“Tradition is the living faith of the dead.
Traditionalism is the dead faith of the living.” –Jaroslav Pelikan
Traditionalism is the dead faith of the living.” –Jaroslav Pelikan
“Recognizing the ancient church’s
commitment to articulating and defending the historic, orthodox Christian faith
against false teaching, we also affirm the four ancient creeds: the Apostles’,
Nicene, Athanasian, and Chalcedonian Creeds. These are faithful and biblical
confessions, particularly in clarifying the doctrines of the Trinity and the
Incarnation of Christ.” –RBC General Statement of Faith, Article X
Modern evangelicalism
is so wed to the spirit of this age that many Christians have little
acquaintance with or use for Church history, ancient creeds, Reformed
confessions, and the truly catholic (universal) traditions of the Christian
Church. Many do not know or care about their history, and we all are poorer as
a result. Christianity cannot be unfastened from its historical roots, because
the Christian faith is founded on the belief God acted in history and unfolded
His redemptive plan, not just in our lives or lifetime, but over thousands of
years through men and women who lived and died in hope of the resurrection. Christianity
is a historical faith, so any expression of it that denies, discards, or
otherwise undermines that history is essentially un-Christian.
Oftentimes when people think of “tradition” they think of boring,
narrow-minded, formulaic routines that mean little to those that practice them.
Some think this way about hymns and responsive readings, creeds and
confessions, or weekly communion. It certainly is possible for any or all of
these to become meaningless repetition. If we sing those hymns without thinking
about them, without speaking those words from the heart to each other and to
God, then we are not worshipping at all. The same could be said for each
element of worship.
While we must constantly beware of the temptation of
traditionalism, we should also continually be mindful of the importance of
tradition. We are not the first Christians to walk the earth, read the Bible, “do
church,” or seek to evangelize the world. We need less innovation and more
serious biblical and historical contemplation of the reality of God's presence and
work in and among His people since the dawn of creation. We ought to learn from
tradition, not rely on it for our authority, but appreciate what it has to
teach us and how much we depend upon it, whether we realize it or not. History
has a tendency to humble us, to place in proper perspective our role in light
of God’s larger scheme. Such humility is always appropriate for Christians and
churches. –JME
