by Perry Hall<\/p>\n
I was asked this question: “Why is Catholicism wrong?”<\/p>\n
Here is my short reply: “One reason is it equates church tradition and inspiration. They are not equal in authority.”<\/p>\n
In theory, most of us in “churches of Christ” would agree – in theory. In practice, are we unofficially guilty?<\/p>\n
When someone objects, “We’ve never done it that way”, are they using Scripture or “Church Tradition”?<\/p>\n
When someone objects to changing how something is traditionally done and threatens to leave, are they ruled by Scripture or “Church Tradition”?<\/p>\n
When someone objects based upon their conscience to something that is biblically right, admittedly, we must not offend (i.e., cause to sin). However, they need to ask, “Is my conscience trained more by Scripture or ‘Church Tradition'”?<\/p>\n
Summing up, let us all ask, “Which do we know better: God’s Scriptures or our church traditions?” If the latter, could that lead to committing the same error as the Catholics? If so, could we be unofficial “Catholic Church of Christ” members?<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Perry Hall I was asked this question: “Why is Catholicism wrong?” Here is my short reply: “One reason is it equates church tradition and inspiration. They are not equal in authority.” In theory, most of us in “churches of Christ” would agree – in theory. In practice, are we unofficially guilty? When someone objects,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[469],"class_list":["post-85343","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-traditions"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":96406,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/before-you-choose-a-church-ask-yourself-this-question\/","url_meta":{"origin":85343,"position":0},"title":"Before You Choose a Church, Ask Yourself This Question","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 3, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"by Josh Creel via\u00a0InLight Media How do you choose a church? Is it about the song worship, the preaching, the community, or something deeper? In this conversation, Josh Creel and Jackson Sneed explore what the Bible actually teaches about finding a healthy church, and why the first question may not\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Video"","block_context":{"text":"Video","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/video\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":85765,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-change-always-better\/","url_meta":{"origin":85343,"position":1},"title":"Is Change Always Better?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 20, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer I recently went to my favorite donut shop to get an apple fritter and, to my dismay, found that they had changed it. This was my favorite fritter, so when I saw it was not recognizable, I wondered why they would do it. (Honestly, it was a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":17084,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-roman-catholic-church-doesnt-evolve-it-realigns-itself-with-the-past\/","url_meta":{"origin":85343,"position":2},"title":"The Roman Catholic church doesn’t evolve, it realigns itself with the past","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 21, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I was just reading from your church website on what is wrong with the teachings of Catholicism, and I had a question regarding\u00a0this particular quote: \"As I mentioned before, the departure of the Catholic Church from the teachings in the Bible leaves a large number of differences. Apologists for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":60485,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/tradition-versus-scripture\/","url_meta":{"origin":85343,"position":3},"title":"Tradition Versus Scripture","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 27, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"by Wayne Jackson When the report of the Savior's miracles spread abroad, Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem made their way north to Gennesaret to confront Jesus. They charged that the Lord's disciples neglected to keep the \"traditions\" of the elders because they did not ceremonially wash their hands (to purify\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":91294,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-necessity-of-public-confession\/","url_meta":{"origin":85343,"position":4},"title":"The Necessity of Public Confession","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 16, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Floyd Chappalear \"Question Concerning Forgiveness,\"\u00a0Sentry Magazine, Vol. 18 No. 1, 31 March 1992 Question: Will you please write something in Sentry regarding forgiveness? When is it scriptural for one to go before a congregation and ask for forgiveness, or let them know one has repented? This is not something\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":55882,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-a-congregation-have-authority-for-a-midweek-service\/","url_meta":{"origin":85343,"position":5},"title":"Does a Congregation have Authority for a Midweek Service?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 16, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"by Wayne S. 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