The Measure of Truth

An important question to many is how are we to know what is to be held as true? For many like Anglo-Papists and the Latin Rite Church and those in communion with Rome the answer is simple, Papal Primacy and Papal infallibility. However for many that is not acceptable for whatever reason (these I will not get into), for those who do not subscribe to Papal infallibility however there is a very real dilemma when it comes to affirming orthodox doctrine. For many determining what is doctrine can in words agree with St. Vincent of Lerins "Quod ubique, quod semper, quod ab omnibus," with which Vincentius's name is associated.", but in practice it degenerates into protestantism with every man being his own pope.

There is however one alternative solution to either Papal infallibility and protestant self papalism; it is what I will call for simplicity sake the "Rule" or "Ruler" "of East and West". This is to say that what is held equally in both East and West is to be taken as a bare minimum of what is to be believed by all other Christians who would call themselves Orthodox-Catholic Christians. As St. C.S. Lewis would say we are to believe the HCF (Highest Common Factor) of the Orthodox and Catholic Churches. Which when we grant the size of their population of Christianity it seems to be the fair ruler as we are reallying doing nothing more then defining what it means to "Hold what was held always, everywhere, by all".

Thus for example when the question of the Canon of Sacred Scripture arises in our own determination of what the Canon is we would apply the HCF, rejecting the Protestant Canon, but not rejecting those text which are outside of the HCF. Our position on that which is outside of the HCF may vary and we should refrain from accusing each other of Heterodoxy when someone favors one position over another. Thus if we accept the 151 psalm we are not beyond the limits of Orthodoxy (as opposed to a book which is not accepted by either tradition), and if one were to disagree with us they could do so and we could dialog on the matter, but what is held in common Canon must be held as Canon.

The same can be said for the veneration and worship(small w) of Saints, or the use of Icons. We can know with certainty that it is an orthodox practice to venerate and give honor to Saints and Icons because it is part of the HCF of the Apostolic Church(which is really the crux of it all). Thus if a Bishop is in dissent and is an Iconoclast we can recognize him as acting outside of the Tradition(big T) of the Church.

In this we can be assured that "That which is held in common by East and West is not in error", and we should refrain from saying that 'That which is beyond the HCF is in error', though we may express our own personal belief of the matter. So we may choose to Order the text of the 10 commandment after those of the Catholic or those of the Orthodox Church but we may not condemn one though we use the other. And this we make take to be a true and authentic "Via Media".


The Articles of Orthodoxy is an attempt to present a synthesis of East and West.

There can honestly be said no other way by which we can truly measure orthodoxy, and I would challenge any to provide an alternative.