Fundamentalist confidence and skeptic uncertainty

[Haven]

If there’s one thing I’ve noticed from decades of debate, it’s that fundamentalists state their beliefs with absolute confidence, even when the evidence behind them is scant or nonexistent. In contrast, skeptics (atheists and liberal believers) take a more measured or scientific approach, hedging claims with probabilities, expressing doubt where the evidence isn’t strong and so on.

It’s not something unique to Christian fundamentalists either. I’ve met Muslim apologists who claimed with confidence that evolution is false, Hindu proselytizers who were adamant that meditation cures diseases and their guru was an avatar of Krishna and flat earthers who were 100% convinced that science was a political conspiracy. Fundamentalism seems to breed this kind of impervious confidence, which many take as evidence in and of itself for their beliefs.

Debate questions: Is confidence without evidence a path to truth? Does a reasonable epistemology include some measure of doubt? Are fundamentalists justified in being extremely confident about their claims?

[Difflugia]

Fundamentalism seems to breed this kind of impervious confidence

I wonder if this isn't putting the cart before the horse. Are there any fundamentalists with a healthy skepticism of their own infallibility? If the direction is the way you've written it, then brand-new fundamentalists would be less confident that their worldview is true than someone that's been a fundamentalist longer. I suspect that it's the confidence that drives the fundamentalist fervor. I think an apt analogy is a child spinning and becoming dizzy. The dizziness can help accelerating the spinning, but it's not was caused the spinning in the first place.

[Haven]

[Replying to Difflugia in post #2]

I wonder if this isn't putting the cart before the horse. Are there any fundamentalists with a healthy skepticism of their own infallibility?

I’ve interacted with very few, but they do exist. The owner of this forum, otseng, is one of them, as well as a few other educated Christian regulars around here. NT Wright is a pretty well-known academic example as well. But you’re right, there aren’t many.

I suspect that it's the confidence that drives the fundamentalist fervor. I think an apt analogy is a child spinning and becoming dizzy. The dizziness can help accelerating the spinning, but it's not was caused the spinning in the first place.

I think there’s a lot of truth to this.