Emerging Wednesday- what it heresy? apostasy? schism?

Just about everyone throws around words without knowing what they really mean-- especially religious folks. In reading all about the emerging movement, and theology in general, it's amazing how quickly the words heretic, apostasy, and schism are so commonly invoked. But what do they mean? Well, here you go.

clipped from kenn.typepad.com

APOSTASY, the most grievous of the three, is a complete and utter rejection of the faith (“denying the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ”). That is clearly not the aim or purpose of the emergent church movement as I read them.

SCHISM means separating from the universal Church because of unwillingness to be constrained by unity. I think the emergent movement might be guilty on this count, but so is Calvary Chapel, and most of the Christian church. More on that some other time.

HERESY is an intentional or rejection of an essential element of the faith as outlined in the three creeds (Apostle’s, Nicene, Athanasian) embraced by all four streams of the universal Church (Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Anglican). False doctrine and heresy are synonyms.