THE DEPOSIT OF FAITH

The Catholic Church derives all of its teaching authority from its tradition, the doctine which has come down to it from Christ. This tradition is preserved in written form in the “Bible” which contains the principle truths of faith taught to the Apostles by Christ.

Inspired men were moved by the Spirit of God to commit these matters to writing in the early church. Only a short time after Christ’s Ascension, perhaps within twenty years, the need to preserve these truths in a permanent form was recognized. Before any book was accepted as “authentic” however, the authority of an Apostle was demanded by the early Christian communities. Mark’s Gospel was accepted because he was Peter’s companion. Similarly, though Luke was a man who had not seen Christ, his book gained acceptance through St. Paul’s authority.

The Church has protected and guarded these books which contained the revelations of Chirst to His disciples and their testimony concerning Him.