The English Reformation and the Roots of Atheism and Fundamentalism PDF
Preview The English Reformation and the Roots of Atheism and Fundamentalism
Atheism, Fundamentalism and the Protestant Reformation Thisstudyofnewatheismandreligiousfundamentalismadvancestwo provocative – and surprising – arguments. Fraser argues that atheism andProtestantfundamentalisminBritainandAmericashareacommon historicaloriginintheEnglishReformation,andthecrisisofauthority inaugurated by the Reformers. This common origin generated two presuppositions crucial for both movements: a literalist understanding ofScripture,andadisruptiveunderstandingofdivineactivityinnature. Through an analysis of contemporary new atheist and Protestant fundamentalisttexts,Frasershowsthatthesepresuppositionscontinue tostructurebothgroups,andsupportarangeofsharedbiblical,scien- tific, and theological beliefs. Their common origin and intellectual structure ensures that new atheism and Protestant fundamentalism – while on the surface irreconcilably opposed – share a secret sympathy withoneanother,yetonewhichleavesthemunstable,inconsistent,and unsustainable. Rev.Dr.LiamJerroldFraserisChurchofScotlandCampusMinisterat theUniversityofEdinburgh. Atheism, Fundamentalism and the Protestant Reformation Uncovering the Secret Sympathy LIAM JERROLD FRASER UniversityofEdinburgh UniversityPrintingHouse,Cambridgecb28bs,UnitedKingdom OneLibertyPlaza,20thFloor,NewYork,ny10006,USA 477WilliamstownRoad,PortMelbourne,vic3207,Australia 314–321,3rdFloor,Plot3,SplendorForum,JasolaDistrictCentre, NewDelhi–110025,India 79AnsonRoad,#06–04/06,Singapore079906 CambridgeUniversityPressispartoftheUniversityofCambridge. ItfurtherstheUniversity’smissionbydisseminatingknowledgeinthepursuitof education,learning,andresearchatthehighestinternationallevelsofexcellence. www.cambridge.org Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781108427982 doi:10.1017/9781108552141 ©LiamJerroldFraser2018 Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements, noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress. Firstpublished2018 PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmericabySheridanBooks,Inc. AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary. LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData names:Fraser,LiamJerrold,1986-author. title:Atheism,fundamentalismandtheProtestantReformation:uncoveringthe secretsympathy/LiamJerroldFraser,UniversityofEdinburgh. description:1[edition].|NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,2018.| Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex. identifiers:lccn2018006514|isbn9781108448611(pbk.) subjects:lcsh:Reformation.|Christianityandatheism.|Fundamentalism. classification:lccbr305.3.f732018|ddc270.6–dc23 LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2018006514 isbn978-1-108-42798-2Hardback CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracy ofURLsforexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication anddoesnotguaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwillremain, accurateorappropriate. ForYvonne,Jerrold,Samantha,TheodoreandSebastian amatussumergosum Contents Acknowledgements page ix Introduction 1 1 The Unfinished Reformation 16 Reformationto Revolution 17 The Civil War 31 Restoration andRestraint 35 Freethought ina Protestant Key 43 Re-Narrating Nature 56 2 ThingsFall Apart 67 Dissenters and Evangelicals 69 The Gathering of Infidels 73 Origins and Ends 88 Walking Apart 94 3 AnInductive Theology 111 The Scottish Philosophy 113 An EvangelicalEmpire 119 The Shock of the New 128 Death inTennessee 142 4 The Secret Sympathy 149 Contemporary Context 150 The Bible: Literal, Univocaland Perspicuous 159 DivineActivity: DisruptiveandSubstitutionary 173 Opposites Attract 188 vii viii Contents 5 A House Divided 205 New Atheists 206 ProtestantFundamentalists 222 Dialectic of Protestantism 230 Conclusion 245 Bibliography 248 Index 266
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