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“Imprimatur” is a Latin word that literally means, “Let it be printed.”

In the world of Roman Catholicism, this word is printed on books that a Bishop has confirmed as being “free of doctrinal error” and therefore approved for publication.

At one point in history, the Roman Catholic Church banned and burned books published by Protestants. Today, it officially approves some of them for publication. 

The Augustine Institute is “a private Roman Catholic graduate institution that aims to answer Pope John Paul II’s call for a New Evangelization” and it has recently posted a video advertising the ESV Catholic Edition Bible:

For a historical sketch of how this version came to be published and a verification of this ESV’s “Imprimatur” status, read this blog post.

To be perfectly honest, I am tempted to purchase a copy of this Bible; but for one reason only: To see if it also bears the “nihil obstat” approval.

Strange days…

– Christian McShaffrey