There is no salvation outside fundamentalism: Theology and Politics in the 20th century

In the intersection between fundamentalist theology and politics in the 20th century, this article does not address directly the violent actions committed by militants of various religious traditions, nor the formal entry of the ultra-conservative Protestants into the American political arena. Instead, its goal is to understand the theological and political mentality of Protestant fundamentalism, according to a qualitative methodology applied to an analysis and interpretation of the roots of its textual production (The Fundamentals: a Testimony to the Truth) and how it relates with one of its latest offshoots (the book The Fundamentals for the Twenty-First Century). One conclusion that could be reached by referring to these primary sources is that the transition from fundamentalist theology to political action does not necessarily require violence (taken in its immediate sense); on the other hand, it is also correct to state that Protestant fundamentalism will always be violent due to the sacralization of its own truth (imposed on the world). Violence that manifests itself in the control of the consciences of the faithful and the exclusion of others, both the opponents known since the 19th century, with emphasis on the political theology of Roman-Catholicism, as those who have become organized during the 20th century in the soteriological sphere of theological and political character. Proposing that there is no salvation outside fundamentalism includes the deliverance of the individual soul and the improvement of life in the State, which must be administrated by someone who is entitled to put absolute exclusivism into practice: either the other converts to the fundamentalist mindset, or they become liable to punishment.