church were married, even the apostle Peter who supposedly was the first Pope!!!

This is a
clear example of making of none effect the Word of God by tradition.

Reading Scripture

The same could be said about Bible study. Even though the Roman Catholic Church in this age
of enlightenment allows, and in some cases even encourages, reading the Bible, it was not
always so.

In Canon 14 of the Council of Toulouse (France) which was celebrated in the year 1229 A. D. we
find the following prohibition:

“We forbid the laity to have in their possession any copy of the books of the Old and New
Testament, except the Psalter, and such portions of them as are contained in the Breviary, or the
Hours of the Blessed Virgin; and we most strictly forbid even these works in the vulgar tongue.”

Around this same time, William Tyndale was burned at the stake for translating the New
Testament into English contrary to the will of the church. Roman Catholic theologian John
Gilmary Shea admits that the Catholic Church forbade the reading of the Scriptures in the
common tongue:

"In early times, the Bible was read freely by the lay people, and the Fathers constantly
encourage them to do so, although they also insist on the obscurity of the sacred text. No
prohibitions were issued against the popular reading of the Bible. New dangers came during the
middle ages. When the heresy of the Albigenses arose there was a danger from corrupt
translations, and also from the fact that the heretics tried to make the faithful judge the Church
by their own interpretation of the Bible. To meet these evils, the Council of Toulouse (1229) and
Tarragona (1234) forbade the laity to read the vernacular translations of the Bible. Pius IV
required the bishops to refuse lay persons leave to read even Catholic versions of the Scripture,
unless their confessors or parish priests judged that such readings was likely to prove
beneficial." Shea John Gilmary Ed, The Catholic Educator: A Library of Catholic Devotion and
Instruction, New York, Peter J. Ryan, p 61)

The Council of Trent reaffirmed the same position. Rules on Prohibited Books was approved by
Pope Pius IV, in 1564:

"Since it is clear from experience that if the Sacred Books are permitted everywhere and without
discrimination in the vernacular, there will by reason of the boldness of men arise therefrom
more harm than good, the matter is in this respect left to the judgment of the bishop or
inquisitor, who may with the advice of the pastor or confessor permit the reading of the Sacred
Books translated into the vernacular by Catholic authors to those who they know will derive
from such reading no harm but rather an increase of faith and piety, which permission they
must have in writing. Those, however, who presume to read or possess them without such
permission, may not receive absolution from their sins till they have handed them over to the

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