What is tradition?

What is a tradition? The regular Greek word for “teaching” is didaskalia (the basis for “didactic”), but that is not the word used here. Instead, paradosis (tradition) is used. A tradition is information or custom which is handed down. It is an inherited pattern of thought or action. A popular definition might be, “things people do on regularly.” This same Greek word (in verb from) is used in 1 Corinthians 11:23 in regard to the Lord’s Supper (that it was passed on) . The point of a tradition is that it is something that is passed on, from generation to generation. An interesting paradox can be observed about tradition. The same word (paradosis) used by Paul in 1 Corinthians 11:2 was also used by Jesus in Matthew 15:1-3. Jesus said to the Pharisees, “Why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?”