"Teach nothing new, but implant in the hearts of everyone those things which the fathers of venerable memory taught with a uniform preaching ... Whence, we preach nothing except what we have received from our forefathers. In all things, therefore, both in the rule of faith in the observance of discipline, let the pattern of antiquity be observed." – Pope St. Leo the Great, Father and Doctor of the Church
"'One faith,' St. Paul writes (Eph. 4:5). Hold most firmly that our faith is identical with that of the ancients. Deny this, and you dissolve the unity of the Church ... We must hold this for certain, namely: that the faith of the people at the present day is one with the faith of the people in past centuries. Were this not true, then we would be in a different church than they were in and, literally, the Church would not be One." – St. Thomas Aquinas
"I accept with sincere belief the doctrine of faith as handed down to us from the Apostles by the orthodox Fathers, always in the same sense and with the same interpretation." – Pope St. Pius X
"The true friends of the people are neither revolutionaries nor innovators, but men of tradition." – Pope St. Pius X
"The Church of Christ, zealous and cautious guardian of the dogmas deposited with it, never changes any phase of them. It does not diminish them or add to them; it neither trims what seems necessary now grafts things superfluous . . . but it devotes all its diligence to one aim: To treat tradition faithfully and wisely; to consolidate and to strengthen what already was clear; and to guard what already was confirmed and defined." – St. Vincent de Lerins: Commonitoria (5th Century)
"The true Church is also to be known from Her origin, which She derives under the law of grace from the Apostles; for Her doctrines are neither novel nor of recent origin, but were delivered of old by the Apostles and disseminated throughout the world." – Catechism of the Council of Trent (16th Century)
"For the Holy Spirit was not promised to the successors of Peter, that by His revelation they might make known new doctrine, but that by His assistance they might inviolably keep and faithfully expound the revelation or deposit of faith delivered through the Ages." – First Vatican Council (1869-1870)
"I vow ... to change nothing of the received Tradition, and nothing thereof I have found before me guarded by my God-pleasing predecessors, to encroach, to alter, or to permit any innovation therein." – Coronation Oath of the Pope
"Therefore, heresy is from the Greek word meaning 'choice' . . . . But we are not permitted to believe whatever we choose, nor to choose whatever someone else has believed. We have the Apostles of God as authorities, who did not . . . choose what they would believe but faithfully transmitted the teachings of Christ. So, even if an angel from heaven should preach otherwise, he shall be called anathema. – St. Isidore, extraordinary Doctor of the Church and last of the great Latin Fathers: Etymologies (7th Century)
"The day the Church abandons Her universal tongue will be the day before She returns to the Catecombs." – Pope Pius XII (a few days before his death)
"You are fortunate, you have remained in the Church through your faith. You held fast to the foundations of the faith which has come down to you from Apostolic Tradition. . . .In the present crisis, it is they who have broken away from it." – St. Athanasius, champion of Christ's Divinity, Doctor of Orthodoxy, Doctor of the Church, died 373 A. D.
"No one, my beloved brethren, will ever prevail against your Faith. And we are confident that God will one day return our Churches to us." – St. Athanasius
"What then shall the Catholic do if some portion of the Church detaches itself from communion of the universal Faith? What other choice can he make – and if some new contagion attempts to poison, no longer a small part of the Church, but the whole Church at once, then his great concern will be to attach himself to antiquity (Tradition) which can no longer be led astray by any lying novelty." – St. Vincent de Lerins
"Is it permitted for Catholics to be present at, or to take part in, conventions, gatherings, meetings, or societies of non-Catholics which aim to associate together under a single agreement everyone who, in any way, lays claim to the name of Christian? In the negative! ... It is clear, therefore, why this Apostolic See has never allowed its subjects to take part in the assemblies of non-Catholics. There is one way in which the unity of Christians may be fostered, and that is by furthering the return to the one true Church of Christ for those who are separated from Her." – Pope Pius XI
Who will be great in God's eyes? At that hour the Disciples came to Jesus saying, "who then is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?" And Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in their midst, and said, "Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like little children, you will not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven." (Matt. 18:1-4) Will humility be rewarded? "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." (James 4:10). What example did Christ give? "And learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart." (Matt. 11:29).