J_Edwards said: I agree. It has been said that a Christian can embrace some types of heresy and still be a true Christian, however an apostate, though they may embrace some parts of Christianity as true, cannot be Christian.
Where do we draw the lines ? How do we identify a true apostate?
Maybe when they can be shown that their views have been rejected by the Church for many years and they decide that this does not matter and still hold on to their views.
Then Luther, Wycliffe, Huss, Calvin are all apostates!!!!
This cannot be the barometer. Tradition is to be a guide, not an infallible decree.
When you say "Church" that carries so much baggage.
One must determine what the core beliefs are to be considered a true believer. THis gets so subjective though.
If the Church can show from the Bible where someone is holding and teaching something the Bible does not teach, they can be considered apostate. One problem I see is that a lot of people will decide they dont like what their church teaches and instead of leaving it, they will undermine the church and try to change the church's views over time.
