Why where certain books banned by the Cathlic Church?

Answer 1

A goodly Number under the Index of Prohibited Books. Including Victor Hugo's Les Miserables and Notre Dame de Paris were on the list, a frequent criterion was any negative imaging of the Religious Life- or anything making fun of religion, atheistic ideas, parodies on hymns.

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Catholic AnswerThe last Index issued in 1948 may be viewed below. The Index was there for a very good reason, to give people a guide as to reading materials that could be damaging to their faith. Anything on the Index could be read for a good reason, the Church was just going to lengths to protect people from things which would make attaining their salvation more difficult.

Answer 2

The Catholic Church thought nobody but a priest could understand The Bible. This was a way of keeping the truth from the average person, then the Catholic Church could introduce whatever non biblical teaching or doctrine they wanted.

Pope Innocent III stated in 1199:

... to be reproved are those who translate into French the Gospels, the letters of Paul, the psalter, etc. They are moved by a certain love of Scripture in order to explain them clandestinely and to preach them to one another. The mysteries of the faith are not to explained rashly to anyone. Usually in fact, they cannot be understood by everyone but only by those who are qualified to understand them with informed intelligence. The depth of the divine Scriptures is such that not only the illiterate and uninitiated have difficulty understanding them, but also the educated and the gifted (Denzinger-Schönmetzer, Enchiridion Symbolorum 770-771)

Answer 3

The Index of Forbidden Books which was first published by Pope Paul IV in 1559, was abolished by Pope Paul VI in 1966. The list contained books which were a danger to the faith and could not be read by the average layman without spiritual danger. Any scholar who needed who study such books was always granted permission by his bishop. The Church banned the reading of such books in an effort to help guard the faith of the laity. Here is a copy of the complete list as banned in 1948 - the last time the list was updated:http://www.cvm.qc.ca/gconti/905/BABEL/Index%20Librorum%20Prohibitorum-1948.htm

Answer 4

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Catholic AnswerThe INDEX LIBRORVM PROHIBITORVM which was originally published in the 16th century, shortly after the printing press became common, was to protect people from books containing heretical theological opinions, and other dangers to faith and morals. Attached is the first list published, and the last one, which was published in 1948. The Index was abolished by Pope Paul VI in the 1960's.