What are heresies?

1 • “Heresy”… an outdated concept?

In the third millennium, words like “heresy” or “heretic” sound a bit “outdated.”

They seem to belong to a language that is now surpassed.

Linked to dark ages, obscure times; the legacy of oppressive religiosity…

Of course…

…the distrust towards these words didn’t just come out of nowhere: amid the inquisition, issues between the Church and Galileo, Giordano Bruno, various barbecues, perhaps it’s a good thing that – in the third millennium – this word is spoken a bit less often.

However, despite all the distortions and abuses throughout history (which – yes – there have been, unfortunately), lately, I have wondered about the purpose of using this word:

• To label the “bad guys“?
• To categorize the “impious“?
• To punish the “misbelievers“?

2 • Speaking “specifically” about Him, without confusion

In the first centuries after Christ, the Gospel was proclaimed far and wide throughout the Mediterranean (and the hinterlands)…

…passing through cities and villages, rivers and seas, valleys and mountains, disciples who went around witnessing for Jesus faced a necessity:

Who was Jesus? And who wasn’t he?

What did he say? And what didn’t he say?

…and so on…

Even Paul of Tarsus, when he wrote to the Corinthians, took care to “put them on guard” regarding the identity of Jesus:

3 • What are heresies?

“Heresy” is a word that comes from Greek (αἵρεσις, hairesis), which – literally – means “choice“…

…in the Christian context (which is the one for which the word is commonly used), it signifies the “choice” of a doctrine different from that of the Church and the rejection of its teachings.

A few days ago, I was reading a book by Don Fabio Rosini:

Heresies (most of the time) have originated like this: they were not “nonsensical ideas” pulled out of thin air, but truths taken out of their context…

…in what sense?

Let’s consider a couple of examples:

• Marcion of Sinope (in the 2nd century) affirmed – in line with the teachings of the Church – that “Jesus is God”… but he believed – contrary to the teachings of the Church – that the Revelation of Jesus was incompatible with that of the “God of the Old Testament”;
• Arianism (in the 4th century) maintained, along with the Church, that “God is unique”… but by taking this truth of faith to extremes, it ended up stating that Jesus was inferior to God the Father;
• The Monophysites (in the 5th century) said – along with the Church – that “Jesus is God”… but they “insisted so much” on this point, to the extent of forgetting that Jesus is also fully human.

And the first Councils convened by the Church served precisely for this: to clarify the identity of Jesus…

Oh, let me make this clear: it’s true that heresies originated as “truths separated from their context“… but throughout history, there have been many others that, in outlining a profile of Jesus, have “pushed the boundaries” a bit further with imagination…

Don Fabio observed that:

4 • How do you understand if a heresy is a heresy?

Well, that’s a good question…

…taking a broad approach, I would say this: the difference between a Christian and “someone who claims to be a Christian” is that the former has personally and viscerally encountered Jesus Christ in their own life.

A Christian has experienced, firsthand and intimately, the actions of God on his own skin.

Otherwise, faith remains a more-or-less-articulated theory, an abstraction, an idea, a cognitive bias, a cultural baggage…

…but you also need a “litmus test” to avoid being misled:

What are these objective parameters?

The most important is the “Creed” (the one we recite at Mass).

Christians in the early centuries felt the need to safeguard the deposit of faith to preserve it from errors, inaccuracies, distortions, “in my opinion, Jesus…,” “I don’t agree that Jesus is God…,” etc.

It is no coincidence that the Creed is also called:

• “Symbol of The Apostles”: the word “Symbol” comes from the Greek (σύν, sün = “together” and βάλλω, bàllo = “throw”, “put”), meaning “putting together, uniting the parts”… in other words, creating a kind of “Cliffs Notes” of the faith (conversely, some argue that the word “devil” comes from the Greek verb διαβάλλω, diabàllo, meaning “to divide, oppose, separate“… although this etymology is debated).
• “Regula fidei” / “Rule of Faith”: the word “rule” indicates a rod for measuring (from which “ruler”)… verifying that my personal faith is in line with that transmitted by the apostles, safeguarded by the Church.

Despite the many difficulties over the centuries, the miseries and weaknesses of many Church men, the less credible testimonies of many Christians, scandals, disobedience, and whatever else… from council to council, the faith of the apostles has been transmitted throughout history to our days, thanks to the Magisterium of the Church (magisterium = teachings).

5 • Are there heresies in the third millennium?

In 1984, journalist Vittorio Messori, in a lengthy interview with then-Cardinal Ratzinger (who at the time was Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith), wondered if it still made sense to speak of “heresies” in our times…

…Joseph Ratzinger responded as follows:

In what sense “defending the community of believers“?

Is Ratzinger perhaps nostalgic for inquisitions, crusades, and burnings of heretics?

Nothing could be further from the truth…

…however, the Church – both the one in 33 AD and the one in 2021 – has always been aware that faith is a precious pearl (cf. Mt 13:46), not to be thrown to the swine (Mt 7:6), a treasure to be guarded (Mt 13:44), which one must watch over (Acts 20:28)…

The letters of Paul of Tarsus overflow with love for Jesus Christ; and from this love for Him, Paul’s great concern arises: that in all the communities where he has brought the Gospel, faith should be preserved authentically:

So much so that in the interview I mentioned, Ratzinger continues:

Conclusion

Okay…

I just want to make a final consideration…

Even though I occasionally use the word “heretic” lightly and in a playful manner in cartoons (and among friends), in reality, the condemnation for heresy is such a delicate and painful theme that the Church – today more than ever – rightly treads carefully.

Especially when it comes to relations with other Christian denominations (non-Catholic).

Unfortunately, the Church (that is, we Christians – including myself) has learned at its own expense, and with a heavy heart, that condemning someone as a “heretic” is not like having a mole removed.

It is a deep wound in the Body of Christ.

A tear in the ecclesial fabric.

An “extrema ratio” / “extreme measure“: the times when – alas – such an action was deemed necessary, it was a bit like amputating a hand to save the arm…

…the division among Christians today (and always) is what most discredits the Church in the eyes of non-believers: we Christians present ourselves – unworthily – to the world as witnesses of Jesus (or rather, as “His body”), but we fall gravely short of the words He himself spoke during the Last Supper:

Orthodoxy (i.e., fidelity to the teachings of the Church, for the love of Jesus) is vital.

But it is vital when lived to the fullest.

Today, there are many people (including priests and bishops) who are very confused – about God, faith, revelation, catechism, anthropology, and a thousand other issues…

…but (paraphrasing a thought from my friend Giovanni) just as confused are those shepherds who, after “spitting on others” the list of permissions and prohibitions, believe that their apostolate is finished… when in fact, it has not even begun!

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(Spring 2021)