"Jesus blasted the Pharisees for their traditions. Why would He accept the Catholic Church's?" It's a fair question. The answer is in what Jesus actually said, and in what He actually did.
Short answer: No. In Mark 7 and Matthew 15, Jesus condemned human traditions that "set aside the commandment of God" (Mark 7:9). But He kept Jewish customs Himself, did not reject Israel's teachers wholesale, and sent His apostles to hand on His teaching, which they called "the traditions" (1 Corinthians 11:2). The test is not "tradition or no tradition" but "from God, or against His word?"
Key verses on Jesus and tradition
- "And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?" (Matthew 15:3)
- "You nullify the word of God in favor of your tradition that you have handed on." (Mark 7:13)
- "went according to his custom into the synagogue on the sabbath day" (Luke 4:16)
- "teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:20)
- "For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you" (1 Corinthians 11:23)
Scripture quotations are from the New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE), © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
What Catholics Actually Teach
The Church does not treat every custom alike. Sacred Tradition "comes from the apostles and hands on what they received from Jesus' teaching and example and what they learned from the Holy Spirit" (CCC 83). It "transmits in its entirety the Word of God which has been entrusted to the apostles by Christ the Lord and the Holy Spirit" (CCC 81).
That apostolic Tradition "is to be distinguished from the various theological, disciplinary, liturgical or devotional traditions, born in the local churches over time." Those smaller traditions "can be retained, modified or even abandoned under the guidance of the Church's Magisterium" (CCC 83).
So the Catholic question is the same one Jesus asked: Does this come from God, or does it set aside His word?
What Catholics do not teach:
- That Jesus approved every tradition of the Pharisees. He plainly did not (Mark 7:13).
- That disciplines like Friday abstinence are revealed doctrine. They are disciplines the Church can change (CCC 83).
- That Tradition can contradict Scripture. Both carry the one Word of God (CCC 81).
The Biblical Case
1. Read what Jesus actually condemned
The Pharisees "do not eat without carefully washing their hands, keeping the tradition of the elders" (Mark 7:3). When the disciples skipped the ritual, Jesus did not say, "All tradition is wrong." He quoted Isaiah against "teaching as doctrines human precepts" (Mark 7:7; see Isaiah 29:13). Then He gave a concrete case. A man could declare his support for his parents "qorban" (dedicated to God), and "you allow him to do nothing more for his father or mother" (Mark 7:11–12).
His verdict names the problem precisely: "How well you have set aside the commandment of God in order to uphold your tradition!" (Mark 7:9; compare Matthew 15:3). The target is tradition that cancels God's command.
2. Jesus did not reject Israel's teachers wholesale
Jesus said, "The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but they do not practice" (Matthew 23:2–3). The verse is debated; the NABRE note says the command "cannot be taken as the evangelist's understanding of the proper standard of conduct for his church." But at minimum, Jesus' complaint here was hypocrisy, not handed-on teaching as such. Of tithing tiny garden herbs He said, "these you should have done, without neglecting the others" (Matthew 23:23).
3. Jesus kept customs Himself
St. Luke says Jesus "went according to his custom into the synagogue on the sabbath day" (Luke 4:16), though the Law of Moses never commands synagogue gatherings. St. John notes that during "the feast of the Dedication," Hanukkah, "Jesus walked about in the temple area" (John 10:22–23). That feast is not commanded in the Law of Moses either. Jesus joined in Israel's living practice where it honored God.
4. Jesus started a tradition of His own
"Tradition" simply means what is handed on. Jesus wrote no book. He sent the apostles out, "teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:20). St. Paul uses the language of handing on for the Eucharist, "For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you" (1 Corinthians 11:23), and for the Gospel itself (1 Corinthians 15:3). In Greek, "tradition" (paradosis) and "hand on" (paradidōmi) are the same word family St. Mark uses in 7:13. The difference is the source.
5. The apostles commanded tradition and used Jesus' test
St. Paul praises the Corinthians because they "hold fast to the traditions, just as I handed them on to you" (1 Corinthians 11:2), and after the Jerusalem council he and his companions "handed on to the people for observance the decisions reached by the apostles and presbyters in Jerusalem" (Acts 16:4).
The apostles also warned against bad tradition, using Jesus' test of origin: "human tradition... not according to Christ" (Colossians 2:8), and "futile conduct, handed on by your ancestors" (1 Peter 1:18). St. Paul's Gospel, by contrast, "is not of human origin" (Galatians 1:11).
Objections Answered
(a) "Mark 7:7 condemns 'human precepts.' Rules like Lenten fasting are exactly that."
At its strongest: Jesus quotes Isaiah: "In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts" (Mark 7:7). No verse commands Friday abstinence or a Lenten fast. Binding consciences with them looks like what Jesus rebuked.
Answer: Notice the words "as doctrines." The Church does not present such disciplines as revealed doctrine; it says they "can be retained, modified or even abandoned" (CCC 83). The apostles also set binding church practices: "It is the decision of the holy Spirit and of us..." (Acts 15:28). St. Paul could settle a dispute with "we do not have such a custom, nor do the churches of God" (1 Corinthians 11:16). And fasting cancels no commandment. Jesus said of His disciples, "The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast" (Matthew 9:15).
(b) "Jesus always appealed to Scripture, not tradition."
At its strongest: Jesus answered Satan with "It is written" (Matthew 4:4). In Mark 7 He set "the word of God" against tradition (Mark 7:13). Scripture seems to be His only standard.
Answer: Jesus revered Scripture, and so does the Church (CCC 81). But He also "taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes" (Matthew 7:29), and He entrusted His teaching to men, not to a book: "Whoever listens to you listens to me" (Luke 10:16). Following Him means holding both the written Word and the apostles' spoken teaching (2 Thessalonians 2:15).
(c) "Catholic Tradition does what the Pharisees did: it adds doctrines that cancel Scripture."
At its strongest: Many Protestants believe doctrines like purgatory or the invocation of saints are later additions that obscure Christ's finished work, much as qorban obscured the commandment to honor parents.
Answer: Apply Jesus' own test: does the teaching "set aside the commandment of God" (Mark 7:9)? Purgatory does not compete with the Cross; it is the purification of people already saved by Christ. St. Paul describes a believer whose work is burned up: "the person will be saved, but only as through fire" (1 Corinthians 3:15). Asking the saints to pray for us cancels no command either. Scripture says, "pray for one another," and "The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful" (James 5:16). Both doctrines presuppose Christ's finished work; neither replaces it. Genuine Tradition carries the same Word of God as Scripture (CCC 81), so it can never cancel a commandment. (See Where Is Purgatory in the Bible?, Is Praying to Saints Biblical? and What Is Sacred Tradition, and Is It Biblical?)
The Early Church Agrees
- Pope St. Clement I (St. Clement of Rome) (Letter to the Corinthians, c. AD 96, approximate) describes the tradition Christ Himself began: "The apostles have preached the gospel to us from the Lord Jesus Christ; Jesus Christ [has done so] from God" (ch. 42).
- St. Irenaeus of Lyons (Against Heresies, c. AD 180) read Jesus' rebuke the way Catholics do: the Pharisees' fault was a tradition set against God's law. "For the tradition of the elders themselves, which they pretended to observe from the law, was contrary to the law given by Moses" (4.12.1). Yet the same St. Irenaeus urges every believer "to contemplate clearly the tradition of the apostles manifested throughout the whole world" (3.3.1).
- Tertullian (The Chaplet, or De Corona, c. AD 211, approximate; written after his turn to Montanism, but describing ordinary Christian practice) lists customs no verse prescribes, such as renouncing the devil before baptism and tracing "the sign" on the forehead throughout the day. Then he writes: "If, for these and other such rules, you insist upon having positive Scripture injunction, you will find none. Tradition will be held forth to you as the originator of them, custom as their strengthener, and faith as their observer." (ch. 4)
- St. Basil the Great (On the Holy Spirit, c. AD 375, approximate): "Of the beliefs and practices whether generally accepted or publicly enjoined which are preserved in the Church some we possess derived from written teaching; others we have received delivered to us ‘in a mystery’ by the tradition of the apostles; and both of these in relation to true religion have the same force." His first example is the custom "to sign with the sign of the cross those who have trusted in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" (27.66).
Conclusion
Jesus did not condemn tradition as such. He condemned traditions that set aside God's commandment. He kept Israel's customs, and He handed on His own teaching through apostles who called it "the traditions."
If you are Protestant, read Mark 7 and 1 Corinthians 11 side by side. Jesus and St. Paul are drawing the same line, between what comes from men and what comes from God. The invitation is to receive everything that comes from God, written and handed on.
Come home. Jesus condemned traditions that set aside God's word, but the Tradition He Himself handed on through His apostles is still faithfully kept in the Catholic Church. Christ did not found many churches. He founded one, on St. Peter and the apostles (Matthew 16:18), and that Church is the Catholic Church. "It is through Christ's Catholic Church alone, which is the universal help toward salvation, that the fullness of the means of salvation can be obtained" (CCC 816). If you are a baptized Christian, you already share "a certain, although imperfect, communion" with her (CCC 838). Every truth you already hold is a call to the rest of the way. Christ is calling you into the Catholic Church.
Your next step: Come to Mass this Sunday at your local Catholic church. You can find one near you at MassTimes.org. Everyone is welcome; if you're not yet Catholic, pray with us but don't receive Communion yet. When you're ready to become Catholic, call the parish office and ask about OCIA, the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults. They will walk you through every step. Read our guide: How Do I Become Catholic? Not ready yet? Get our free pocket guide below and keep learning.
FAQ
Did Jesus break the tradition of the elders? His disciples skipped the ritual handwashing that St. Mark calls "the tradition of the elders" (Mark 7:5), and Jesus defended them. He did not break any command of God.
Is every Catholic custom Sacred Tradition? No. Devotions and disciplines are smaller traditions the Church can change. Sacred Tradition comes from the apostles (CCC 83).
What is the difference between "the traditions" and "human tradition"? The source. St. Paul's traditions came "from the Lord" (1 Corinthians 11:23). Human tradition is "not according to Christ" (Colossians 2:8).
Sources
Scripture (NABRE, bible.usccb.org): Isaiah 29:13; Matthew 4:4; Matthew 7:29; Matthew 9:15; Matthew 15:3; Matthew 16:18; Matthew 23:2–3, 23 (with NABRE note); Matthew 28:20; Mark 7:3–13; Luke 4:16; Luke 10:16; John 10:22–23; Acts 15:28; Acts 16:4; 1 Corinthians 3:15; 1 Corinthians 11:2, 16, 23; 1 Corinthians 15:3; Galatians 1:11; Colossians 2:8; 2 Thessalonians 2:15; James 5:16; 1 Peter 1:18.
Catechism of the Catholic Church (vatican.va): 81, 83; 816, 838.
Church Fathers (newadvent.org; Basil via ccel.org): Clement of Rome, Letter to the Corinthians 42; Irenaeus, Against Heresies 3.3.1 and 4.12.1 (ANF vol. 1); Tertullian, The Chaplet 4 (ANF vol. 3); Basil, On the Holy Spirit 27.66 (NPNF2 vol. 8).