Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
noun
- a professed believer who maintains religious opinions contrary to those accepted by his or her church or rejects doctrines prescribed by that church.
- Roman Catholic Church. a baptized Roman Catholic who willfully and persistently rejects any article of faith.
- anyone who does not conform to an established attitude, doctrine, or principle.
adjective
noun
- mainly RC Church a person who maintains beliefs contrary to the established teachings of the Church
- a person who holds unorthodox opinions in any field
mid-14c., from Old French eretique (14c., Modern French hérétique), from Church Latin haereticus, from Greek hairetikos “able to choose,” the verbal adjective of hairein (see heresy).
One who challenges the doctrines of an established church (see also established church). Martin Luther was proclaimed a heretic for rejecting many of the tenets of the Roman Catholic Church.