Stanislaus Konarski’s On the Religion of Honest Men – between Historiography and New Establishments Based on the Records of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith

Abstract

The prevailing opinion in historiography is that the accusation of Stanisław Konarski’s book O religii poczciwych ludzi (On the Religion of Honest Men) as containing doctrinal errors was an exaggeration of his enemies. However, it was impossible to describe the consequences of the denunciation made by Nuncio Durini in Rome and to explain the genesis of the Latin version of the book. The archival sources of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, used for the first time, allow for a detailed description of the process that took place in the Holy Office. The Italian and Latin translations of the book were commissioned, Roman theologians reviewed its contents, and Konarski was instructed to make precise corrections and to prepare a second revised edition. He was cleared of many charges made against him by the theologians in Poland, but the book was to be included in the index of prohibited books, should the author persist in his expressions. This decision, however, remained secret as the author complied with the order and prepared a second revised edition in Latin.