Fundamentalism refers to any sect or movement within a religion that emphasizes a rigid adherence to what it conceives of as the fundamental principles of its faith, usually resulting in a denouncement of alternative practices and interpretations. There are fundamentalist sects in almost all of the world's major religions, including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Judaism. Cross-culturally, fundamentalism is characterized by a cluster of common attributes including a literal interpretation of scripture, a suspicion of outsiders, a sense of alienation from the secular culture, a distrust of liberal elites, and the belief in the historical accuracy and inerrancy of their own interpretation of their religious scriptures. Additionally, religious fundamentalists are often politically active and may feel that the state must be subservient to God.
Historically, the term "fundamentalism" was first used in the early 1900s among American Protestant Christians who strove to return to the "fundamentals" of Biblical faith, and who stressed the literally interpreted Bible as fundamental to Christian life and teaching. The subsequent growth of religious fundamentalism in the twentieth century has been tied to the perceived challenge that both secularism and liberal values pose to traditional religious authorities, values, and theological truth claims. Fundamentalism appeals to religious believers who feel threatened by the encroachment of liberal values into traditionally religious spheres. They feel besieged by secular culture which they regard as immoral and godless.
It should be noted that groups described as fundamentalist often strongly object to this term because they see it as a derogatory label. While liberals point to the fundamentalists' intolerance and self-righteousness as a breeding ground for religious violence, fundamentalists, on the other hand, point to liberals' intolerance towards them, precisely because they believe in absolutes. Fundamentalists have shown political savvy in working ecumenically with like-minded people of other faiths to promote conservative values, creating such groups as the Moral Majority, which played a major role in the 1980 election of President Ronald Reagan.