Encyclopedia Of Heresies And Heretics

This book contains a collection of over 600 of the ideas, people, and practices that, over the centuries, have been judged by the arbiters of religious orthodoxy to be too dangerous for laypeople to know about.

Substantial articles about movements and leaders condemned by the Catholic Church, and some of the people who did the condemning, torturing, and burning. Does not cover, for example, the radical sects of the 1640s in England, or the major Protestant reformers who were condemned in their time. Includes many reproductions of medieval illustrations. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Combines scholarship with humor, history with speculation, and philosophy with anecdote...Fascinating. -- Stanley Krippner

What is a heretic? What were the heresies in the long and varied history of Christianity? The author answers these questions by describing the heresies that developed from the divisions, breaches of unity and divergencies of opinion about the meaning of Christianity's message. Heresies arise from the diversity of minds, from personality, from temperament and ultimately from the fact of human freedom.

This short and accessible book introduces readers to the problems of heresy, schism and dissidence over the last two millennia. The heresies under discussion range from Gnosticism, influential in the early Christian period, right through to modern sects. The idea of a heretic conjures up many images, from the martyrs prepared to die for their beliefs, through to sects with bizarre practices. This book provides a remarkable insight into the fraught history of heresy, showing how the Church came to insist on orthodoxy when threatened by alternative ideals, exploring the social and political conditions under which heretics were created, and how those involved were 'tested' and punished, often by imprisonment and burning. Engaging written, A Brief History of Heresy is enlivened throughout with fascinating examples of individuals and movements. A short, accessible history of heresy. Spans the last two millennia, from the Gnostics through to modern sects. Considers heresy in relation to ecclesial separatism, doctrinal disagreement, church order, and basic metaphysics. Enlivened with intriguing examples of individuals and movements. Written by a leading academic in the field of Religious History.