Athanasius of Alexandria on Authority of Scripture
Scripture supreme, recognized and interpreted through the church
Against the Heathen 1.3
THE POSITION
Scripture is the court of appeal — Contra Gentes opens by calling the inspired writings sufficient to declare the truth, and the Discourses settle every Arian proof text by exegesis without appealing to Nicaea's authority. He defends non-biblical terms like homoousios on the ground that they carry Scripture's own sense, and presses the Arians to name which teacher or tradition they got their doctrine from. Tradition corroborates and shifts the burden of proof; it is not a second source.
3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
2 OTHERS HOLD THIS
ABOUT THIS FIGURE
Defender of Nicene orthodoxy against Arianism through repeated exiles. On the Incarnation is his central work on why God became man.
Cite this page
"Athanasius of Alexandria on Authority of Scripture", Examined Doctrine, July 2026 edition, https://examineddoctrine.com/position/athanasius/scripture-authority (archived at https://examineddoctrine.com/editions/2026-07/position/athanasius/scripture-authority).