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Great article Dr. Steve.

It appears from some of my discussions with our Catholic friends here the Vatican still controls much of the published content. It has been my experience, over and over, whenever a source is used by a Catholic it is always from a Catholic source. I understand their belief that anything other than a Catholic source is developed from the “heretic” point of view. But sometimes this even extends to bibliographies and historical information. Information, no matter how objective, if it is not from the Vatican is ignored.

This attitude seems to me to be an extension of the Vatican still trying to control views and doctrine. I wonder if the emphasis on the Pope over the Bible as the authoritative word wasn’t a direct result of the concern the Vatican had with the spread of the Bible. It would be a great extension of this article to trace how information is viewed and assimilated by Protestants and Catholics from the Reformation to current times.

Here is an interesting interchange: (Note the comments on the KJV at the bottom of this citation.

Q: Hi. I would like comments on what to do when a priest teaches that some parts of the bible are just stories to inspire us and did not really happen. Also when confronted with the catechism states that there are many things wrong with the catechism. He is coming next week to our parish. What do I say, do? Thanks, God bless you all. Eileen.

A: Eileen, first I need to define what an Imprimatur is. "Imprimatur • Literally, 'let it be printed,' the imprimatur is required for the publication of certain religious or scriptural texts. Publication of catechisms, prayer books, and books about morals, Scripture, theology, Church history or canon law that will be used as textbooks are to receive the approval of the bishop or other competent ecclesiastical authority before being published."¹ Hand-in-hand with the Imprimatur is the Nihil Obstat. "Nihil Obstat • This Latin term, which literally means 'nothing obstructs,' refers to the approval granted by the officially appointed censor of books to a written work that requires the permission of Church authorities for publication. The nihil obstat precedes and is required for the imprimatur, which is the permission of the competent authority to publish it."² "2. In undertaking the office, the censor, laying aside any respect for persons, is to consider only the teaching of the Church concerning faith and morals as it is proposed by the ecclesiastical magisterium. 3. The censor's opinion must be given in writing; if it is favorable, the ordinary (bishop) in his own prudent judgement, is to grant the permission to publish, giving his own name and the time and place of the granting of the permission."³ The Council Fathers (Vatican II) remind us that in Scripture God speaks in human fashion. From this it follows that 'the interpreter of Scripture, if he is to ascertain what God has wished to communicate to us, should carefully search out the meaning which the sacred writers really had in mind. The Council further specified that the task of giving an authoritative interpretation of the Word of God, whether it is in written form or in the form of Tradition, has been entrusted to the living teaching office of the Church alone (my emphasis.)"⁴ "The signature of a bishop in your Bible assures you that opinions, expressed in footnotes and introductions, reflect what is generally accepted as sound doctrine in the Catholic tradition."⁵

So, when you read a bible make certain it is one with an Imprimatur and Nihil Obstat. This will insure that the cover-to-cover contents, including teaching footnotes and introductions explaining the scriptures, are accurate teachings approved by Holy Church. For example, The New American Bible - St. Joseph Edition says in The Book of Jonah that Jonah disobeyed the Lord so he was swallowed by a whale for three days before being disgorged and sent on his mission. In the introduction to the Book of Jonah, the censor tells us that this 'story' is a sublime lesson telling us that, "Jonah stands for a narrow and vindictive mentality, all too common of the Jews of that period".⁶ With the previous explanation in mind concerning the Imprimatur and Nihil Obstat, we know that the introduction just quoted about the Book of Jonah is an approved and accepted teaching of the Church. In the situation of Jonah being swallowed by a whale, this is a 'story' used to teach about the mentality of the Jews at that time.

A King James Version of the bible will not have either an Imprimatur or Nihil Obstat as it has many translation errors and cannot be approved by the Catholic Church. I am not saying that a KJV of the bible is totally inaccurate as it does contain some truths.

It appears from some of my discussions with our Catholic friends here the Vatican still controls much of the published content.

Baloney.

It has been my experience, over and over, whenever a source is used by a Catholic it is always from a Catholic source.

And this is wrong because?

How often do Protestants quote Catholic works?

I understand their belief that anything other than a Catholic source is developed from the “heretic” point of view. But sometimes this even extends to bibliographies and historical information. Information, no matter how objective, if it is not from the Vatican is ignored.

I am aware of many Protestants who refuse to accept any histories that deviate from their own special theories. Furthermore, many will simply refuse to acknowledge commonly-accepted facts of history simply because they are not found in Scripture and/or are only sourced in "Catholic" works.

The door swings both ways. All too often what one considers "objective" history is colored by ones own theology.

As for the imprimitur and nihil obstat, these are markings that let us know that what is being read is authentic Catholic thought (or at least not in conflict with such thought). It is nothing more than a "truth in advertising" thing. The Vatican can not "control" what I read, but I do have a way of knowing what is authentic and what may not be. This is not bad.

SD