The Laity and the Bible Before Luther

In 1480 (that’s 44 years before Martin Luther published his version of the Bible) the German Catholic Cologne Bible contained these words in its prologue:

“All Christians should read the Bible with piety and reverence, praying the Holy Ghost, who is the inspirer of the Scriptures, to enable them to understand . . . The learned should make use of the Latin translation of St. Jerome; but the unlearned and simple folk, whether laymen or clergy . . . should read the German translations now supplied, and thus arm themselves against the enemy of our salvation [i.e. Satan].”

I don’t have a problem with that.