Heresy

Heresy (Greek hairesis, literally a choice or a sect) appears in the New Testament with a range of meaning. In Acts it refers neutrally to a sect or party — the Pharisees, Sadducees, and even the early Christians are called a hairesis (Acts 5:17; 15:5; 24:5, 14; 26:5; 28:22) without necessary pejorative connotation. In Paul and Peter it takes on its later negative sense: factions within the church that create divisions (1 Cor. 11:19; Gal. 5:20), and specifically destructive false teachings brought in by false teachers who deny the Master who bought them (2 Pet. 2:1). Titus 3:10 prescribes rejecting a "heretic" (factious person) after two warnings. The developed theological meaning — a teaching that contradicts essential Christian doctrine — grew from this NT usage into the patristic controversies over Christology and the Trinity.