ЕРЕСЬ

Heresy

(Gk. sect, choice), a departure from orthodox religious doctrine. Heresies were the religious form in which the common people protested against the ruling classes in feudal society, which were supported by the Catholic Church. The first Christian Heresies—montanism, Judeo-Christianity, gnosticism—arose in the 2nd and 3rd centuries and opposed the established Christian dogmas. Arianism, Nestorianism, and Monophysitism date from the 4th and 5th centuries, when Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire.

Heresy reached its peak in the Middle Ages, when the Catholic Church was most closely connected with the exploiting classes of feudal society and was at the height of its power (Bogomils, Waldenses, Albigenses, Lollards, Taborites, etc.). The Heresy movement was of great importance because it heralded the collapse of the feudal system in Western Europe. The peasant-plebeian Heresies, which provided the slogans of peasant rebellions and inspired the common people, played a particularly prominent role in this respect. With the rise of capitalism Heresies lost their militancy and declined into religious sectarianism.