Against Mark Bullen's article "On The Proper Usage Of Early Church Writings"
In Mark Bullen's article, "On the proper usage of Early Church writings", he forms a theological framework that is methodological circularity.
He criticizes the Mennonites for selectively appealing to the Church Fathers wherever the Fathers appear to support their interpretation of Scripture, yet he openly employs the very same method himself.
He accepts the Patristic writings as historically meaningful when it aligns with his own theological conclusions and dismisses it as corruption or inconsistency when it does not. Thus, the dispute is not actually over whether the Fathers may be used as historical witnesses, but over which interpretive framework governs their use.
The same circularity appears in Mark's treatment of interpretation itself.
He argues that the Mennonites approach the Fathers through an improper interpretive lens, while assuming that his own framework provides the proper lens through which both Scripture and the Fathers must be read.
Yet his opponents would make the identical claim in reverse.
Both sides interpret Scripture through prior theological commitments and then use the Fathers as historical confirmation for those commitments.
Consequently, Mark's critique ultimately rebounds upon itself.
He accuses his opponents of filtering history through theology while simultaneously filtering history through his own theological reconstruction.
The methodology remains fundamentally the same; only the conclusions differ.
Private judgement at work again
Mark clearly articulates the crux of the issue with this line:
We must judge every writer and teacher by the teaching and example of the Apostles of Christ or we are sure to err.
And also, in our Gnosticism and the Biblical Canon discourse, he clearly stated:
Right Interpretation determines TRUTH.
So dear sir, if right interpretation determines truth, and you are judging every writer and teacher by your interpretation of the Apostles of Christ, what certainty do you have that your interpretation is true?
Who told you that you have the correct interpretation of sacred Scripture whereby you may judge every writer and teacher?