Guard the Good Deposit

Section I: Why Must We Guard the Good Deposit? • 21

themselves. The authoritative tradition is infallible and universal. Second, the Great Tradition is the common core of the faith handed down from the ancient undivided Church. Vincent of Lerins provides a helpful guide to this sort of tradition saying it is what has been believed and practiced “everywhere, always, and by all.” Finally, there are specific traditions. Within a cultural and historical context, the Great Tradition is expressed by specific traditions (Baptist, Pentecostal, Catholic, Anglican, etc.). Each of these expressions embodies the Great Tradition in some form, but none of them is the Great Tradition itself. The Great Tradition is ancient, universal, consensual Christianity. Though it may be expressed in dozens of cultures, it belongs to none of them. We are committed to guarding the good deposit of what has been believed everywhere, always, by all. Is this too complicated for the whole Church? Does retrieving the Great Tradition threaten our practicality and relevance? All Christians can guard the good deposit of what has been believed everywhere, always, by all. Understood properly, the Great Tradition makes it much simpler for the whole Church to guard the good deposit. The Spirit of God has given us tools to equip every believer to serve the Lord, no matter their background or situation.