Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1913-09-04

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CHALLENGE
Last June the Seventh Day Ad-
Yentists held camp services in this
city and during those services, Rev.
Evans made a statement which
prompted Rev. VIM Reding to pub
lish the following:
100000 REWARD.
= am credibly informed that an
Adventist Minister in a public ad-
dress Wednesday evening launched
forth in a sea of TRADE and infamous
aspersions against the Catholic
church Is it malice or ignorance or
perhaps both? l know it is not part
of the Adventist teaching to maligne
the Old Mother church. To say that
''The Catholic church forbids her PEG
pie to read the Bible" might pass,
but to intelligent people it is not
acceptable. l ask for proof and as
an especial inducement I offer one
thousand dollars ($1,OOOOOD to any
charitable institution the Reverend
gentleman may designate, if he
proves the above statement.
Rev VIM. Reding.
The following communication is in
reply to said challenge, which will
explain itself:
Washington, D. c., July II, 1913
Ed. w. H. Thurston,
Grand Rapids, Wis.
| Dear Brother Thurston:
Your favor under date of July Il
| concerning the agitation of the Cath
olics in Grand Rapids, Wisconsin, re
garding a sermon that l preached at
your camp-meeting on 1.-The Mark of
the Beast" has been read with inter
est. | am not at all astonished that
| the Catholics should contend that
their great Church, the Roman CathO
lie Church, is not the Beast of Rev.
IS. I understand, from your letter
that the Catholics in Grand Rapids
deny the statement that I made at
the Grand Rapids meeting that the
laity of the Catholic Church were
prohibited from reading the Bible in
the vernacular of the people.
I would call your attention to
some DEGREES and councils of the
Catholic Church where this question
has been freely discussed, recon-
mendatiOns have been passed, and
DEGREES finally promulgated in the
Church regarding this very thing.
The 18th chapter of the Council
Of Toulouse, held in 1929 A. D., fount
in Liable and Cossart's History OF
the Councils" Vol. II, part 1, col
430, reads thus: Let not laymeI
| IlCLN z LIIC bOOS vi ONI pun Z, SAtSPl
the psalter and the divine office;
but let them not have these books
in the vernacular We also forbid
laymen being permitted to have the
books of the Old or the New Tesla
ment, unless perchance some one out
of piety wishes to have the psalte1
or the breviary for divine offices
or the hours of blessed Mary. But
We most strictly forbid their having
the above mentioned books, translat
ed into the vernacular." This de-
cree W as in force until after the
beginning of the Reformation in
Europe. When Luther brought out
his Bible in the vernacular of the
people and there was great demand
for the Scriptures, the Council OF
Trent gave consideration to the
Scriptures in the vernacuIar of the
people.
In Rule 3, laid down by the Coun-
ell of Trent, and approved by Pope
Plus ", it says: but versions OF
the books of the Old Testament may
be allowed only to learned andp ious
men at the discretion of the bishop,
provided they use such versions as
calculations Of the Vulgate to I'M
derstand the sacred scripture, but
not as the sound text. But let YER
sions of the New Testament, made
by authors Of the first class Of this
index, be allowed to no one, because
but little utility, but very much dan
ger is to flow from their perusal. .
From Rule We quote: Whereas
it is evident from experience, that,
if the sacred books be permitted in
fthe vulgar tongue indiscriminate-
ly, more harm than utility arises
therefrom by reason of the temer-
ity of men, in this respect let it de-
pend on the discretion of the bishop
or inquisitor, so that with the coun-
sci of the parish priest or the con-
fessor, they can grant to them the
reading of the books translated by
Catholic authors in the vulgar tongue
such persons as they may consider
may derive not injury, but an in
crease of faith and of piety from
such reading; which power they may
have with respect to the scriptures.
But Whosoever shall presume to read
them without such power, let him
not be able to obtain absolution of
his sins, unless he has first given
back the books to the ordinary But
the booksellers. who shall sell the
Bible written in the vulgar tongue,
to a person not having the aforesaid
noUor or shall in anr otbo,- x-a,-