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Tradition
Traditions form an important part of our community. These traditions are not to be considered equal to the authority of the Scriptures, (like the Roman Catholics believe) they simply support what the Bible says. The Bible is still supreme in matters of faith. After all, Jesus criticized the Pharisees for slavishly following their traditions and making them more authoritative than the Scriptures. (Mark 7.3) It is also to be noted that the Anglican Reformers followed the principles of Sola Scriptura. (i.e. by the Scriptures alone.) Some Anglicans/Episcopalians (not all) still hold to the basic principles of theology and practice advocated by Thomas Cranmer, namely- Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Sola Scriptura: Christians are saved by the merciful grace of God alone- we are not saved by our works or anything we do (Sola Gratia); A Christian's salvation is through faith alone- we only need to believe that our sins are forgiven for sake of Christ, who died to redeem us from death, hell, and the grave (Sola Fide); The Holy Scriptures are the only standards of Christian doctrine and life- the only true standard by which teachings and doctrines of our Church are to be judged (Sola Scriptura). Traditionally, Anglican doctrines come in this three-fold pattern: Scripture, tradition, and reason. As always, the Holy Scriptures is supported by tradition and reason, not the other way around. Our tradition consists of the Creeds (both the
Nicene and the
Apostles'), the writings of the early Fathers of the Church, and
the 39
Articles. The Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed are
universally accepted throughout the Anglican Communion. (I prefer to say
Anglican Community.) Some Anglicans/Episcopalians also use the Creed of St.
Athanasius and a document written by the Council of Chalcedon in
451 A.D., the "Definition of the Union of the Divine and Human Natures in
the Person of Christ". Sarah and Wan-Chak says, "Hmmm... don't you think that's kewl? We have a lot of tradition inherited from our forebears. Wow... That just goes to say that we have something so meaningful and so ancient. That makes us unique." A Catechism
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