Plural of heresy: religious beliefs or opinions that contradict the official doctrines of a church or established faith.
From Old French 'heresie,' from Greek 'hairesis' (choosing, choice, school of thought), derived from 'hairein' (to choose). The sense shifted to mean choosing wrongly or dissenting from orthodoxy.
The word 'heresy' comes from the same root as 'choice'—so calling something a heresy literally means 'the wrong choice'—which reveals how religions often use language to frame dissent as simple error rather than legitimate difference.
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