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112-443: A schismatic is a person who creates or incites schism in an organization or who is a member of a splinter group. Schismatic as an adjective means pertaining to a schism or schisms, or to those ideas, policies, etc. that are thought to lead towards or promote schism. In religion, the charge of schism is distinguished from that of heresy , since the offence of schism concerns not differences of belief or doctrine but promotion of, or

224-451: A church membership council which may result in membership restrictions (a temporary loss of church participation privileges) or membership withdrawal (a loss of church membership). Hinduism does not have a "unified system of belief encoded in a declaration of faith or a creed ", but is rather an umbrella term comprising the plurality of religious phenomena of India. In general Hinduism is more tolerant to apostasy than other faiths based on

336-486: A fatwa that declared the writing of Salman Rushdie to be heretical, and a bounty was issued for anyone who assassinated him. Heresy remains an offense punishable by death in some nations. The Baháʼí Faith is considered an Islamic heresy in Iran, with systematic persecution of Baháʼís . Orthodox Judaism considers views on the part of Jews who depart from traditional Jewish principles of faith heretical. In addition,

448-502: A Muslim consciously and without coercion declares their rejection of Islam and does not change their mind after the time allocated by a judge for research, then the penalty for apostasy is; for males, death, and for females, life imprisonment. However, a Federal Sharia court judge in Pakistan stated "...persecuting any citizen of an Islamic State – whether he is a Muslim, or a dhimmi** – is construed as waging

560-644: A Muslim parent who later rejects Islam is called a murtad fitri , and a person who converted to Islam and later rejects the religion is called a murtad milli . There are multiple verses in the Quran that condemn apostasy. In addition, there are multiple verses in the Hadith that condemn apostasy. Example quote from the Quran: They wish you would disbelieve as they disbelieved so you would be alike. So do not take from among them allies until they emigrate for

672-431: A divisive person should be warned twice before separating from him. The Greek for the phrase "divisive person" became a technical term in the early Church for a type of "heretic" who promoted dissension. In contrast, correct teaching is called sound not only because it builds up the faith, but because it protects it against the corrupting influence of false teachers. Tertullian ( c.  AD 155–240 ) implied that it

784-476: A fide , defined as total repudiation of the Christian faith, was considered as different from a theological standpoint from heresy, but subject to the same penalty of death by fire by decretist jurists. The influential 13th-century theologian Hostiensis recognized three types of apostasy. The first was conversion to another faith, which was considered traitorous and could bring confiscation of property or even

896-684: A matter of discipline, not of faith. The divisions that came to a head at the Councils of Ephesus (A.D. 431) and Chalcedon (A.D. 451) were seen as matters of heresy, not merely of schism. Thus the Eastern Orthodox Church and Oriental Orthodoxy regard each other as heretical, not orthodox, because of the Oriental Orthodox Church's rejection and the Eastern Orthodox Church's acceptance of

1008-519: A number of executions on charges of heresy. During the thirty-eight years of Henry VIII 's reign, about sixty heretics, mainly Protestants, were executed and a rather greater number of Catholics lost their lives on grounds of political offences such as treason, notably Sir Thomas More and Cardinal John Fisher , for refusing to accept the king's supremacy over the Church in England. Under Edward VI ,

1120-401: A person in propounding these views. Apostasy Apostasy ( / ə ˈ p ɒ s t ə s i / ; ‹See Tfd› Greek : ἀποστασία , translit.   apostasía , lit.  " defection , revolt ") is the formal disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that

1232-499: A rejection of Christianity. Apostasy was one of the sins for which the early church imposed perpetual penance and excommunication. Christianity rejected the removal of heretics and apostates by force, leaving the final punishment to God. As a result, the first millennium saw only one single official extermination of a heretic, the Priscillian case. Classical canon law viewed apostasy as distinct from heresy and schism. Apostasy

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1344-783: A schismatic institution when Tanjore and the Wodeyars of Mysore went to war against each other. It is on record that in 1839 the Kumbakonam Mutt applied for permission from the English Collector of Arcot to perform the “kumbhabhishekham” of the Kamakshi temple in Kanchipuram. In 1842, the East India Company headquartered at Fort William, Calcutta appointed the head of the mutt as the sole trustee of

1456-478: A scripture or commandments with a lower emphasis on orthodoxy and has a more open view on how a person chooses their faith. Some Hindu sects believe that ethical conversion, without force or reward is completely acceptable, though deserting ones clan guru is considered sinful (Guru droham). The Vashistha Dharmasastra , the Apastamba Dharmasutra and Yajnavalkya state that a son of an apostate

1568-475: A state of schism (since 1616) from the other Tibetan schools. The words schism and schismatic are used to denote splits within a church, denomination or religious body. In this context, "schismatic", as a noun, denotes a person who creates or incites schism in a church or a person who is a member of a splinter Church; as an adjective, "schismatic" refers to ideas and activities that are thought to lead to or constitute schism, and ultimately to departure from what

1680-758: A total of four cases of execution for apostasy in the Muslim world: one in Sudan (1985), two in Iran (1989, 1998), and one in Saudi Arabia (1992). Both marginal and apostate Baháʼís have existed in the Baháʼí Faith community who are known as nāqeżīn . Muslims often regard adherents of the Baháʼí Faith as apostates from Islam, and there have been cases in some Muslim countries where Baháʼís have been harassed and persecuted . The Christian understanding of apostasy

1792-472: A union of all Christian churches on earth. See also One true church and Great Apostasy . Protestant groups, lacking the stronger traditional authority-structures of (say) Roman Catholicism or Eastern Orthodoxy, and often riven by politico-national divides (sometimes resulting from cuius regio, eius religio ), show a high degree of fissibility, which ecumenical efforts may only intensify. Schisms have occurred particularly frequently among Anabaptists , to

1904-489: Is "a willful falling away from, or rebellion against, Christian 'truth.' Apostasy is the rejection of Christ by one who has been a Christian ...", but the Reformed Churches teach that, in contrast to the conditional salvation of Lutheran , Roman Catholic , Methodist , Eastern Orthodox , and Oriental Orthodox theology, salvation cannot be lost once accepted ( perseverance of the saints ). "Apostasy

2016-402: Is a unique phenomenon and a distinct type of religious defection in which the apostate is a defector "who is aligned with an oppositional coalition in an effort to broaden the dispute, and embraces public claims-making activities to attack his or her former group." The United Nations Commission on Human Rights , considers the recanting of a person's religion a human right legally protected by

2128-496: Is also considered an apostate. Smr̥ticandrikā lists apostates as one group of people upon touching whom, one should take a bath. Kātyāyana condemns a Brahmin who has apostatised to banishment while a Vaishya or a Shudra to serve the king as a slave. Nāradasmṛti and Parasara-samhita states that a wife can remarry if her husband becomes an apostate. The saint Parashara commented that religious rites are disturbed if an apostate witnesses them. He also comments that those who forgo

2240-524: Is among the foundational documents of Lutheranism, lists 10 heresies by name which are condemned: Manichaeans , Valentinians , Arians , Eunomians , Mohammedans , Samosatenes , Pelagians , Anabaptists , Donatists and "certain Jewish opinions". The 39 Articles of the Anglican Communion condemn Pelagianism as a heresy. In Britain, the 16th-century English Reformation resulted in

2352-525: Is called murtadd , which literally means 'one who turns back' from Islam . Someone born to a Muslim parent, or who has previously converted to Islam, becomes a murtadd if he or she verbally denies any principle of belief prescribed by the Quran or a Hadith , deviates from approved Islamic belief ( ilhad ), or if he or she commits an action such as treating a copy of the Qurʾan with disrespect. A person born to

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2464-453: Is certainly a biblical concept, but the implications of the teaching have been hotly debated. The debate has centered on the issue of apostasy and salvation. Based on the concept of God's sovereign grace, some hold that, though true believers may stray, they never totally fall away. Others affirm that any who fall away were never really saved. Though they may have "believed" for a while, they never experienced regeneration. Still others argue that

2576-565: Is commonly called the Nicene Creed declares belief in the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church . Some who accept this creed believe they should be united in a single Church or group of Churches in communion with each other. Others who accept this creed believe it does not speak of a visible organization but of all those baptized who hold the Christian faith, referred to as " Christendom ". Some churches consider themselves to be

2688-412: Is contrary to one's previous religious beliefs . One who undertakes apostasy is known as an apostate . Undertaking apostasy is called apostatizing (or apostasizing – also spelled apostacizing ). The term apostasy is used by sociologists to mean the renunciation and criticism of, or opposition to, a person's former religion, in a technical sense, with no pejorative connotation . Occasionally,

2800-672: Is found only twice in the New Testament (Acts 21:21; 2 Thessalonians 2:3). However, "the concept of apostasy is found throughout Scripture." The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery states that "There are at least four distinct images in Scripture of the concept of apostasy. All connote an intentional defection from the faith." These images are: Rebellion; Turning Away; Falling Away; Adultery. Speaking with specific regard to apostasy in Christianity , Michael Fink writes: Apostasy

2912-399: Is nearly powerless against exoheretics. He acknowledged by examples that heresy has repeatedly become orthodoxy. Publishing his findings as The Dinosaur Heresies , revisionist paleontologist Robert T. Bakker , himself a scientific endoheretic, treated the mainstream view of dinosaurs as dogma : I have enormous respect for dinosaur paleontologists past and present. But on average, for

3024-502: Is not devoted to the Catholic Church and to our Orthodox holy Faith" a heretic. The Church had always dealt harshly with strands of Christianity that it considered heretical, but before the 11th century these tended to centre on individual preachers or small localised sects, like Arianism , Pelagianism , Donatism , Marcionism and Montanism . The diffusion of the almost Manichaean sect of Paulicians westwards gave birth to

3136-460: Is some theological and practical overlap between these groups. The act of using Church of Scientology techniques in a form different from that originally described by L. Ron Hubbard is referred to within Scientology as " squirreling " and is said by Scientologists to be high treason . The Religious Technology Center has prosecuted breakaway groups who have practiced Scientology outside

3248-424: Is spiritually living not primarily in the content of that faith, in the pursuit of goals appropriate to it, but only in the struggle against the old faith and for the sake of its negation." The American sociologist David G. Bromley defined the apostate role as follows and distinguished it from the defector and whistleblower roles. Stuart A. Wright , an American sociologist and author, asserts that apostasy

3360-399: Is the antonym of conversion; it is deconversion." B. J. Oropeza states that apostasy is a "phenomenon that occurs when a religious follower or group of followers turn away from or otherwise repudiate the central beliefs and practices they once embraced in a respective religious community." The Ancient Greek noun ἀποστασία apostasia ("rebellion, abandonment, state of apostasy, defection")

3472-535: Is the one to which I and my companions belong" (reported in Sunan al-Tirmidhi Hadith No. 171). Sunni Muslims , often referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamā‘h or Ahl as-Sunnah , are the largest denomination of Islam . The word Sunni comes from the word Sunnah , which means the teachings and actions or examples of the Islamic prophet , Muhammad ; therefore, the term Sunni refers to those who follow or maintain

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3584-404: Is usually considered to be complementary to orthodox Islam, although Sufism has often been accused by the salafi of being an unjustified Bid‘ah or religious innovation. By focusing on the more spiritual aspects of religion, Sufis strive to obtain direct experience of God by making use of "intuitive and emotional faculties" that one must be trained to use. One starts with sharia (Islamic law),

3696-635: Is welcome, of ideas that are in fundamental disagreement with the status quo in any practice and branch of knowledge. Scientist/author Isaac Asimov considered heresy as an abstraction, mentioning religious, political, socioeconomic and scientific heresies. He divided scientific heretics into: endoheretics, those from within the scientific community ; and exoheretics, those from without. Characteristics were ascribed to both and examples of both kinds were offered. Asimov concluded that science orthodoxy defends itself well against endoheretics (by control of science education, grants and publication as examples), but

3808-625: The Anglican Communion involves responses to homosexuality . In 2018 Eastern Orthodoxy suffered a schism, the 2018 Moscow-Constantinople schism between the primatial See of Eastern Orthodoxy, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Russian Orthodox Church over the issue of Constantinople granting autocephaly to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine . The Sringeri Matha, also called

3920-675: The Confession of Chalcedon about the two natures (human and divine) of Christ. However, this view has been challenged in the recent Ecumenical discussion between these two groups, classifying the matter of Chalcedon as a matter of schism, not of heresy. In its extended and final form (possibly derived from the First Council of Constantinople in 381 although only known from the Acts of the Council of Chalcedon seventy years later), what

4032-536: The Episcopalian Bishop of Virginia , Peter Lee ) drew a distinction between them, teaching: "If you must make a choice between heresy and schism, always choose heresy. As a schismatic, you have torn and divided the body of Christ. Choose heresy every time." The word schism comes from the Greek word σχίσμα, Greek transliteration: schisma which means "cleft, division". In Buddhism , the first schism

4144-706: The Great Schism and the Protestant Reformation , various Christian churches have also used the concept in proceedings against individuals and groups those churches deemed heretical. The Eastern Orthodox Church also rejects the early Christian heresies such as Arianism , Gnosticism , Origenism , Montanism , Judaizers , Marcionism , Docetism , Adoptionism , Nestorianism , Monophysitism , Monothelitism and Iconoclasm . Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon , who played an instrumental part in

4256-501: The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights : The Committee observes that the freedom to 'have or to adopt' a religion or belief necessarily entails the freedom to choose a religion or belief, including the right to replace one's current religion or belief with another or to adopt atheistic views ... Article 18.2 bars coercion that would impair the right to have or adopt a religion or belief, including

4368-561: The Rig Veda , Samaveda and Yajurveda are "nagna" (naked) or an apostate. Apostasy is generally not acknowledged in orthodox Buddhism . People are free to leave Buddhism and renounce the religion without any consequence enacted by the Buddhist community. Despite this marked tolerance, some Buddhist circles hold to a notion of heresy (外道, pinyin : Wàidào ; romaji : gedō ; lit. "outside path") and acknowledge that one who renounces

4480-683: The Spanish Inquisition used it to persecute both the Marrano Jews, who had been converted to Christianity by force, and to the Moriscos who had professed to convert to Christianity from Islam under pressure. Temporal penalties for Christian apostates have fallen into disuse in the modern era. Jehovah's Witness publications define apostasy as the abandonment of the worship and service of God, constituting rebellion against God, or rejecting "Jehovah's organization". They apply

4592-574: The Université de Montréal writes, referring to Wilson, based on his analysis of three books by apostates of new religious movements, that stories of apostates cannot be dismissed only because they are subjective. Danny Jorgensen , Professor at the Department of Religious Studies of the University of Florida , in his book The Social Construction and Interpretation of Deviance: Jonestown and

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4704-515: The al-Khulafā’ur-Rāshidūn or " Rashidun " (The Rightly Guided Caliphs). Sunnis believe that the position of Caliph may be democratically chosen, but after the first four Rightly Guided Caliphs the position turned into a hereditary dynastic rule. There has not been another widely recognized Caliph since the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1923. Shia Islam is the second largest denomination of Islam . Shia Muslims believe that, similar to

4816-488: The exoteric or mundane practice of Islam, and then is initiated into the mystical ( esoteric ) path of a Tariqah (Sufi Order). Kharijite (lit. "those who seceded") is a general term embracing a variety of Islamic sects which, while originally supporting the Caliphate of Ali , eventually rejected his legitimacy after he negotiated with Mu'awiya during the 7th Century Islamic civil war ( First Fitna ). Their complaint

4928-476: The "party, or school, of a man's choice", and also referred to that process whereby a young person would examine various philosophies to determine how to live. The word heresy is usually used within a Christian, Jewish, or Islamic context, and implies slightly different meanings in each. The founder or leader of a heretical movement is called a heresiarch , while individuals who espouse heresy or commit heresy are known as heretics . According to Titus 3 :10

5040-675: The ' Tunga Sringeri Math' diverged after a schism with the Koodli Sringeri Matha during the 16th century after which the Tunga Math gained prominence. [1] The Kanchi Math was originally established as the Kumbakonam Mutt in 1821 by the Maratha king of Tanjore , Serfoji II Bhonsle , as a branch of the Sringeri Mutt , one of the four cardinal Shankaracharya Maths of the mainstream Smarta denomination. It became

5152-602: The 7th-century text Concerning Heresy , Saint John of Damascus named Islam as Christological heresy, referring to it as the "heresy of the Ishmaelites" (see medieval Christian views on Muhammad ). The position remained popular in Christian circles well into the 20th century, by theologians such as the Congregationalist cleric Frank Hugh Foster and the Roman Catholic historian Hilaire Belloc ,

5264-546: The Buddha's teachings has the potential of inflicting suffering on themselves. Many Buddhists take the view that there is no absolute basis for anything. The ideas from some of the Tathāgata schools has been referred to as "hypostasising an absolute", meaning specifically not apostasy (losing belief); hypostasy in that context means "falling into belief". In Islamic literature, apostasy is called irtidād or ridda ; an apostate

5376-714: The Cathars grew to represent a popular mass movement and the belief was spreading to other areas. The Cathar Crusade was initiated by the Catholic Church to eliminate the Cathar heresy in Languedoc . Heresy was a major justification for the Inquisition ( Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , Inquiry on Heretical Perversity) and for the European wars of religion associated with the Protestant Reformation . Galileo Galilei

5488-459: The Catholic Church was Spanish schoolmaster Cayetano Ripoll in 1826. The number of people executed as heretics under the authority of the various "ecclesiastical authorities" is not known. Although less common than in earlier periods, in modern times, formal charges of heresy within Christian churches still occur. Issues in the Protestant churches have included modern biblical criticism and

5600-477: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) are considered by church leadership to engage in apostasy when they publicly teach or espouse opinions and doctrines contrary to the teachings of the church, or act in clear and deliberate public opposition to the LDS Church, its doctrines and policies, or its leaders. In such circumstances the church will frequently subject the non-conforming member to

5712-405: The Church, understanding by "formal schismatics" "persons who, knowing the true nature of the Church, have personally and deliberately committed the sin of schism". The situation, for instance, of those who have been brought up from childhood within a group not in full communion with Rome , but who have orthodox faith, is different: these are considered to be imperfectly, though not fully, related to

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5824-495: The Church. This nuanced view applies especially to the Churches of Eastern Christianity , more particularly still to the Eastern Orthodox Church . While they don't possess "full communion" ( communio in sacris ) with the Catholic Church, they are still considered much more linked to it than the Protestant ecclesial communities, which have markedly different theological beliefs and rejected the concept of apostolic succession (with

5936-635: The Dhammayut has its origin partly in the Mahanikaya, and is the new and schismatic group. Both Mahanikaya and Dhammayut have many subgroups, which usually do not have schismatic origins, but came into being in a natural way, through the popularity of a (leader) monk . Tibetan Buddhism has seen schisms in the past, of which most were healed, although the Drukpa school centred in Bhutan perhaps remains in

6048-581: The Kamakshi temple. The protests of the traditional priests of the Kamakshi temple are well documented and preserved. Incidentally, Fort William is also the first Freemason lodge of India. Since then, the Math has maintained cordial relations with the British Raj though the main math at Sringeri fell sour with the colonial power Thus, the Kanchi Mutt can at best claim its origin to be in 1844. After

6160-594: The Mass Media argues that the role of the media in constructing and reflecting reality is particularly apparent in its coverage of cults. He asserts that this complicity exists partly because apostates with an atrocity story to tell make themselves readily available to reporters and partly because new religious movements have learned to be suspicious of the media and, therefore, have not been open to investigative reporters writing stories on their movement from an insider's perspective. Besides this lack of information about

6272-670: The One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. For instance, the Roman Catholic Church claims that title and considers the Eastern Orthodox Church to be in schism, while the Eastern Orthodox Church also claims that title and holds the view that the Catholic Church is schismatic. Some Protestant Churches believe that they also represent the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church and consider the Catholic and Orthodox Churches to be in error, while others do not expect

6384-550: The Sunnah of Muhammad. The Sunni believe that Muhammad died without appointing a successor to lead the Ummah (Muslim community). After an initial period of confusion, a group of his most prominent companions gathered and elected Abu Bakr , Muhammad's close friend and father-in-law, as the first Caliph . Sunnis regard the first four caliphs – Abu Bakr , Umar (`Umar ibn al-Khattāb), Uthman Ibn Affan , and Ali (Ali ibn Abu Talib) – as

6496-479: The accounts of former members. Bryan R. Wilson , Reader Emeritus of Sociology of the University of Oxford, says apostates of new religious movements are generally in need of self-justification, seeking to reconstruct their past and to excuse their former affiliations, while blaming those who were formerly their closest associates. Wilson, thus, challenges the reliability of the apostate's testimony by saying that

6608-586: The actions of the Anglican Puritans , who at that time wielded political as well as ecclesiastic control in the Massachusetts Bay Colony . At the time, the colony leaders were apparently hoping to achieve their vision of a "purer absolute theocracy" within their colony. As such, they perceived the teachings and practices of the rival Quaker sect as heretical, even to the point where laws were passed and executions were performed with

6720-553: The aim of ridding their colony of such perceived "heresies." The Articles of Religion of the Methodist Churches teach that Pelagianism is a heresy. John Wesley , the founder of the Methodist tradition, harshly criticized antinomianism, considering it the "worst of all heresies". He taught that Christian believers are bound to follow the moral law for their sanctification . Methodist Christians thus teach

6832-620: The apostate must always be seen as one whose personal history predisposes him to bias with respect to both his previous religious commitment and affiliations and the suspicion must arise that he acts from a personal motivation to vindicate himself and to regain his self-esteem, by showing himself to have been first a victim but subsequently to have become a redeemed crusader. Wilson also asserts that some apostates or defectors from religious organisations rehearse atrocity stories to explain how, by manipulation, coercion or deceit, they were recruited to groups that they now condemn. Jean Duhaime of

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6944-560: The appointment of prophets, Imams after Muhammad are also chosen by God. According to Shias, Ali was chosen by Allah and thus appointed by Muhammad to be the direct successor and leader of the Muslim community. They regard him as the first Shia Imam , which continued as a hereditary position through Fatimah and Ali's descendants. Sufism is a mystical - ascetic form of Islam practised by both Shia and Sunni Muslims. Some Sufi followers consider themselves Sunni or Shia, while others consider themselves as just Sufi or Sufi-influenced. Sufism

7056-534: The authorities of a Church, and not every break of communion is necessarily about doctrine, as is clear from examples such as the Western Schism and the breaking of the communion that existed between Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople and Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens in 2004. However, when for any reason people withdraw from communion, two distinct ecclesiastical entities may result, each of which, or at least some members thereof, may then accuse

7168-420: The biblical warnings against apostasy are real and that believers maintain the freedom, at least potentially, to reject God's salvation. In the recent past, in the Roman Catholic Church the word was also applied to the renunciation of monastic vows ( apostasis a monachatu ), and to the abandonment of the clerical profession for the life of the world ( apostasis a clericatu ) without necessarily amounting to

7280-1046: The cause of Allāh. But if they turn away [i.e., refuse], then seize them and kill them [for their betrayal] wherever you find them and take not from among them any ally or helper The concept and punishment of Apostasy has been extensively covered in Islamic literature since the 7th century. A person is considered apostate if he or she converts from Islam to another religion. A person is an apostate even if he or she believes in most of Islam, but denies one or more of its principles or precepts, both verbally or in writing. Sunan an-Nasa'i »The Book of Fighting [The Prohibition of Bloodshed] - كتاب تحريم الدم (14) Chapter: The Ruling on Apostates (14)باب الْحُكْمِ فِي الْمُرْتَدِّ Ibn 'Abbas said: "The Messenger of Allah [SAW] said: 'Whoever changes his religion, kill him.'"Grade: Sahih (Darussalam) Reference : Sunan an-Nasa'i 4059 In-book reference  : Book 37, Hadith 94 English translation Vol. 5, Book 37, Hadith 4064. Muslim historians recognize 632 AD as

7392-643: The community's beliefs and doctrines as orthodox (from ὀρθός , orthos , "straight" or "correct" and δόξα , doxa , "belief") and the Gnostics ' teachings as heretical. He also invoked the concept of apostolic succession to support his arguments. Constantine the Great , who along with Licinius had decreed toleration of Christianity in the Roman Empire by what is commonly called the Edict of Milan , and

7504-400: The concept of heresy was retained in theory but severely restricted by the 1559 Act of Supremacy and the one hundred and eighty or so Catholics who were executed in the forty-five years of her reign were put to death because they were considered members of "a subversive fifth column ." The last execution of a "heretic" in England occurred under James VI and I in 1612. Although the charge

7616-441: The critical reports of ex-members are called "tales", which he considers to be a term that clearly implies falsehood or fiction. He states that it wasn't until 1996 that a researcher conducted a study to assess the extent to which so called "atrocity tales" might be based on fact. Apostasy is a criminal offence in the following countries: From 1985 to 2006, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom listed

7728-509: The death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad , there have arisen many Muslim sects by means of schools of thought , traditions and related faiths. According to a hadith report (collections of accounts of the life and teachings of Muhammad), Muhammad is said to have prophesied "My Ummah (Community or Nation) will be fragmented into seventy-three sects, and all of them will be in the Hell fire except one." The Sahaba (his companions) asked him which group that would be, whereupon he replied, "It

7840-416: The death penalty. Heresy is distinct from apostasy , which is the explicit renunciation of one's religion, principles or cause; and from blasphemy , which is an impious utterance or action concerning God or sacred things. Heresiology is the study of heresy. Derived from Ancient Greek haíresis ( αἵρεσις ), the English heresy originally meant "choice" or "thing chosen". However, it came to mean

7952-409: The death penalty. The second and third, which was punishable by expulsion from home and imprisonment, consisted of breaking major commandments and breaking the vows of religious orders, respectively. A decretal by Boniface VIII classified apostates together with heretics with respect to the penalties incurred. Although it mentioned only apostate Jews explicitly, it was applied to all apostates, and

8064-471: The details of his work are in scientific disrepute, the concept of catastrophic change ( extinction event and punctuated equilibrium ) has gained acceptance in recent decades. The term heresy is used not only with regard to religion but also in the context of political theory. The term heresy is also used as an ideological pigeonhole for contemporary writers because, by definition, heresy depends on contrasts with an established orthodoxy . For example,

8176-657: The early modern period. Eastern Europe similarly inherited many of its legal traditions regarding apostasy from the Romans, but not from the Justinian Code. Medieval sects deemed heretical such as the Waldensians were considered apostates by the Church. The term atrocity story , also referred to as an atrocity tale , as it is defined by the American sociologists David G. Bromley and Anson D. Shupe refers to

8288-419: The emergence of Christianity and Mandaeism . Dates: Heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, particularly the accepted beliefs or religious law of a religious organization. A heretic is a proponent of heresy. Heresy in Christianity , Judaism , and Islam has at times been met with censure ranging from excommunication to

8400-491: The exception of the Anglicans, which, however, are viewed by the Catholic Church as not having a valid priesthood). The First Council of Nicaea (A.D. 325) distinguished between schism and heresy. It declared Arian and non- Trinitarian teachings to be heretical and excluded their adherents from the Church. It also addressed the schism between Peter of Alexandria and Meletius of Lycopolis , considering their quarrel to be

8512-477: The experiences of people within new religious movements, the media is attracted to sensational stories featuring accusations of food and sleep deprivation, sexual and physical abuse, and excesses of spiritual and emotional authority by the charismatic leader. Michael Langone argues that some will accept uncritically the positive reports of current members without calling such reports, for example, "benevolence tales" or "personal growth tales". He asserts that only

8624-509: The extent that divisions over even minute details of doctrine and theology are common and scholars have dubbed the phenomenon Täuferkrankheit or "The Anabaptist Disease". Emphasizing fully voluntary membership in the church, and without an established authority of hierarchical structure, Anabaptists, especially Mennonites have experienced dozens of schisms, resulting in the establishment of dozens of various unaffiliated Mennonite churches. A current dispute with an acknowledged risk of schism for

8736-582: The famous 11th- and 12th-century heresies of Western Europe. The first one was that of Bogomils in modern-day Bulgaria, a sort of sanctuary between Eastern and Western Christianity. By the 11th century, more organised groups such as the Patarini , the Dulcinians , the Waldensians and the Cathars were beginning to appear in the towns and cities of northern Italy, southern France and Flanders. In France

8848-640: The formation of the Lutheran Churches , condemned Johannes Agricola and his doctrine of antinomianism  – the belief that Christians were free from the moral law contained in the Ten Commandments  – as a heresy. Traditional Lutheranism, espoused by Luther himself, teaches that after justification, "the Law of God continued to guide people in how they were to live before God." The Augsburg Confession of 1539, which

8960-555: The fourth century BCE, leading to rise of two major sects, Digambara and Śvetāmbara , which were later subdivided in further sub-sects. Major Jewish denominations are Orthodox Judaism and non-Orthodox: Reform , Conservative and Reconstructionist . In early Jewish history , the Jewish and Samaritan religions were the product of the schism during the Babylonian Exile (6th Century BCE). Schisms in Judaism included

9072-461: The heresy laws were repealed in 1547 only to be reintroduced in 1554 by Mary I ; even so two radicals were executed in Edward's reign (one for denying the reality of the incarnation, the other for denying Christ's divinity). Under Mary, around two hundred and ninety people were burned at the stake between 1555 and 1558 after the restoration of papal jurisdiction. When Elizabeth I came to the throne,

9184-801: The hold of the state religion. As the Roman Empire adopted Christianity as its state religion, apostasy became formally criminalized in the Theodosian Code , followed by the Corpus Juris Civilis (the Justinian Code). The Justinian Code went on to form the basis of law in most of Western Europe during the Middle Ages and so apostasy was similarly persecuted to varying degrees in Europe throughout this period and into

9296-535: The last fifty years, the field hasn't tested dinosaur orthodoxy severely enough. He adds that, "Most taxonomists, however, have viewed such new terminology as dangerously destabilizing to the traditional and well-known scheme." The illustrations by the author show dinosaurs in very active poses, in contrast to the traditional perception of lethargy. Immanuel Velikovsky is an example of a recent scientific exoheretic; he did not have appropriate scientific credentials and did not publish in scientific journals . While

9408-593: The latter describing it as "the great and enduring heresy of Mohammed." For some years after the Reformation , Protestant churches were also known to execute those they considered heretics; for example, Michael Servetus was declared a heretic by both the Reformed Church and Catholic Church for rejecting the Christian doctrine of the Holy Trinity . The last known heretic executed by sentence of

9520-511: The more right-wing groups within Orthodox Judaism hold that all Jews who reject the simple meaning of Maimonides 's 13 principles of Jewish faith are heretics. As such, most of Orthodox Judaism considers Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism heretical movements, and regards most of Conservative Judaism as heretical. The liberal wing of Modern Orthodoxy is more tolerant of Conservative Judaism, particularly its right wing, as there

9632-759: The nature of God. In the Catholic Church , the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith criticizes writings for "ambiguities and errors" without using the word "heresy." On 11 July 2007, Pope Benedict XVI stated that some Protestant groups are "ecclesial communities" rather than Churches. Representatives of some of these Christian denominations accused the Vatican of effectively calling them heretics. However, Pope Benedict   XVI clarified that

9744-908: The necessity of following the moral law as contained in the Ten Commandments, citing Jesus' teaching, "If ye love me, keep my commandments" (cf. Saint John 14:15). Starting in medieval times, Muslims began to refer to heretics and those who antagonized Islam as zindiqs , the charge being punishable by death. Ottoman Sultan Selim the Grim regarded the Shia Qizilbash as heretics. Shiites, in general, have often been considered heretics by Sunni Muslims , especially in Indonesia , Saudi Arabia and Turkey . To Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb , Sikhs were heretics. In 1989, Ruhollah Khomeini , supreme religious leader of Iran , issued

9856-525: The official Church without authorization. Although Zoroastrianism has had an historical tolerance for other religions, it also held sects like Zurvanism and Mazdakism heretical to its main dogma and has violently persecuted them, such as burying Mazdakians with their feet upright as "human gardens." In later periods Zoroastrians cooperated with Muslims to kill other Zoroastrians deemed heretical. Buddhist and Taoist monks in medieval China often called each other "heretics" and competed to be praised by

9968-423: The other(s) of heresy. In Roman Catholic Church canon law , an act of schism, like an act of apostasy or heresy , automatically brings the penalty of excommunication on the individual who commits it. As stated in canon 1312 §1 1° of the 1983 Code of Canon Law , this penalty is intended to be medicinal, so as to lead to restoration of unity. Roman Catholic theology considers formal schismatics to be outside

10080-836: The outcomes of this blurring of Church and state was the sharing of state powers of legal enforcement with church authorities. Within six years of the official criminalization of heresy by the Emperor, the first Christian heretic to be executed, Priscillian , was condemned in 386 by Roman secular officials for sorcery, and put to death with four or five followers. However, his accusers were excommunicated both by Ambrose of Milan and by Pope Siricius, who opposed Priscillian's heresy, but "believed capital punishment to be inappropriate at best and usually unequivocally evil." The edict of Theodosius II (435) provided severe punishments for those who had or spread writings of Nestorius. Those who possessed writings of Arius were sentenced to death. In

10192-434: The phrase "ecclesial community" did not necessitate explicit heresy, but only that the communities lacked certain "essential elements" of an apostolic church, as he had written in the document Dominus Iesus . In the Catholic Church , obstinate and willful manifest heresy is considered to spiritually cut one off from the Church, even before excommunication is incurred. The Codex Justinianus (1:5:12) defines "everyone who

10304-544: The royal court. Although today most Chinese believe in a hybrid of the "Three Teachings" (Buddhism, Taoism, Confucian) the competition between the two religions may still be seen in some teachings and commentaries given by both religions today. A similar situation happened with Shinto in Japan. Neo-Confucian heresy has also been described. In other contexts the term does not necessarily have pejorative overtones and may even be complimentary when used, in areas where innovation

10416-481: The same home. Baptized individuals who leave the organization because they disagree with the denomination's teachings are also regarded as apostates and are shunned. Watch Tower Society literature describes apostates as "mentally diseased" individuals who can "infect others with their disloyal teachings". Former members who are defined as apostates are said to have become part of the antichrist and are regarded as more reprehensible than non-Witnesses. Members of

10528-524: The souls of the Jews." He labeled all heresy as "Jewish", claiming that Judaism would "pollute [Catholics and] deceive them with sacrilegious seduction." The identification of Jews and heretics in particular occurred several times in Roman-Christian law . In Eastern Orthodox Christianity heresy most commonly refers to those beliefs declared heretical by the first seven Ecumenical Councils . Since

10640-530: The state of division, especially among groups with differing pastoral jurisdictions and authority. However, schisms frequently involve mutual accusations of heresy, and also that of the Great Apostasy . In Roman Catholic teaching, every heresy is a schism, while there may be some schisms free of the added guilt of heresy. Liberal Protestantism , however, has often preferred heresy over schism. Presbyterian scholar James I. McCord (quoted with approval by

10752-428: The symbolic presentation of action or events (real or imaginary) in such a context that they are made flagrantly to violate the (presumably) shared premises upon which a given set of social relationships should be conducted. The recounting of such tales is intended as a means of reaffirming normative boundaries. By sharing the reporter's disapproval or horror, an audience reasserts normative prescription and clearly locates

10864-455: The term in a legal context was in AD 380 by the Edict of Thessalonica of Theodosius I , which made Christianity the state church of the Roman Empire . Prior to the issuance of this edict, the Church had no state-sponsored support for any particular legal mechanism to counter what it perceived as "heresy". By this edict the state's authority and that of the Church became somewhat overlapping. One of

10976-445: The term is also used metaphorically to refer to the renunciation of a non-religious belief or cause, such as a political party , social movement , or sports team . Apostasy is generally not a self-definition: few former believers call themselves apostates due to the term's negative connotation. Many religious groups and some states punish apostates; this may be the official policy of a particular religious group or it may simply be

11088-468: The term to a range of conduct, including open dissent with the denomination's doctrines, celebration of "false religious holidays" (including Christmas and Easter), and participation in activities and worship of other religions. A member of the denomination who is accused of apostasy is typically required to appear before a committee of elders that decides whether the individual is to be shunned by all congregants including immediate family members not living in

11200-414: The tongue-in-cheek contemporary usage of heresy, such as to categorize a " Wall Street heresy" a " Democratic heresy" or a " Republican heresy", are metaphors that invariably retain a subtext that links orthodoxies in geology or biology or any other field to religion. These expanded metaphoric senses allude to both the difference between the person's views and the mainstream and the boldness of such

11312-556: The use of threat of physical force or penal sanctions to compel believers or non-believers to adhere to their religious beliefs and congregations, to recant their religion or belief or to convert. As early as the 3rd century AD, apostasy against the Zoroastrian faith in the Sasanian Empire was criminalized. The high priest, Kidir, instigated pogroms against Jews, Christians, Buddhists, and others in an effort to solidify

11424-401: The user of the word considers to be the true Christian Church. These words have been used to denote both the phenomenon of Christian group-splintering in general, and certain significant historical splits in particular. One can make a distinction between heresy and schism . Heresy is rejection of a doctrine that a Church considered to be essential. Schism is a rejection of communion with

11536-410: The violator beyond the limits of public morality . The term was coined in 1979 by Bromley, Shupe, and Joseph Ventimiglia . Bromley and others define an atrocity as an event that is perceived as a flagrant violation of a fundamental value. It contains the following three elements: The term "atrocity story" is controversial as it relates to the differing views amongst scholars about the credibility of

11648-456: The voluntary action of its members. Such punishments may include shunning , excommunication , verbal abuse , physical violence, or even execution . The American sociologist Lewis A. Coser (following the German philosopher and sociologist Max Scheler ) defines an apostate as not just a person who experienced a dramatic change in conviction but "a man who, even in his new state of belief,

11760-552: The year when the first regional apostasy from Islam emerged, immediately after the death of Muhammed. The civil wars that followed are now called the Riddah wars (Wars of Islamic Apostasy). Doubting the existence of Allah , making offerings to and worshipping an idol, a stupa or any other image of God, confesses a belief in the rebirth or incarnation of God, disrespecting the Quran or Islam's Prophets are all considered sufficient evidence of apostasy. According to some scholars , if

11872-625: Was brought before the Inquisition for heresy, but abjured his views and was sentenced to house arrest , under which he spent the rest of his life. Galileo was found "vehemently suspect of heresy", namely of having held the opinions that the Sun lies motionless at the centre of the universe , and that the Earth is not at its centre and moves, and that one may hold and defend an opinion as probable after it has been declared contrary to Holy Scripture. He

11984-528: Was required to "abjure, curse and detest" those opinions. Most contemporary historians of science believe the Galileo affair is an exception in the overall relationship between science and Christianity. Pope Gregory I stigmatized Judaism and the Jewish people in many of his writings. He described Jews as enemies of Christ: "The more the Holy Spirit fills the world, the more perverse hatred dominates

12096-742: Was set up by Devadatta , during Buddha 's life. This schism lasted only a short time. Later (after Buddha's death), the early Buddhist schools came into being, but were not schismatic, only focusing on different interpretations for the same monastic community. In the old texts, 18 or 20 early schools are mentioned. Later, there were the Mahayana and Vajrayana movements, which can be regarded as being schismatic in origin. Each school has various subgroups, which often are schismatic in origin. For example, in Thai Theravadin Buddhism there are two groups ( Mahanikaya and Dhammayut ), of which

12208-567: Was technically one of "blasphemy" there was one later execution in Scotland (still at that date an entirely independent kingdom) when in 1697 Thomas Aikenhead was accused, among other things, of denying the doctrine of the Trinity. Another example of the persecution of heretics under Protestant rule was the execution of the Boston martyrs in 1659, 1660, and 1661. These executions resulted from

12320-510: Was that the Imam must be spiritually pure, whereas Ali's compromise with Mu'awiya was a compromise of his spiritual purity and therefore of his legitimacy as Imam or Caliph. While there are few remaining Kharijite or Kharijite-related groups, the term is sometimes used to denote Muslims who refuse to compromise with those with whom they disagree. Dates: The first schism in Jainism happened around

12432-564: Was the Jews who most inspired heresy in Christianity: "From the Jew the heretic has accepted guidance in this discussion [that Jesus was not the Christ ]." The use of the word heresy was given wide currency by Irenaeus in his 2nd-century tract Contra Haereses ( Against Heresies ) to describe and discredit his opponents during the early centuries of the Christian community. He described

12544-520: Was the first Roman Emperor baptized, set precedents for later policy. By Roman law the Emperor was Pontifex Maximus , the high priest of the College of Pontiffs ( Collegium Pontificum) of all recognized religions in ancient Rome . To put an end to the doctrinal debate initiated by Arius , Constantine called the first of what would afterwards be called the ecumenical councils and then enforced orthodoxy by Imperial authority. The first known usage of

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