Boy oh boy how we used to slate the Roman Catholic church for having a banned books list.
John Peter Carafa was a cardinal of the church in the mid 16th century, elected Pope Paul IV in May 1555 he then started to spread his own brand of fanaticism. An ascetic like the dominican friar Thomas de Torquemada, he hated Jews and shut them in ghettos, hated sodomites whom he burned, hated women and banned them from the vatican. But it seems his passionate interest was stifling freedom of thought. As a cardinal he had burned all books he considered pernicious. As Pope he introduced in 1559 the Index of Forbidden Books. On the list went all of Erasmus's works, Rabelais, Henry VIII's Seven Sacraments, Bocaccio's Decameron etc.
But suppressing free thought had become difficult after books started pouring off the new printing presses. Printing was the greatest aid to democracy the world had yet seen. But Paul IV it seems did the heroic thing by putting himself on the list, it's an odd tale....Carafa pre-pope had been head of a committee of six cardinals who were to investigate all who were guilty of wandering from "orthodox faith and morals". The guilty and the suspects were to be proceeded against up to the final sentence (death). Carafa carried out the order to the letter. In the final 'CONSILIUM' or report given to Pope Paul III, there was outspoken criticism of Papal absolutism, Simony, Nepotism, abuses in the bestowal of bishoprics on unworthy's and much besides. Here's the funny part... Unfortunately for the Vatican, this document was leaked. Protestants read it with delight as confirming everything they had ever said about the papacy. Here's the funnier part. CARAFA put Consilium on the Index.
Lastly The Church having been found with forged texts supporting the creation of the papal system (The Pseudo-Isidorian Decretals) put the french scholar who exposed the texts on the INDEX of forbidden works in 1660. It was not until 1789 that Pius VI admitted they were a forgery, the admission was nine centuries overdue.
Lea wrote in his "Studies in Church History (1883)" : - It is not the least of the troubles of an infallible church that it cannot decently abandon any position once assumed.
Rome had always found it easier to stifle arguments than to answer them.
Now my 1st point in this lesson from history is there seems to be a borg equivalent of the INDEX not least of all starting with Crisis of Conscience. And there are plenty others on their list too.
And My 2nd point is just like when the printing presses came around the RC church could not suppress free thought. So it is with the Internet today and this is why they are panicking.
Hence anyone ignoring the lessons from history are condemned to repeat them. MW.
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