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I'm reading Trent Horn right now, and it seems to me the Catholic objection to Sola Scripture is mostly sophistry. Protestants claim everything should be tested based on what's in the written scripture. It's not that tradition has no role, it's just subordinate to apostolic teaching. The real difference is our definition of "apostle", which for Catholics includes people other than the original 12 + Paul.

So wrt to your question above, the early Christians trusted the apostles, the people who 1. were eyewitnesses, and 2. were directly sent out by Jesus. We continue to trust those same people, with the help of human reason applied in faith down the centuries.

James A Lewis 2y ago

Hey! I'm always glad to see people engage with the issue, regardless if you agree.

We can both agree that all ought be tested against Scripture, but where we might not is if anything outside of Scripture must be believed.

In the Gospel of John (21:25), it is written that not all of what Christ did and said were written down, for it would fill the libraries of the world. This definitely leaves room for things to which Christ intended for us to hold fast but were yet not written down explicitly (2 Thess. 2:15, "...either by word of mouth or by our letter").

Some things remained oral after the Apostolic Age, and this would include things like the nature of Christ (one person in two natures, begotten not made, consubstantial with the Father, etc.), the Trinity explicitly stated (three persons in one being), etc.

Holy Scripture is the highest but not the only authoritative element of Holy Tradition.

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Discussion

hodlbod 2y ago

Yeah, and I haven't even finished the first chapter of his book yet so we'll see where it takes me. I'm glad I'm not a theologian, because this stuff is so hard to parse!

James A Lewis 2y ago

I find Trent's approach level headed, but I agree that he sometimes goes deeper or more complex than absolutely necessary. I have too many books already on my "gotta read this sometime" list, but his 'Why We’re Catholic' should probably be on it. Also, Jimmy Akin's 'The Bible Is a Catholic Book' is another I need to read someday.