That means there is always room for compromise and growth. Tradition is different. If you told your parents that starting tomorrow you'll be going to school naked , your ground for compromise is gone. To grant this request, your parents would have to compromise their basic standard of decency and their responsibility to love and protect you, and that is something they would never do. Tradition involves core values and beliefs which can never be compromised.
Custom involves tastes and habits which can be.
This is where Scripture comes in. Like an anchor that allows a boat room to swing in arcs and circles but not to drift away, Scripture provides a grounding for everything the Church does and believes, giving us a standard we can use to tell the difference. James Philipps is a frequent contributor to Youth Update . His daughter says that he tells really good stories when he is not so grouchy. JoAnn asked these questions of James Philipps.