Heresy involves many temptations. But
one that I wish to discuss is the temptation of intellectual simplicity!
Simplicity is a double-edged sword. We need simplicity when referring
to the Gospel and its theology but we need this simplicity to be
orthodox. This is not “simple.” Really, the simplicity that we need is
not so much simple as it is concise. There is a huge difference. When
one is simple in theology one overlooks many suppositions in order to
arrive at the simplistic plain. This is what heresy does! It paints a
picture without prepping the canvas. The paint will not hold up under
time or examination and thus peel right off. But being concise means
prepping the canvas while painting the picture, a skill reserved for
those with experience and calling in a particular spiritual field.
Heresy many times speaks to the undereducated and lower classes – or, simply put, people without proper resources
(many times even the “educated” do not have proper resource). Heresy
makes a theologian out of just about anyone, giving them quick access
to ”theology” through a minimal amount of study. An exception to this
rule would be heresies that demand extensive linguistic studies, which
seem to be primarily designed to replace the Church itself.
Heresy usually involves denying much of
the Church’s teachings throughout history in order to show how some
type of modern – even in the medieval sense – prophet or teacher has
suddenly found the truth. They tend to imply that the Church was hiding
for the past thousand or so years and this person or group has suddenly
found it in the form of new doctrine and practice.
Heresy spreads very fast due to the
despondent crowd that is targeted by the master heretic. These hopeless
and uninformed people will eat the heresy straight from the palm of
their new master’s hand, desperately panting for intellectual status. When
the desperate soul is found by the heretic and proselytized to, they
usually feel very enlightened and enriched, at first, believing that
they have finally discovered what God has intended for them. The
propositions begin to hit them very fast and hard, leading them to feel
overwhelmed yet also joyful, due to the nature of what is being pitched.
It is overwhelming because of many reasons but it is joyful because it
has just the right amount of historical revelation – usually in the form
of Bible verses – sprinkled throughout the recipe. It’s laced with truth.
These sprinkles of truth that the
heresy is laced with is usually very easy to understand and speaks to
the flesh in many ways. Instant supposed sanctification through
knowledge is many times the culprit. The ancient heresy of Gnosticism
was like this. It appealed to people because it immediately stimulated
their intellect. It appeased their need for knowledge.
The Gospel does not sanctify like
Gnosticism or its contemporary counterparts. The Gospel works through
humility, submission, pain, and even turmoil. One must become
“childlike” to receive the Gospel. After one receives it one can or may
begin to exhaustively study its implications, but for the most part
Gospel sanctification involves just a lot of hard work and dying to
one’s self! One submits to the Church and then bathes in grace.
God said in Matthew that nothing would EVER penetrate His
Church. We all know by looking at history who the Church is, but some
insist that there “is more” than what the Church can immediately offer
them and thus begin to revert to some sort of reformed model where the
Church is being reinvented every couple years – ultimately
excommunicating itself – sometimes unknowingly – from the historical
Church. The Church is the safe-house for God’s elect. It is the “pillar
of truth,” as St. Paul says in 1 Timothy 3:15.
The Church will indeed let you down at times but it will never kill
your soul. Only your arrogant desire for “truth” will do that.
Source-classicalchristianity.com
