Questions for Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodoxs...?

Question

If Sola Scriptura cannot be the correct method of determining the truth because of the religious division among churches that claim to use Sola Scriptura (Protestants), then does this Not also disqualify the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches method of using "Apostolic Tradition", since they are divided against themselves?
Both the Orthodox and Catholic churches claim to follow Apostolic Oral Tradition EXACTLY.
Both of these churches use this method yet are divided.
Why are they Not even in Communion with each other?
Who holds the real Truth?

misty0408: The Easter Orthodox Churchs says Roman Catholics splited form the "One True Church.
Why should I believe YOUR Roman Catholic claims and Not the Orthodox claims?
Your Pope even said the Eastern Churches had valid Apostolic Succession.

Answer 1

None of us hold the real Truth in its entirety. We all hold different percentages of it, some purer and broader than others, but by nature God's truth is too big for any one person, denomination, or religion to hold it completely.

I'm a Roman Catholic, so I say we have the fullness of the truth, but I realize that others might disagree with me.

Trying to use "only scripture" to base your entire idea of orthodoxy doesn't work, but not strictly because of the religious division among protestant denominations. It doesn't work because the Bible is not the 1st word God ever spoke and it won't be His last. It is only partial revelation.

My Church follows Apostolic tradition, but I was never taught that we followed it EXACTLY. We follow it to the best of our ability, as the Holy Spirit guides and reveals to us. We are aware of our own fallibilities and the fallibilities of our priests and leaders. Do you know how rare it is for the pope to speak ex cathedra? Suffice it to say that it isn't an everyday event.

For my Church, the best way of determining the truth is a combination of scripture, personal revelation (faith, both personal and through the sacraments/traditions of the Church), and scripture.

Answer 2

Both claim that the other does not follow the fullness of Apostolic tradition and that the true Church is necessary to interpret and apply the Bible in the context of Apostolic Tradition

Catholicism says that Eastern Orthodoxy,even though it has and maintains almost all of Apostolic Tradition, has not been open to the Apostolic tradition of the papacy's Pope of (Old)Rome as Chief steward of the Church,vicar of Christ,Universal Pastor with universal jurisdiction and as infallible under certain conditions as part of the infalliblity and divine guidance of the Church.
The Filioque, Assumption and Immaculate Conception would also be viewed as areas of apostolic tradition that the east has not yet accepted.

The differences of doctrine among the varied Protestant traditions is so much greater than the variations in doctrine between the catholic and e orthodox Churches that I think the comparison is inadequate

The Catholic Church insists on the unity of Bible,Apostolic tradition and Church and points to the divisions among the canonical and non canonical Orthodox as evidence that Apostolic tradition alone( and therefore incomplete) is not enough but that the Church with full magisterium(teaching officeauthority) is also necessary for unity and fidelity to Bile and the Apostolic tradition out of which it came for it is the Chruc,directed by God, who discerns Scripture(canon) and Apostolic Tradition.

Answer 3

The Orthodox Church split from the Church over poltical and not doctrinal issues.

The Protestant idea of the "Bible alone" (sola scriptura) is, ironically, nowhere in the Bible. On the contrary, the Bible speaks of an infallible Sacred Tradition and an infallible Church that has authority to interpret Scripture. The Bible even warns against sola scriptura. In the Old Testament God gave authority to his priests to interpret his laws and issue binding teaching based on those interpretations, even with regard to criminal and civil issues- both of which were dealt with by divine revelation (d. Lev. 20:1-27, 25:1-55). In the New Testament, he endowed the Church with infallibility in teaching.

Whether the Orthodox Church still holds that divine authority to teach infallibly is open to debate.

Answer 4

The Orthodox Churches (Eastern Christianity) never suffered the divisions that Western Christianity did after 1054 AD......

And if you consider that SOME Protestants considered becomeing Orthodox after giving up Roman Catholicism, you should have your answer

Answer 5

Well, in that case you'd have to go for the Church that has held fast. The Eastern Orthodox split from the Church...so those that split would be the ones who disagreed with the original Church and decided to go their own way. That means that original would be the one who still holds the real truth.

Answer 6

Sola Scriptura is absolute truth. The Bible is 100% true. God says His Word is all that matters.

Answer 7

All religions are man made- God holds the real truth.

Love your bother as you love yourself
and acknoledge God in all things.

God is infinitely intelligent, do you think he cares what church you walk into?
Christians just don't give God enough credit.

Answer 8

actaully they use both - apoltolic tradition AND Scriptures.
while they are not in full communion, they are no longer at the odds they once were.