One of the most well-known and respected distilleries in the United States is Buffalo Trace. While their bourbon may not be for everyone, their motto has always caught my attention:
“Honor Tradition. Embrace Change.”
Simple. Powerful. Deeply relevant to the Church today.
Honor Tradition
The Christian faith is built on centuries of rich tradition. From the early Church fathers and mothers, through the Reformation, to the countless faithful who have shaped our theology and worship practices—tradition matters. It grounds us. It reminds us of who we are and where we’ve come from. It gives us language, ritual, rhythm, and roots.
To honor tradition is to respect the wisdom of the past. It’s not about idolizing history but about recognizing that we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us. In a rapidly changing world, tradition provides stability, clarity, and identity.
But honoring tradition doesn’t mean being trapped by it.
Embrace Change
The Church has always been at its best when it’s been willing to adapt in order to reach people. Jesus challenged the status quo. Paul broke barriers. The early Church reimagined what it meant to follow God outside of temple walls. The Reformation shook the Church to its core for the sake of renewal.
Today, we are in a similar moment. The world is changing—fast. Culture, technology, communication, community—they all look different than they did even a decade ago. If we want to remain faithful to our mission of making disciples and transforming communities, we have to embrace change.
Not change for the sake of change, but change for the sake of the Gospel. God does not change, but we do, the world does and the church must.
Embracing change doesn’t mean throwing out tradition. It means discerning what parts of tradition are essential and life-giving, and what parts may need to evolve in order to remain effective and faithful in a new context.
A Holy Tension
The Church is called to live in the holy tension between honoring tradition and embracing change. When we lean too far into tradition, we risk becoming stagnant, rigid, and irrelevant. When we lean too far into change, we risk losing our identity, depth, and roots.
The future of the Church depends on our ability to do both.
Buffalo Trace may be a bourbon distillery, but their motto could very well be a call to the Church in this season:
Honor Tradition. Embrace Change.
May we do just that—faithfully, courageously, and with grace.
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