Section — Wouters, Manual of Moral Theology
Section I. On the Prior Censorship of Books
I. Prescripts of the law. 1. No one may publish without prior ecclesiastical censorship and due permission the books and images soon to be assigned (cf. can. 1385). It is said:
a) No one, not even a layman.
b) May publish, i.e. may make public, as was explained in n. 1114. Therefore the law does not regard the case in which a book is multiplied only for limited use.
c) Without prior ecclesiastical censorship, i.e. without a prior review of the book made by ecclesiastical authority, namely by the competent Ordinary or his delegate. Religious superiors, considered under common law alone, in order to give the permission required by the Code, are not bound themselves to subject books or images to censorship; to what extent they must grant permission will be said under 2.
d) And due permission. Besides censorship, permission to publish these things is required. Now, permission to publish the books and images soon to be assigned can be given either by the local Ordinary proper to the author, or by the Ordinary of the place in which the books or images are made public, or by the Ordinary of the place in which they are printed, yet in such a way that, if one of these Ordinaries has denied permission, the author cannot ask it from another Ordinary unless he has informed him of the permission denied by the other (can. 1385, § 2). For religious, the proper local Ordinary is the Ordinary of the place in which the religious house to which the religious belong is situated. Besides, religious must also obtain beforehand the permission of their own major Superior (can. 1385, § 3).
e) Books and images; to this category, from can. 1385, § 1, belong:
alpha) Books of the Sacred Scriptures, or annotations and commentaries on them (can. 1385, § 1, 1°).
beta) Books which regard the divine Scriptures, sacred theology, ecclesiastical history, canon law, natural theology, ethics, or other religious and moral disciplines of this sort; books and booklets of prayers, devotion, or religious, moral, ascetical, mystical teaching and instruction, and other things of this sort, although they may seem to conduce to fostering piety; and generally writings in which there is something which is of particular concern for religion and the honesty of morals (can. 1385, § 1, 2°). Since books, booklets, and writings are distinguished, in the first series the word books should be taken in the strict sense; in the second series there is discussion of books and booklets, with separate sheets excluded; in the third series there is discussion of writings of any kind.
With respect to the first series, note that periodical publications can indeed constitute a book according to what was said in n. 1114; but they do not constitute a book which regards, for example, ecclesiastical history or canon law, unless the periodical itself is destined for cultivating ecclesiastical history or canon law.
With respect to writings of any kind, note that it especially depends on the circumstances of time and place whether something contained in them is of particular concern for religion or the honesty of morals.
gamma) Sacred images to be printed in any way whatever, whether they have prayers attached or are published without them (can. 1385, § 1, 3°). To this do not belong statues and paintings; nor images which are multiplied only for the sake of art, not for pious use, and therefore are not called sacred; nor finally, as it seems, medals, since these are said to be struck, not printed.
- Secular clerics are forbidden without the consent of their Ordinaries, and religious without the permission of their own major Superior and the local Ordinary, to publish even books which treat of profane matters, and to write in daily papers, sheets, or periodical booklets, or to direct the same (can. 1386, § 1). Moreover:
a) The word books should be taken for books strictly so called and for booklets.
b) By local Ordinary is understood the Ordinary proper to the author.
c) One or another minor essay in daily papers, etc., does not seem to be comprehended under the word writing; since, where there is discussion of evil daily papers, etc., the Code speaks more severely by saying: nor may they write anything.
d) Finally, with respect to directing daily papers, sheets, or periodical booklets, the President of the P. C.1 declared that the canon also prohibits a cleric or religious without due permission from being a member of a commission for editing, or of a supervisory council, or of similar councils connected with political daily papers.
Nor may Catholic laymen, a fortiori clerics and religious, write anything in daily papers, sheets, or periodical booklets which are accustomed to attack the Catholic religion or good morals, unless a just and reasonable cause advises it and has been approved by the local Ordinary (can. 1386, § 2), the local Ordinary being taken as was said under 2. These things do not touch so-called advertisements, which are left to be judged according to the general rules of cooperation.
Things which in any way pertain to the causes of beatifications and canonizations of Servants of God cannot be published without the permission of the Sacred Congregation of Rites (can. 1387). And this permission suffices; the permission of the local Ordinary is no longer required.
All books of indulgences, summaries, booklets, sheets, etc., in which grants of them are contained, are not to be published without the permission of the local Ordinary (can. 1388, § 1). Note that images published in memory of some deceased person, jubilee, etc., are not called sheets of indulgences, even if they contain little prayers endowed with indulgences. But express permission of the Apostolic See is required so that it may be lawful to publish in print, in any language whatever, both an authentic collection of prayers and pious works to which the Apostolic See has attached indulgences, and an index of apostolic indulgences, and a summary of indulgences either previously collected but never approved, or now for the first time to be gathered from diverse grants (can. 1388, § 2). What apostolic indulgences are, see in the treatise on Indulgences.
Collections of decrees of the Roman Congregations cannot be republished unless permission has first been obtained and the conditions prescribed by the Moderators of each Congregation have been observed (can. 1389). By Moderator of the Congregation is understood the Cardinal Prefect together with his Congress.
In publishing liturgical books and their parts, and likewise litanies approved by the Holy See, their agreement with approved editions must be established from the attestation of the Ordinary of the place in which they are printed or made public (can. 1390).
Versions of the Sacred Scriptures into the vernacular language cannot be printed unless they are approved by the Apostolic See, or unless they are published under the vigilance of Bishops and with annotations drawn especially from the holy Fathers of the Church and from learned and Catholic writers (can. 1391).2 Paraphrastic versions seem to be equated with versions with annotations. Besides, without annotations there are permitted certain parts of Scripture which are rather often inserted into prayer booklets. Finally, books which, for the benefit of youth, present the history of both Testaments are immune from this special censorship and are subject only to the common censorship.
Finally note with respect to all the writings enumerated above: the approval of the original text of some work benefits neither translations of the same into another language nor other editions; wherefore both translations and new editions of an approved work must be fortified by a new approval (can. 1392, § 1). But chapters excerpted from periodicals and published separately are not judged new editions and therefore do not need a new approval (can. 1392, § 2).
1 3 Nov. 1928; cf. Commentarium pro Religiosis 1929, p. 24.
2 Versions with annotations must be published, even if they are published under the vigilance of Bishops (P. C., 20 May 1923; A. A. S. 1924, p. 115).
II. The appointment and office of censors. 1. In all episcopal Curias there should be censors ex officio who examine things to be published (can. 1393, § 1). Moreover, censors should be chosen from either clergy, commended by age, learning, and prudence, who in approving and disapproving doctrines proceed by a middle and safe way (can. 1393, § 3).
In carrying out their office, examiners, laying aside all acceptance of persons, should have before their eyes only the dogmas of the Church and the common doctrine of Catholics, which is contained in the decrees of general Councils or the constitutions or prescriptions of the Apostolic See and the consensus of approved doctors (can. 1393, § 2). Therefore the censor must per se judge only about doctrine; this nevertheless does not prevent him from being able, and sometimes according to the circumstances even obliged, if the writing seems inopportune, to signify this to the competent authority.
The censor must give his opinion in writing (can. 1393, § 4).
III. Granting of permission. 1. If the judgment of the censor is favorable,1 the Ordinary should grant the power of publishing, to which, however, the censor's judgment should be prefixed, with his name inscribed. Only in extraordinary circumstances, and very rarely, according to the prudent judgment of the Ordinary, can mention of the censor be omitted (can. 1393, § 4). But the name of the censor should never be known to authors before he has issued a favorable judgment (can. 1393, § 5).
The permission by which the Ordinary grants the power of publishing should be granted in writing, to be printed at the beginning or end of the book, sheet, or image, with the name of the one granting it expressed, and likewise the place and time of the grant (can. 1394, § 1). If the judgment of the censor was favorable, this judgment, with his name inscribed, together with the granted power of publishing, must indeed be made known to the author, but it is not prescribed that these be printed in the writing to be published. But if this is omitted, it is useful to preserve the judgment and the name of the censor in the archive.
If permission seems to have to be denied, the reasons should be indicated to the author asking for it, unless a grave cause demands otherwise (can. 1394, § 2).
Corollary. From what has been said it follows that sometimes, for publishing writings, the permission of the competent Authority suffices, without its being required per se that the things to be published be subjected to censorship.
1 This is commonly expressed by these words: Nihil obstat.