Trusting Our Faith Tradition More Than God

"We are often tempted not to trust in God but to trust in our faith tradition of trusting in God. They are not the same thing! Talking about our saints and theologians who trusted in God is a clever way to avoid the experience itself, to avoid encounter with the living God, to avoid the ongoing Incarnation. We tend to trust the past for its own sake, as if past time is somehow holier than the present. God did not come to earth to protect human traditions. In fact, Jesus pointedly asks the Pharisees and scribes, “Why do you transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?” (Matthew 15:3, RSV)."

~ Richard Rohr