Sola scriptura

Sola scriptura (Latin ablative, "by scripture alone") was a foundational doctrinal principle of the Protestant Reformation held by the reformer Martin Luther. It is the assertion that the Bible is the sole source—some would assert inerrant source—of all Christian doctrine and is considered the basis on which all Protestant Christian teachings are derived. It is also the assertion that the Bible as God's written word is self-authenticating, clear (perspicacious) to the rational reader, and its own interpreter ("Scripture interprets Scripture"). The key implication of the principle is that interpretations of how to understand and apply the Scriptures do not have the same authority as the Scriptures themselves; hence, the ecclesiastical authority is subject to correction by the Scriptures, even by an individual member of the Church. (Luther: "a simple layman armed with Scripture is greater than the mightiest pope without it.") The intention of the Reformation was to correct the perceived errors of the Catholic Church by appeal to the uniqueness of the Bible's authority and to reject Christian tradition as a source of original authority in addition to the Bible. Sola scriptura may be contrasted with "Prima scriptura," which holds that even though the Bible is the primary source of doctrine it is improved by reference to other sources. Sola scriptura is now considered one of the five pillars of the Protestant Reformation.

Singular authority of Scripture

The idea of the singular authority of Scripture is the motivation behind much of the Protestant effort to translate the Bible into vernacular languages and distribute it widely. Protestants generally believe each man should read the Bible for himself and compare what he has been taught against it. In Eastern Orthodoxy and Catholicism, motivated more by their incarnational theology, not only the Bible but also the prayers and liturgies of the Church have been translated. Even prior to the Protestant movement, hundreds of vernacular translations of the Bible and liturgical materials were translated throughout the preceding sixteen centuries. In the Western Church, Latin was extensively utilized in time periods when it was a lingua franca and understood by most literate persons.

The Catholic Church rejects Sola scriptura because it believes that ...the task of giving an authentic interpretation of the Word of God, whether in its written form or in the form of Tradition, has been entrusted to the living teaching office of the Church alone. Its authority in this matter is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ. This means that the task of interpretation has been entrusted to the bishops in communion with the successor of Peter, the Bishop of Rome.[1];

According to sola scriptura, the Church does not speak infallibly in its traditions, but only in Scripture. As John Wesley stated in the 18th century, "In all cases, the Church is to be judged by the Scripture, not the Scripture by the Church." For this reason, Sola scriptura is called the formal cause of the Reformation.

Protestants argue that the Scriptures are guaranteed to remain true to their divine source, and thus, only insofar as the Church retains scriptural faith is it assured of God's favor. Following such an argument, if the Church were to fall away from faith through scripture (a possibility which Catholics deny but the Protestants affirmed), its authority would be negated. Therefore, the early Protestants targeted for elimination traditions they believed were based on distortions of Scripture, or were contrary to the Bible, but which the Catholic Church considered divinely revealed aspects of the Christian faith, such as transubstantiation (Matthew 26:26–29; John 6:35–71; 1 Corinthians 10:16; 1 Corinthians 11:23–29) the doctrine of purgatory (1 Corinthians 3:15; 2 Timothy 1:16–18; 2 Maccabees 12:44-46), the veneration of images or icons, (Exodus 25:18–19; 1 Kings 6:23–29), and especially the doctrine that the Pope is the head of the Church on earth (Matthew 16:18–19; Matthew 18:17; John 21:17).

Divisions of Protestants

The Reformation proceeded in three general directions: the Lutheran exclusivists, the Reformed, and the Anabaptists. The Lutherans aimed at establishing an evangelical consensus immediately, but the Reformed brought diverse groups into international association with one another on more liberal principles, which damaged hopes of union with the Lutherans. Meanwhile, the Anabaptists espoused an alternative view of history in which the true Church became hidden or lost through a Great Apostasy dating from Constantine. From that time forward fragmentation based on sola scriptura has predominated within Protestantism, although rare movements toward union have achieved success.

Scripture and Tradition

The Catholic Church against which the Reformers directed these arguments did not see Scripture and the Tradition of the faith as mutually exclusive sources of authority, but that Scripture was handed down as part of Tradition. Accepted traditions were also perceived as cohesive in nature. The ones receiving the scripture trusted the people from whom they received it and their accompanying teachings. The proper interpretation of the Scriptures was seen as part of the faith of the Church, and seen indeed as the manner in which Biblical authority was upheld. The meaning of Scripture was seen as proven from the faith universally held in the Catholic Christian churches, and the correctness of that universal faith was seen as proven from the Scriptures and apostolic tradition. The Biblical canon itself was thus viewed as part of the Church's tradition, as defined by its leadership and acknowledged by its laity.

However, this view of scripture and tradition was not universally accepted within the Church. Throughout the history of the Church, movements have arisen within the Catholic Church or alongside of it which have disputed the official interpretation of the Scriptures. The leaders of these movements were often labeled heretics and their doctrines were rejected. According to Irenaeus, the Judaistic Ebionites charged less than one hundred years after the Apostles that the Christians over-ruled the authority of Scripture by failing to keep the Mosaic Law. Later, Arius (250-336), once he had been made a presbyter in Alexandria, began arguing that the Catholic Tradition concerning the deity of Christ was an invention of men not found in Scripture and not believed by the early Christians. The Catholic Church held that when disagreements over Scripture arise, the correct interpretation of the Bible will be consistent with how the Church authorities have believed in the past, as revealed by the Ecumenical councils, the writings of the Apostles of Jesus and Fathers of the Church, the decisions of the Bishop of Rome, and similar sources of Tradition.

However, the Reformers believed some Catholic tradition to be very seriously in conflict with the Scriptures: especially, with regard to teaching about the Church itself, but also touching on basic principles of the Gospel. They believed that no matter how venerable the traditional source, traditional authority is always open to question by comparison to what the Scriptures say. The individual may be forced to rely on his understanding of Scripture even if the whole tradition were to speak against him. This, they said, had always been implicitly recognized in the Church, and remains a fail-safe against the corruption of the Church by human error and deceit. Corruptions had crept in, the Reformers said, which seriously undermined the legitimate authority of the Church, and Tradition had been perverted by wicked men.

Sola scriptura is a doctrine that is not, in the words of the Westminster Confession of Faith 1.6 "expressly set down in scripture". However, it passes the second test of being part of "the whole counsel of God" because it is "deduced from scripture" "by good and necessary consequence", citing passages such as Isaiah 8:20: "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.". Jesus is also typically understood by Protestants, as expressly nullifying unscriptural traditions in the (Jewish) church, when he says, for example in Mark 7:13: "thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do."

Catholics, on the other hand, argue that attention to tradition is taught in the Scriptures themselves (citing for example, 2 Thessalonians 2:15: "So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter."), and therefore ultimately lament that by rejecting the Church's authority in tradition, Protestantism is ironically not scriptural enough. Catholic critics also argue that, sola scriptura has been used for ends that are contrary to the Scriptures themselves, by contradicting the Church's legitimate authority, so that individuals have been encouraged in their conceits to destroy the unity of the Church.

Legacy

Sola scriptura continues to be a doctrinal commitment of conservative branches and offshoots of the Lutheran churches, Reformed churches, Baptist churches as well as other Protestants, especially where they describe themselves by the slogan "Bible-believing" (See Fundamentalism).

The conception of sola scriptura has changed over time. In addition to being a method of reforming church authority and tradition, sola scriptura now often implies an additional antithesis between the authority of the individual and authority of the Church. In addition to contesting and reforming traditions negatively attested to in scripture, many Protestants also remove traditions that the Bible doesn't positively and clearly support. Certainly sola scriptura is applied more liberally today than the original reformers intended.

Those who emphasize reason over Church tradition and authority may see sola scriptura as liberating the individual, removing corruptions and abuses, and making God or His love more immediately known. Those preferring Church tradition and authority may consider the individualism encouraged by sola scriptura to have contributed to disunity, harmful additions to Christian belief, and the proliferation of denominations.

Biblical references commonly cited in reference to Sola scriptura

Pro Sola Scriptura

Deuteronomy 4:2; Deuteronomy 8:3; Deuteronomy 12:32; Joshua 1:7–8; Psalms 119:105; Proverbs 30:5–6; Matthew 2:23; Matthew 4:4; Matthew 15:2–6; Mark 7:5–13; Luke 4:4; Luke 8:4–15; Luke 24:26–27; John 17:17; Acts 17:11; Galatians 1:8; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Timothy 3:14–15; 2 Timothy 3:15–17; Hebrews 4:12; 2 Peter 1:20–21; 2 Peter 3:15–17; Revelation 22:18–19

Con Sola Scriptura

Mark 3:14;Mark 16:15; Luke 10:16; Luke 24:47; John 20:30; John 21:25; Acts 15:27; Acts 20:35; 1 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:14; Colossians 1:5–7; 2 Thessalonians 2:15; 2 Thessalonians 3:6; 1 Timothy 3:14–15; James 4:5

See also

• Ex cathedra
• Prima scriptura
• Wesleyan Quadrilateral
• Ijtihad, the Islamic concept of interpretation of religion and law not limited by tradition.
• Lost books of the Old Testament
• Lost books of the New Testament

External links

• Many articles on Sola Scriptura from a Protestant perspective
• Many articles on Sola Scriptura from a Catholic perspective
• A written debate on Sola Scriptura between Douglas Jones and Gerald Matatics from Antithesis Magazine
• A formal written debate on Sola Scriptura between Julie Staples and Apolonio Latar
• A Catholic rebuttal to Sola Scriptura
• Sacred Oral Tradition
• An Eastern Orthodox rebuttal to Sola Scriptura
• "Paradosis: The Handing On of Divine Revelation" from a Catholic perspective