The Battle for God

A History of Fundamentalism

By: Karen Armstrong

Narrated by: Lisa Armytage, Karen Armstrong

In the late 20th century, fundamentalism has emerged as one of the most powerful forces at work in the world, contesting the dominance of modern secular values and threatening peace and harmony around the globe. Yet it remains incomprehensible to a large number of people. In The Battle for God, Karen Armstrong brilliantly and sympathetically shows us how and why fundamentalist groups came into existence and what they yearn to accomplish.

We see the West in the 16th century beginning to create an entirely new kind of civilization, which brought in its wake change in every aspect of life - often painful and violent, even if liberating. Armstrong argues that one of the things that changed most was religion. People could no longer think about or experience the divine in the same way; they had to develop new forms of faith to fit their new circumstances.

Armstrong characterizes fundamentalism as one of these new ways of being religious that have emerged in every major faith tradition. Focusing on Protestant fundamentalism in the United States, Jewish fundamentalism in Israel, and Muslim fundamentalism in Egypt and Iran, she examines the ways in which these movements, while not monolithic, have each sprung from a dread of modernity - often in response to assault (sometimes unwitting, sometimes intentional) by the mainstream society.

Armstrong sees fundamentalist groups as complex, innovative, and modern - rather than as throwbacks to the past - but contends that they have failed in religious terms. Maintaining that fundamentalism often exists in symbiotic relationship with an aggressive modernity, each impelling the other on to greater excess, she suggests compassion as a way to defuse what is now an intensifying conflict.

©2000 Karen Armstrong (P)2020 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"One of the most penetrating, readable, and prescient accounts to date of the rise of the fundamentalist movements in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam." (The New York Times Book Review)

"Excellent...highly intelligent and highly readable.... This is a book that will prove indispensable...for anyone who seeks insight into how these powerful movements affect global politics and society today and into the future." (The Baltimore Sun)

"Armstrong succeeds brilliantly.... With her astonishing depth of knowledge and readily accessible writing style, [she] makes an ideal guide in traversing a subject that is by its very nature complex, sensitive and frequently ambiguous." (The San Francisco Examiner and Chronicle)

Where does religious fundamentalism come from?

This is a remarkable and eye-opening book that has helped me understand the concept of religion, the source of fundamentalism and how it applies to everything we are seeing in our (the US) and other countries' (Israel and Muslim countries) current political climates.

The concept of religion helping to tie mythos (the story) with logos (practical wisdom), the need for balance between the two, the supreme importance of ritual to help confirm this has really helped me understand the most basic concept of religion. The author has unlocked why religion is so important, why it is so human, and why it is necessary to being a human. It is necessary to understand a world that does not always make sense, and lays down laws to govern a world that does not make sense. You can tell the author has a great deal of respect for religion and this is by no means a book on why religion is bad. It is specifically a book on you can start with an ideology that has so many positives (societal and individually), but somehow warp it to construct something that is extreme and damaging. The idea of fundamentalism occurs as a reaction to an external factor - modernity, colonialism, science or isolation, when religion feels boxed in and has no release. It is these external factors that squeeze religion, forcing thinkers to pick and choose aspects of religion, and thus create fundamentalists. The history of fundamentalism is SO important to understand this - you cannot understand Jewish fundamentalism without understanding Jewish isolation in Eastern Europe, Islamic fundamentalism without understanding Western colonialism and pressure, and Christian Fundamentalism without understanding the American Protestant reaction to the Enlightenment, rationalism and science.

The chapters on American Protestant fundamentalism are particularly incisive, as it so clearly explains everything that is occurring in the US right now. The author even remarks how the US might eventually decide on a fascist ideology at some point, and this book was written 25 years ago (in 2000)!! Everything that is being done by the current administration are foretold in this book, as this has been the goal of the Protestant Fundamentalists since they began to organize their beliefs and ideology in the early 70s (see the Christian Reconstructionists).

This book was written in 2000, and given how much has changed in the last 25 years, I would have loved to known how her conclusions would be different. In the late 90s, it seemed like the fundamentalists in all 3 religions were losing influence. Safe to say, the opposite is now true.

It is a long, but important book. I would encourage anyone to read this if they truly want to understand this world we live in.

The best overview of religious fundamentalism in the 3 Abrahamic faiths

This is essential reading for anyone interested in religious fundamentalism, both for the breadth and readability of the content covered, and for the importance of Armstrong’s argument within scholarly and non-scholarly circles.

Very Illuminating

This book was particularly enlightening given events occurring in the US and globally at the opening of 2025. It puts many historical occurrences in context and explains motivations for groups within the US and their actions over the last decade, particularly the role of fascist ideology and authoritarianism in the service of religion. I hope the author will revisit this material at some point with updated information and commentary about developments from 2000 to present.

An education for the modern world

I’m already a fan of Karen Armstrong’s work but I had missed this essential piece of reading. Like other reviewers I was stunned to realize that the book was published in paperback years ago because the material feels new and highly relevant for our understanding of the conservative (religious) movements across different faiths around the world today. It has given me new historical and necessary insights into different world views. I highly recommend this to a reader interested in having a better understanding of the world today.

Faith, compassion, and politics!

Where does God end and the Devil begin? Karen Armstrong challenge to ideology and the best and worst of human nature never fails to deliver.

Expert analysis of fundamentalism, of mythos/logos

useful for understanding the (relatively) current state of affairs in Christian, Jewish, and Islamic fundamentalism. provides a persuasive argument for the modern roots of fundamentalism and of its misunderstanding and misuse of logos and mythos

Great Read

This has given me a much better understanding of the present world

I will listen to it again

fundamentalism

The examples of fundamentalism across all religions narrated in the book were riveting. after listening to this book, I do not know how anyone can blindly follow an organized religion. however, as human beings, we have a spiritual side that needs to be nourished and without religion People's lives somtiems lack meaning

The most important book you haven’t read yet

I was stunned to discover that the paper version came out 20 years ago. At the very end, that becomes clear, but what doesn’t change is the importance of the analysis, and the prescience of the book’s publication. Wondering how the world got where it is? Read this book!

One final point. Armstrong is, of course, an historian of religion, but this book also works as profound sociology of knowledge, and pretty good political science, to boot!

Do yourself a favor. Read the book!

Must have an open mind and heart.

This book gives an overview of how some of our beliefs come about.
At no time did the author say you shouldn’t believe in God.
She basically stated how some views of God came about in the 3 major religions.
You of course can accept or reject it.
I found it to be enlightening.