USCCB - Catechesis in the Catholic Church

Catechism of the Catholic Church

Catechism Update
October, 1996

Your Eminence/Excellency:
One of the objectives given the Ad Hoc Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism involves the review of individual manuscripts which quote directly from the Catechism. Since such use of the Catechism is subject to copyright law, publishers of these works must comply with copyright law as well as with the directives of the Holy See. Manuscripts which use excerpts from the Catechism must be "consistent" with the Catechism. Under the oversight of the Ad Hoc Committee, the Office for the Catechism and the Office for Publishing and Promotion Services work together to complete the review and approval of manuscripts which quote directly from the Catechism.
In June of this year, Archbishop Celli, Secretary of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See, agreed to suspend, ad experimentum for a period of one year, the requirement that the Holy See itself review works which use in excess of 5,000 words from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Therefore, at this time, no manuscripts requiring copyright permission must be submitted to the Holy See.
In light of this suspension, Archbishop Celli has approved Catechism of the Catholic Church: Revised Statement of Principles, Guidelines for Use of the Text. This revised statement replaces Catechism of the Catholic Church: Statement of Principles, Guidelines for Publication and Frequently Asked Questions as the document governing the use of the text of the Catechism in the United States. The original document was distributed to all bishops in the July, 1994 issue of Catechism Update.
I am pleased to send you a copy of the Revised Statement of Principles, Guidelines for Use of the Text. It is the hope of the Ad Hoc Committee that these guidelines will be of assistance to you. If you have any further questions regarding these procedures, please do not hesitate to contact the Office for the Catechism.
Fraternally yours in Christ,

Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein
Chairman

Catechism of the Catholic Church

Revised Statement of Principles
and Guidelines for Use of the Text

PRINCIPLES TO GUIDE THE USE OF THE TEXT
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The Holy See has given the National Conference of Catholic Bishops/United States Catholic Conference (NCCB/USCC) specific rights and responsibilities regarding the Catechism of the Catholic Church. No edition of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, in any language, may be published in the United States or imported for commercial distribution in the United States without the written permission of the NCCB/USCC. Excerpts from the English language text, the Spanish language text and the French language text of the Catechism of the Catholic Church may be used in the United States only in accordance with the guidelines set forth in this document.
In the name of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops/United States Catholic Conference, the Ad Hoc Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism and the Of fice for Publishing and Promotion Services are charged:

to preserve the integrity of the text of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

to ensure the widest possible distribution of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

to encourage the proper use of the text of the Catechism of the Catholic Church in secondary and derivative works.

In light of these principles, the United States Catholic Conference has prepared the following guidelines for those who wish to use portions of the text of the Catechism of the Catholic Church in written, recorded or electronic form:

Scholarly Use

Works for academic discourse, e.g. dissertations, scholarly articles, materials intended for use within courses, are exempt from these guidelines provided that all direct and indirect quotes and references are acknowledged.

GUIDELINES FOR USE OF TEXT
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I. The following guidelines are applicable to all uses of the text:

The text may not be published in parts or in serialized editions.

Only the English, Spanish and French translations officially approved by the Holy See for use in the United States may be used.

All excerpts must be complete and accurate.

All footnoted materials must be appropriately identified and acknowledged.

Any alteration to achieve brevity, e.g., use of ellipsis or replacement of phrases with pronouns, must be clearly indicated.

All works using any number of words from the Catechism must carry the following copyright notice on the reverse of the title page, copyright page or immediately following the quoted selection(s):

"Excerpts from the English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for use in the United States of America Copyright 1994, United States Catholic Conference, Inc. -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with Permission."
or, as appropriate:
"Excerpts from the Spanish translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for use in the United States of America Copyright 1993, United States Catholic Conference, Inc. -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with Permission."
or, as appropriate:
"Excerpts from the French translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for use in the United States of America Copyright 1992, United States Catholic Conference, Inc. -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with Permission."
II. The following guidelines are applicable to non-commercial and commercial use of less than 500 words:

Any use of less than 500 words in a printed work, recording or other electronic form does not require permission from the USCC, provided that the user complies with all of the provisions of section I above, including the use of the copyright notice.

III. The following guidelines are applicable to non-commercial use of more than 500 words:

Any use of more than 500 words in a printed work, recording or other electronic form which is made available to the public at no cost requires written permission from the USCC.

The user must submit a copy of the proposed work in which excerpts from the Catechism are clearly marked or high-lighted.

The work must be in compliance with all provisions of section I above, including use of the copyright notice.

The Office for Publishing and Promotion Services will review the use of excerpted text for accuracy, and the Ad Hoc Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism will review the use of text for consistency with the Catechism.

Three copies of each work printed, recorded or used in any electronic format must be provided free of charge to USCC when completed.

Non-commercial use is not subject to the payment of royalties to the Holy See.

Educational works of dioceses or entities directly controlled by them that are distributed free of charge are considered non-commercial use.

IV. The following guidelines are applicable to commercial use of more than 500 words:

Any use of more than 500 words in a printed work, recording or other electronic form which is made available to the public for sale requires written permission from USCC.

The user must submit a copy of the proposed work in which excerpts from the Catechism are clearly marked or high-lighted. The work must be in compliance with all provisions of section I above, including use of the copyright notice.

The Office for Publishing and Promotion Services will review the use of excerpted text for accuracy, and the Ad Hoc Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism will review the use of text for consistency with the Catechism.

Three copies of each work printed, recorded or used in electronic format must be provided free of charge to USCC when completed.

Commercial use of more than 5,000 words of the Catechism text is subject to payment of a pro-rated royalty, governed by requirements of the Holy See calculated on the basis of ten percent (10%) of the list price. Three copies of each work printed, recorded or used in electronic format must be sent free of charge directly to the Holy See when completed.

Educational works of dioceses or entities directly controlled by them that are made available for sale are considered commercial use.

APPROVED 6 September 1996
By Secretary of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See

Catechism of the Catholic Church

Revised Statement of Principles and Guidelines for Use of the Text

Revised Statement of Principles
and Guidelines for Use of the Text