Tradition
by Joshua Lian                      

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".

Equally important in our tradition is the Book of Common Prayer and the Catechism in its various revisions throughout the Anglican Communion. Our Branch of the Anglican Communion, the Protestant Episcopal Church in the USA, has a catechism. However, the Catechism of the Church of England, (which is in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer) is still considered authoritative, although the Church of England now has a Revised Catechism that is used side by side with the old one. 

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
http://www.episcopalian.org/pbs1928/Articles/NowellCatechism/001.htm