Decrees of the Council of Trent, Session IV

The Council of Trent's fourth session decrees on the canon of Scripture, the authenticity of the Vulgate, and rules for interpretation and printing. Reproduced in full in the Preliminares.

Preliminaries

• DECREES OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT (SESSION IV). — Full text of Session IV decrees reproduced

  "DECREES OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT (SESSION IV)."

• DECREES OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT (SESSION IV). — Decree on canonical Scriptures: receives and venerates Old and New Testament books and traditions

  "receives and venerates with equal affection of piety and reverence all the books both of the Old and of the New Testament"

• DECREES OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT (SESSION IV). — Decree on the Vulgate as authentic edition

  "ordains and declares that the said old and Vulgate edition... be held as authentic in public readings, disputations, sermons and expositions"

• DECREES OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT (SESSION IV). — Decree restraining private interpretation of Scripture

  "no one, relying on his own prudence... shall dare to interpret the sacred Scripture contrary to that sense which holy mother Church... has held and does hold"

• PREFACE TO THE READER (1) — Cited as declaring the Vulgate authentic

  "He declared by a most solemn decree the sole Old and Vulgate edition... to be authentic."