 Etymology : Middle English heresie, from Old French, from Late Latin haeresis, from Late Greek hairesis, from Greek, action of taking, choice, sect, from hairein to take Pronunciation : 'her-&-sE Function : noun Date : 13th century
1. unorthodox religious belief; belief or idea which is in opposition to established views. heresy\her"e*sy\ , n.; pl. heresies (#). [oe. heresie, eresie, of. heresie, iresie, f. hérésie, l. haeresis, gr. a taking, a taking for one's self, choosing, a choice, a sect, a heresy, fr. to take, choose.]. 2. an opinion held in opposition to the established or commonly received doctrine, and tending to promote a division or party, as in politics, literature, philosophy, etc.; -- usually, but not necessarily, said in reproach. new opinions divers and dangerous, which are heresies, and, not reformed, may prove pernicious. after the study of philosophy began in greece, and the philosophers, disagreeing amongst themselves, had started many questions because every man took what opinion he pleased, each several opinion was called a heresy; which signified no more than a private opinion, without reference to truth or falsehood. obbes. 3. (theol.) religious opinion opposed to the authorized doctrinal standards of any particular church, especially when tending to promote schism or separation; lack of orthodox or sound belief; rejection of, or erroneous belief in regard to, some fundamental religious doctrine or truth; heterodoxy. doubts 'mongst divines, and difference of texts, from whence arise diversity of sects, and hateful heresies by god abhor'd. deluded people! that do not consider that the greatest heresy in the world is a wicked life. 4. (law) an offense against christianity, consisting in a denial of some essential doctrine, which denial is publicly avowed, and obstinately maintained. a second offense is that of heresy, which consists not in a total denial of christianity, but of some its essential doctrines, publicly and obstinately avowed.note: "when i call dueling, and similar aberrations of honor, a moral heresy, i refer to the force of the greek , as signifying a principle or opinion taken up by the will for the will's sake, as a proof or pledge to itself of its own power of self-determination, independent of all other motives."heresy n. 5. any opinions or doctrines at variance with the official or orthodox position [syn: unorthodoxy, heterodoxy] [ant: orthodoxy]. 6. a belief that rejects the orthodox tenets of a religion [syn: unorthodoxy]heresy from a greek word signifying (1) a choice, (2) the opinion chosen, and (3) the sect holding the opinion. in the acts of the apostles (5:17; 15:5; 24:5, 14; 26:5) it denotes a sect, without reference to its character. elsewhere, however, in the new testament it has a different meaning attached to it. paul ranks "heresies" with crimes and seditions (gal. 5:20). this word also denotes divisions or schisms in the church (1 cor. 11:19). in titus 3:10 a "heretical person" is one who follows his own self-willed "questions," and who is to be avoided. heresies thus came to signify self-chosen doctrines not emanating from god (2 pet. 2:1). 7. An opinion held in opposition to the established or commonly received doctrine, and tending to promote a division or party, as in politics, literature, philosophy, etc.; usually, but not necessarily, said in reproach. 8. Religious opinion opposed to the authorized doctrinal standards of any particular church, especially when tending to promote schism or separation; lack of orthodox or sound belief; rejection of, or erroneous belief in regard to, some fundamental religious doctrine or truth; heterodoxy. 9. An offense against Christianity, consisting in a denial of some essential doctrine, which denial is publicly avowed, and obstinately maintained. a belief that rejects the orthodox tenets of a religion. 10. 1. Heresy is a belief or action that most people think is wrong, because it disagrees with beliefs that are generally accepted. It might be considered heresy to suggest such a notion. 11. Heresy is a belief or action which seriously disagrees with the principles of a particular religion. He said it was a heresy to suggest that women should not conduct services. Doctrine rejected as false by religious authorities. In Christianity, the orthodox theology of the church is thought to be based on divine revelation, and heretics are viewed as perversely rejecting the guidance of the church. Numerous Christian heresies appeared from the 2nd century onwards. Early heresies included Arianism, the Monophysite heresy, Pelagianism, and Donatism. Some heresies, such as Montanism, expressed faith in a new prophet who added to the body of Christian revelation. Some types of Gnosticism were heretical branches of Christianity. The major means of combating heretics in the early church was excommunication. In the 12th-13th century, the Inquisition was established to combat heresy, and heretics who refused to recant were often executed. In the 16th century the Protestant Reformation brought an end to the doctrinal unity of Western Christendom, and the concept of heresy became less important in the various Christian churches, though it continues to exist. The concept of heresy also exists in Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam.
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