Traditions

Tradition is the living faith of those now dead. Traditionalism is the dead faith of those still living.

-- Jaroslav Pelikan

Although not a Catholic, Pelikan did make a good point. His distinction between the tradition itself and the beliefs of those who hold to it is very important. For those of us who are called (and sometimes call ourselves) "traditionalist" it can be hard to keep this clear. Sadly, many traditionalists are quite stuck in the darkness of fighting for the traditions of the Church, more than for the Church herself (and this is easier than most people know). They can fight for the traditions that Christ commanded, and sometimes forget about Christ Who did the commanding.

How do we keep that line drawn (if we draw it at all)? The best way to keep our focus correct is to remember what tradition is. As said above, it is the living faith of those now dead. That means that the traditions we have in the Church are able to lead us to a greater understanding of the faith we hold today because from them we can learn more about the faith given to us by the Apostles. If we take those wonderful practices and ideas and make them an end in themselves, then we lose the focus of what Christ wanted from us in the first place.

Consider this, the Apostles established many of the most significant traditions in the first decades of the Church, and those traditions are what guide us today. Yet, they did not establish them for their own importance. We do not sing in the Mass because the Apostles liked music; we sing in the Mass because the Apostles wanted us to glorify God in song and be led to salvation as a result. Whenever we lose sight of the purpose of our terrific traditions (as well as our authoritative Traditions with a capital "T"), then we end up with an "ism". Thus, stand firm in the traditions of the Church. Be a traditionalist; but do not forget to Whom the traditions are directing us.