Holy Tradition

Be sim Ab we Weld we Menfes Quudus ahado Amlak. Amen.

This is a compilation of lessons about Holy Tradition from our brother Dn. Teklebrhan from the St. Mary Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo church of Columbus, OH. Psalms 66:1 "We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what deeds You did in their days, in days of old."

" Tradition is the handing down orally of customs, beliefs, stories, etc...from generation to generation" (Webster's New World Dictionary) Holy Tradition is the spiritual teaching we have inherited from the holy apostles and church fathers. Tradition is divine, apostolic or patriarchal. the word "tradition" comes from the latin word "traditio", which is a translation of a Greek word used frequently in the Scriptures, Paradosis. Translated literally, this word means something that is handed on from one person to another, in the same way that a baton is handed over in a relay race.

Something that is "traditioned" is passed from one person or group of people to another. Tradition means an experience, an entire life-not simply a series of teachings, but the living out of those teachings that have come from God who has revealed Himself to us. Tradition is the thing out of the revelation of God by His people. In other words, Holy tradition is the ongoing life of God's people.

Holy Tradition can be seen in three different stages.
1. Pre-written scripture
2. In the Old Testament (Post written Scripture)
3. In the New Testament

Psalms 66:1 "We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what deeds You did in their days, in days of old."

1. Holy Tradition existed even before the written scripture. Almost two thousand years had passed since the creation of Adam and eve untill the written law was given to Moses the prophet. During this long period of time, Tradition was the only source of knowledge about God and His commandments. This Holy Tradition was being transmitted faithfully from one generation to
the other. During this period, holy men and women (Abel, Enoch, Methusulah, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Melchizedek, Lot, Isaac, Rebeccah, Jacob, Rachel, etc...) pleased God with their righteous lives and have been considered as examples for us to learn from and follow. (Hebrews 11:1-29; 1 peter 3:1-6).

Even after Holy Scriptures came into existance, God emphasized the role of Holy Tradition as He commanded the fathers to hand over verbally the teachings and stories they knew to their children (Exodus 13:14-16; Deuteronomy 4:9). This is also evident from the words of King David , Psalms 66:1 "We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what deeds You did in their days, in days of old."

Examples

Genesis 4:4

It is mentioned that Abel offered to God a sacrifice from his best sheep and St. Paul said, (Hebrew 11:6) "By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain". Now Abel lived 1400 years (14 centuries) before the written commandments. Then where did he get that faith? How did he learn about offering animal sacrifices? Surely from his father Adam who recieved it from God Himself. (Genesis 3:21).

Notice that cain who violated the Holy Tradition of offering sacrifices was refused. (Genesis 4:5)

In the same manner, our fathers Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and also Job knew the offering of animal sacrifices and building altars through the Holy Tradition before the written Law. Moreover, they even distinguished the clean animals from the unclean ones (Genesis 8:20 and 9:3-6)

Humans were created vegetarians (Genesis 1:29) then God's permission to eat meat was verbally spread. Also, the punishment of killers by death penalty was spread by Holy Tradition before the written Law.

(Genesis 14:18-20) These verses call Melchizedek the priest of God and Abraham gives him a tithe. How did they know the priesthood and the commandment of giving the tithe? In the same manner, Jacob said to God, (Gen 28:22) "and all You give me I will surely give a tenth to You". Remeber that there was no written commandment to give ten percent at the time, the only explanation is Holy Tradition.

(Exodus: 16:27-28) The commandment of keeping the Sabbath was known and transmitted through Holy Tradition because it was not written into law by Moses untill two weeks after the above incident.

(Matthew 9:35, Mark 1:21 and 6:2, Luke 4:15 and 13:22 and 19:47), Question to ponder: many times we read in the Holy Gospels about our Lord Jesus Christ teaching the people in the synagogues but the Holy Bible did not document any of these blessed teachings. Did all these Divine teachings just vanish? It has been said that all that is written in the Holy Gospels cumulatively, would only cover 18 days in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. His ministry was approximately 3 years (3 x 365=1095 days). what about the missing 1077 days? Where are the writings of over 99% of His ministry?

It is written that our Lord Jesus Christ remained with His disciples 40 days after His resurrection "speaking of things pertaining to the Kingdom of God" (Acts 1:3). But the Holy Book of Acts doesn't reveal what our LOrd said. Does this mean that we have no access to these pertaining to the Kingdom of God? St. Jacob wrote only one short Holy Epistle that probably took one hour of his time, St. Jude left us a very short Holy Epistle that might have taken half an hour to write, and St. Peter left is two short Holy Epistles. Where are the rest of their blessed teachings? Where are the teachings of the rest of the Apostles?

2. Holy Tradion in the New Testament

Our Lord Jesus Christ did not write a book, He did not document His blessed teachings on paper, but He chose His disciples who accompanied Him day and night. They absorbed His teachings and learned directly from Him. He sent them to teach the whole world and to make disciples of all nations.

"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations." (Matthew 28:19). Making disciples is based primarily on direct contact with the person and verbal teaching:

-St. Paul said to his disciple Timothy, "Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me." )1 Timothy 1:13.

-St. Paul said to the Philippians, "Brethern, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us as a pattern" Philippians 3:17 and "The things which you learned and recieved and heard and saw in me, these do Philippians 4:9

-and to the Corinthians, St. Paul said, "For in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. Therefore I urge you, imitate me" 1 Corinthians 4:15-16

- St. Paul also said to his disciple Timothy, "the things which you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" 2 Timothy 2:2

Christianity is therefore a religion that is Holy Tradition -bound and is strongly committed to discipleship. No wonder, then, that the Apostles preferred verbal teaching to the written on:

Genesis 17:9-14

God gave our father Abraham the commandment of circumcision and it spread by Holy Tradition from one generation to the next.

Genesis 28:17-18

Our father Jacob called the place where he saw his dream "the house of God". He also took a stone, set it up as a pillar and poured oil on it. How was he familiar with the term "house of God" and how did he know about the consecration of the houses of God by pouring oil? Again, only the existance of Holy Tradition explains this.

Genesis 39:7-10

Joseph the righteous knew that adultry was 'a great wickedness' through Holy Tradition long before Moses the Prophet wrote the seventh commandment.

Exodus 16:27-28

The commandment of keeping the sabbath was known and transmitted through holy tradition.

-St Paulsaid to the Corinthians, "You are manifestly an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but in tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart" (1 corinthians 3:3)

- St. John said, 'having many things to write to you, I did not wish to do so with paper and ink; but I hope to come to you and speak face to face, that our joy may be full (2 John 12), Also "I had many things to write, but I do not wish to write to you with pen and ink; but I hope to see you shortly, and we shall speak face to face" (3 john 13)

- st Paul said to the Corinthians, "The rest I will set in order when I come." (1 Corinthians 11:34)

-St Paul said to his disciple Titus, "For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking." (Titus 1:5)

-The apostles wrote to the gentiles saying, "we have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who will report the same things by word of mouth" (Acts 15:27). So even though they wrote a letter they sent two men in order to convey the same message verbally.

-St John said "And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written" (John 21:25)

-St Peter said "I have written to you briefly" (1 Peter 5:12)

Examples

Matthew 2:23

St Matthew quoted a prophecy about our Lord Jesus Christ that was not written in any of the Old Testament Holy Books but was transmitted from one generation to the other through Holy Tradition.

Acts 20:35

St Paul quoted the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, "it is more blessed to give than to recieve" which are not written in any of the four Holy Gospels but were known by Holy Tradition. Also (1 Corinthians 7:10 and 9:14).

2 Timothy 3:8

St Paul mentioned the names of the two Egyptian magicians who resisted Moses the Prophet. These names are not mentioned in the Old Testament but were known by Holy Tradition. (Hebrew 12:21) St Paul described how the people recieved the Law and how the mountain was blazing with fire. Then he wrote "Moses said, I am exceedingly afraid and trembling". These words ascribed to Moses the Prophet are not mentioned in the Old Testament.

Jude 9

St Jude mentioned the dispute between the Archangel Michael and Satan regarding the body of Moses the Prophet. None of this was mentioned in the Old Testament but again was known through Holy Tradition.

Jude 14-15

St Jude mentioned a prophecy by Enoch not written in the Old Testament but was known through Holy Tradition

Revelations 2:14

Our Lord Jesus Christ quoted from Holy Tradition when He explained the details of Balaam's perversion, which are not stated in Numbers 23-24. It was only mentioned that the children of Israel committed sexual immorality, but it was not mentioned that it was due to Balaam's advice to Balak. Also 2 Peter 2:15 and Jude 11 quoted the same from Holy Tradition.