[Ohio]

Originally Posted by Ohio

There are literally millions of words in every language which become nuanced over the centuries, and may become source words for other lanuages with altered semantics. Word etymology can always be an informative starting point, but cannot overrule prevailing language semantics.

One common example for this is the Spanish word advertencia which means "caution or warning" in Spanish. Now if a Spanish writer used the etymological definition for this word which is derived from the English advertisement, the writer might completely misunderstand any associated dangers. Think about how different are the English words "DANGER" and "SALES AD."

Witness Lee's and Evangelical's error here expounding the word "heresy" or "heretic" is called genetic fallacy (also known as the fallacy of origins or fallacy of virtue) is a fallacy of irrelevance where a conclusion is suggested based solely on history, origin, or source rather than its current meaning or context. This overlooks any difference to be found in the present situation, typically transferring the positive or negative esteem from the earlier context. The fallacy therefore fails to assess the claim on its merit. The first criterion of a good argument is that the premises must have bearing on the truth or falsity of the claim in question. Genetic accounts of an issue may be true, and they may help illuminate the reasons why the issue has assumed its present form, but they are not conclusive in determining its merits.

I should add that Lee and LSM have longed used this flawed exposition of the word "heretic" as a basis of their many excommunications over the decades, including the expulsion of Titus Chu in the GLA. Here is one such article.