The Laity and the Bible Before Luther

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In 1480 (that’s 44 years before Martin Luther published his version of the Bible) the German Catholic Cologne Bible contained these words in its prologue:

“All Christians should read the Bible with piety and reverence, praying the Holy Ghost, who is the inspirer of the Scriptures, to enable them to understand . . . The learned should make use of the Latin translation of St. Jerome; but the unlearned and simple folk, whether laymen or clergy . . . should read the German translations now supplied, and thus arm themselves against the enemy of our salvation [i.e. Satan].”

I don’t have a problem with that.

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