Tradition and sola scriptura

[Anastasia13]

I'm not sure how to word this question. If the traditions of the Catholic Church are so important, why were they not written down in the Bible to the extent that Sola Scriptura [i]could[/i] be realistic?

[Pio Nono]

JMJ
9/3 - St. Gregory the Great

Light and Truth,

Great question. Let's make a distinction real quick between Tradition and tradition. Tradition is that which has been given us by our fathers in faith through the centuries and is revealed by God; tradition is that which is practiced but not necessarily revealed by God as saving Truth. For instance, according to tradition, priests face east during Mass to signify our expectation that the Resurrected Christ will come in glory once again to bring His people to the Father; according to Tradition, the Bible is the written word of God meant for the instruction of mankind in saving Truth. Do you see the difference?

That's why we couldn't write all of Tradition down in the Bible - the Bible itself is a part of that Tradition. The Bible was compiled over a series of a few hundred years before being ratified in its current form in 391 at the Council of Chalcedon. What was it that told us that there were a set of books that were revealed by God as belonging to Scripture? Why, Sacred Tradition! Hope this helps.

Yours,
Pio Nono