The decision to remove 14 books from the Bible by the Vatican in 1684 stems from a complex history of religious and theological disputes. In the context of the Reformation and the Counter-Reformation, the Catholic Church sought to clarify its doctrine and consolidate its teachings.
Many of the books that were removed, often referred to as the ‘Apocrypha’, were considered by some to be less authoritative than the canonical texts. These books included works like the Wisdom of Solomon and the Book of Tobit, which were part of the Septuagint, a Greek translation of Hebrew scriptures.
The Council of Trent, held between 1545 and 1563, made significant decisions regarding the biblical canon. While it affirmed the inclusion of the Deuterocanonical books (which are included in the Catholic Bible but not in the Protestant version), it also set a precedent for evaluating other texts. By the time of the 1684 Index of Forbidden Books, some texts were deemed inauthentic or too controversial, leading to their removal.
Thus, the removal can be seen as part of a broader effort to define Catholic orthodoxy and maintain the integrity of the church’s teachings during a turbulent time in Christian history.