The censorship of the Church of Rome and its influence upon the production and distribution of literature, volume 1 (of 2)Putnam, George Haven
History
The censorship of the Church of Rome and its influence upon the production and distribution of literature, volume 1 (of 2)
Putnam, George Haven
Freedom of the press; Liberty of conscience; Prohibited books
The first list in the volume bears the title: _Catalogus librorum
jampridem per sanctum officium Inquisitionis reprobatorum_. This is
followed by the Latin lists of the Louvain Index, with the anonymous
works alphabeted in, and a supplement with eleven further titles.
This Valdes Index is the first of the Spanish series, and forms the
foundation of the Index of 1559.
Llorente mentions[116] an Index prepared in 1555 under the instructions
of the Inquisition, but states that this was kept in the form of
manuscript for the use only of the inquisitors. Valdes was concerned
with the compilation of two further Indexes, those of 1554 and 1559.
The supplement to the lists of 1551 presents certain general
prohibitions; such as of Bibles in Spanish or in any vernacular
versions; (these are entered curiously under the letter “N,” “New
and Old Testaments”); pictures, figures or statues by means of which
the Virgin or the Saints might be brought into ridicule; all books
tainted with heresy (_sapiento haeresim_); works having to do with
necromancy; books (whatsoever their text) which had been printed
within twenty-five years, and which failed to present the name and
address of the printer. A separate prohibition is provided for books
written against the proceedings of the Diet of Ratisbon (1541). This
is directed against a monograph by Calvin, published anonymously,
in which this Diet is sharply handled. The lists report the authors
given in the Louvain Index, in some instances with fresh errors
(“Bronzins” for “Brentius”). The new names include Michael Servetus
(his first appearance in any Index), connected with his tract on
the Trinity; Simon Essius, for Simon Hessus, connected with his
_Apologia_; John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester (possibly the earliest
English author prohibited outside of England); Ulrich von Hutten,
_libri omnes_ (Hutten, while not listed in Louvain, had been recorded
by Casa); Alcoranus _vel alii libri in arabigo ubi sunt errores sectae
Mahometicae_ (this is the first appearance in an Index of Arabic
heresy). As late as 1790, the _Koran_, in every version, finds place in
the Spanish Index, while there is a special prohibition of the Latin
translation of the same that had been made in the 12th century by
Peter of Cluny, and had been printed, _cum refutationibus variorum_,
in Basel in 1543. In the Index of Quiroga, the _Koran_ appears under
the title _Machumetis ... ejusque successorum vitae ac doctrina ipseque
Alcoran ... adjunctae sunt confutationes multorum una cum M. Lutheri
praemonitione_, etc.
Reusch points out that this prohibition has to do not with the
doctrines of the _Koran_ but with the godless (_impia_) undertakings
of the publisher, Theodor Bibliander of Basel. In the Index of Clement
VIII, the entry appears, _Instructionum et rituum sectae Mahometanae
libri omnes_. Since Benedict XIV, the prohibition comes under the
general decree I, 11.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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