In view of what Jesus said, can a Christian really regard any religious tradition as being on a par with the Bible? Hardly. No matter how much sentiment or emotion may be tied up with a custom, a Christian’s concern is whether it harmonizes with God’s Word or not. As a case in point, consider some traditional religious acts described in the Catholic book Liturgy​—An Elementary Course, by María A. Lombillo Clark, T.D. How do these traditions compare with what the Bible actually says?

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LITURGY

“We manifest our worship to God through religious acts.”

GOD’S WORD

“Little children, guard yourselves from idols.”​—1 John 5:21.

“God is a Spirit, and those worshiping him must worship with spirit and truth.”​—John 4:24.

“We are walking by faith, not by sight.”​—2 Corinthians 5:7.

“I am Jehovah. That is my name; and to no one else shall I give my own glory, neither my praise to graven images.”​—Isaiah 42:8.

LITURGY

“We should render religious acts to the Most Holy Virgin Mary, to the angels, and to the saints. But [such] religious acts of veneration . . . finally come to God, in the same way that a king is honored when honor is given to his ministers.”

GOD’S WORD

“You must not make for yourself a carved image or a form like anything that is in the heavens above or that is on the earth . . . You must not bow down to them nor be induced to serve them.”​—Exodus 20:4, 5.

“I John . . . fell down to worship before the feet of the angel . . . But he tells me: ‘Be careful! Do not do that! . . . Worship God.’”​—Revelation 22:8, 9.

“There is one God, and one mediator between God and men, a man, Christ Jesus.”​—1 Timothy 2:5

LITURGY

“The Crucifix is indispensable on the altar; without this the Holy Mass cannot be celebrated. Three altar cloths, two candelabra, and the sacramental tablets are also necessary.”

GOD’S WORD

“The God that made the world and all the things in it, being, as this One is, Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in handmade temples.”​—Acts 17:24.

“We keep our eyes, not on the things seen, but on the things unseen.”​—2 Corinthians 4:18.

LITURGY

“November 1 . . . the celebration of All Saints Day. It is the Holy Day of all the souls that live happily in heaven, and that one day will be ours.”

GOD’S WORD

“The dead themselves do not praise Jah, nor do any going down into silence.”​—Psalm 115:17.

“The dead know nothing.”​—Ecclesiastes 9:5, Revised Standard Version Common Bible.

“Every soul which will not hear that prophet shall be destroyed.”​—Acts 3:23, Douay Version.

LITURGY

“In aid of these souls [the Church] established the ‘Commemoration of the faithful deceased’ on November 2nd. On this day the priests celebrate the Mass three times to relieve the torments of these blessed souls of purgatory and to hasten their entrance into heaven.”

“In the final analysis, the Catholic doctrine on purgatory is based on tradition, not Sacred Scripture.”​—New Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 11, page 1034.