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Trent
FOURTH
SESSION OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT
celebrated on the eighth day of April, 1546.
DECREE CONCERNING THE CANONICAL SCRIPTURES.
1501
The holy, ecumenical and general Council of Trent, lawfully
assembled in the Holy Ghost, the same three legates of the
Apostolic See presiding, keeps this constantly in view, namely,
that the purity of the Gospel may be preserved in the Church
after the errors have been removed. This [Gospel], of old
promised through the Prophets in the Holy Scriptures, [1]
our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, promulgated first with
His own mouth, and then commanded it to be preached by His
Apostles to every creature [2] as the source at once of all
saving truth and rules of conduct. It also clearly perceives
that these truths and rules are contained in the written books
and in the unwritten traditions, which, received by the Apostles
from the mouth of Christ Himself, or from the Apostles themselves,
[3] the Holy Ghost dictating, have come down to us, transmitted
as it were from hand to hand. Following, then, the examples
of the orthodox Fathers, it receives and venerates with a
feeling of piety and reverence all the books both of the Old
and New Testaments, since one God is the author of both; also
the traditions, whether they relate to faith or to morals,
as having been dictated either orally by Christ or by the
Holy Ghost, and preserved in the Catholic Church in unbroken
succession. It has thought it proper, moreover, to insert
in this decree a list of the sacred books, lest a doubt might
arise in the mind of someone as to which are the books received
by this council [4]. They are the following:
1502
Of the Old Testament, the five books of Moses, namely, Genesis,
Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy; Josue, Judges, Ruth,
the four books of Kings, two of Paralipomenon, the first and
second of Esdras, the latter of which is called Nehemias,
Tobias, Judith, Esther, Job, the Davidic Psalter of 150 Psalms,
Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Canticle of Canticles, Wisdom,
Ecclesiasticus, Isaias, Jeremias, with Baruch, Ezechiel, Daniel,
the twelve minor Prophets, namely, Osee, Joel, Amos, Abdias,
Jonas, Micheas, Nahum, Habacuc, Sophonias, Aggeus, Zacharias,
Malachias; two books of Machabees, the first and second.
1503
Of the New Testament, the four Gospels, according to Matthew,
Mark, Luke and John; the Acts of the Apostles written by Luke
the Evangelist; fourteen Epistles of Paul the Apostle, to
the Romans, two to the Corinthians, to the Galatians, to the
Ephesians, to the Philippians, to the Colossians, two to the
Thessalonians, two to Timothy, to Titus, to Philemon, to the
Hebrews; two of Peter the Apostle, three of John the Apostle,
one of James the Apostle, one of Jude the Apostle, and the
Apocalypse of John the Apostle.
1504
If anyone does not accept as sacred and canonical the aforesaid
books in their entirety and with all their parts, as they
have been accustomed to be read in the Catholic Church and
as they are contained in the old Latin Vulgate Edition, and
knowingly and deliberately rejects the aforesaid traditions,
let him be anathema.
1505
Let all understand, therefore, in what order and manner the
council, after having laid the foundation of the confession
of faith, will proceed, and who are the chief witnesses and
supports to whom it will appeal in conforming dogmas and in
restoring morals in the Church.
DECREE
CONCERNING THE EDITION AND USE
OF THE SACRED BOOKS.
1506
Moreover, the same holy council considering that not a little
advantage will accrue to the Church of God if it be made known
which of all the Latin editions of the sacred books now in
circulation is to be regarded as authentic, ordains and declares
that the old Latin Vulgate Edition, which, in use for so many
hundred years, has been approved by the Church, be in public
lectures, disputations, sermons and expositions held as authentic,
and that no one dare or presume under any pretext whatsoever
to reject it.
1507
Furthermore, to check unbridled spirits, it decrees that no
one relying on his own judgment shall, in matters of faith
and morals pertaining to the edification of Christian doctrine,
distorting the Holy Scriptures in accordance with his own
conceptions, [5] presume to interpret them contrary to that
sense which holy mother Church, to whom it belongs to judge
of their true sense and interpretation, [6] has held and holds,
or even contrary to the unanimous teaching of the Fathers,
even though such interpretations should never at any time
be published. Those who act contrary to this shall be made
known by the ordinaries and punished in accordance with the
penalties prescribed by the law.
1508 And wishing, as is proper, to impose a restraint in this
matter on printers also, who, now without restraint, thinking
what pleases them is permitted them, print without the permission
of ecclesiastical superiors the books of the Holy Scriptures
and the notes and commentaries thereon of all persons indiscriminately,
often with the name of the press omitted, often also under
a fictitious press-name, and what is worse, without the name
of the author, and also indiscreetly have for sale such books
printed elsewhere, [this council] decrees and ordains that
in the future the Holy Scriptures, especially the old Vulgate
Edition, be printed in the most correct manner possible, and
that it shall not be lawful for anyone to print or to have
printed any books whatsoever dealing with sacred doctrinal
mattes without the name of the author, or in the future to
sell them, or even to have them in possession, unless they
have first been examined and approved by the ordinary, under
penalty of anathema and fine prescribed by the last Council
of the Lateran [7]. If they be regulars they must in addition
to this examination and approval obtain permission also from
their own superiors after these have examined the books in
accordance with their own statutes. Those who lend or circulate
them in manuscript before they have been examined and approved,
shall be subject to the same penalties as the printers, and
those who have them in their possession or read them, shall,
unless they make known the authors, be themselves regarded
as the authors. The approbation of such books, however, shall
be given in writing and shall appear authentically at the
beginning of the book, whether it be written or printed, and
all this, that is, both the examination and the approbation,
shall be done gratuitously, so that what ought to be approved
may be approved and what ought to be condemned may be condemned.
Furthermore,
wishing to repress that boldness whereby the words and sentences
of the Holy Scriptures are turned and twisted to all kinds
of profane usages, namely, to things scurrilous, fabulous,
vain, to flatteries, detractions, superstitions, godless and
diabolical incantations, divinations, the casting of lots
and defamatory libels, to put an end to such irreverence and
contempt, and that no one may in the future dare use in any
manner the words of Holy Scripture for these and similar purposes,
it is commanded and enjoined that all people of this kind
be restrained by the bishops as violators and profaners of
the word of God, with the penalties of the law and other penalties
that they may deem fit to impose.
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