[MeshugeMikey]

great theologians such as Al Sharpton should be made aware of this material Immediately.

Al might learn how to spell and hopefully PRONOUNCE the name Galileo,...assuming he can read CURSIVE

[Trapped Behind Enemy Lines]

Jimmy Hoffa?

[Fester Chugabrew]

The true Da Vinci Code lurks therein, no doubt.

[bigbob]

Dan Brown’s next book will surely tell us.

[Night Hides Not]

If they told us what’s hidden in the secret archives, then it wouldn’t be “secret” anymore.

[miss marmelstein]

The Richard the Third Society is currently petitioning the Vatican to find his dispensation to marry his wife, Anne Nevil - she was his first cousin. Oh, to be able to spend a day in the Vatican archives. What a thrill that would be.

[Alex Murphy]

Some believe it houses evidence of extraterrestrial life. Others, ancient texts that disprove the existence of Jesus. Perhaps dark truths that would discredit and destroy the Church? A mistranslated Latin word may be responsible for the conspiracy theories about the Vatican Secret Archives. In fact, the actual contents can stand on their own without delving into the absurd.

[CrazyIvan]

In before the Lost Ark / warehouse pic.

[RetSignman]

This sounds like a job for Herwaldo.

[Organic Panic]

Probably a couple old Playboy magazines and a half filled bottle of scotch.

[edpc]

Perhaps dark truths that would discredit and destroy the Church?

Yes, because that's the kind of stuff you hold for safe keeping....not destroy.

[daniel1212]

In fact, the archives haven’t been secret since 1881, when Pope Leo XIII opened them up to scholars.

Which is misleading, since "the sitting pope decides when to expand the archives. Pope Francis is considering when to open the full archives of Pope Pius XII, the man dubbed “Hitler’s Pope” by some," meaning only a select portion has been made available. And even that is difficult to obtain much.

Scholars enter through the Porta Sant’Anna, pass Swiss Guards, walk through the Cortile del Belvedere, and present credentials that must be renewed every 6 months. Journalists, students, and amateur historians aren’t welcome. <

Once admitted, there’s no browsing. Instead, researchers request specific documents, using bulky catalogues, some handwritten in Italian or Latin. They can request up to three folders each day.

If in just a few minutes they realize that what they’re seeking isn’t in the requested folders, they’re forced to pack up for the day – a challenge for scholars on a deadline or those who have traveled long distances.

Computers are allowed, but photos aren’t, which means long sessions in the third-floor reading room typing notes.

David Kertzer spent years researching in the Secret Archives for his recent book, The Pope and Mussolini. He writes that Pope Pius XI, and his secretary of state, who became Pope Pius XII, made deals with Mussolini to protect the Church’s interest in exchange for silence on state-sponsored anti-Semitism, a conclusion at odds with the Church’s account.

[St_Thomas_Aquinas]

Amazing stuff. Aren’t they working on scanning all of these documents? I’m terrified of a fire. It would be like losing the library of Alexandria.