This was enforced by a decree of the Fifth Lateran Council setting forth that {419} although printing has brought much advantage to the church [Sidenote: May 4, 1515] it has also disseminated errors and pernicious dogmas contrary to the Christian religion.

The decree forbids the printing of any book in any city or diocese of Christendom without license from the local bishop or other ecclesiastical authority.
This sweeping edict was supplemented by others directed against certain books or authors, but for a whole generation the church left the censorship chiefly to the discretion of the several national governments.

This was the policy followed also by the Protestants, both at this time and later.

[Sidenote: Protestant censorship] Neither Luther, nor any other reformer for a long time attempted to draw up regular indices of prohibited books.

Examples of something approaching this may be found in the later history of Protestantism, but they are so unimportant as to be negligible.
[Sidenote: National censorship, 1502] The national governments, however, laid great stress on licensing.