The tradition game

Some say that tradition is like the rumor game where a message is whispered from one person to another and at the end of the line, the message bares scant resemblance to the original.

They then turn around and ascribe that to the Catholic Church claiming that the Church teaches tradition therefore its message has been corrupted as the message in the game.

But that analogy is false. First of all, the Church does not rely on Tradition ALONE to pass down the teachings of Jesus Christ. The Church teaches by Tradition, Scripture and Magisterium.

Before we go further, let us study another situation. At Christmas time, how many of us parents are stuck assembling our children's toys? And frequently, they come only with written instructions. Most of us know from experience, to ignore the instructions and do our best to put it together intuitively.

What is the problem which we encounter?

Written instructions are fixed, inflexible. They can't adjust to our circumstance. They assume the proper tools are available, good visibility, and a perfect environment in which to work. But that isn't always the case. Frequently we have to put things together amidst mounds of paper, cardboard and bouncing children.

They also assume that we know what we are doing. That we're familiar with tools and components.

So, lets go back to our first example, the rumor game:

Instead of simply whispering the message from ear to ear (Magisterium), lets also pass a note to accompany the message (Scripture) and lets also act it out (Tradition). If the message is "clap three times", lets clap three times and ask the person to clap three times to confirm they have understood the message.

Will the message be corrupted do you think? Try it for yourself.

Now, what have we learned is the best methodology to pass down information?

We've known it all along. All we need do is look in a classroom. 99.9% of which have someone teaching and giving examples to children who are reading from their books.

This is what the Catholic Church provides.

A Teacher. The Teaching Church. Otherwise known as Magisterium. Teaching the Word of God.

Tradition. The example. The living response of the Church through the millenia to the Word of God.

And Scripture. The written history and instruction of the Word of God.

This is wisdom.  The Wisdom of God:

Ephesians 3:10

King James Version (KJV)

¹⁰ To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

Sincerely,

De Maria