The Flag of Fundamentalism Fundamentalism seems to be a light that cannot be hidden under a basket. In spite of over 100 years of denunciations, felony laws, persecutions, prosecutions, excommunications and imprisonments, their flag still flies. Who are today’s Fundamentalist Mormons, and how did they originate? Apparently Elder Mark E. Petersen was the first to use this term, which infers support of the original and fundamental doctrines of the LDS Church. Such believers are found within the mainstream church, in many different groups, and also among those termed Independent Fundamentalist Mormons—those who are not active in the LDS Church or any of its organized offshoots.