This week in Christian history: ‘The Fundamentals’ released; King Charles II tolerates non-conformists

'The Fundamentals' first mailed out – March 19, 1910

This week marks the anniversary of when the first volume of The Fundamentals: A Testimony to the Truth, a series of essays that served as the intellectual basis for the Fundamentalist Christian movement, was mailed out.

The endeavor was funded by Lyman Stewart and his brother, the former of whom helped to found the Bible Institute of Los Angeles, which later became Biola University.

The 12-volume series included 90 essays from various theologically conservative theologians and other leaders. Eventually, approximately 3 million copies were published and distributed to hundreds of thousands of churches and seminaries.

The essays would be published between 1910 and 1915, with the Stewarts opting to remain anonymous, as the cover page labeled it the “Compliments of Two Christian Laymen.”

“Over 200,000 letters were received by the Testimony Publishing Company, some antagonistic but most appreciative and grateful for the generosity of the 'two Christian laymen,' desiring more volumes for distribution or committing to prayer for a restoration and revival in the church,” noted Biola Magazine in 2014.

“The records clearly reveal that despite the strong personalities involved and the multitude of denominations represented, there was an overriding spirit of irenic cooperation among the committee and a desire to present their written testimony in a winsome and convincing manner.”