If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater. (1 John, v. 9.) Thus you see the Holy Scriptures corroborate the well-known fact—that we do receive the witness of men. It follows, then, that we should receive the witness of God. And, more—we should be in possession, or at least enjoy the benefit of such an authority, which is able to interpret for us that same witness of God received by us. But where are we to look for the holy and awful witness of Him, Who is infallible? To God Himself—made accessible to us in the person of the meek and humble shepherd of souls—Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ has organized His church. His apostles went forth teaching all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, at the same time teaching them to observe all things whatsoever Jesus Christ commanded them. And there were so many things which Jesus taught and did while He was upon earth, the which—according to St. John’s testimony—if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. (John, xxi. 25.) Now, if these things, these observing these regulations, these beliefs did not exist today, there would no longer be any organization of Jesus Christ. If such were the case, the death on the cross of the Son of God had no meaning for us. Then our existence would be a live dying. But our hearts and our eyes tells us differently; and, thank God, our hope in salvation is firm!
It is the church of God, then, which keeps us and prepares us for a salvation in eternity. Consequently, we have in the church, together with holy Scripture, also holy Tradition. And it is from these two sources of Divine Truth that we have taken the following facts, quotations, and examples, which we propose to set forth, as an interpretation of the outward, visible life of the Orthodox Church.
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