Father Seraphim Rose

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Orthodoxy Crash Course Holy Scriptures and
Sacred Tradition
Saint George Coptic Orthodox Church June 2, 2006
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Welcome to the OCC

• Part One
• Holy Scriptures Sacred Tradition (June 2)
• Our Knowledge of God the Trinity (June 9)
• God and Creation (June 16)
• Evil, Sin, and Salvation (June 23)

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Welcome to the OCC

• Part Two
• The Church Pillar Ground of Truth (July 14)
• The Holy Mysteries (July 21)
• Prayer (July 28)
• The Second-Coming of Christ An Orthodox
  Perspective on the End Times (August 4)

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Welcome to the OCC

• Recommended Reading
• Orthodox Dogmatic Theology
• by Father Michael Pomazansky

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The Search for Truth

• The Burning Questions of Mankind throughout the
  Ages

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The Search for Truth
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The Churchs Main Concern

• that Her members stand firm in pure truth

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The Churchs Main Concern
I have no greater joy than to hear that my
children walk in truth (3 John 4)
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The Churchs Main Concern
I have written to you briefly, exhorting and
testifying that this is the true grace of God in
which you stand (1 Peter 512).
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The Definition of Orthodoxy

• orthos straight, right

doxa judgment, opinion glory
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The Definition of Orthodoxy

• Contrasted with Heterodoxy
• Why did errors occur?
• The influence of other religions
• The influence of philosophy
• The weakness of our fallen human nature
• Pride

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Preserving and Expressing Truth

• How does the Church Protect the Truth?
• Dogmas
• And as they went through the cities, they
  delivered to them the decrees (Gk. dogmata) to
  keep, which were determined by the apostles and
  elders at Jerusalem (Acts 164)

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Preserving and Expressing Truth

• The Two Sources of Dogmas
• Sacred Scripture
• Sacred Tradition

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Sacred Scripture

• Definition
• Collection of books written by the holy prophets
  and apostles under the action of the Holy Spirit
• Divinely Inspired
• Gods Revelation to His people
• All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and
  is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for
  correction, for instruction in righteousness (2
  Timothy 316)

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Sacred Scripture
Old Testament
New Testament
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Sacred Scripture
Law Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers,
Deuteronomy
History Joshua, Judges and Ruth, 1 2 Kings, 3
4 Kings, 1 2 Paralipomena, 1 Esdras and
Nehemiah, Esther
Old Testament
Wisdom Job, Psalms, Proverbs Ecclesiastes, Song
of Songs
Prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah and Lamentations, Ezekie
l, Daniel, the Twelve Prophets (Hosea, Joel,
Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum,
Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi)
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Sacred Scripture
Old Testament
Non-Canonical 2 3 Esdras, Tobit, Judith, The
Wisdom of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch, 1, 2,
3 Maccabees, The Epistle of Jeremiah, Psalm
151, Additions to Esther, 2 Paralipomena (Prayer
of Manesseh), and Daniel (song of the Three
Youth, Susanna, and Bel and the Dragon)
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Sacred Scripture
Gospels Matthew, Mark Luke, John
History The Acts of the Apostles
New Testament
Prophecy Revelation
Epistles Fourteen Pauline Epistles (Romans
Hebrews) and Seven Katholik Epistles (James
Jude)
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Sacred Tradition

• Definition
• Every teaching not found explicitly in the Holy
  Scriptures that has been handed down to us from
  the Apostles and their successors.
• A living response to Gods voice

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Sacred Tradition

• The concept of tradition is biblical and
  pre-dates the canonical scriptures
• Examples from the Old Testament
• The Sacrifice of Abel (Genesis 4)
• Abraham and Melchizedek (Genesis 14)
• Jannes and Jambres who resisted Moses (2 Timothy
  38)
• The dispute over Moses body (Jude v. 8)

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Sacred Tradition

• The concept of tradition is biblical and
  pre-dates the canonical scriptures
• Examples from the New Testament
• Our Lord and the Two Disciples of Emmaus (Luke
  2427)
• Our Lord and the Disciples between His
  Resurrection and Ascension (Acts 13)
• Saint Pauls Farewell Speech (Acts 2035)
• 3,000 Baptized on the Day of Pentecost (Acts
  241)
• The Practices of the Early Church (Acts 2)

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Sacred Tradition
So, why werent these traditions written
explicitly in the Scriptures?
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Sacred Tradition
One possible answerthe analogy to giving driving
directions
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Sacred Tradition
Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the
traditions which you were taught whether by word
or our epistle (2 Thessalonians 215)
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Sacred Tradition

• The Early Church and the Mysteries
• When the catechetical teaching is pronounced, if
  a catechumen should ask you, What did the
  instructors say? you are to repeat nothing to
  those who are without (the church). For we are
  giving to you the mystery and hope of the future
  age. Keep the Mystery of Him Who is the Giver of
  rewards. May no one say to you, What harm is it
  if I shall find out also? Sick people also ask
  for wine, but if it is given at the wrong time it
  produces disorder to the mind, and there are two
  evil consequences the sick one dies, and the
  physician is slandered.
• Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, 4th Century
• (Prologue to the Catechetical Lectures,
  chapter 12).

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Sacred Tradition

• The Church Fathers and Sacred Tradition
• Of the dogmas and sermons preserved in the
  Church, certain ones we have from written
  instruction, and certain ones we have received
  from the Apostolic Tradition, handed down in
  secret. Both the one and other have one and the
  same authority for piety, and no one who is even
  the least informed in the decrees of the Church
  will contradict this. For if we dare to
  overthrow the unwritten customs as if they did
  not have great importance, we shall thereby
  imperceptively do harm to the Gospel in its most
  important points. And even more, we shall be
  left with the empty name of the Apostolic
  preaching without content.

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Sacred Tradition

• For example, let us especially make note of the
  first and commonest thing that those who hope in
  the name of our Lord Jesus Christ should sign
  themselves with the sign of the Cross. Who
  taught this in Scripture? Which Scripture
  instructed us that we should turn to the east in
  prayer? Which of the saints left us in written
  form the words of invocation during the
  transformation of the bread of the Eucharist and
  the Chalice of blessing? For we are not
  satisfied with the words which are mentioned in
  the Epistles or the Gospels, but both before them
  and after them we pronounce others also as having
  great authority for the Mystery, having received
  them from the unwritten teaching.

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Sacred Tradition

• By what Scripture, likewise, do we bless the
  water of Baptism and the oil of anointing and,
  indeed, the one being baptized himself? Is this
  not the silent and secret tradition? And what
  more? What written word has taught us this
  anointing with oil itself? Where is the triple
  immersion and all the rest that has to do with
  Baptism, the renunciation of Satan and his angels
  to be found? What Scripture are these taken
  from? Is it not from this unpublished and
  unspoken teaching which our Fathers have
  preserved in a silence inaccessible to curiosity
  and scrutiny, because they were thoroughly
  instructed to preserve in silence the sanctity of
  the Mysteries? For what propriety would there be
  to proclaim in writing a teaching concerning that
  which it is not allowed for the unbaptized even
  to behold?
• Saint Basil the Great, 4th Century
• (On the Holy Spirit, chapter 27)

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Sacred Tradition

• Where do we find Sacred Tradition?
• The Canons of the Holy Apostles
• The Symbols of the Faith
• Ancient Divine Liturgies, Rites, and Prayers
• Acts of the Christian Martyrs
• Ancient Records of History
• The Works of the Church Fathers
• The Very Spirit of the Churchs Life

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Glory is due to God Forever. Amen.