These 4 ancient heresies are making a return to US politics

American evangelicals risk trading the truth of the gospel for power and influence, warns Rev Tim Perry, as he traces the re-emergence of four ancient heresies and urges the Church to repent

When I was in theological college, the words heresy and heretic were tossed around rather loosely. Anyone who seemed to be standing outside the theological mainstream, on whatever issue, was stuck with that label.

In my circles, these terms soon lost any substantive meaning and became purely functional: “Anyone outside the mainstream whom I don’t like.” 

What is heresy?

Let’s at least begin with a definition so that we’re not just casting random aspersions. The Catechism of the Catholic Church is especially helpful: “Heresy is the obstinate post-baptismal denial of some truth which must be believed…”

Heresy is first of all, obstinate. It is both deliberate and stubborn. One cannot, in other words, be an accidental heretic. Rather, to be a heretic is to deliberately and determinedly choose to apart from the received faith on a matter of truth that must be believed.

Second, only Christians can be heretics. This is the clear implication of the word “post-baptismal.”  To reject the faith utterly is to move from heresy to apostasy. To have never accepted or rejected the faith is to be, simply, unconverted. A heretic is someone who knowingly rejects received core Christian teaching while still claiming the Christian label. 

Who would do such a thing? Well, Christians have through the centuries and Christians today are not immune. It is my deep conviction that the temptation is particularly strong for those Christians commonly grouped in the “evangelical” category, especially in North America.

That’s not “those people over there,” by the way. That’s the tribe of Christendom with which I identify. These people are my people. And this is a charge I do not make lightly or without self-implication…