(2.) That no Roman Catholic is permitted on any pretext to read, or to possess a copy of the Bible in his own language, without a written order from the Bishop or Inquisitor. It matters not who is the author of the translation, whether Protestant or Romanist, whether Luther or the Pope himself; if any man either possess or read it, for that offence he is cut off from absolution and thereby from church communion.
(3.) That since the days of Benedict XIV. it has always been, and now is, unlawful under any circumstances to read any version without notes. God’s word is not allowed to speak for itself; man’s gloss must accompany it; the truth is forbidden in its simplicity; they are afraid to allow the people to read even their own version, without superadding extracts from “other learned and Catholic authors.”
(4.) That these versions with their notes may not be possessed or read unless they are first approved of by the Holy See. Query. How many versions approved by the Pope exist in the whole world? Is there one in England? It is of course difficult to prove a negative; but those who are best acquainted with the subject assert that they have never been able to discover one. See Venn’s Letter to Waterworth, Jan. 15, 1845.
(5.) That the Church of Rome attacks the broad principle of the general usefulness of the Bible. The Pope does not merely discuss the comparative merits of this or that version, but goes boldly to the great question, whether the reading of the Bible is really useful for the people. The Jansenists, according to his own account, asserted that the reading of the holy books “had been at all times, and for all the faithful, useful, and so indispensable that no authority could assail it.” This he declares to be an audacious assertion, and pronounces it withered by the unanimous condemnation of the whole Catholic universe.
THE END.
LONDON:
G. J. PALMER, PRINTER, SAVOY STREET, STRAND.
FOOTNOTES.
[5] The use of this double rule may be seen in any Roman Catholic writing. Take e.g. the 1st decree of the 25th Session of the Council of Trent. “Since the Catholic Church, taught by the Holy Spirit, has learned from the Sacred Scriptures, and from the ancient tradition of the Fathers, that there is a purgatory, &c.” Here is an appeal to two sources of divine truth, Scripture and Tradition.
[6] Art. VI.
[9] This appears very plainly from a letter of the present Pope, dated, 8th of May, 1844, and addressed to the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, and Bishops. He complains of Bible Societies, as “Pretending to popularize the holy pages, and render them intelligible without the aid of any interpreter.”