religious fundamentalism has been prevalent in society since its beginnings in the late 19th- and early 20th-century. people today who study fundamentalism see it as a response to modern society. today society is not as simple as it was: many people live in societies that can be difficult to understand. changes in familiar things can make people feel unsafe. so some people look in their religion to see something that does not change. they also want rules about how to act that do not change. so they see their religion as this thing that does not change.