“The Protestants won’t consider the oral transmission of God’s word “
What does that mean?
(And you should post the entire piece)
Horse hockey.
Cute that this author writes off the most crucial era of Christian history with the dismissive term "extrabiblical writings"....as if that nullified what they had to say.
Let's state plainly what exactly these "writings" are. They refer to the earliest generations of Christians after the Apostles, some of whom actually knew the Apostles personally. Clement, appointed by St. Peter. Polycarp, who sat at the feet of St. John.
They are the only historical record we have of a newly formed Christian Church and its defining controversies, interests, and practices.
They are the writings closest in place, time, and culture to the New Testament and show us how the New Testament was interpreted and lived out while it was written, and for several centuries afterward.
They are *irreplaceable* historically, doctrinally, and theologically.
But of course we know the answer as to why they are ignored, don't we? They are ignored because they prove quite clearly that the early Church was not Protestant.
"Not supported by the written word of God" amounts to someone's opinion. I think they are supported by the written word of God, but people can explain away every Scripture I cite to support any Catholic belief, because that's how they get to believe what they want.
And that's just a specific case of the more general problem that people can explain away every Scripture cited to support any Christian belief, which is why you have liberal Protestants who can convince themselves that the Bible endorses e.g., homosexual behavior.
Bingo.
When ALSO not found among early church transmissions of faith teaching, and when going against aspects of Scripture and theological considerations of long standing (monotheism ---anyone?) resembling paganistic types of imaginings of 'how the heavens go' rather than focusing upon "hear Oh Israel, our God is One"
...smuggling in "saints" and "Mary" through side-doors that swing both ways (from out of Purgatory, too?) into Heaven ---and from there back out to earth again when they will it to be--- if they are asked nice enough, and enough times over(?) as in the rote & repetitive rosary prayers, directed in focus not chiefly most ---to the Lord God Almighty, but to;
... Mary who sits The Queen of Heaven, functioning as governess of the Holy Spirit even --- according to some of the more breathless descriptions of the imagined, still on-going and allegedly absolutely necessary continuing, now from Heaven role she now serves in ---
---- singular papacy for bishop of Rome -- which none among the early Church saw as how the Lord had instituted governance among the Church, and is in fact contrary to how things are portrayed in Scripture to have been arranged more horizontally in gifts of the spirit ---of administration.
On, and on for a ways like that it goes, in the "tradition[s] of men not supported by the written word of God" -- where it'll stop, nobody knows?
God knows, and He's not "nobody" so I guess I answered that last question, any-hows.
Just a point of clarification: Protestants accept creeds and confessions where they help clarify doctrinal truths described in scripture. Thus we accept things such as the Nicene Creed, the Apostle Creed, or the Westminster Confession of Faith (London Baptist Confession if your a Baptist). Normally these creeds and confessions are rock solid doctrinal understanding passed down through the ages to fight against heretical doctrine. Sadly, few Protestants understand the remarkable work put together by our forefathers in understanding scriptural truths through the creeds and confessions. A good confession will have its basis in clear understanding of scriptural truths.
What Protestants reject are new truths which are contrary to sound teaching already established. Thus if the scriptures state, “All have sinned...”, then we cannot teach that certain people were sinless. Not only does it go against the creeds and confessions established, but it also goes against scripture. A well founded creed will be based on rock solid scripture.
I believe many people or maybe most people are indoctrinated in religion before they read much of scripture so any scripture can be twisted around and they can still claim to believe in sola scripture.
I believe in the written word only.
Who cares?!
They are SCREWED; big time!!
--Poorly_Catechized_Catholic_Dude(Hail Mary!!)
"One indeed is the universal Church of the faithful, outside which no one at all is saved, in which the priest himself is the sacrifice, Jesus Christ, whose body and blood are truly contained in the sacrament of the altar under the species of bread and wine; the bread (changed) into His body by the divine power of transubstantiation, and the wine into the blood, so that to accomplish the mystery of unity we ourselves receive from His (nature) what He Himself received from ours."
--Pope Innocent III and Lateran Council IV (A.D. 1215)