FATHERS: The Sure and Universal Rule

QUOTE:
I have often inquired of very many men eminent for their sanctity and learning, how and by what sure and universal rule I may be able to distinguish the truth of the apostolic faith from the falsehood of heretical depravity: and I have almost in every instance received an answer to this effect: we must with the Lord’s help, fortify our own belief in two ways; first, by the authority of the divine Law (the word of God), and then by the tradition of the whole universal church. (A Commonitory, St. Vincent of Lerins, ca 450 AD)

COMMENTARY:
Vincent of Lerins was a monk who gave his life to learning how one should determine true apostolic doctrine. In his quest, he interviewed innumerable godly and learned persons in the faith; consequently, he left behind for the church with a set of sound dogmatic precepts that have yet to be exceeded. The foundation for his methodolgy is simple: knowledge of the word of God, and knowledge of the traditions that were left to us by the apostles. I will be posting a series on St Vincent in the days to come, with the goal of identifying the process for sorting out apostolic truth from revisionist error.