The Misunderstood Quadrilateral

We sometimes hear of Wesley’s quadrilateral. It is misunderstood, because it is neither Wesley’s alone nor an equal-sided quadrilateral. It is actually Albert Outler’s interpretation of Wesley’s teachings. Yet, Outler could have equally attributed it to the Catholic Church or used it as a summary of church history. Outler’s four sources of church teachings: scripture, tradition, reason and experience are also not equal as the term quadrilateral would imply. Wesley insisted that scripture comes first, tradition must be based on scripture, reason helps us understand scripture and we experience what the scriptures promise. The picture of a quadrilateral would imply that we place tradition on an equal footing with scripture. It is faulty. Even Wesley taught that tradition is subordinate to scripture and Jesus explained clearly the danger of creating human rules without the authority of scripture (Mark 7:1-23).