The Bible and Holy Tradition (መጽሐፍ ቅዱስ እና ቅዱስ ትውፊት): Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) Perspective

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) upholds the harmonious relationship between Scripture and Tradition as the foundation of the Christian faith. This perspective is deeply rooted in biblical evidence, the teachings of the Church Fathers, and the historical compilation of the Bible. This essay examines why Scripture alone is not a biblical concept, why Tradition is essential and biblically supported, and how the Church’s role in compiling and interpreting Scripture underscores the unity of Scripture and Tradition.

The doctrine of sola scriptura (Scripture alone) claims that the Bible is the sole authority for Christian faith and practice. It suggests that anyone can interpret Scripture independently, leading to the belief that truth is subjective rather than absolute. It also denies the necessity of holy Tradition. Some proponents claim to accept the interpretations of the Church Fathers and the teachings of the early Church, which are integral to holy Tradition, by evaluating them against Scripture. However, these claims are erroneous since their evaluations are based on personal interpretations, which vary widely—even among themselves—for the same verse. Sola scriptura lacks biblical support. Nowhere does the Bible state that it is the sole authority for the Christian faith. Contradictorily, proponents often quote verses that, when read in context, do not support their claims.

Commonly cited verses include:

1.     2 Timothy 3:16-17:  “የእግዚአብሔር ሰው ፍጹምና ለበጎ ሥራ ሁሉ የተዘጋጀ ይሆን ዘንድ፥ የእግዚአብሔር መንፈስ ያለበት መጽሐፍ ሁሉ ለትምህርትና ለተግሣጽ ልብንም ለማቅናት በጽድቅም ላለው ምክር ደግሞ ይጠቅማል::” This verse emphasizes the divine inspiration of Scripture and its usefulness or profitability for teaching, correction, and guidance in righteousness. However, it does not suggest that Scripture alone is sufficient. Instead, it affirms Scripture’s vital and profitable role within the broader framework of Church life and holy Tradition.

Moreover, when Saint Paul wrote this, the biblical canon had not yet been established. He was referring to the Old Testament Scriptures, as the New Testament books were not available at that time. This implies that proponents of sola scriptura unintentionally suggest that the New Testament books are unnecessary. The formation of the biblical canon began with St. Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria, in his 39th Festal Letter in 367 CE, which is the earliest known document listing 27 books of the New Testament and 22 books of the Old Testament.

2.     John 20:31: “ነገር ግን ኢየሱስ እርሱ ክርስቶስ የእግዚአብሔር ልጅ እንደ ሆነ ታምኑ ዘንድ፥ አምናችሁም በስሙ ሕይወት ይሆንላችሁ ዘንድ ይህ ተጽፎአል።” This verse highlights the purpose of the Gospel writings but does not negate the importance of Tradition or the Church's teaching authority.

3.     Acts 17:11: “እነዚህም በተሰሎንቄ ከሚኖሩት ይልቅ ልበ ሰፊዎች ነበሩና፦ ነገሩ እንደዚሁ ይሆንን? ብለው ዕለት ዕለት መጻሕፍትን እየመረመሩ ቃሉን በሙሉ ፈቃድ ተቀበሉ።” While this verse praises the Bereans for examining the Scriptures, it does not support sola scriptura. (ቤርያ ማለት የሐዋ ሥራ 17:10-15 ላይ እንደተጻፈው የዛሬዋ ግሪክ አካባቢ የነበረ ከተማ ስም ነዉ).The Bereans were verifying the apostles' teachings with the Scriptures, showing that authoritative interpretation, such as that of the apostles, was also essential.

4.     Revelation 22:18 states, “በዚህ መጽሐፍ የተጻፈውን የትንቢት ቃል ለሚሰማ ሁሉ እኔ እመሰክራለሁ፤ ማንም በዚህ ላይ አንዳች ቢጨምር እግዚአብሔር በዚህ መጽሐፍ የተጻፉትን መቅሠፍቶች ይጨምርበታል፤” This verse specifically addresses the Book of Revelation, warning against adding to its prophetic words. It is not a reference to the entire Bible nor does it support the doctrine of sola scriptura. The warning pertains to preserving the integrity of this particular text, not making a statement about the completeness or sufficiency of Scripture as a whole. At the time the Book of Revelation was written, the Bible had not yet been compiled.

5.     Matthew 4:4: “እርሱም መልሶ፦ ሰው ከእግዚአብሔር አፍ በሚወጣ ቃል ሁሉ እንጂ በእንጀራ ብቻ አይኖርም ተብሎ ተጽፎአል አለው።” This verse underscores the importance of God's word for spiritual life, but it does not imply that Scripture is the sole source of truth.

6.     John 5:39: “እናንተ በመጻሕፍት የዘላለም ሕይወት እንዳላችሁ ይመስላችላችሁ፤ እነርሱን ትመረምራላችሁ፤ እነርሱም ስለ እኔ የሚመሰክሩ ናቸው::” In this verse, Jesus refers to the Scriptures but does not imply that they are sufficient on their own. Instead, He directs attention to Himself as the Living Word, encouraging personal engagement with Him beyond the written text.

7.     1 Corinthians 4:6: “ወንድሞች ሆይ፥ ስለ አንዱ በአንዱ ላይ አንዳችሁም እንዳይታበዩ፦ ከተጻፈው አትለፍ የሚለውን በእኛ ትማሩ ዘንድ፥ ይህን በእናንተ ምክንያት ስለ ራሴና ስለ አጵሎስ እንደ ምሳሌ ተናገርሁ።” This verse warns against exceeding what is written, but it does not suggest that only written Scripture holds authority. Paul often emphasizes the value of his oral teachings and the living tradition of the Church, making it clear that the authority of the Church includes both written and unwritten sources.

8.     2 Peter 1:19 " ከእርሱም ይልቅ እጅግ የጸና የትንቢት ቃል አለን፤ ምድርም እስኪጠባ ድረስ የንጋትም ኮከብ በልባችሁ እስኪወጣ ድረስ፥ ሰው በጨለማ ስፍራ የሚበራን መብራት እንደሚጠነቀቅ ይህን ቃል እየጠነቀቃችሁ መልካም ታደርጋላችሁ።." This verse speaks to the authority of the prophetic word, which includes both written and oral traditions, not solely Scripture. (See 1 Corinthians 11:2, 2 Thessalonians 2:15).

9.     1 Thess. 2:13: “ስለዚህም የመልእክትን ቃል እርሱም የእግዚአብሔር ቃል ከእኛ በተቀበላችሁ ጊዜ፥ በእውነት እንዳለ በእናንተ በምታምኑ ደግሞ እንደሚሠራ እንደ እግዚአብሔር ቃል እንጂ እንደ ሰው ቃል አድርጋችሁ ስላልተቀበላችሁት፥ እኛ ደግሞ እግዚአብሔርን ሳናቋርጥ እናመሰግናለን።” This verse emphasizes that the "word of God" includes oral teaching, which was received by the Thessalonians as divine truth, not merely human instruction. It underscores the authority of the apostles' oral tradition, showing that God's word was not confined to written texts but also communicated through the spoken teachings of His messengers.

Thus, none of the above verses cited by the proponents of sola scriptura provide support for their view.

The Bible itself is against Sola Scriptura:

2 Thessalonians 2:15: “እንግዲያስ፥ ወንድሞች ሆይ፥ ጸንታችሁ ቁሙ፥ በቃላችንም ቢሆን ወይም በመልእክታችን የተማራችሁትን ወግ ያዙ።” This verse directly challenges the concept of sola scriptura because it acknowledges that both forms of transmission—oral and written—carry equal authority. It underscores that Christian faith and practice are rooted in the totality of the apostolic tradition (ሐዋርያዊ ትውፊት), not in Scripture alone. Thus, it highlights the necessity of preserving and adhering to the living Tradition handed down through the Church.

1 Corinthians 11:2: “ወንድሞች ሆይ፥ በሁሉ ስለምታስቡኝና አሳልፌ እንደ ሰጠኋችሁ ወግን ፈጽማችሁ ስለ ያዛችሁ አመሰግናችኋለሁ።” These verses clearly indicate that apostolic Tradition, both oral and written, is an integral part of the faith. Tradition is not merely a human invention but a divine gift. The EOTC emphasizes that Tradition is deeply rooted in Scripture and essential for preserving faith.

Not Everything Christ and the Apostles Taught Was Written Down

John 21:25: “ኢየሱስም ያደረገው ብዙ ሌላ ነገር ደግሞ አለ፤ ሁሉ በእያንዳንዱ ቢጻፍ ለተጻፉት መጻሕፍት ዓለም ራሱ ባልበቃቸውም ይመስለኛል።” This verse confirms that not everything Jesus did was recorded in Scripture. It implies that there are teachings and actions passed down orally, outside the written text of the Bible.

1 Corinthians 11:34: “ማንም የራበው ቢኖር ለፍርድ እንዳትሰበሰቡ በቤቱ ይብላ። የቀረውንም ነገር በመጣሁ ጊዜ እደነግጋለሁ።” Paul notes that he will address other matters when he visits, signifying that not all instructions were written in his letters, further underscoring the role of oral teaching in preserving apostolic traditions.

2 John 1 : 12 “እንድጽፍላችሁ የምፈልገው ብዙ ነገር ሳለኝ በወረቀትና በቀለም ልጽፈው አልወድም፥ ዳሩ ግን ደስታችሁ ፍጹም እንዲሆን ወደ እናንተ ልመጣ አፍ ለአፍም ልናገራችሁ ተስፋ አደርጋለሁ።” Here, John expresses his preference for face-to-face communication over writing. This suggests that some teachings were conveyed orally and later passed down through tradition.

Holy Tradition (ቅዱስ ትውፊት / የቃል ትምህርት / ወግ) is the living faith of the Church, encompassing the liturgy, hymns, icons, and teachings handed down from the apostles. It is through Tradition that the Church maintains continuity with the faith of the early Christians.

Holy Tradition does not oppose or contradict the teachings of the Holy Scriptures within the Church; rather, it complements and safeguards them. It is the living transmission of faith, handed down from the apostles through the Church, illuminating and preserving the true meaning of the Bible. Far from being separate, Holy Tradition and Scripture work together in perfect harmony, guiding believers in the fullness of divine truth.

Furthermore, the Bible did not compile itself. It was the Church, guided by the Holy Spirit, that discerned and canonized the Scriptures. The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church canon includes 81 books, reflecting the richness of the Church’s Tradition. This canon was finalized through the Church’s authority and centuries of faithful practice.

The Bible does not claim to be an infallible (የማይሳሳት) book in isolation. Infallibility resides in the Church, which is “the pillar and ground of the truth,” as stated in 1 Timothy 3:15: “ብዘገይ ግን፥ በእግዚአብሔር ማደሪያ ቤት መኖር እንዴት እንደሚገባ ታውቅ ዘንድ እጽፍልሃለሁ፤ ቤቱም የእውነት ዓምድና መሠረት፥ የሕያው እግዚአብሔር ቤተ ክርስቲያን ነው።” Through its councils and apostolic authority, the Church preserves the correct interpretation of Scripture.

The teaching of sola scriptura is not rooted in historical Christianity; it originated with Martin Luther in the 16th century. No early Church taught that Scripture alone served as the sole authority for the Christian faith. Proponents of sola scriptura, perhaps unknowingly, imply that the teachings of the apostles and the Church up until the 16th century were incorrect. The widely accepted 66-book Protestant Bible stems from Luther, who excluded books he considered inconsistent with his theology, such as the Deuterocanonical books. However, these books were recognized as Scripture by the early Church and remain part of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) canon, which includes 81 books.

The Fallacy of Scripture Alone

Proponents of sola scriptura argue that Jesus and Paul accepted the authority of the Old Testament. While this is true, they also recognized authority beyond written revelation. For instance, Matthew 2:23 states, “በነቢያት፦ ናዝራዊ ይባላል የተባለው ይፈጸም ዘንድ፥ ናዝሬት ወደምትባል ከተማ መጥቶ ኖረ።” This prophecy cannot be found in the Old Testament, but it is written as “በነቢያት፦ናዝራዊ ይባላል የተባለው ይፈጸም ዘንድ...” It was passed down orally, showing that God’s word is not confined to Scripture alone.

In 2 Timothy 3:8, it is written: “ኢያኔስና ኢያንበሬስም ሙሴን እንደ ተቃወሙት፥ እንዲሁ እነዚህ ደግሞ አእምሮአቸው የጠፋባቸው ስለ እምነትም የተጣሉ ሰዎች ሆነው፥ እውነትን ይቃወማሉ።” However, these two men are not mentioned in the related Old Testament passages or anywhere in the Old Testament. This highlights that their story was preserved through oral tradition, demonstrating that Scripture alone is not sufficient.

The Bible warns against private interpretation:

2 Peter 1:20-21 states, “ይህን በመጀመሪያ እወቁ፤ በመጽሐፍ ያለውን ትንቢት ሁሉ ማንም ለገዛ ራሱ ሊተረጉም አልተፈቀደም፤ ትንቢት ከቶ በሰው ፈቃድ አልመጣምና፥ ዳሩ ግን በእግዚአብሔር ተልከው ቅዱሳን ሰዎች በመንፈስ ቅዱስ ተነድተው ተናገሩ።” The EOTC emphasizes that Scripture must be interpreted within the Church, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the teachings of the Fathers. This verse directly states that Scripture is not subject to private interpretation and highlights its divine origin.

2 Peter 3:16: “ በእነዚያ ዘንድ ለማስተዋል የሚያስቸግር ነገር አለ፥ ያልተማሩትና የማይጸኑትም ሰዎች ሌሎችን መጻሕፍት እንደሚያጣምሙ እነዚህን ደግሞ ለገዛ ጥፋታቸው ያጣምማሉ።” Here, Peter warns that Scripture can be difficult to understand, and misinterpretation can lead to destruction, underscoring the danger of interpreting it without proper guidance.

Proverbs 3:5-6: " በፍጹም ልብህ በእግዚአብሔር ታመን፥ በራስህም ማስተዋል አትደገፍ፤" This passage speaks against relying solely on personal understanding and emphasizes the need for divine guidance.

Acts 8:30-31 : “ፊልጶስም ሮጦ የነቢዩን የኢሳይያስን መጽሐፍ ሲያነብ ሰማና፦ በውኑ የምታነበውን ታስተውለዋለህን? አለው። እርሱም፦ የሚመራኝ ሳይኖር ይህ እንዴት ይቻለኛል? አለው። ወጥቶም ከእርሱ ጋር ይቀመጥ ዘንድ ፊልጶስን ለመነው።" The Ethiopian eunuch acknowledges his need for guidance in understanding Scripture, demonstrating the importance of proper interpretation within the Church or by those equipped to teach.

1 Corinthians 12:29-30: "ሁሉ ሐዋርያት ናቸውን? ሁሉስ ነቢያት ናቸውን? ሁሉስ አስተማሪዎች ናቸውን? ሁሉስ ተአምራትን ይሠራሉን? ሁሉስ የመፈወስ ስጦታ አላቸውን? ሁሉስ በልሳኖች ይናገራሉን? ሁሉስ ይተረጉማሉን? This passage underscores that God has established teachers within the Church, implying the need for their role in guiding the understanding of and interpretation of the Scripture

Conclusion

Scripture and Tradition are inseparable in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Scripture alone is not a biblical concept; rather, the Bible itself testifies to the necessity of Tradition. The Church’s role in compiling, interpreting, and safeguarding the Scriptures underscores the unity of Scripture and Tradition. By embracing both, the EOTC preserves the fullness of the Christian faith, ensuring that it remains vibrant and true to its apostolic foundation.