Toward Sunday

The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church, 2012, states, “John Wesley believed that the living core of the Christian faith was revealed in Scripture, illumined by tradition, vivified in personal experience, and confirmed by reason”
(Our Theological Task Paragraph105 Theological Guidelines: Sources and Criteria) .

This week our worship series called “Quadrilateral”  will focus on Tradition. 

Our Weekly Schedule

June 2:  2 Timothy 3.10-17 (Scripture)

June 9:  2 Timothy 1.3-7 (Tradition)

June 16: Romans 12.1-3 (Reason)

June 23: 1 John 4.1 (Experience)

 

Words on Tradition from The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church, 2012 (Our Theological Task Paragraph105): 

The theological task does not start anew in each age or each person. Christianity does not leap from New Testament times to the present as though nothing were to be learned from that great cloud of witnesses in between. For centuries Christians have sought to interpret the truth of the gospel for their time.

In these attempts, tradition, understood both in terms of process and form, has played an important role. The passing on and receiving of the gospel among persons, regions, and generations constitutes a dynamic element of Christian history. The formulations and practices that grew out of specific circumstances constitute the legacy of the corporate experience of earlier Christian communities.

These traditions are found in many cultures around the globe. But the history of Christianity includes a mixture of ignorance, misguided zeal, and sin. Scripture remains the norm by which all traditions are judged.

The story of the church reflects the most basic sense of tradition, the continuing activity of God’s Spirit transforming human life. Tradition is the history of that continuing environment of grace in and by which all Christians live, God’s self-giving love in Jesus Christ. As such, tradition transcends the story of particular traditions.

 When you think of the cloud of witnesses that have shaped the faith of the church, who comes to mind and why?

Our worship will be rooted in 2 Timothy 1.3-7.  How is your faith similar to the faith of your mother and/or grandmother?  How is your faith different to the faith of your mother and/or grandmother?