You simply assume these scary Greek words to mean something worse than the latter two. In fact, "anathemized" means separated and "heretic" means defective (in essence if not lexically). Had you not been Christian, and therefore brethren, neither "anathema" or "heretic" would apply to you.
That's a new one to me ... I think the word has always, in Greek and in English, meant a great deal more than that.
Not that dictionary.com is our theological authority or anything, but .... :-)
ANATHEMA–noun, plural -mas.
1. a person or thing detested or loathed: That subject is anathema to him.
2. a person or thing accursed or consigned to damnation or destruction.
3. a formal ecclesiastical curse involving excommunication.
4. any imprecation of divine punishment.
5. a curse; execration.[Origin: 1520–30; < L < Gk: a thing accursed, devoted to evil, orig. devoted, equiv. to ana(ti)thé(nai) to set up + -ma n. suffix]
“Anathematized” actually means “accursed”, and is, and always has been used for those excommunicated from the Church. Since Rome regards itself as the only “True Church” with salvation dependent on membership in it.... than the doctrines of the Council of Trent should hold for it, namely that anyone anathematized, or excommunicated from her is, by definition, on the way to Hell. Up until a generation or so ago, this is exactly what Roman Catholicism still taught—and it is entirely consistent with her history. That the Magisterium teaches this no longer, doesn’t change the (real, not revisionist) history of this teaching, nor the meaning of the words.
“Heretic” also refers to someone not just in error, but who has comprimised and ESSENTIAL belief of the faith. Without all the essentials one is also in serious risk of Hell, by definition. This too was taught of Protestants until recently—and is the meaning of the word.
So Roman Catholic brethren, what say ye? What are we Protestants, anathematized and heretics—and thereby hell bound? Or just defective and separated brethren?