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``Where the
Bishop is, there let the multitude of believers be; |
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"Imprimi Potest,"
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| The Church, given teaching authority by Christ and as the
conduit for fullness of Truth on this earth, has the obligation to
preserve Her sheep from deviations from the Truth and to to guarantee
them the "objective possibility of professing the true faith without
error" (Catechism, No. 890). Because of this, the Bishops will look at
books published by Catholics on Catholic matters in their dioceses,
giving them their "okay" if nothing therein is found to be contrary to
the Faith (relevant Canon Law: "Title IV: The Means of Social
Communication," ¶ 822-832) The procedure works like this: when a Catholic writes a book on faith, morals, theology, liturgy, books on prayer, editions of Sacred Scripture, etc., he will submit his manuscript to his diocese's Censor. If the Censor finds no problem with it, he will give it his stamp, which reads "Nihil Obstat," or "nothing stands in the way." He then sends it to the Bishop for his review. If the Bishop finds nothing objectionable, he gives the book his "Imprimatur" which means, "let it be printed." If the Catholic writing the book is a member of a religious order, the manuscript is first sent to his religious superior before it is sent to the Censor and Bishop. If the religious superior finds no impediment to publication, he will give the book his stamp of "Imprimi Potest," which means "it can be printed." Nowadays, after the Imprimatur, you might see these words: The "Nihil Obstat" and "Imprimatur" are official declarations that a book or pamphlet is free of doctrinal or moral error. No implication is contained therein that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat and the Imprimatur agree with the content, opinions or statements expressed. Please
know that the presence of an Imprimatur does not mean that a book is an
official text of the Church. It doesn't make the book the equivalent of
an encyclical, say. It's not the approval of the work by the Pope or a
dogmatic Council, and it's not a stamp of infallibility. It doesn't
even mean that everything in the book is accurate, only that there is
nothing in it that contradicts Catholic dogma. But, while occasionally
a book sneaks through and its Imprimatur later recalled, this procedure
is an important way for Catholics to increase their chances of staying
error-free with regard to doctrine. Sadly, because of the triumph of
modernsists and liberals in the human aspect of the Church since the
Second Vatican Council, books which could well contain a watered-down
theology, a warped view of History, etc. now do receive the
"Imprimatur."
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