To answer these questions it is important to recognize that Christian theology views authority as a chain. For the Christian, the absolute authority is God Himself. More specifically, it is the triune God who reveals Himself, for authority and revelation are correlates. Thus, Scripture has become our authority because as an infallible record of God's self-revelation it perpetuates Christ's personal authority. The Gospels reveal that Jesus held Scripture in the highest regard.
Scripture therefore determines whether tradition is acceptable.
And, as followers of Christ, our view of Scripture cannot be inferior to His. The New Testament became a permanent, infallible record of what was earlier an oral message. Because Scripture is identified with the gospel, it is authoritative. While CRI is concerned with and involved in the general defense of the faith, our area of research specialization is limited to elements within the modern religious scene that compete with, assault, or undermine biblical Christianity. I want to subscribe to the Christian Research Journal.