What heresy is in Protestantism
caption: A Trial for Heresy in an English Court during the Eighteenth Century.
in Footprints of the World's History, William Bryan, Historical Publishing, 1891
Heresy is crime.
Heresy is teaching or action within a Christian community which purports to be orthodox but which is formally rejected by competent authority after due process. It is a crime of misrepresentation.
The harm that heresy does is comparable to the crimes of fraud or forgery: what had been presented and received as authentic turns out, on examination, to be fake and valueless.
Heresy is
A court has five functions:
To undertake its functions a court must:
A verdict may be subject to appeal (by either side). Appeals may be made within the ecclesiastical structures, if superior courts are available, or to the secular courts.
A church court may be subject to review by a secular court on grounds of
In practice the sole punishment available for the offence of heresy is expulsion from the community. Loss of standing in the community, of remuneration and housing (if applicable) are not themselves the punishment but consequences of expulsion.
Heresy is teaching or action within a Christian community which purports to be orthodox but which is formally rejected by competent authority after due process. It is a crime of misrepresentation.
The harm that heresy does is comparable to the crimes of fraud or forgery: what had been presented and received as authentic turns out, on examination, to be fake and valueless.
Heresy is
- an offence against the teaching of a church,
- promulgated within a jurisdiction
- adjudicated in a court
- and the offender is subject to punishment on a finding of guilt
A court has five functions:
- to act on behalf of the whole community
- to encapsulate the issues in terms that are justiciable
- to determine the culpability of the offender
- to assign punishment on conviction
- to legitimate forceful action against a convicted offender
To undertake its functions a court must:
- specify the offence in terms that are justiciable
- be of sufficient standing as to command the confidence of the community
- ensure its processes are fair and transparent
- state its verdict in terms that are clear, unambiguous and consistent with the evidence and arguments presented in the course of the trial
- have the capacity to enforce its judgement
A verdict may be subject to appeal (by either side). Appeals may be made within the ecclesiastical structures, if superior courts are available, or to the secular courts.
A church court may be subject to review by a secular court on grounds of
- perceived or actual bias
- prejudging the issues
- unfair or inadequate processes
- misunderstanding or misapplying the law.
In practice the sole punishment available for the offence of heresy is expulsion from the community. Loss of standing in the community, of remuneration and housing (if applicable) are not themselves the punishment but consequences of expulsion.
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Comments and corrections are welcome. But please note that the focus is on the historical examination of heresy cases, not the rights and wrongs of the theology..