I might be wrong - :-) The Bible and Church Tradition are not

Since the Bible is infallible, there must be an infallible source that is enabled by the Holy Spirit to identify and interpret it infallibly.
The Catholic Church claims that the Holy Spirit inspired Scripture and therefore it is infallible. The Church also claims that the Holy Spirit has enabled the Church to not only identify but also interpret God’s Word infallibly. The Traditions of the Church - capital “T” - came first, then the Bible. First the Church was established, then the sacred Scripture was written, identified and codified. That is just a matter of history. You don’t have to know much of Church history to know that Tradition and Sacred Scripture have always worked hand in hand. Think about the New Testament. Again, the Church was established by Jesus first, then came the writing of the New Testament. 

The Holy Spirit accurately communicates truth to the Church, leading her into all truth just as Jesus promised. Jesus was talking to His disciples in John 16. I quoted part of that passage below. That is significant. The “you” is “all ya’ all”. He is talking to them as a group, not as individuals only. He is showing them how their apostolate will work - through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. He is not telling them, " I will give you the Bible and each one of you needs to follow his own conscience in order to find the truth. “ You will not find that kind of “Protestant” thinking anywhere in the Bible. 
John 16 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
------------------------------------------------------------

Sola scriptura is a self-contradictory doctrine since it is not found in the Bible. Besides, no one holds to only the Bible, which is what many seem to advocate. For example. Reformed Baptist, Dr. White is a Calvinist. He defends sola scriptura. Get the picture? His doctrine is formed by the teachings of a man named John Calvin. He specifically follows what are called the Doctrines of Grace, also known as TULIP. He is also an advocate of Covenant Theology from a Baptistic perspective. He is NOT a “Bible only” kind of a guy. He is a Bible plus other standards like Covenant Theology and Calvinism - the Doctrines of Grace - kind of a guy. Another aspect of sola scriptura is that of the sufficiency of Scripture. So, if it is sufficient, why does a man like Dr. White need Calvinism? Why does he need Covenant theology or the Doctrines of Grace? He has to have his Calvinistic traditions in order to support his teachings. Also, sola scriptura involves a little thing called the perspicuity of Scripture. That is, the Bible is clear in its message. If the Bible is so clear in its message, why is there so much division, discussion, and disagreement just among the Calvinists? How many Presbyterian groups are there? How many Calvinistic Baptist groups are there? There is even a wing of Anglicanism that is Calvinistic. There are Calvinistic Methodists who follow guys like George Whitefield and Martin Lloyd-Jones. Then there are the Calvinistic Congregationalists, which are not especially liked by the Reformed Presbyterians. 

The underlying problem in even the best of Protestant groups has to do with the infallible Scripture-fallible standards principle. That is, Scripture is infallible, but there is no infallible way to know what it means. There are fallible ways to interpret Scripture, but not infallible ways.

Therefore each group can freely claim that they have the best way to interpret Scripture.

In fact, in Protestantism there really is no infallible way to know what Scripture is in the first place.

That’s a problem.

Luther and Tradition

Luther deliberately rejected Church Tradition. Whatever he retained from Tradition he retained because he decided to retain it. Whatever he didn’t like about Tradition, he rejected. His own spirit became the umpire for his belief system. He became his own final authority. Here is how he defended the addition of a word that is not in the original Biblical text. See that he refused any and all correction. He appealed to himself as the final authority on the subject.

"But I will return to the subject at hand. If your papist wishes to make a great fuss about the word sola (alone), say this to him: "Dr. Martin Luther will have it so, and he says that a papist and a donkey are the same thing.”

- From Luther’s Open Letter on Translating

------------------------------------------------- I will add that no Bible translator in our day - Protestant or Catholic - would ever get away with adding words to Scripture in order to defend a pet doctrine. That is not acceptable at all, yet Luther did it and accepted no correction. So, yes, Luther set the tone for all Protestants. His influence is clearly seen in all denominations. Each denomination, - and then each individual within that denomination - feels free to pick and choose what doctrines it will accept and what doctrines it will reject. Hence the continuous infighting, and then divisions within Protestantism. Yes, Luther kept a lot of Catholic teaching, but so what? He did it because “Dr. Martin Luther will have it so.” Is that what Jesus intended for His Church? If it is, then prove from Scripture that the attitude Luther had was the one Jesus wanted His people to have. There is abundant Scriptural evidence to prove that Jesus indeed wants His Church to be one, even as He and the Father are one. (See John 17 and Ephesians 4 for starters.)

I couldn’t defend the divisions anymore. We are supposed to be one Church, not many.

Some like the idea that they are free to pick and choose whatever they wish to believe and still call it Christian. Some make better choices than others. Some are really seeking the truth, and not just an excuse to make up their own religion. I get that.

Freedom is a great gift. Some believe that being free means not submitting to an organized Church. It gets complicated. I understand that, since I was a Protestant my whole life until not long ago.

Many look for a denomination that will give them more structure than that. Few have the time or inclination to make up their minds about every point of doctrine. However, if all Protestant denominations claim the Bible as their final authority, why are there so many different denominations?

Maybe I just hope that some will take another look at the Catholic Church’s claim to being the one that Jesus founded.

...and so forth.

Jesus founded only one Church. Yes, Protestants are real Christians. I am not saying they are not. What I am saying is that Jesus did not mean for us to be so antagonistic towards one another.

I am also saying that, even with all her warts and flaws, the Catholic Church still has the right message about unity. I understand that not all want to come Home to Rome. I get that. Rome is still Home, and always has been since Jesus founded His One Church.

Maybe at least Protestants - and those of us who used to be Protestants :-) - and Catholics could try a little harder to accept one another as brethren? That would be a good place to start.

Pope Francis is trying to lead in the right direction, I believe.

Now my world makes more sense...

Robert says:
September 17, 2016 at 8:08 am
Mermaid,

Can an omniscient God communicate truth such that His child can know with certitude that Jesus Christ rose from the dead?

Robert:
Yes, yes, a thousand times yes.>>>>

You and I believe that Jesus Christian [I mean Jesus Christ] rose from the dead not because it is falsifiable. Your epistemology had nothing to do with it. You believe it because God enabled you to have faith. Faith is a gift of God. 

If God had not revealed the fact of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, using – as you would agree – sinful, weak, flawed human beings making up His Church *, you would have no idea that Christ rose from the dead. That truth has been passed down through the Church such that you and I can hear and believe by the grace of God.

You know the facts because God revealed them and faithful men passed those facts down through the millennia until they reached your ears and mine. You and I believe them to salvation because God enabled us to believe. Justification is by faith, and faith is a gift of God. You know the Scriptures. Eph. 2 lays it out. 

There are those who believe that Jesus Christ rose from the dead, but do not believe that He is Messiah, their Savior. Remember the testimony of the Jewish man who accepted the fact that Christ rose from the dead, but did not have faith in Him as Messiah? 

Robert:
And He has done that using infallible revelation (the Word of God) mediated to us by fallible individuals and churches (preachers, etc.).>>>>

Agreed. See above. The Church recognizes that there are many Christian congregations where the Holy Spirit is active. Read the CCC to see that. The Church recognizes the fact that there are many true brethren who are not in full communion with her. 

That offends you. I understand how it could. You don’t feel any less Christian than the Called to Communion guys. You don’t need no stinkin’, apostate Catholic Church to make you a real Christian. Something like that? “Why did they leave us? Do they think we [are]  that terrible?” you seem to be asking. 

These guys left Protestantism. Some of them were Reformed, even PCA and OPC. Now they sit on their blog and call you guys to communion. Yes, it would annoy me. Can’t help you there. 

What am I doing here? I’m not Called to Communion. I followed TVD here. I have followed him on his American Creation blog for awhile. I like what he has to say. 

He got himself kicked off here. For some reason that even I cannot explain fully, I am still here. Maybe I am perverse, as Jeff seems to think. 

Maybe I just wanted to hear you say that you really do believe that God communicated infallible truth to you. You have certitude about the resurrection. I knew you did. Now maybe I can leave you dear brothers alone. 

Maybe I like to see what goofy comment Brother Hart will make to me, and how I can respond in kind. It’s like a game we play. I think I win. 

Jeff is still mad at me, but oh well. I don’t believe he really follows his epistemology when it comes to truth that can only be known through revelation. I mean come on. The Trinity is not falsifiable, yet you guys believe it to be true. 

Sure. Faith in the Divinity of the Trinity involves our human rationality. However, we don’t believe it because somehow we can falsify it. Now if you try to, I will laugh and laugh! …and know you don’t mean it. 

Robert:
You are the one saying that fallible mediators are insufficient even though you have never once had direct contact with an organ of infallibility. Hence Jeff’s point.>>>>

It seems you are focusing on those who are delivering the message. The idea of infallibility is that in spite of how human beings have messed up, the message of the Gospel is communicated accurately. 

It is all about God’s ability to communicate truth to fallen mankind. He does that through His Word, the Bible, and His Church. The Holy Spirit breathed out God’s Word and we have it in written form. The Holy Spirit was poured out on the Church on the day of Pentecost. He led and is leading her into all truth. Not just her as a whole, but each individual within the Church.

[I should have added that it is the Holy Spirit who enables someone to believe in Christ, and it is the Holy Spirit who sanctifies the believer. He is active in the Church* and in the individual Christian.]

Not even Pope Francis believes himself to be infallible on everything he says. He is infallible to the degree that he is faithful to the deposit of truth that has been entrusted to the Church. He certainly does not claim sinless perfection. 

So, maybe I’ll stick around, or not. Your affirmation, without qualification, of the ress. is what I wanted to hear from you. Not to prove you wrong somehow, but to prove what I suspected about you all along. 

You have unshakable faith in the basic fact[s] of the Gospel. Jesus Christ died for our sins, rose from the dead, and appeared to many, according to the Scriptures. You believe that by grace through faith. So do I. 

You don’t believe it because it is falsifiable. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

* [Robert would not capitalize “church”, but he holds to the Nicene and Apostles’ creeds.]