This 3000-Year-Old Priestly Practice Shatters Sola Scriptura

From Totus Catholica

This 3000-Year-Old Priestly Law Just Broke Sola Scriptura Deuteronomy 17:8-13 records God's solution for disputes: "Bring the hard case to the Levitical priests and the judge... according to the decision which they pronounce to you, you shall do. You shall not turn aside... The man who acts presumptuously by not obeying the priest shall die." Israel had the written Torah, yet God commanded them to obey the priest's interpretation or die - disobedience wasn't debatable. Sola Scriptura (Bible alone) offers no mechanism to settle disputes when sincere believers disagree on essentials like baptism or salvation, which is why we have thousands of denominations today. 📌 The Point: God never designed revelation to work as "Scripture alone" - He always paired the written Word with a living, binding teaching authority to preserve unity and truth. 📖 Core Sources Scripture: Deuteronomy 17:8-13 - "If a case is too difficult for you... come to the Levitical priests and to the judge... according to the instructions they give you, you shall do." Penalty for disobedience: death Malachi 2:7 - "The lips of a priest should preserve knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the Lord of Hosts" 2 Timothy 3:16 - Scripture is inspired and profitable, but sufficiency for equipping doesn't settle who authoritatively interprets disputes (just as Israel had sufficient Torah but still needed the Levitical court) Early Church & Councils: St. Irenaeus (2nd Century) - Appealed to public apostolic succession (bishops in an unbroken line) to refute Gnostics who claimed secret interpretations; bishops guarded the deposit of faith just as Israel's priests guarded the Law Council of Trent (1546) - Gospel truth is contained in written books and unwritten traditions preserved in continuous succession Vatican II (Dei Verbum 10) - Scripture, tradition, and magisterium are so linked that one cannot stand without the others; magisterium is not above the Word of God but serves it Catholic Teaching: CCC 85 - "The task of giving an authentic interpretation of the Word of God... has been entrusted to the living teaching office of the Church alone" (bishops in communion with the successor of Peter) CCC 86 - "Yet this Magisterium is not superior to the Word of God, but is its servant. It teaches only what has been handed on to it" CCC 74-87 - Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture form one sacred deposit of the Word of God The Problem with Sola Scriptura: The Westminster Confession admits councils can err, leaving Scripture as the supreme judge - but Scripture has no table of contents (canon was discerned by the Church) and cannot interpret itself when sincere believers reach contradictory conclusions on essentials 📺 Chapters 0:00 - The Problem: Sola Scriptura Offers No Mechanism to Settle Disputes 2:17 - Deuteronomy 17: God's Solution Was a Living Authority, Not Just a Book 3:35 - Early Church: Irenaeus & Apostolic Succession Match the OT Pattern 4:06 - Catholic Teaching: Scripture + Tradition + Magisterium (CCC 85) 5:51 - Objections: "2 Timothy 3 Says Scripture is Sufficient," "Traditions of Men" 7:17 - Conclusion: Authority Is the Condition for Unity 🌐 Connect 📿 https://totuscatholica.org/rosary 🌍 https://totuscatholica.org/ ✉️ https://totuscatholica.org/contact 🔍 https://catholicexaminationofconscien...