Fundamentalism

So it turns out that the man who bombed the embassy in Oslo and gunned down 68 teenagers was a Christian fundamentalist with the far right extremist views which accompany it..But it's the extreme nature of the man's actions which first and for most makes one mourn the senseless loss of life, but secondarily reflect on how much the notion of fundamentalism has departed from its original purpose..

Fundamentalism itself came from the Southern Baptists in the early 20th century, with the sole purpose of defending conservative Christianity from its more liberal and modernistic counterparts. As the name suggests, the movement sought to re-introduce the fundamentals of scripture into common parlance, with the aim of bringing Christianity back to its truest form.
However, fundamentalism now seems to revolve around a state of mind rather than correct doctrine, a sense of superiority as opposed to humility. And this sense of elitism is only really based on a form of absolutism, with the under current pride. But the more I think about fundamentalism, the more it occurs to me that it is yet another humanistic way of coping with the complexities of life. And as a Christian and a counsellor, it is my opinion that fundamentalism is both a spiritual and pastoral issue. To me, faith is the belief in something you cannot fully understand or see, and it remains dynamic, not static or absolute. And in terms of therapy, absolutism is typical coping behaviour for those who could be described as having a insecure attachment.