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Religious Fundamentalism. LO : Was America a country of religious and racial intolerance during this period? Key Words : Monkey Trial, Darwinism, Creationism. What do you think is meant by religious fundamentalism?. Watch the DVD clip to show an example of Christian fundamentalism!. KEY WORD.
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Religious Fundamentalism LO: Was America a country of religious and racial intolerance during this period? Key Words: Monkey Trial, Darwinism, Creationism
Watch the DVD clip to show an example of Christian fundamentalism!
KEY WORD • Religious fundamentalist: • Someone who takes the Bible literally and holds extreme views on religion.
Sister Aimee McPherson • Popular preacher of the 1920s • One of the first people to use radio to spread her message • Thousands flocked to hear her speak
America in the 1920s • The Southern States of America in the 1920s were known as the Bible Belt. • They were traditionally religious and many people here did not like the changes brought about by the ‘Jazz Age’ • They thought flappers (fashionable women who often drank and smoked) were immoral and didn’t agree with the emphasis on sex, material goods and ‘loose morals.’ • They passed laws banning wearing of ‘indecent’ bathing costumes, gambling on Sunday etc
1925 • 1925 –6 states, including Tennessee passed law banning the teaching of Creationism They thought it contradicted the Bible
The Bible The Bible teaches that God created the world in 7 days. Fundamentalists take the Bible literally. They believe that man came from Adam and Eve.
Charles Darwin • Charles Darwin was a scientist. • He came up with the Theory of Evolution • Life on earth evolved slowly over millions of years • Modern science has shown that human beings are descended from apes and monkeys
Test yourself • What was the ‘Bible Belt’? (4 marks) • What did many southern states ban in 1925? (1 mark) • What are Fundamentalists? (1 mark) • Explain Darwinism (2 marks)
Johnny Scopes • Johnny Scopes was a science teacher in Tennessee. • He decided to put the law to the test. • He taught Darwinism knowing he would be prosecuted.
His trial took place in July 1925 in a packed courtroom, with over a hundred newsmen. It was the first trial in American history to be broadcast on the radio
Clarence Darrow v William J. Bryan • Clarence Darrow offered to defend Stopes without a fee. • William Jennings Bryan was the leader of the prosecution
There was no doubt that Scopes was guilty. • However, the trial concentrated on the arguments for and against the Theory of Evolution • For this reason it was nicknamed The Monkey Trial
During the Trial How did Darrow try to make a fool out of Bryan? “Darrow: “Do you believe in Jonah and the Whale”? Bryan: “It is easy to believe in the miracle of Jonah” Darrow: “Did Eve really come from Adam’s rib”? Bryan: Yes”
The Verdict • Scopes was found guilty and fined $100. • However, the outcome is generally seen as a victory for Darrow, who managed to humiliate Bryan