentalists movement, it is part of the charismatic movement. Funamentalism started around the turn of the century 100 years ago and was coinedto mean those who accepted the fundamental truths of the Bible as the Word of God. It meant in practice that the Bible was the one and only authority for for truth. Thee Charismatic movement beginning in the 1960 - 70's broke away from that belief accepting the idea that there were two sources of truth, the Bible, an the miraculous. No longer was truth strictly defined by the Bible but anything that was "supernatural" (in their definition) such as healing, tongues, experiences, even feeling, voices, etc could also document truth. There is still a large rift between the fundamentalists and the charismatics. Many Charismatics actually think they are fundamentalists, but in reality are not.

Answer 6

By way of an answer I will recommend to you a very good book.

Religion Gone Bad: The Hidden Dangers of the Christian Right. By Mel White

I picked it up on half.com for 6 bucks including shipping and I love it.

Its a real eye-opener and a clear call to Christians to take Christianity back from the fundamentalist!!!!

Answer 7

The modern world has started to scare christians. Fundamentalism has responded to this by promising them deliverance via the rapture and saying that it will happen soon.

I wouldn't call it a fad but I do believe that the pendulum will swing back towards less fanatical beliefs.

I would say the same applies to fundamentalists in islam and in israeli judaism.

Answer 8

Christians began to gain power and popularity in Rome, from their the began going out all over the world gather sheep to add to their flock. Fundamentalists churches are popular because more people everyday are feeling less able to deal with life itself. Extremism is increasing all over the world due to power people governments of all types. Churches and government are en-titlist by nature. I am of the opinion that man is not meant to be governed by man, men who seek power ARE corrupt or corruptible.

Answer 9

The 700 Club has been around since the 70s.

Answer 10

The answer lies in the fact that Christianity has been popular for about 2000 years. So will it ever fade? Yeah, but I wouldn't exactly call this a fad.