Scripture and Tradition in the Church

“Stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter” (2 Thess. 2:15)

As a theological peritus (expert) at the Second Vatican Council, Yves Congar, O.P. exerted a profound influence on the Council’s Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, Dei Verbum. Congar’s widely lauded contribution to Dei Verbum was the culmination of his decades of sustained scholarship, deeply exploring Sacred Tradition and its relationship to Scripture and the Church.

His adroit and penetrating research into the testimony of the Fathers and medieval doctors yielded a remarkable abundance of rich, compelling data that enabled him to formulate what he saw as a viable solution to the twin “problems” of sola Scriptura and Tradition — the former is problematic for Catholics, while the latter is problematic for Protestants.

This book explores Congar’s understanding of the concept of the material sufficiency of Scripture and its relationship to Sacred Tradition, as well as his critique of the Protestant principle of sola Scriptura and its inherent assertion that Scripture is formally, not just materially, sufficient.