One of the biggest questions I struggle with is the title, being raised to rely on the Bible alone for answers, and knowing common verses that protestants cite in defense of this… just as I ask, why not Sola Scriptura? Thanks in advance!
First, God wrote and inspired Scripture. He wrote it in the hearts of men. When Jesus was Crucified, it was written into the heart of Mary. For even as Simeon stated: a sword shall pierce your heart. And recall when she found Jesus in the temple, she remembered and kept these events in her heart. Interesting to note, how descriptive the Gospel of Saint Luke is on Mary’s life. She told him a lot. This late Christian, had the gift to listen to Mary. And began to write to his friend Theopholus (i.e. lover of God.)
My trek with Scripture was Sola Scriptura. But, one thing had to validate before me. Was that works like the Summa Theologica by Saint Thomas Aquinas, and the Catechism had to be proven to be Scriptural. That was my start. Having read the Catechism, and wanting to see how it was rooted in Scripture, took me a long process. And, seeing references to Saint Thomas Aquinas’s Summa, also caused me to have more investigation.
When I began reading Saint Thomas Aquinas’s Summa, I was just shocked. His work was Scriptural, but with Reason. In other words, they were a defense of the faith. So, it was Scruptura, Ratio, and Fides. All three coincide in his works. I then had to ask my friend to order the entire Summa for me. My friend then asked my Grandma, if I knew how many books were written. It didn’t matter to me. I just said order and send them all. Because, the brilliance of this Saint was a good articulate defense of our faith. It was a defense of Scripture. But with demonstration through Reason. And I liked that.
Well, something happened. I ended up getting three books. One was the shorter version of the Summa, which was good/did help. The other book I received was the Aquinas Prescription. I enjoyed it, by Father Vann. Now, around that time, which the book came to my house. My Grandma and I were invited to First Communion of one of my cousins. We encountered a priest from India. His analogy of receiving Christ, in the Sacrament, was as important, of utmost importance, as taking necessary medication. To take it every day. That astonished me. Because, that was Saint Thomas Aquinas’s biggest contribution, in defense of the Holy Eucharist. And the songs and hymns laden through the Mass, or in Exposition of the Holy Sacrament, he contributed to. I started to believe.
Scripture is true. It is defensible. But if it falls out of the Church, Her mind, and Sacred body, then it is defenseless. For without the Church, Scripture is exposed to so many ruinous attempts to understand. For even the Ethiopian Eunuch saw Saint Phillip, and asked him what this reading meant, in some part what we now call/behold as Scripture. Even the Ethiopian Eunuch did not try to do the teaching authority and understanding on his own. But asked Phillip, an Apostle, the Church.
