Can. 825 §1: “Books of the sacred Scriptures may not be published
unless they are approved by the Apostolic See or the Episcopal
Conference. The publication of translations of the sacred Scriptures
requires the approval of the same authority, and they must have
necessary and sufficient explanatory notes.”
Can. 826 §3: “Prayer books, for either the public or the private use
of the faithful, are not to be published except by permission of the
local Ordinary.”
Can. 827 §1: “…the publication of catechisms and other writings
pertaining to catechetical formation, as well as their translations,
requires the approval of the local Ordinary;
Can. 827 §2: “Books dealing with matters concerning sacred
Scripture, theology, canon law, church history, or religious or moral
subjects may not be used as textbooks on which the instruction is
based, in elementary, intermediate or higher schools, unless they
were published with the approbation of the competent ecclesiastical
authority or were subsequently approved by that authority.”
Can. 830 §2: “In carrying out this task, a censor must put aside all
preference of persons and look only to the teaching of the Church
concerning faith and morals, as declared by its Magisterium.”
Can. 831 §1: “Unless there is a just and reasonable cause, no
member of Christ’s faithful may write in newspapers, pamphlets or
periodicals which clearly are accustomed to attack the Catholic
religion or good morals. Clerics and members of religious institutes
may write in them only with the permission of the local Ordinary.”
Far from being a tool for repressing “religious truth and scientific
knowledge,” the Index historically was a significant instrument in ensuring
that the Catholic faithful were fed the pure milk of true doctrine, science
and morality. Nor was it a weapon aimed solely at Protestantism. The
Church sought to protect her children by screening books relating to all the
following areas: the Bible, theology, Church history, canon law, natural
theology, ethics, religious and moral sciences, ascetic or mystical doctrine,
sacred pictures with or without prayers and all writings having a special
bearing on religion or morality. The term “books” included booklets,
pamphlets, magazines, periodicals, newspapers, etc.
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