A starting distinction
The 1575 Cividale records describe claims made about nocturnal activities. They are strong evidence that particular descriptions entered an ecclesiastical proceeding, but do not verify their supernatural subject matter. The distinction is easy to state and surprisingly easy to lose when writing an absorbing story.
Why layers multiply
Between a reported experience and a modern browser page lie conversations, questioning, written record, preservation, scholarly selection, translation and editorial summary. Each step has its own incentives and failure modes. An accurate quotation of a printed translation can still lose a qualification present in a longer passage.
The practical rule
Track who said what, to whom, under what conditions, and through which edition it survives. Assign confidence separately to the presence of the statement and the meaning or reality attributed to it. The archive’s source list is a start, not the end of the work.
Source and revision record
Original editorial analysis and definitions. For background reference, consult the source catalog.