I subscribe to Daily Writing Tips’ “Word of the Day.” Today’s post was “fundamentalism.” I naturally read it, and it was pretty good:

Fundamentalism (fŭn’də-mĕn’tl-ĭz’əm) in a religious sense is an effort to return to “fundamentals,” or founding principles. It was first applied in the early 20th century to an American militant conservative Protestant movement that rejected the new science of textual criticism, insisting instead upon a literal interpretation of the Bible. The term is now used to describe anti-modernist elements in any religion.

Not even a mention of any “lunatic fringe” aspects.