Keeping the Ancient Boundaries - Pt. 1
The Role and Significance of Tradition for the Church
“Do not remove the ancient boundaries which your fathers have set.”
[Proverbs 22:28]
Having been brought up in a typical evangelical expression of Christianity, I had never given much thought to the role of ‘tradition’ in the life of the Church. There was little to no discussion on ‘church tradition’ in our church - and if the topic ever did come up, it was typically dismissed, or at worst denounced as ‘man’s religion’, ‘legalism’ or ‘pharisaic’. A proof text might have been Christ’s words to the Pharisees in Mark 7:
The Pharisees and the scribes asked [Jesus], “Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders…?
He said to them, “Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,
‘This people honours me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching human precepts as doctrines.’
You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition!” …making void the word of God through your tradition that you have handed on…”
[Mark 7:5-9, 13]
So… is Jesus anti-tradition?
Well, the context of this passage, regarding the purity customs of the Pharisees in upholding ritual purity over spiritual purity , shows clearly that it is not an outright denouncement of ‘tradition’ as irrelevant and sinful. That’s not the point. If anything, Jesus pushes against the misuse of tradition. His criticism (bolstered by Isaiah’s prophecy) is against the backwards priorities of the Pharisees.
Far from denouncing tradition then, Christ’s words imply that there is a good and proper place for tradition. Which begs the question; what is it? What is tradition with regards to the Church? What is its role, and what sets it apart from so called, “human-traditions”?
What I hope to show in this two part (and rather rambling) article, is that ‘tradition’, particularly that of the Church founded on the witness of the Apostles, does not constitute vain ‘traditions of men’, but rather the God-breathed substance of the Christian faith.
Apostolic Tradition in the New Testament
While the contrast between λόγον τοῦ θεοῦ logon tou theo ‘word of God’ and παράδοσιν τῶν ἀνθρώπων paradosin ton anthropon ‘human tradition’ in Mark 7 has led many to see an aversion in the New Testament to any established tradition, a simple survey of the word παράδοσις paradosis ‘tradition’ disproves this. Indeed, we find a generally positive portrait of tradition, particularly that of the apostolic deposit and teaching, in St Paul’s use of the word παράδοσις paradosis ‘tradition’1 in his epistles:
Therefore brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter…”
[2 Thess 2:15]
“Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you.”
[1 Cor 11:2]
Likewise, in his letter to St Timothy, St Paul encourages the young bishop to:
“Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.”
[2 Tim 1:13–14]
Far from dispensing with ‘human tradition’, St Paul commands the churches to ‘hold firm’ to the traditions, ‘passed on by us’. These traditions are the depositum fidei ‘deposit of the faith’ “delivered once and for all to the saints” (Jude 13). While God had foreshadowed the coming of his Word in his spoken oracles to Israel beforehand, now he has spoken finally in the revelation of his Son, (Heb 1:1-3) and this deposit has been given to the apostles and erected upon their teaching (Heb 2:2; Eph 2:20; Rev 21:14). It is this deposit, or ‘tradition’ that the apostles have παρέλαβεν parelabon ‘delivered’ or παραδοθέντα paradothenta ‘handed down’ to the Church (cf. ; 1 Cor 11:23; 15:1-3) as witnesses and ministers of Christ, the Word of God (Luke 1:2; John 1:1; 1 John 1:3). Far from being unimportant then, it is these traditions that constitute the foundation of the Church. As St Paul puts it:
“…you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.”
[Eph 2:19-20]
The tradition of the Church is thus, first and foremost, the depositum apostolorum, the witness of the apostles, upon which the Church is founded.
Apostolic Tradition and the Fathers
With such emphasis stressed by St Paul’s admonition to hold fast to the traditions delivered by Christ to the apostles, we should not be surprised to find the same sentiment echoed in the words of many of early fathers of the Church to which the traditions established by the apostles were indeed παραδοθέντα paradothenta “handed down” (1 Cor 11:23):
“I administer worthily that which has been handed down [παραδοθέντα] to those that are disciples of the truth. For who, having been rightly taught and having become pleasing to the Word, does not seek to learn exactly what has been clearly shown by the Word to disciples, to whom the Word appeared… who, being explained to disciples who being considered faithful by him, learned the mysteries of the Father.
[Ep. Diog 11.1-2.]2
“Let us abandon empty and futile thoughts, and let us conform to the glorious and holy rule of our tradition”
[1 Clement 7:2]
Thus, in defining the apostolic tradition of the Church, one cannot just speak of the depositum apostolorum ‘deposit of the apostles’, but must also recognise the doctrinae sanctorum Patrum ‘doctrines of the holy fathers’. Both constitute the tradition of the Church, for as Evagrius of Pontus wrote;
‘It is fitting for those who want to walk along the “way” of him who said: “I am the way and the life,”(John 14:6) that they learn from those who previously walked along it, and converse with them about what is useful, and hear from them what is helpful, so as not to introduce anything that is foreign to our course.”
[Evagrius Ponticus, Epistula 17.1.]
Many of the early fathers, such as St Ignatius, St Clement, St Polycarp, were all disciples of the apostles, and their writings give a important glimpse into the traditions of the early church and the preservation of the apostolic foundation therein. The shared witness of both the apostles and fathers then, demonstrates the concrete reality of this ‘passing on’ from the apostles to the next generation of the Church, and both serve as the means for us to “walk along the way” with their guidance, following in the footsteps of Christ.
This is not the “cold ashes” of an ancient tradition, but rather a depositum juvenescens “living deposit” or a “deposit of life” carried by the breath of the Spirit, a living κοινωνίᾳ koinonia ‘participation’ in the reality of Christ’s kingdom. A seed sown in each generation of the Church, and nurtured by God. As St Irenaeus wrote:
“…our faith, which, having been received from the Church, we do preserve, and which always, by the Spirit of God, renews its life, as if it were some precious deposit in an excellent vessel, causing the vessel to renew its life also. For this gift of God has been entrusted to the Church, just as breath was to the first created man, for this purpose, that all the members receiving it may be vivified; and the means of communion with Christ has been distributed throughout, that is, the Holy Spirit, the earnest of incorruption, the means of confirming our faith, and the ladder of ascent to God.”
[St Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 1.24.1]
Other early fathers and writings, such as St Athanasius and the ‘Apostolic Tradition’ attributed to St Hippolytus of Rome3, both roughly 3rd-4th century, say similarly:
“Let us look at the very tradition, teaching, and faith of the catholic Church from the beginning which the Lord delivered, the Apostles preached, and the Fathers preserved; upon which the Church is founded.”
[St Athanasius Ad Serapion 1.]
“…moved by the love of his saints, we pass to the most important theme, The Tradition, our teacher, that catechizes all the church, so that those who have been well led by our exposition may guard the tradition which has remained up to now, and knowing, may remain firm…the Holy Spirit bestows perfect grace on those who belief rightly, that they may know how those who preside over the church ought to hand on and preserve these things…”
[Apostolic Tradition 1.2-3,5.]
From this, we see that the tradition of the Church is not only portrayed as the foundation upon which the Church is built, but also as the great παιδαγωγός paedagogus ‘teacher’ of the Church, constituted in and through the work of the Holy Spirit, guarding from and removing error, and holding fast to the teachings of the Lord. Tradition is thus woven through the work of the Holy Spirit in the Church. As Christ told his disciples:
“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
[John 16:13–15]
Tradition, the preservation of the apostolic deposit, is thus not merely a human reality, but a pneumatological one. One which constitutes the very heart of the Church. As Fr. Gabrielle Bunge notes;
“Guarding “the good thing committed to our trust” is always the fruit of the working of “the Holy Spirit who dwells in us” and there “bear[s] witness” to the Son. He it is, also, who does not only “guide [us] into all the truth” but also for ages to come causes the testimony of the Master himself to be recognised in the testimony of the disciples.”4
The Church, first and foremost, is the apostolic community (cf. Eph 2:19-22) and its κοινωνίᾳ koinonia ‘participation’ in the tradition of the apostles is what establishes it as the true body of Christ (1 Cor 12:27; Col 1:17-18) in fellowship with the head;
“…genuine tradition means having and preserving koinonia ‘fellowship’ with the ‘eyewitnesses and ministers of the word’ and, through them, with him about whom they testify.
Whoever wants to have “fellowship with God”, therefore, can never disregard those before him who were made worthy of this fellowship! In his response of faith to their “proclamation”, the one who was born afterward enters into that selfsame fellowship of which those “eyewitnesses and ministers of the word” were “from the beginning” and forever remain a living part. Hence only that church is genuinely “Christ’s Church” which stands in an unbroken, living fellowship with the apostles, upon whom the Lord, indeed, founded his Church.”5
For the Church to be in communion with Christ, and indeed, to be the Church, she must be in communion with the apostles. As Christ himself said
“Whoever hears you hears me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.”
[Luke 10:16]
Tradition is not, therefore, “an unthinking adherence to what has been handed down, but the preservation of a living fellowship”6, the “communion of the saints” going all the way back to the apostles themselves.
Tradition, Apostles and Bishops
But this ‘living fellowship’ is not merely an abstract notion. For fathers such as St Ignatius, this fellowship and preservation was demonstrated in a very real sense in the successors of the apostles, bishops like himself, who had been appointed by the them to carry on the tradition. St Clement notes how:
"…our apostles knew through our Lord Jesus Christ that there would be strife concerning the title of bishop. Because of this reason, therefore, having received complete foreknowledge, they appointed those previously mentioned and afterwards they gave a rule that if they should die, other approved men should succeed their ministry.
[1 Clement 44:1-3]
The apostles received the gospel for us from the Lord Jesus Christ; Jesus the Christ was sent out from God. Therefore the Christ is from God and the apostles from Christ. Therefore both came forth in good order from the will of God. Therefore, having received commands and being fully convinced by the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, and full of faith in the word of God, they went forth with the full assurance of the Holy Spirit, proclaiming the gospel, that the kingdom of God was about to come. Therefore, preaching among regions and cities, they appointed their first fruits, testing them by the Spirit to be bishops and deacons of the future believers. And this is nothing new, for much time since then has been written about bishops and deacons. For somewhere the scripture says as follows: “I will appoint their bishops in righteousness and their deacons in faith.” [Isa 60:17 LXX]7
[1 Clement 45.2-5]
This is in accord with St Paul’s command to Titus to:
“…put in order what remained to be done, appointing bishops in every town…”
[Titus 1:5]
The significance of the relationship between the apostles and their episcopal successors is outlined by St Ignatius in a deeply mystagogical manner:
“…it is necessary (just as you already do) for you to do nothing without the bishop, but be subject also to the council of elders as to the apostles of Jesus Christ our hope. If we live in him, we will be found in him.”
[St Ignatius, Ep. Trall. 2.2]
“For as many as belong to God and Jesus Christ, these are with the bishop.”
[St Ignatius Ep. Phil. 3:2]
“…there is one flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ and one cup for unity through his blood; there is one altar as there is one bishop together with the council of elders and the deacons… whatever you do, do it in accordance with God.”
[St Ignatius Ep. Phil. 4]
All of you follow the bishop as Jesus Christ follows the Father, and follow the council of elders as the apostles… Wherever the bishop appears, let the congregation be there; just as wherever Jesus Christ is, the catholic church is there.
[St Ignatius, Ep. Smyr. 8.1-2]
It is within the figure of the bishop that the Church participates in the unity of Christ and fellowship of the apostles. The bishop stands in authority, not only as the successor of the apostles, and thus the link to their witness ad teachings, but also as the representative of Christ himself, serving as the foci of the church, established through apostolic succession.
***
Our discussion on the place of tradition within the Church thus far points us to the reality of the Church founded on the apostles and the safeguarding of this tradition through the work of the Spirit and the office of the bishop. This is essential for the Church’s ongoing participation in the apostolic witness at its foundation and the unity of the Church founded upon the cornerstone of Christ himself (Eph 2:20; 1 Pet 2:4-8).
As such, the tradition of the apostles is not merely ‘human tradition’, but rather God-breathed revelation and life. Tradition is not, therefore, optional, but rather integral, for the Church. As we shall see, this life is not only within the Church, within her mysteries, and her revelation of Scripture, but also relates to her universality, orthodoxy and relevance to the world.
This, we will explore in the next article.
We should note that Paul has no issue with Jewish custom and tradition (cf. Acts 16:1-3; 18:18; 20:16; 21:17-26; 22:3; Phil 3:5-6) and also regularly attends the synagogue services (Acts 13:14–15; 14:1; 17:1–2; 18:4). He calls these traditions “the oracles of God” (Rom 3:1-2; cf. 9:4-5)
Michael W. Holmes, The Apostolic Fathers, 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2007).
Recent scholarship has largely identified the spurious nature of this attribution; Paul F. Bradshaw; Maxwell E. Johnson; L. Edward Phillips, The Apostolic Tradition: A Commentary, Hermeneia (Philadelphia: Fortress, 2002), 1-16.
Gabriele Bunge, Earthen Vessels: The Practice of Personal Prayer According to the Patristic Tradition, (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2002), 23.
Bunge, Earthen Vessels, 18-19.
Bunge, Earthen Vessels, 21.
It should be noted that the wording recorded by St Clement is not exactly representative of the Greek version of Isa 60:17, which reads, ἄρχοντάς ‘rulers’ and ἐπισκόπους ‘bishops’ respectively.