[Forest Keeper]

Holy Tradition is what The Church always and everywhere believed. It is infallible not because anyone said so but because Christ assured us that the Holy Spirit would always be with The Church. Writings of the Fathers, or documents like the Protoevangalion of James in and of themselves are not "infallible", ...

Yes, that helps. Thanks. So, Holy Tradition includes both oral and written teachings. The oral part goes pretty much all the way back to the beginning and the written works of the Fathers are subject to the "consensus patrum". Am I getting closer? :) I think I'm still a little fuzzy one something. At the beginning you said that Holy Tradition goes all the way back ("always believed"), but later the consensus is considered part of the Tradition?

[jo kus]

Holy Tradition goes all the way back ("always believed"), but later the consensus is considered part of the Tradition?

St. Lerins "rule of thumb" (always believed, by everyone, everywhere) is an indication to people years later that something MUST be from the Holy Spirit and was an original Apostolic Tradition. The Consensus is OUR way of knowing that the Spirit of Truth has taught and always taught something when we have such a consensus.

Regards