Marking Time: Forming Spirituality through the Christian Year

Ses s i on 5: Shoes That F i t Our Feet

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5. Celebrating, embracing, and defending the witness of the apostles is the heart of Christian maturity and disciple ship, and therefore tradition lies at the heart of all Christian faith and practice.

6. Scripture citations

a. We pass on what was given to us, 2 Tim. 2.2 (ESV) – and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

b. We imitate the apostles as they followed Christ, 1 Cor. 11.1-2 (ESV) – Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you (cf.1 Cor. 4.16-17, 2 Tim. 1.13-14, 2 Thess. 3.7-9, Phil. 4.9). c. Our faith is the product of what was itself delivered to the apostles for us, 1 Cor. 15.3-8 (ESV) – For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scrip tures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. 7. Note: It is because the apostolic testimony is decisive and unchanging that we are to hold their tradition so highly, and count their views as canonically authoritative, Luke 1:1-4 (ESV) – Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accom plished among us, [2] just as those who from the