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They aren't liberal theologians, they are heretics


Lately my reading focus has been on the subjects of prayer and apologetics. Not at the same time, I just read like 10 books at a time. I’m sure this is probably not the most productive way to read, but it lends itself to my personality and to continue school again in the future because I never take one class at a time. So last night while reading the Handbook of Christian Apologetics by Peter Kreeft and Ronald K. Tacelli, I came upon a wonderful, concise refutation to “liberal” theology.
The correct theological term for many who label themselves “liberal” or “left-wing” or “progressive” theologians is “heretics.” By definition, a heretic is one who dissents from an essential doctrine (from the Greek haireomai, “to pick out for oneself”). Since most heretics today no longer believe in the very idea of essential doctrines, they do not accept the label.

They also have a strong case in the press because the church still smells from the smoke of the Inquisition, when it made the very same mistake contemporary liberals make: confusing heresies with heretics. The Spanish Inquisition wrongly destroyed heretics in order rightly to destroy heresies; modern “liberals” wrongly love heresies in order to rightly love heretics.

Apologetics defends orthodox Christianity. Dissenters don’t believe in apologetics for orthodox Christianity because they do not believe in orthodox Christianity. They believe in apologizing for it, not apologetics for it.[1]

Reading this reminded me of a paper I wrote on the emerging church movement which I have also posted here. You see, a high view of Scripture and an understanding of the reality of objective truth is vital to sound theology. As always, I pray that God will convict me when I am mistaken, but I will not fall in with the crowd of heretics that are apologizing for Christianity and trying to apologize for our unchanging, all-loving, omnipotent, omniscient God whom we serve. If anyone thinks they need to apologize for God, then I challenge you to look again, because you must not know Him. He is Yahweh, the great I AM.


[1] Peter Kreeft and Ronald K. Tacelli, Handbook of Christian Apologetics: Hundereds of Answers to Crucial Questions (Intervarsity Press, 1994), 25.

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