The Fundamentalism Project

The Fundamentalism Project, which was sponsored by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, was an international scholarly investigation of conservative religious movements throughout the world. The project, which began in 1987 and concluded in 1995, was directed by Martin E. Marty and R. Scott Appleby. The understanding of fundamentalism that framed this project was somewhat controversial. But even those scholars who have criticized the assumptions upon which the project was based admit that there is a great deal of useful empirical information to be found in publications that grew out of project.

Fundamentalism, as it is presented in those publications, is not a purely Christian phenomenon. Rather it is a form of militant opposition to modernity that can be found in all--or at least many--of the world's great religions.

Marty, Martin E. “Fundamentalism as a Social Phenomenon.” Bulletin of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 42 (November, 1988): 15-29.

Marty, Martin E. “Fundamentalism Reborn: Faith and Fanaticism.” Saturday Review. May 1980, 37-42.---. “Too Bad We Are So Relevant: The Fundamentalism Project Projected.” The Bulletin of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 49 (March 1996): 22-38.

Marty, Martin E. and Scott R. Appleby, eds. Fundamentalisms Observed. Vol 1 of Fundamentalism Project. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1991.

---. Fundamentalisms and Society: Reclaiming the Sciences, the Family, and Education. Vol 2 of Fundamentalism Project. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993.

---. Fundamentalisms and the State: Remaking Politics, Economies, and Militance. Vol 3. of Fundamentalism Project. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993.

---. Accounting for Fundamentalisms: The Dynamic Character of Movements. Vol. 4 of Fundamentalism Project. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994.

---. Fundamentalisms Comprehended. Vol. 5 of Fundamentalism Project. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1995.

---. The Glory and the Power: The Fundamentalist Challenge to the Modern World. Boston: Beacon, 1992.