Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
History and Religion
Hilary of Poitiers (d. 367) vs. Sola Scriptura as the Rule of Faith

Hilary of Poitiers (d. 367) vs. Sola Scriptura as the Rule of Faith

Last updated on: June 5, 2026 at 11:57 pm by Dave Armstrong

Hilary of Poitiers (d. 367) vs. Sola Scriptura as the Rule of Faith 2026-06-05T23:57:49-04:00 Dave Armstrong

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Protestant anti-Catholic polemicists David T. King and William Webster are the editors of a three-volume series, entitled, Holy Scripture: The Ground and Pillar of Our Faith (self-published by Webster’s outfit, Christian Resources Inc. [Battle Ground, Washington] in 2001). I’m most interested in Volume III: subtitled, “The Writings of the Church Fathers Affirming the Reformation Principle of Sola Scriptura” (edited by both Webster and King). In the Introduction to Vol. III (p. 9) they make the fantastically absurd, demonstrably false assertion:

[T]he Church fathers . . . universally taught sola Scriptura in the fullest sense of the term embracing both the material and formal sufficiency of Scripture.

The definition of sola Scriptura, according to three of the most able and articulate Protestant defenders of it in our time, is the following:

[T]he Bible alone is the infallible written authority for faith and morals (Norman Geisler)

Scripture . . . is the only inspired and inherently infallible norm, and therefore Scripture is the only final authoritative norm. (Keith A. Mathison)

The doctrine of sola scriptura . . . is that the Scriptures alone are sufficient to function as the regula fidei, the infallible rule of faith for the Church. (James R. White) [my bolding; see the sources for these quotations and also a fuller explication by each man]

Such a definition entails also understanding what sola Scriptura is not. It logically rules out tradition, the Church, ecumenical councils, bishops, popes, or appeal to apostolic succession as infallibly and finally authoritative. Only the Bible is that. Therefore, if any Church father believes that any of these are infallible or a final authority, then he (by the same token) does not and indeed cannot believe in sola Scriptura. I didn’t “set the rules”. Protestants have by defining sola Scriptura as they do. Thus, they have to live with their own definition and unbiblical rule of faith.

I shall be examining (in this series of papers) several Church fathers that Webster and King bring up, and documenting that they rejected sola Scriptura. I’ve already done this documentation with regard to Augustine, Athanasius, John Chrysostom, Jerome, Ambrose, Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, Clement of Alexandria, Hippolytus, Dionysius, Basil the Great, Cyril of Jerusalem, Theodoret, Gregory of Nyssa, Tertullian, Origen, Gregory Nazianzen, Epiphanius, Lactantius, Cyprian, Papias, and John Damascene.

All citations are from Volume III unless otherwise indicated.

*****

St. Hilary of Poitiers (c. 310-c. 367), as Wikipedia informs us, “was Bishop of Poitiers and a Doctor of the Church. He was sometimes referred to as the “Hammer of the Arians” . . . and the “Athanasius of the West”.

[see the online version of Hilary’s On the Trinity: from which almost all citations below are drawn]

Very unlike the case of St. Gregory Nazianzen, Webster and King produce quite a few citations from Hilary of Poitiers. None of them will prove their utterly futile enterprise of turning Hilary into a “Bible Alone Church father”, of course, but at least they gave it the ol’ college try. E for effort . . . First, they expend much energy (more than six pages) in a non sequitur effort of showing that Hilary believed in material sufficiency of Scripture:

. . . a man of blessed and religious will who yearns for a creed only according to the scriptures! (Liber II, Ad Constantium 8) [p. 52]

[L]et us assume that God has full knowledge of Himself, and bow with humble reverence to His words. He Whom we can only know through His own utterances is the fitting witness concerning Himself. (On the Trinity, Book I, 18) [p. 53]

We must proclaim, exactly as we shall find them in the words of Scripture, the majesty and functions of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit . . . (On the Trinity, Book II, 5) [p. 54]

[I]t is well with you if you be satisfied with the written word. (On the Trinity, Book III, 23) [p. 54]

[W]e . . . display on the evidence of Holy Scripture the impiety of their doctrines. (On the Trinity, Book IV, 11) [p. 55]

[W]e . . . cleave to the very letter of revelation. Each point in our enquiry shall be considered in the light of His instruction . . . (On the Trinity, Book IV, 14) [p. 56]

. . . according to the Scriptures, this being the safeguard of reverence against the attack of the adversary . . . [he goes on to repeat the phrase “according to the Scriptures” nine more times in the overall passage] (On the Trinity, Book X, 67) [p. 57]

The Apostle, the Evangelist, the Prophet combine to silence your objections. (On the Trinity, Book V, 33) [p. 58]

[W]e . . . adduce the evidence of the Gospels and the prophets for our confession . . . (On the Trinity, Book I, 17) [p. 176]

Since almost all Catholics agree with material sufficiency of Scripture, all of the above is a moot point. But Webster and King seem to think it proves something. It certainly doesn’t establish an adherence of sola Scriptura, since Catholics and Orthodox, who reject that false doctrine, also hold to it. In other words, it’s not exclusive to a sola Scriptura outlook.

Then they try to argue that Hilary believed in the perspicuity of Scripture (plain meanings to one and all, and self-interpreting):

. . . the plain words of Holy Writ . . . (On the Trinity, Book II, 3) [p. 53]

. . . by the clear teaching of the Evangelists and Apostles . . . (On the Trinity, Book VI, 4) [p. 58]

. . . clear assertions of prophets and evangelists to refute the insanity and ignorance of men . . . (On the Trinity, Book I, 17) [p. 176]

If we find ourselves in difficulty, let us lay the fault to our own reason; if God’s declaration seem involved in obscurity, let us assume that our want of faith is the cause. (On the Trinity, Book VII, 38) [p. 179]

He has so far tempered the language of His utterance as to enable the weakness of our nature to grasp and understand it. (On the Trinity, Book VIII, 43) [p. 180]

God out of regard for human weakness has not set forth the faith in bare and uncertain statements. (On the Trinity, Book VIII, 52) [p. 180]

The Lord enunciated the faith of the Gospel in the simplest words that could be found, and fitted His discourses to our understanding, so far as the weakness of our nature allowed Him . . . (On the Trinity, Book IX, 40) [p. 180]

[T]he Lord spoke in simple words for our instruction in the faith . . . (On the Trinity, Book XI, 7) [p. 180]

But Hilary taught (very un-Protestant-like) that the Church was necessary for individuals to understand the Bible. So much for a self-interpreting Scripture: a thing that Webster and King (p. 10) affirm as one of the premises of sola Scriptura:

They who are placed without the Church, cannot attain to any understanding of the divine word. For the ship exhibits a type of Church, the word of life placed and preached within which, they who are without, and lie near like barren and useless sands, cannot understand. (Homily 13:1 on Matthew)

Hilary believed in authoritative and decisive apostolic tradition and succession and ecumenical councils (all utterly contrary to sola Scriptura):

[W]e shall not recede from the faith … as once laid it continues even to this day, through the tradition of the fathers, according to the succession from the apostles, even to the discussion had at Nicea against the heresy which had, at that period, sprung up. (History Fragment 7)

. . . the apostolic faith to which we adhere . . . (On the Trinity, IV, 1)

. . . the apostolic faith and power. (On the Trinity, VI, 38)

. . . the Church, whose faith is based upon the teaching of Evangelists and Apostles, . . . (On the Trinity, VII, 7)

. . . the Apostolic faith . . . (On the Trinity, VII, 31 and again in 32; IX, 28; XII, 28, 51)

. . . the apostolic teaching . . . (On the Trinity, VIII, 2)

Hilary thought that the Church could by herself refute heretics, and would never defect from the Christian faith:

I trust that the Church, by the light of her doctrine, will so enlighten the world’s vain wisdom, that, even though it accept not the mystery of the faith, it will recognise that in our conflict with heretics we, and not they, are the true representatives of that mystery. . . . It is the peculiar property of the Church that when she is buffeted she is triumphant, when she is assaulted with argument she proves herself in the right, when she is deserted by her supporters she holds the field. (On the Trinity, VII, 4)

. . . that Church against which the gates of hell shall not prevail. (On the Trinity, VI, 38)

He also held that one must be in the bosom of the Church to be saved:

It is her wish that all men should remain at her side and in her bosom; if it lay with her, none would become unworthy to abide under the shelter of that august mother, none would be cast out or suffered to depart from her calm retreat. But when heretics desert her or she expels them, the loss she endures, in that she cannot save them, is compensated by an increased assurance that she alone can offer bliss. . . . The Church, ordained by the Lord and established by His Apostles, is one for all; . . . (On the Trinity, VII, 4)

The light, or lamp of Christ, is not now to be hidden under a bushel, nor to be concealed by any covering of the synagogue, but, hung on the wood of the Passion, it will give an everlasting light to those that dwell in the church. (Commentary on Matthew, 5:13)

He rejected sectarianism and denominationalism:

[T]he frantic folly of discordant sects has severed them from her. And it is obvious that these dissensions concerning the faith result from a distorted mind, which twists the words of Scripture into conformity with its opinion, instead of adjusting that opinion to the words of Scripture. And thus, amid the clash of mutually destructive errors, the Church stands revealed not only by her own teaching, but by that of her rivals. They are ranged, all of them, against her; and the very fact that she stands single and alone is her sufficient answer to their godless delusions. The hosts of heresy assemble themselves against her; each of them can defeat all the others, but not one can win a victory for itself. The only victory is the triumph which the Church celebrates over them all. (On the Trinity, VII, 4)

He thought one should follow the faith of the Church: not a faith of one’s own making:

. . . the clear and definite evidence of the Church’s faith . . . (On the Trinity, V, 30)

And this is the confession of faith made, in the fullness of time, by the Church in loyal devotion to Christ her Lord. (On the Trinity, V, 31)

. . . the Church’s faith, . . . (On the Trinity, V, 39; VI, 12; VI, 38; VII, 1, 31; VIII, 34)

The faith of the Church, . . . (On the Trinity, VI, 9; VI, 17; VIII, 2; IX, 2, 19, 36; X, 52)

[T]hey wish to rob the Church of her true faith . . . (On the Trinity, VI, 11)

. . . the Church’s doctrine, . . . (On the Trinity, VI, 45)

. . . the Church’s confession of faith. (On the Trinity, VII, 19)

All of this is evidence that Hilary of Poitiers definitely did not believe in sola Scriptura. But it would be easy to think he did, if all one read was the half-truth presentation of Webster and King, who deliberately ignored all of this contrary (and quite relevant) information (almost all from one book, easy to search), lest any of their readers would see that Hilary — like all the Church fathers — was Catholic and infinitely more similar in belief to present-day Catholicism than any form of Protestantism.

***

Photo credit: Hilary of Poitiers (Catholic.Net)

***

Summary: Hilary of Poitiers did not believe in sola Scriptura. But it would be easy to think he did, if all one read was the highly selective, “half-truth” presentation of William Webster and David T. King.

***

Fathers of the Church

Hilary of Poitiers & sola Scriptura

Hilary of Poitiers & the rule of faith

Previous Post

February 25, 2021

Gregory Nazianzen (d. 389) vs. Sola Scriptura as the Rule of Faith

Next Post

February 27, 2021 Oral Tradition: More Biblical (Pauline) Evidence

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category & Last Things About Me Anti-Catholicism Atheism & Agnosticism Baptism and Sacramentalism Bible and Tradition Blessed Virgin Mary Books by Dave Armstrong C. S. Lewis Calvinism & General Protestantism Catholic Apologetics Catholic Apologists Catholic conversion Catholic converts Christmas Church (Ecclesiology) Church History Conversion and Converts Development of Doctrine Eastern Orthodoxy Ecumenism & Christian Unity Eucharist & Liturgy Fathers of the Church French Translations G. K. Chesterton Hell Hell & Satan Hell & Satan & Last Things Heresies & Comparative Religion Holistic Health Inquisition & Crusades & Scandals James White Jews & Judaism & Old Testament John Calvin John Henry Newman Liberal / Modernist Theology Life Issues Literary Resume Lutheranism Mariology Martin Luther Music Orthodoxy Papacy & Infallibility Personal Page Philosophy & Science Political & Ethical & Moral Issues Protestant Persecution & Intolerance Protestantism Purgatory Purgatory & Penance Romantic & Imaginative Theology Saints & Purgatory & Penance Salvation Salvation & Justification Satan & Last Things Sexuality and Gender Issues Spanish Translations Traditionalism vs. Radical Catholic Reactionaries Traducciones al español / tradução para português Trinitarianism & Christology Uncategorized Videos

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 April 2010 March 2010 December 2009 October 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 March 2009 February 2009 October 2008 September 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 May 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 October 2005 June 2005 April 2005 February 2005 July 2004 May 2004 April 2004

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz