From the beginning of this debate, Julie placed the burden of proof on me to give another infallible rule of faith. I did accept that burden even though I didn’t have to. Julie did not give ONE verse of Scripture that teaches that Scripture is the ONLY infallible rule of faith.

Many years ago, Sola Scriptura was a doctrine. Now, it is a "circumstance." Protestant Christians claim that Scripture is an infallible rule of faith, which the Catholic Church believes, and supposedly plays ignorant of another infallible rule of faith. Protestants believe that since they do not know of any other infallible rule of faith, Scripture must be the only infallible rule of faith. However, if Protestants cannot prove that there is no other infallible rule of faith, then they don’t have the right to claim Scripture IS the ONLY rule of faith. It leaves them in a position that is not provable.

Do I really have to give another infallible rule of faith? Not really. I can just show how Scripture TEACHES that there is another infallible rule of faith. However, I will, as I have done, give another. I don’t need to give another infallible SOURCE OF DOGMA, but another infallible RULE OF FAITH.

Verses Julie Gave

The main verse that Julie cites is 2 Timothy 3:16-17. It says,

"All Scripture is inspired and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, in order that the man of God may be fit, fully equipped for every good work."

How can anyone logically get Sola Scriptura from this? Scripture makes the man of God fully equipped for every good work; therefore Scripture is the only infallible rule of faith? It makes no sense. I also gave a verse that refutes this argument.

Epaphras sends you greetings; he is one of you, a slave of Christ (Jesus), always striving for you in his prayers so that you may be perfect and fully assured in all the will of God (Col 4:12).

This verse talks about salvation. Can we conclude that Epaphras’ prayers are all we need since it makes us perfect and fully assured in all the will of God? Does it mean that we don’t need faith growing in love? (Gal 5:6) Does it mean we need no faith at all? (1 Cor 13:2,13; Heb 11:6) This would be absurd just as it is absurd to say that since Scripture makes the man of God fully equipped, it’s the only thing we need. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 talks about the quality of Scripture, not the quantity of God’s revelation.

I also refuted the claim historically on 2 Timothy 3:16-17. I have claimed, that since the early Church did not have the complete canon or correct number of books, they could not have practiced Sola Scriptura; that they relied on TRADITION so that they would know the fullness of the Gospel. How can Scripture make a man of God fully equipped if they don’t have ALL SCRIPTURE? 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says "All Scripture" not "Some Scripture."

Therefore ALL SCRIPTURE is needed to make the man of God fully equipped. I also gave an example of Thomas preaching in India. Thomas never wrote anything down. How did the Indians know what Thomas preached? By standing firm to the oral traditions that they received (2 Thess 2:15).

Another refutation, which Julie NEVER responded to, was that the Word of God does not change. Julie believes that the preaching of the Apostles was written down or inscripturated. However, she NEVER gave a verse that the Word of God preached by the Apostles (1 Thess 2:13) was all inscripturated in Scripture alone. Julie also said that Sola Scriptura was not valid during the times of inscripturation. I quoted Sungenis,

for if it cannot be a "valid concept during times of revelation," how can Scripture teach a doctrine since Scripture was written precisely when divine oral revelation was still being produced? Scripture cannot contradict itself. Since both the 1st century Christian and the 21st century Christian cannot extract differing interpretations from the same verse, thus, whatever was true about Scripture then must also be true today. If the first Christians did not, and could not, extract Sola Scriptura from Scripture because oral revelation still existent, then obviously those verses could not, in principle, be teaching Sola Scriptura, and thus we cannot interpret them as teaching it either. (Not by Scripture Alone, page 128)

Julie IGNORED this and never made a comment on it. If Paul wanted 2 Timothy 3:16-17 to teach Sola Scriptura, Timothy would have practiced it. But Timothy did not, since it was during times of revelation. Either 2 Timothy 3:16-17 teaches Sola Scriptura, or it doesn’t. Since God’s Word does not change, then what was true then is true now. And since Sola Scriptura was not taught in the 1^st century (during inscripturation), the verse does not teach Sola Scriptura.

We can conclude that Scripture does NOT teach Sola Scriptura. If Scripture itself does not teach Sola Scriptura, then it is a self-refuting proposition. All the verses Julie has given talks about the quality of Scripture, NOT the quantity of God’s revelation. That is what Sola means. Yet, she has not produced even ONE verse. From this argument alone, I have proven Sola Scriptura to be untrue.

Another way to refute Sola Scriptura is to show that Scripture teaches that there is another infallible rule of faith. That rule of faith is Tradition. Julie agrees that the command of 2 Thessalonians 2:15 has not ceased. If she believes that, how can she believe oral tradition does not exist? The Bible is commanding us to stand firm to two rules of faith. We also find out that oral tradition is the Word of God (1 Thess 2:13). Since the Word of God is infallible, then oral tradition is infallible. If Julie truly follows the Bible, then what oral tradition is she standing firm to? Why would the Holy Spirit command us to stand firm to oral tradition if it doesn’t exist? If oral tradition was all inscripturated, then Paul would have just commanded us to stand firm to written tradition. However, Paul commands us to stand firm to oral tradition.

Julie has asked me to provide an example of Apostolic Tradition. One of the examples I gave was Apostolic Succession. JND Kelly says:

"[W]here in practice was [the] apostolic testimony or tradition to be found? . . . The most obvious answer was that the apostles had committed it orally to the Church, where it had been handed down from generation to generation. . . . Unlike the alleged secret tradition of the Gnostics, it was entirely public and open, having been entrusted by the apostles to their successors, and by these in turn to those who followed them, and was visible in the Church for all who cared to look for it" (Early Christian Doctrines, 37);

"...the identity of the oral tradition with the original revelation is guaranteed by the unbroken succession of bishops in the great sees going back lineally to the apostles. . . . [A]n additional safeguard is supplied by the Holy Spirit, for the message committed was to the Church, and the Church is the home of the Spirit. Indeed, the Church’s bishops are . . . Spirit-endowed men who have been vouchsafed �an infallible charism of truth’" (ibid).

As we can see, there was such a thing as apostolic succession. Is apostolic succession unwritten? No. But the successors of St. Peter are. Nowhere in the Bible does it show Linus succeeding Peter. For example, Augustine states:

"If the very order of episcopal succession is to be considered, how much more surely, truly, and safely do we number them from Peter himself, to whom, as to one representing the whole Church, the Lord said, �Upon this rock I will build my Church’ ....[Matt. 16:18]. Peter was succeeded by Linus, Linus by Clement, Clement by Anacletus, Anacletus by Evaristus ...." (Letters 53:1:2 [A.D. 412]).

Why is this relevant? Because if the Bishop of Rome is not the successor of Peter, then he does not have the same infallible authority Peter had. But from Tradition, we can see that the Bishop of Rome is the successor of Peter. That is another Tradition that is not written in Scripture.

Another "unwritten" Tradition is if babies can be baptized. A consensus of the Fathers taught infant baptism. For example, Irenaeus goes on to say:

"For he came to save all by means of himself -- all, I say, who by him are born again to God -- infants, children, adolescents, young men, and old men." (Against Heresies II.22.4)

And Hippolytus:

"And they shall baptize the little children first. And if they can answer for themselves, let them answer. But if they cannot, let their parents answer or someone from their family. And next they shall baptism the grown men; and last the women." (Apostolic Tradition 21.3-5)

Nowhere does the Bible tell us if babies should or should not be baptized. It may be implicit, but from Tradition, it makes it explicit.

Julie has not given proof for Sola Scriptura in the early Church. Of course, it is because the early church didn’t practice or teach it. I also gave quotes of Protestant scholars that said Sola Scriptura was neither practiced nor taught. Here are some more non-Catholic scholars:

"Meanwhile another position was beginning to take shape and become articulate. Along with the total commitment to the Scriptures as the norm of all doctrine, a new and clear conviction concerning the authority of oral Tradition began to develop. This oral Tradition, handed down from generation to generation and going back through the apostles directly to Christ, in no way conflicted with Scriptures. But it did aid the church in interpreting the Scriptures and particularly summarizing the Christian faith and thus protecting Christians against the aberrations of the Gnostics and other heretics�Thus for all practical purposes we have at the turn of the third century a kind of two-source doctrine of authority in the church, with both the New Testament and the rule of faith thought to be eminently apostolic�Thus two revelatory authorities, identical in content, complemented and authenticated each other. This position was held in a variety of forms from the third century until the time of the reformation, and it continued after that time in the Roman Catholic Church." (Robert Preus, "The View of the Bible held by the Church: Early Church through Luther" in Inerrancy, Norman Geisler, ed., pgs. 359-360)

"By the fourth and fifth centuries the principle of the Bible as the primary norm and authority in the church was well established�And yet there existed a body of tradition outside the Bible which was equally authoritative, because it was considered apostolic and in harmony with the Scriptures�The primary criterion of orthodoxy in the ancient church was that of apostolicity, as reflected in the church’s apostolic liturgy, apostolic succession, apostolic witness (NT), and the Apostles Creed. " (Carl Volz, Faith and Practice in the Early Church, pgs 147-150)

"Scripture, it is true, was sometimes treated as a set of prepositional statements from which the truth could be read off by a process of deductive logic. But Scripture was never the sole court of appeal. The living tradition of the Church included not only the historical facts recorded in Scripture but also the continuing and contemporary experience of Christians." (Maurice Wiles, The Making of Christian Doctrine: A Study in the Principles of Early Doctrinal Development, pg. 160)

The great John Henry Cardinal Newman once said, "To be deep in history is to cease to be a Protestant." He was definitely right. Not only was Sola Scriptura not taught, neither was Sola Fide. I do not have to prove that the Roman Catholic Church was the Church, but prove that Protestantism wasn’t. If the early Church wasn’t Protestant, then that means she never taught Sola Scriptura. This shows that Protestants adapted a man-made tradition that nullifies the Word of God. It is an invention of John Wycliffe. It was never taught in the early Church, and wasn’t taught by Jesus and the Apostles.

Unless Julie believes in apostasy, she has to reject Sola Scriptura. However, if she does believe in apostasy, she has to reject the Bible as well because an apostate Church would have compiled the Bible.

The canon is another unwritten Apostolic Tradition. Nowhere does the Bible tell us what books belong in the Bible. It was from Tradition which we can know which books belong in the Bible. Dr. Bruce M. Metzger says:

"�there was the criterion of conformity to what was called the rule of faith. That is, was the document congruent with the basic Christian tradition that the church recognized as normative?" (in The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel)

This Tradition must be infallible or else Julie would have to accept the theory of R.C. Sproul’s "fallible collection of infallible books." If she accepts that theory, then she doesn’t really know that the Bible is inspired. Actually, she has no idea why the Bible is inspired at all. She might claim that it is "self-authenticating" or is "self-evident." However, that would not do it. I can agree that the inspiration of the Bible is self-evident (or self-authenticating) in itself, but it isn’t self-evident to us. Julie has not given us a criterion for the authenticity of the Bible. Eric Svendsen has said,

"We can accept the general reliability of those who collected the Canon -- and thank them for their contribution, acknowledging that the Holy Spirit gave infallible guidance to them!" (Evangelical Answers formerly Protestant Answers, pg 59, cited in Sungenis)

Some might agree with Eric on this point. However, how does Eric know when the Holy Spirit is giving infallible guidance to the Church or not? Also, if Julie and others believe this theory, that means they are holding on to another infallible rule, which is, the canon. If the canon is infallible, then it is another infallible rule. Also, if I can write down on a piece of paper "Matthew is infallible, Mark is infallible, etc" all the way down to Revelation, then I can say that the canon (the list) is infallible. For if I can say that every individual book is infallible, then I can say the whole (Canon) is infallible. Thus, it’s another infallible rule and an unwritten infallible rule.

John 16:13 says that Jesus will give the Apostles the Holy Spirit so that they may know ALL TRUTH. 1 Timothy 3:15 also said that the Church is the pillar and foundation of truth. I started out this debate showing how Jesus built a new Church, and did not promise new Scripture. Jesus never once said His words should be inscripturated. I showed that Jesus built an infallible Church, and Julie just gave rhetoric to make it look like she refuted it. Julie believes in the authority of the Church. However, if the Church is the final authority just like the early Church Fathers taught, the Church has to be infallible or else the whole Church would fall into heresy. Actually, if it weren’t for the Roman Primacy itself, the whole of Christendom would have fallen into heresy. Augustine’s famous words:

"The epistle begins thus: 'Manicheus, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the providence of God the Father. These are the wholesome words from the perennial and living fountain.' Now, if you please, patiently give heed to my inquiry. I do not believe Manicheus to be an apostle of Christ. Do not, I beg you, be enraged and begin to curse. For you know that it is my rule to believe none of your statements without consideration. Therefore I ask, who is this Manicheus? You will reply, 'An Apostle of Christ.' I do not believe it. Now you are at a loss what to say or do; for you promised to give knowledge of truth, and here you are forcing me to believe what I have no knowledge of. Perhaps you will read the gospel to me, and will attempt to find there a testimony to Manicheus. But should you meet with a person not yet believing in the gospel, how would you reply to him were he to say, I do not believe? For MY PART, I should NOT BELIEVE THE GOSPEL EXCEPT MOVED BY THE AUTHORITY of the Catholic Church. So when those on whose authority I have consented to believe in the gospel tell me not to believe in Manicheus, how can I BUT CONSENT?" (Epis Mani 5,6)

"The Father and the Son are, then, of one and the same substance. This meaning of that "homoousis" that was confirmed against the Arians heretics in the Council of Nicaea by the Catholic fathers with the authority of truth and the truth of authority." (Answer to Maximus 2:14)

Athanasius says:

"But beyond these (Scriptural) sayings, let us look at the very tradition, teaching and faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning, which the Lord gave, the Apostles preached, and the Fathers kept. Upon this the Church is founded, and he who should fall away from it should not be a Christian, and should no longer be so called." (Four Letters to Serapion of Thmuis 1:28)

Every orthodox Church Father believes that the decision of the Church is orthodox and is the truth.

I have compiled some of the Church Fathers’ teachings on Tradition and authority of the Church.

ST. IRENAEUS OF LYONS (c. 180 AD):

"So forceful are these arguments that no one should henceforth seek the truth from ANY OTHER SOURCE since it would be simple to get it from THE CHURCH ....On this account are we bound to avoid them, but to make choice of the things pertaining to the Church with utmost diligence, and to lay hold of the TRADITION OF TRUTH ..For how should it be if the Apostles themselves had not left us writing? Would it be necessary [in that case] to follow the course of Tradition which they handed down to those whom they committed the Churches?" (Against the Heresies 3:4:1)

"Though none others know we the disposition of our salvation, than those through whom the Gospel came to us, first heralding it, then by the will of God delivering us the Scriptures, which were to be the foundation and pillar of our faith. ...But when the heretics use Scriptures, as if they were wrong and unauthoritative, and we variable, and the truth could not be extracted from them by those who were IGNORANT OF TRADITION. And when we challenge them in turn with that TRADITION, which is FROM THE APOSTLES, which is guarded by the succession of presbyters in the churches, they oppose themselves to TRADITION, saying they are wiser, not only than those presbyters but even than the Apostles! The TRADITION OF THE APOSTLES manifested, on the contrary, in the whole world, is open in every church to all who seeks the truth ...And since it is a long matter in a work like this to enumerate these successions, we will confute them by pointing to the TRADITION of the greatest and most ancient and universally-known Church founded and constituted at Rome by the two most glorious Apostles, Peter and Paul, a TRADITION which she has had and a faith which she proclaims to all men FROM THOSE APOSTLES." (Against the Heresies 3:1-3)

"Those, therefore, who desert the preaching of the Church, call in question the knowledge of the holy presbyters....It behooves us, therefore, to avoid their doctrines, and take careful heed lest we suffer any injury from them; but to flee to the Church, and be brought up in her bosom, and be nourished with the Lord's Scriptures." ibid 5,20,2

ST. THEODORET OF CYRUS (c. 393-457)

"This teaching has been handed down to us not only by the Apostles and prophets but also by those who have INTERPRETED their writings, Ignatius, Eustathius, Athanasius, Basil, Gregory...and other lights of the world and before them, by the HOLY FATHERS gathered at Nicaea whose confession of faith we have kept intact, as the inheritance from a Father, while those who dare to VIOLATE THEIR TEACHINGS, we call corrupt and enemies of truth" (Epis 89)

ST. VINCENT OF LERINS (c. 450 AD)

"Here perhaps, someone may ask: Since the canon of the Scripture is complete and more than sufficient in itself, why is it necessary to add to it the authority of ecclesiastical interpretation? As a matter of fact, [we must answer] Holy Scripture, because of its depth, is not universally accepted in one and the same sense. The same text is interpreted differently by different people, so that one may almost gain the impression that it can yield as many different meanings as there are men. Novatian, for example, expounds a passage in one way; Sabellius, in another; Donatus, in another; Arius, and Eunomius, and Macedonius read it differently; so do Photinus, Apollinaris, and Priscillian; in another way, Jovian, Pelagius, and Caelestius; finally still another way, Nestorius....Thus, because of the great distortions caused by various errors, it is, indeed, necessary that the trend of the interpretation of the prophetic and apostolic writings be directed in accordance with the rule of the ecclesiastical and Catholic meaning." Commonitoria 2

ST. ANTHONY OF EGYPT (c. 320):

"Wherefore, keep yourselves all the more untainted by them (the Arians), and observe the TRADITIONS of the fathers, and chiefly the holy faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, which you have learned from the Scripture, and which you have often been put in mind by me." (Athanasius' "Life of Anthony" NPNF Vol IV 2nd Series).

ST. BASIL THE GREAT (c. 329-379):

"Let us now investigate what are our common conceptions concerning the Spirit, as well those which have been gathered by us from Holy Scripture AS WELL those which have been gathered concerning it as those which we have RECEIVED from the UNWRITTEN TRADITION of the Fathers." (On the Holy Spirit 22)

"Of the beliefs and practices whether generally accepted or enjoined which are preserved in the Church some we possess derived from written teaching; others we have delivered to us in a mystery by the Apostles by the TRADITION of the Apostles; and both of these in relation to true religion have the SAME FORCE" (On the Holy Spirit 27)

"The day would fail me, if I went through the mysteries of the Church which are NOT in Scripture. I pass by the others, the very confession of FAITH, in Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, from what WRITTEN document have we?" (On the Holy Spirit 67)

"While the UNWRITTEN TRADITIONS are so many and their bearing on 'the mystery of godliness' is so important, can they refuse us a single word which has come down to us from the Fathers; which we found, derived from untutored custom, abiding in unperverted churches; a word for which contributes in no small degree to the completeness of the force of the mystery." (On the Holy Spirit 67)

"In answer to the objection that the doxology in the form 'with the Spirit' has NO written authority, we maintain that if there is not other instance of that which is UNWRITTEN, then this must not be received. But if the GREAT NUMBER of our mysteries are admitted into our constitution WITHOUT written authority, then, in company with many others, let us receive this one. FOR I HOLD IT APOSTOLIC TO ABIDE BY THE UNWRITTEN TRADITIONS. 'I praise you,' it is said, 'that ye remember me in all things, and keep the traditions as I have delivered them to you' [1 Cor 11:2]; and 'Hold fast the traditions which ye have been taught whether by word or our Epistle' [2 Thess 2:15]....One of these traditions is the practice which is now before us, which they who ordained from the beginning, rooted firmly in the churches, delivering it to their SUCCESSORS, and its use through long custom advances pace by pace with time. If as in a court of Law, we were at a loss for documentary evidence, but were able to bring before you a large number of witnesses, would you not give your vote for our aquittal? I think so; for 'at the mouth of two or three witnesses shall the matter be established' [Matt 18:16; Deut 19:15]. And if we could prove clearly to you that a long period of time was in our favour, should we not have seemed to you to urge you with reason that this suit ought not to be brought into court against us? For ancient dogmas inspire a certain sense of awe, venerable as they are with hoary antiquity." (On the Holy Spirit 71)

"The holy and Ecumenical Synod further says, this pious and orthodox Creed of the Divine grace would be sufficient for the full knowledge and confirmation of the orthodox faith." (Definition of Faith, Session 18)

"The Church received from the Apostles the tradition of giving Baptism even to infants." (Commentary on Romans, 5)

"Among the four Gospels, which are the only indisputable ones in the Church of God under heaven, I have learned by tradition." (Fragment in Eusebius’ Ecclesiastical History, 6:25)

"When the heretics show us the canonical Scriptures, in which every Christian believes and trusts, they seem to be saying: �Lo, he is in the inner rooms’ (Matt24:6). But we must not believe them, nor leave the original tradition of the Church, nor believe otherwise than we have been taught by the succession in the Church of God." (Homilies on Matthew, Homily 46)

I believe that I have already given a lot of quotes from Athanasius that one would not believe he actually followed the man made tradition of Sola Scriptura. Again, as Cardinal Newman once said, "To be deep in history is to cease to be Protestant."

Practical Problems

I have shown so many problems with Sola Scriptura that Julie couldn’t give an answer to all of them. I asked Julie how would we know of the truth in the case of morality, and she responded by our conscience. For example, if a Baptist and a Presbyterian are debating on cloning or abortion, they don’t really have a criterion of finding the truth. Julie is suggesting that we should hold to our conscience. However, nowhere does the Bible teach this. The Bible teaches us to go to the Church for disputes (Mattthew 18:17). You really can’t find the objective truth if you practice Sola Scriptura.

Summary

Sola Scriptura is unbiblical. Julie hasn’t found a verse that says Scripture is the only (quantitatively) infallible rule of faith. She also has not given an explanation for 2 Thessalonians 2:15 where it commands us to stand firm to two rules of faith. If she believes in that command, she has to show us what oral tradition she has been standing firm to.

I have given examples of "unwritten" Apostolic Tradition. One, like the Mass, is Apostolic. We can only wonder why the Liturgy exists for 2000 years. It is because this is an Apostolic Tradition that ought to be kept. However, Scripture does not tell us the form of worship. Therefore it’s an unwritten Tradition. Other Traditions like infant baptism and the succession from Peter are unwritten also. I have given examples of Traditions that she asked for. She cannot make excuses that I didn’t.

Sola Scriptura is unhistorical. Protestant scholars agree with us that the early Church did not practice Sola Scriptura. They practiced two rules of faith: Scripture and Tradition. Again, Philip Schaff says:

"The church view respecting the sources of Christian theology and the rule of faith and practice remains as it was in the previous period, except that it is further developed in particulars. The divine Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, as opposed to human writings; AND the ORAL TRADITION or LIVING FAITH of the catholic church from the apostles down, as opposed to the varying opinions of heretical sects -- TOGETHER FORM THE ONE INFALLIBLE SOURCE AND RULE OF FAITH. BOTH are vehicles of the same substance: the saving revelation of God in Christ; with this difference in form and office, that the church tradition determines the canon, furnishes the KEY TO THE TRUE INTERPRETATION of the Scriptures, and guards them against heretical abuse." (History of the Christian Church, volume 3, page 606)

The canon is another infallible rule. Nowhere does Scripture tell us what Scripture is. I have also given another infallible rule, which is the Nicene Creed. All the Church Fathers believed that the Council of Nicaea was infallible. I challenge Julie to show me where one Church Father said that the Council of Nicaea was not infallible.

Julie also couldn’t explain how a Church that is the pillar and foundation of truth could err. I have shown that the Church is infallible. If the Church is infallible, then what she teaches is true. Thus, another infallible rule. I also gave examples of Church authority in the early Church. They always condemned the heretics and pronounced anathemas on them. I gave an example in my opening statement. However, I think it’s fruitful to write it again.

One example is the case of Ptolemy, Barnabas, and Marcion. Marcion of Pontus believed an inferior god in the Old Testament who was so ignorant, the god could not find Adam (Gen 3:9). Barnabas believed that the Jews lost the covenant immediately after Moses received it when the Jews worshipped the golden calf. Ptolemy believed in three lawgivers: God Himself, Moses, and the elders of the people. The Church then made some big decisions.

"The Church excommunicated Marcion and condemned Marcionism. Barnabas found no disciples. Ptolemy's principles were rejected. Generally, the early Church did not define its teachings on its own initiative. Instead, it defined them by reacting. Only when someone announced, "I've got it all figured out," did the Church take a long look at the solution, measure it against its sense of the faith, and often enough say, "No, you don't; that's not in line with our faith." Thus, in rejecting Marcion as a heretic, in not following Barnabas, and in not accepting Ptolemy's principles, the Church made some important affirmations." (The Bible, the Church, and Authority by Joseph T. Lienhard, pg 19)

All I have proved wrong is the root of Protestantism. I did not however, prove that the Catholic Church is true and all her Traditions are true. However, that was not my purpose. My purpose was to destroy this man-made tradition of Sola Scriptura that nullifies the Word of God (Matt 15:1-9).

We Catholics love the Bible. We exalt it. However, exalting the Bible is not Sola Scriptura.

The Bible came from the Church. The Bible did not produce the Church. It was the Church that gave us the Bible. To end this debate, I would like to quote Thomas Aquinas:

"The formal object of faith is Primary Truth as manifested in Holy Scripture and in the teaching of the Church which proceeds from Primary Truth. Hence, he who does not embrace the teaching of the Church as a divine and infallible law does not possess the habit of faith." (Summa Theologiae II-II, Q.5, A.3)

The Catholic Church has condemned Sola Scriptura. Rome has spoken; the case is closed.

God love you and Mary keep you,

A.L.